It’s true. I went out tonight and I was robbed. I was not held up at gunpoint or at knife point, the police were not notified, no report was filed, but I was robbed just the same. Who is the culprit, you ask?

The movie theater! That’s right. I went out tonight to see a movie and felt like I’d been sheered of every penny in my wallet and for what? Two tickets, two soft drinks and a small popcorn. Total price, $29.25, and if that isn’t highway robbery then I don’t know what is.

Movie theaters all across America are slowly going the way of the dinosaur. Distinction is eminent and yet they continue to struggle to survive video rentals, downloads and on-demand movies that provide cheaper, more convenient entertainment for the economically conscious family by fleecing you at the concession stand. Where else would you pay $4.00 for a $1.00 coke or $5.00 for a $2.00 nacho? It’s shear insanity.

My previously quoted expenditure for the evening was for two people but for a lesser price, a whole family of five could watch a movie together while sharing a bucket of KFC chicken and never having to leave home or put up with those other disturbances you find in a public theater. Examples would be crying children, loud talkers, chair kickers, incontinent people who constantly want to crawl over you to go to the bathroom and technical malfunctions in the projector or surround sound such as what happened to me tonight.

We ended up getting free passes to another movie of our choice (which hopefully will not be another bad theater experience), but did not get to see the movie we wanted to see. The evening turned out to be a bust.

So the point is simple. If you want a good movie experience and would like to keep the money you earn in your wallet where it belongs, stay home and rent on-demand. If you want to get robbed……go to the theater!