Thoughts for Thursday: Renting & Ordering Movies

Are there many movie-watchers out there? 

I like watching movies but don't take the time very often.  Up until about a year ago, if there was a movie I wanted to see, I would just buy it.  At $15-25 a pop! With Blu-Ray and other technology that has come out, it just seems like a waste to buy movies these days.  For the past year I have mostly only watched movies that friends and family let me borrow.  I do not have digital cable so ordering them On Demand has not been an option.
I have known many people who use Netflix, but it seems like you have to really be a fan of watching movies in order to get your $20/month worth, so I never tried this service.  There are also many internet sites that allow you to legally download movies to your computer, but I haven't tried any of those either.

Well, I finally discovered Red Box this past weekend!  I had known about it but never bothered to use it before and found that it is so easy and convenient to use...not to mention cheap! $1 per night per movie.  This seems like the best option for me.

Do you watch a lot of movies? What methods/services to you use for ordering or renting movies? 
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TFT posts this week:

JennyC on holiday tips and tricks

Leanne on Christmas Shopping & Black Friday
Ang on wearing seat belts
Nicole on privatizing blogs

Comments

[heather]

FYI, you can always find codes online for free redbox rentals as well. There is a free code every Monday at the very least.
http://www.insideredbox.com/

We use redbox all the time, as there is one seriously around the corner from our house!

We also do Blockbuster online. We get unlimited rentals by mail and two from the store per month for $12 a month. We do that because as nice and cheap as redbox is, we aren't always able to watch movies when we think we'll be able to. We also get quite a few for the kids, so it's nice to have more than one at once.

[LesleMora]

I'm pathetic. I have Netflix, and I've been hanging on to one movie from Netflix for like the last six months! Incredibly ridiculous.

But in the meantime, while I'm looking for the movie because I know it's around here somewhere, I've been digging their 'watch it now' option. I watch a lot of movies and TV shows that I miss during regular programing.

[Ang]

I do Netflix and LOVE IT! I pay $18/mo and have 3 movies out at a time, with unlimited movies per month. It's good for me, because not only do i like to watch movies (there are so many I haven't seen!) but it's great for TV shows. I just finished Weeds, watched all seasons of The Sopranos last year, and I'm starting The Wire now.

I never really go to the movies anymore, just wait for them on DVD and put them on my Queue. The turn around is quick too, put them in the mail and get a new one 2 days later. Having 3 out at a time helps with the turn around lag.

I've done Redbox too, and it's fine if they have what you want!

[kim]

we do netflix, but only pay $5 a month or something... we can have one out at a time and like two a month. it works for us because we don't have much time to watch movies. :)

[anne]

We have the same netflix deal as Kim mentioned. For $5/month we get two rentals. That works great for us because we aren't huge movie watchers. What I love about netflix is that you can have that cue going of movies you'd like to see. I always make a mental note of a movie I'd like to watch, but then forget about it and never watch it.

[Kim]

We use redbox unless it's something really want to see and redbox doesn't have it then we go to Hollywood Video.

[LeeAnn Howard]

We arent big movie rental people either. We have been getting some at the library for $1/week though. But they usually dont have the newest releases. I didnt know about Redbox and will be signing up for this! I didnt think they would have one here in town, but they actually do at Walmart! Tony might really like this idea! TFS!

[Lisa's Chaos]

We just got a red box in our WalMart! I was excited, we had used on in MO when we were there this past summer. :)

[Dana Leigh]

I use Netflix and have the same program as Ang talked about. I absolutely love it. I would hate to have to go into a movie store now and look around and pick out a movie. I love you can do it online and comes right to your house. They also have a great feature where you can watch instantly for some TV show series and movies from your computer. That's free in addition to the movies you get sent to your house. They are constantly expanding their library for the instant watching. Plus with Netflix, the selection is fantastic. They have everything from independents and hard to find documentaries to Hollywood movies. We don't watch too much in the summer but we do watch many movies/documentaries in the winter so the price balances out throughout the year. I would recommend it to anyone.

[jenny]

we use netflix - the lowest package is like $5 a month and you get two movies for it. totally worth it! maybe there is a package that would work better for you? i love it!

[Samara Link]

Wow! You've gotten a lot of feedback on this topic. Obviously a good one! I just started watching movies regularly in 2006. Before that, I was not much of a movie watcher, but something got me into and interested in them more. We did regular rentals at Blockbuster and went to the theatre maybe 3-6 times a year. Now, I Netflix. I thought it would be a waste of money for a long time as well. Since, I've found I can do the $10 a month and watch a movie a week. I don't think that's bad. I just don't do the more expensive plans they have available. I am with you that buying movies is a waste. I don't watch a movie more than once unless it's an absolute favorite. The only ones I buy are by Michael Moore, Morgan Spurlock and a few Christmas ones. I have also started going to the theatre a little more often. How much depends on my mood and what's out. With a student discount and bringing in my own snacks and water (instead of paying $16 for a diet coke and gummy bears there), I find it pretty reasonable. The reason I go is because I love to get sucked into the picture. There, it's dark, loud and big. So, it's easier to get really lost in a good film. That's my take!!

[Charisse]

I like Red Box alot but in my area, people don't care and scratch those dvds up something terrible. I just do On Demand now.

[leslie]

we enjoy getting movies on the weekends and that was kind of our thing when we were in the states. head over to blockbuster and grab a few here and there. When we got here our movie rental selection on the base really sucked. A lot of people recommended netflix to us so now we're giving it a try. we've enjoyed it so far! I try to get something for us and something for the kids too. We took the pricier option so we could have more movies at once. We just don't have great TV offered to us so this has been really nice for us.

[greta adams]

i am a netflix kinda gal....love netflix