$20 to stream "rent" a current movie

Discussion in 'Visual Arts' started by Tim S, May 3, 2021.

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  1. JediJones

    JediJones Forum Resident

    Location:
    Pennsylvania
    Pretty sure this is "compromise" pricing to not hurt movie theaters. It's important that they not put out a cheaper option on the same day the movie debuts in theaters. Even people who intended to go to the theater will consider staying home if their whole family can watch the movie for 5 bucks at home. If you want theaters to stay alive, don't ask for a lower price this early in the release. The alternative was always not having the option to rent it digitally at all until weeks after the theatrical release. So you've been given another option. You can pretend it doesn't exist and nothing's changed by just waiting a few weeks for the price to drop.
     
  2. Stone Turntable

    Stone Turntable Independent Head

    Location:
    New Mexico USA
    I paid the $20 for my significant other and me to watch Nobody and I’m not sorry. Well-made Bourne-y action movies are few and far between and I had high hopes for this one, and even though I wasn’t crazy about the slide into cartoonish John Wick ultraviolence gunplay we had a great time.

    I haven’t set foot in a movies theatre since early 2020 and during the pandemic I’ve saved several hundred bucks on tickets and popcorn etc. Splashing out to give Bob Odenkirk a well-deserved high five was an easy call.
     
  3. Ghostworld

    Ghostworld Senior Member

    Location:
    US
    Nyet.
     
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  4. Myke

    Myke Trying Not To Spook The Horse

    Thanks to those that educated me that the price drops dramatically once it's left the theater.
    $19.99 on Amazon too, but I know from my experience with Let Him Go, it'll drop to $5.99.
    Patience my Tennessee neighbor. :tiphat:
     
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  5. NettleBed

    NettleBed Forum Transient

    Location:
    new york city
    That's too high for me, but I've barely ever paid even the $3-$5 prices to stream something, so I'm possibly not their target customer. And when there's not a pandemic, I usually go to the theater to see a movie 10-15 times a year. But if I'm at home and sitting in front of my own TV, I'm deciding between paying money for something and just clicking a different button and watching something else that doesn't have an additional charge, that will likely provide as much entertainment. I pretty much always opt for "no additional charge." God knows, I'm already spending a small fortune on the monthly cable bill.
     
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  6. dkmonroe

    dkmonroe A completely self-taught idiot

    Location:
    Atlanta
    Yes, logically it's much less expensive than taking the family to a theater, but I'm so used to buying digital movies on Vudu (sometimes for bargain prices) that I still instinctively balk at a $20 rental. We still have done it a couple of times though. However I fear it is not a tenable situation for the long term, I really hope that theaters come back into business soon for their sake.
     
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  7. Andy Dursin

    Andy Dursin Forum Resident

    Location:
    Providence RI
    Prices will undoubtedly drop when it hits what would usually be (or still is) "the home video window". This is something they seldom did before -- putting a new release out at the same time it's in theaters -- all because of the shutdowns.

    It's a model that they will probably still retain to some degree going forward. How extensively it's used, or how many movies embrace it, all depends on what happens when more theaters reopen. I would think for a massive corporation like Disney, they want theaters first and foremost, they can't generate billions on their product going streaming alone. But for other movies, a hybrid model might work out.
     
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  8. bostonscoots

    bostonscoots Forum Resident

    Location:
    Boston, MA
    I love the cinema experience - even in a multiplex - but admit to ponying up the $20 to screen a first-run movie at home. Considering what it costs for me to go the movies these days - tickets for two or three people, parking, refreshments - this isn't a bad deal. And it might not be a bad deal for the studios too, considering home viewing might draw more attention and business to movies not featuring superheroes or spaceships.

    That said, I'm anxious to get back into the theaters and predictably, it'll be for Bond...James Bond.
     
  9. Dr. Pepper

    Dr. Pepper What, me worry?

    Yes, but then you "owned" it and could watch it anytime and as many times as you wanted until you ended your subscription to Disney+, not just 24 hours like most of the others.
     
  10. Dr. Pepper

    Dr. Pepper What, me worry?

    Let's take Black Widow for instance. It will be on Disney+ for $30 on the same day it comes out to theaters. I usually see Marvel movies a couple of times each when they come to theaters. Once on opening night with my group of Marvel fanatics and then again later with me wife. With theater food included my wife and I pay about $80 dollars or so for each Marvel release - ticket $15 x 3, food $10 by myself and $25 when I'm with my wife. My wife would rather watch the movies at home anyway, so I'm ahead seeing it once on opening night $15 and $10 for food and watching with my wife on Disney plus for $30 for a total of $65 and then I can watch it at home as much as I want as an extra bonus.
     
