The cinema is too expensive.

I haven’t been to the cinema since May 2008 when I went to see Indiana Jones 4.
That is almost two years.
The strange thing is that I love films and love the experience of going to the pictures, the problem being I just never seem to be interested enough in anything to justify the expensive and time it takes to go to the cinema.

According to this my nearest cinema is Richmond.
Tickets there are £9.70
For the Americans amongst you that is close to $15.
Incidentally, the average cinema ticket price in the states is less than $8.
And if I wanted to go to see a 3D film (which is pretty unlikely as I have prejudged them all as shit) the tickets are £12 each.
TWELVE POUNDS.
I cannot justify that expense for a film that is most likely to be shit anyway.

I could always use the famous Orange Wednesday buy one get one free offer, but who wants to go to the cinema on a Wednesday after work? By the time we have got to Richmond and eaten it would be about 8-30pm. Add to that three hours for the trailers and the film and would wouldn’t be leaving Richmond until 11-30.
The H37 bus takes about half an hour so we would be getting home at midnight.
On a school night.

So even if I found I film I was interested in seeing I would much rather wait for it to come onto Film4 in about 5 years time.

It is odd that I would happily pay ten pounds for a cocktail in a nice bar or over twice that for a meal but am not happy spending a tenner on a cinema ticket.
I think it has a lot to do with perceived value.
When I was a student I used to go to the cinema quite often. It cost me £3.70. Even when I stopped being a student and started to pay full adult prices it was £5.20.
And now ten pounds? Almost 100% inflation over 6 years seems excessive.

Even if we can blame it on the fact I moved to London since then that still doesn't change the fact that I place a value on a cinema ticket of about a fiver. I cannot help it
Especially as in 9 months I could pick the film up on DVD for £4. Back when I used to go to the cinema a lot, videos used to cost over ten pounds. If I wanted to see a film, seeing it in the cinema was better value.
The fact now you can go to an actual theatre for a price comparable to a cinema ticket seems a bit out of whack.

It is a real shame.








These are my own personal views and not those of the BBC.
If any offence is taken to the above I assure you that the offending comments are ironic.