How MoviePass wooed me back for $9.95 a month
Well, everyone, it’s official: MoviePass and I are back together.
Yes, we decided to give it another go, after the ticketing service lowered its price last month, allowing subscribers to see one movie a day for $9.95 a month .
My crush was instantaneous: All I had to do was download the app, register for the service and wait for my MoviePass (a MasterCard debit card) to arrive in the mail. Once I typed in my zip code to find nearby theaters that accept MoviePass, I could check in to my desired film and showtime within 100 yards of the theater and use my card to “buy” a ticket once a day.
Like every relationship, ours has had its ups and downs. I was introduced to MoviePass back in 2014, when it was priced at a less attractive, but still enticing $35 a month in New York City. As an avid film buff who vastly prefers seeing movies on the big screen to watching at home on Netflix, I was smitten by the prospect of a service that paid for itself if I bought just a couple of tickets a month. (The National Association of Theatre Owners reports an average ticket price of $8.95, although that can soar as high as $18.50 in New York.)
Alas, the honeymoon phase was short-lived. Movies were limited to the major theater chains AMC and Regal, and the process of buying tickets was a headache. The glitchy MoviePass app frequently froze and couldn’t find theaters, and on more than one occasion, my MoviePass card wasn’t recognized by theater kiosks or employees, who were still unfamiliar with the program.
And with no customer service to speak of on its official site, I made the easy decision to break up with MoviePass after just three months.
Flash-forward to last month, when MoviePass announced a new subscription model priced at just $9.95. With very little soul- or wallet-searching, I decided to take the plunge again.
At first, it seemed like MoviePass could be just another bad ex: Although my debit card was scheduled to arrive within seven to 10 business days, I didn’t receive it until nearly a month later (a frustrating but understandable delay, given the influx of 400,000 new subscribers). But while there still is the slight inconvenience of only being able to use MoviePass within close proximity of your desired theater, it’s a major step up from our past fling.
So far, I’ve gone out twice with MoviePass. The service recently expanded to a variety of smaller chain and independent theaters, meaning that I was able to catch a 4:50 p.m. showing of French-language thriller The Unknown Girl at a local art-house cinema.
After checking in on my app, I walked up to the counter, asked for a ticket and my MoviePass card was swiped like any credit or debit card. Gratefully, I received my printed ticket with no questions or need to mention that I was using the service.
MoviePass no longer requires you to wait 24 hours between movies,which allowed me to catch an 11:10 a.m. showing of Stephen King’s It the next morning at a 14-screen Regal theater. This time, I checked in on my app and swiped my card at a theater kiosk, again completing the whole ticket-buying process in less than a minute.
The biggest drawback of MoviePass is that the card only covers one person, meaning that each member of a family or group needs a subscription in order to get the one-a-day deal. The system also only includes standard showings, meaning it can’t be used for 3-D or IMAX movies.
At $9.95, can MoviePass really have its popcorn and eat it, too? AMC has already threatened legal action, pointing out that the low monthly fee is unsustainable (theaters are reimbursed for the full price of tickets), while MoviePass CEO Mitch Lowe, a Netflix co-founder, says the program boosts attendance and concessions revenue.
But until an inevitable price hike sends us back to Splitsville, this moviegoer is just going to enjoy it while it lasts.