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  11. audiomixer

    audiomixer As Bald As The Beatles

    My head hurts. $80 for every Marvel film?!? You might want to rethink those spending habits if you plan to have a retirement nestegg.
     
  12. jupiter8

    jupiter8 Forum Resident

    Location:
    NJ, USA
    it's certainly not uncommon- out where I live my family of 4 pays around $70 to see a first run film in the stadium-seating AMC by us- that's just tickets
     
  13. BeatleJWOL

    BeatleJWOL Senior Member

    For once you and I are in agreement. Buying food at your typical movie theatre* is beyond me. The risk of Big Gulping yourself into a bathroom break during a critical part of the movie is too high.

    Afternoon matinee showings and no popcorn for me please and thank you. I go with my dad and we don't usually spend more than $20 per film (maybe $25 after Fandango fees if we grab tickets beforehand).

    *Exceptions include places like Alamo Drafthouse, or the local place in Asheville where they have a theatre set up to facilitate eating while you watch. But that wouldn't be an everyday thing.
     
  14. audiomixer

    audiomixer As Bald As The Beatles

    That sounds reasonable.
     
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  15. George Blair

    George Blair Senior Member

    Location:
    Portland, OR
    I'm already paying for the streaming service. $20 is an insult, $3.99 would be acceptable.
     
  16. Jimmy B.

    Jimmy B. .

    Location:
    .
    Twenty dollars is expensive to OWN an HD streaming copy.
    I saw this online also, and was shocked; I figured it might be $6. No f-in WAY would I pay that - that's for the RICH, like the people who flaunt their copies of the Dylan "Big Blue" box in the most sickening manner.

    Yes you would determine what is a fair price with your gut reaction, and, you really didn't need to ask here; rich people will think it's FINE. People who can afford anything. Others know better.
     
  17. Dr. Pepper

    Dr. Pepper What, me worry?

    Yes, and I factored in food. Remember mine is for seeing it twice and food twice plus two tickets for me and one for my wife.
     
  18. Jim B.

    Jim B. Senior Member

    Location:
    UK
    For new films that are at the cinema I think it's a good price. They are pitching it a bit low.

    So think of an average of say what it would cost a family to go to the cinema and what it would cost one person. The single people are balancing out the families who are getting a great deal.

    Personally for most films I can wait until it's free on a streaming site or buy the Blu-ray for £12, so I would never pay that much to rent but I'm not really the target audience.
     
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  19. Tjazz

    Tjazz Breakfast at (a record store)

    Location:
    USA
    Some 2021 DVDs go to Hoopla pretty fast too. (free library streaming)
     
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  20. noname74

    noname74 Allegedly Canadian

    Location:
    .
    Do you really think a family of three or four paying $20 for a movie a couple of times a year makes them “rich”? I guess if you live in a van down by the river you would...otherwise its just a once in awhile treat for the family.
     
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  21. jpelg

    jpelg Forum Resident

    Location:
    The Elm City
    I view the $19.99 streaming rental price as a psychological/marketing experiment to see what the viewing public is willing to tolerate.

    Interesting that streaming for "Nomanland", Oscar-winner for Best Picture, is currently priced at $5.99. #shrug
     
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  22. JediJones

    JediJones Forum Resident

    Location:
    Pennsylvania
    That's Nomadland...I think No Man's Land was a Jenna Jameson movie...

    Nomadland hit theaters almost 3 months ago, so it should be past any theatrical exclusivity by now.

    If you're watching it at home, you still have to eat that day. So you're not saving 100% of the popcorn and drink price. But of course microwave popcorn is a bit cheaper.
     
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  23. BeatleJWOL

    BeatleJWOL Senior Member

    Ditto and worse for Disney's $35 selling of digital new release movies before they show up for free on D+.

    If somebody's got enough invested in a home theater experience (projector, devoted room, etc), I can see a $20 digital rental possibly being worthwhile. Other than that, just wait.
     
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  24. mmars982

    mmars982 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Pittsburgh, PA
    Nomadland is an odd case because it is back in theaters now after winning Best Picture. It's also available on Hulu so it seems silly to pay to rent it.

    EDIT: I mistakenly said it cost more to rent this after it returned to theaters, but I just checked and the price I was looking at was to buy it. Never mind.
     
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  25. artfromtex

    artfromtex Honky Tonkin' Metal-Head

    Location:
    Fort Worth, TX
    Considerably cheaper than going to the local megaplex. Plus, you can pause, rewind, and view multiple times.

    "Nobody" was a really fun movie. An improvement on the John Wick template.
     
    Last edited: May 4, 2021
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