I go to the movie theater a lot. I love watching the hottest blockbusters in a packed auditorium while stuffing my face with popcorn and drinking Pibb XTRA. Evidenced by the names Carmike, Regal, and Cinemark frequently appearing on my debit card transaction list, I spend a lot of money at the movies.
Whether it be a loyalty points card, special email offers, or Fandango, I am always up for ways to make going to the movies less expensive and/or more convenient. This past weekend I utilized a service that saved me both money and time.
Someone at work told me about an app called Dealflicks. I had never heard of it nor realized that such a service existed. However, after he told me about it I internally described the app as this: Fandango meets Expedia.
If you like going to the movies, make sure to check Dealflicks out.
Contracting with various theaters, Dealflicks is an app that lets you purchase discounted movie tickets with something else thrown in to sweeten the deal. This “something else” usually takes the form of a concessions item, such as a box of candy or a soda. Depending on the theater, the film, and the side item offered, Dealflicks will quote you a total price. If it is enticing enough to meet your needs, you just click on the deal and provide your credit card information.
On Saturday night, Sidney and I wanted to go see a movie. I pulled out my phone and opened up Dealflicks. The app automatically used my GPS positioning to tell me the closest participating theaters and the movies playing. Luckily, the theater that is closest to us happened to be a Dealflicks partner. We looked through the listings and decided on “Criminal,” a thriller starring Kevin Costner.
I clicked on the showtime we desired and was presented with the deal: For $9, I could receive a movie ticket and a medium sized popcorn. I said Yes Please! I purchased the deal twice and for $18 Sidney and I had plans for the evening.
I never took a screenshot of when I purchased my tickets for “Criminal” but here is a similar screenshot I took of a movie that played earlier today. Not bad for tickets and popcorn, huh?
Even before leaving for the theater, the benefits were pretty clear. We had already bought our tickets so we didn’t have to worry about the show selling out, the tickets themselves were discounted, and we were each getting a free popcorn. I am not that much of a penny-pincher but when it comes to attending a movie you aren’t talking pennies these days!
This was the screen I showed the theater employee. She tapped “Mark as Used” and I was good to go.
We arrived at the theater and I pulled out my phone. I brought up the Dealflicks screen and the employee immediately knew what to do. She took my phone from my hands, tapped the screen a couple times, and we were all set. We were handed our tickets and given our bags of popcorn. As I looked at the concessions menu, I noticed that a medium popcorn was $7.24 (totally random price, I know). That was justification enough for using Dealflicks.
Getting our tickets was easy.
The process was seamless. We were given everything we thought we would. It was totally legit. I guess I was just expecting it all to be a little more sketchy than what it was. I mean why isn’t this app more well-known? Why aren’t more people doing it?
Dealflicks set us up nicely this past Saturday night.
Like I said, Dealflicks is half Fandango, half Expedia. It is like Fandango because you purchase your tickets electronically ahead of time. It is like Expedia because it is acting as a third party to help sell the surplus movie tickets (such as hotel rooms or airline tickets) at a discounted price. Luckily, whatever hybrid Dealflicks might be, it works.
I plan to use Dealflicks in the future. If you enjoy saving around $10-$15 and prefer a heavy dose of convenience, I recommend it. See you at the movies. Don’t Blink.
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