Mooooovies!

About a month ago, I read about free movie opportunities on Couponing to Disney.  There are a ton of free movie promos going on this year. Not sure why, economy, maybe? But hey, I'll take it!  Anyway, companies like Hershey's, and Kelloggs are running promos for free movies. The cool thing is, that these movie tickets are even good for special engagements. Some are good until 2011!  Couponing to Disney has a running list of free movie promos here.

I've personally either tried or tried for a few of the promos listed on CoD's site.  Some worked beautifully, some had finer details to be aware of, others I had no luck with.  Here's what worked for me:

Tampax/Always - For each box of specially marked boxes of Tampax or Always you buy, you get a card with a code on it.  You type the code into the website and it generates a voucher...eMovie Cash for you to print and take to a participating theater.  These are the best deals out of the ones I tried for, because not only are they non perishable, but you basically get one ticket per box you buy rather than having to buy several boxes to collect enough codes to redeem for one ticket, but they're also the ones with a bit of a catch.  The eMovie Cash vouchers do not last very long...just 1 month from the day you enter the code.  So I'd hang on to it and wait till you're ready to see the movie before entering the code. Be advised though that the codes expire October 31, 2010 so use it before then!
The math - a box of Tampax or Always with the code inside in my area is just under $7, so even if the products itself weren't being used, it's still at least a $3 savings assuming the movie ticket is $10.

Pop-Tarts -These also generate eMovie Cash, but you must buy 5 different flavors of specially marked Pop-Tarts to get enough codes to redeem for one movie ticket. (There are other things you can redeem for too.)  Even if the flavor is part of the flavor card, if it's not specially marked, it won't contain the code. I learned that one the hard way.  The best part of this promo is that you can enter the codes to redeem the ticket, and the ticket is good through October 31, 2011!
The math -  a box of Pop-Tarts at my local Walmart is about $1.70.  $1.70 x 5 = $8.50.  It's a small savings assuming the movie ticket is $10 but these vouchers also lasts the longest out of the ones I looked into so it's worth it, especially since you can use them for the fun movies that tends to get released around the holidays.

General Mills cereals - this is the one I had absolutely no luck with. I went to several different stores in my area and none of them had the specially marked boxes of General Mills cereals for movie ticket promos. 


eMovie Cash - I've had very little trouble cashing those in.  Really, it wasn't trouble at all. Most theater employees just haven't had a lot of practice ringing up the order with eMovie Cash (probably because it's new) so they just either need a manager or someone else who knows what to do to help them ring it up.  I would either get your tickets in advance or plan on going to the theater a little earlier.  My personal tip is, regardless of which promo you go for, contact the issuer of the ticket voucher to check for expiration.  I'm not sure who Hershey's, Energizer, or other companies running similar promos are using to issue the vouchers, but with eMovie Cash, the expiration date varies depending on the company running the promo (as evident in the expiration date difference between the Tampax/Always and Pop-Tarts promos.)  Email the companies involved and ask them what the fine print is such as the expiration, and use accordingly.

This really is a great way to take a family to see some of the summer blockbusters this year.  Movie tickets easily costs $10 a pop...even more in some theaters, or if you want to see it in 3-D, IMAX, whatever. For a family of 4 that's a whopping $40 for about 2 hours of entertainment at least and that's not including popcorn, candies, drinks, etc.  If you included that, a trip to the movies can easily cost $100!  So far I've taken my family to see Shrek 4 on opening, and we've already got our advance tickets to see Toy Story 3 on opening night, this Friday, June 18.  Needless to say, we're super excited! My kids have been talking non stop about the movie, and me? I'm super thrilled that we don't have to pay a penny for them to enjoy one of their favorites. :)

Now speaking of movies coming out during the holidays, have you see the trailer to Tangled? It looks pretty funny. IMDB says it's coming out November 24, 2010. I can't wait. :)