By: Natasha Archary
The cost of movie tickets is what stops many South Africans from going to the cinema to watch the latest blockbuster.
Ticket prices aside, the cost of snacks at a cinema also discourages a lot of cash-strapped people from going to the movie for a date night or even as a family outing.
Which doesn’t bode well for local cinema houses, Ster-Kinekor and Nu Metro, with many Kaya listeners sharing that they would rather stream a movie at home than spend money on “unnecessary things”.
With Ster-Kinekor just making it out of business rescue last year, the company is looking to attract cinemagoers back post the Covid-19 pandemic which crippled the movie house.
As much as a chilled night out with a huge box of popcorn is enticing, for a family of four, the cost of movie tickets and snacks at a cinema is equivalent to the cost of a week’s worth of groceries.
Cost of movies and snacks for two people:
- 2x full price standard movie tickets – R210 (R105 per ticket)
- 2x large popcorn + 2x large slush/soda + 2x sweets – R210
That’s a total of R410 for two people to watch a movie with snacks and drinks.
Cost of movies and snacks for family of four:
- 4x full price standard movie tickets – R420
- 2x large popcorn + 2x large slush/soda + 2x sweets – R210
- 2x regular popcorn + 2x regular slush/soda + 2x sweets – R195
Total cost for a family of four to watch a movie at a cinema is R825.
Most streaming sites have a good selection of timeless blockbusters and new releases which gives most people less inclination to want to go to a cinema.
One Kaya listener shared that the appeal of going to a cinema is no longer there, movie houses inflate prices on snacks because they know it’s a hype.
“A bag of popcorn from the shops is about R14 at the cinema you pay over R50, just for popcorn. It’s daylight robbery.”
Listen to the conversation on Kaya Drive:
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