Disney Movie Club Review – Good Deal or Costly Mistake?

Disney Movie Club Review – Good Deal or Costly Mistake?

by Mark Garro | Reviews, Thrifty Tips

While I considered writing some music to go along with this Disney Movie Club review, I felt that it was needlessly sadistic to subject you to my singing. Besides, if you’re reading a review of ANYTHING Disney, you likely already get more cutesy music in your life than you can handle.

Disney Movie Club Review

I want to preface this post with a disclaimer: I LOVE Disney movies. Moana is one of my all-time favorite movies, and I own most of their catalog on VHS and DVD/Blu-Ray. How’s that for aging myself? haha

Now that I have children, my love for Disney is even greater, as it works as a great babysitter when I need to get something done or when I need a nap.

(Totally joking, my kids won’t stay quiet for ANYTHING long enough to let me nap!)

That said, I have nothing exceptionally gracious to say about the Disney Movie Club. So if you’re ready, grab your fish hook and strap on your clam-shell bikini, because we’re diving deep into the world of Disney Movie Club.

What is Disney Movie Club?

Disney Movie Club (DMC for short from this point forward) is a subscription service. You sign up, usually get 4 movies for $1, lock yourself into a 2-year contract for another 6 movies at $19.95/each (plus shipping + processing), and then you can “cancel anytime” after that.

If you were a teenager in the 90s, you might remember the Columbia House CD subscription service, where you got a bunch of sweet albums for free, but then had to buy another 10 or something, at triple-retail markup. Those were great until your mother came in, wondering why she owed $32.99 for a copy of a Bjork CD that your crush told you was awesome but it fully wasn’t.

Anyway, sans Bjork, the DMC is the same kind of deal. You get a handful of movies for “free” up-front, and then have to buy another specific amount. It’s not awful if you love Disney and have holes in your movie collection.

Just kidding; even in the above scenario, it’s pretty bad, and here’s why!

Disney Movie Club Requirements

Each month you get a mailer with the “Featured Title” for the following month. This isn’t totally unexpected – it’s part of the whole deal. My problem with it is based on several key points:

1. You have to respond within about 2 weeks of getting the mailer, indicating whether you want the item or not. If you don’t, you’re locked into buying whatever it is that month. This is why we now have several copies of Planes on at least 3 mediums (it’s not even a good movie!!)

2. These selections, if you didn’t catch it from the above bullet, are sometimes lesser-known movies, or ones that likely didn’t get the exposure or success of mainstream titles. We have Beauty and the Beast Do Christmas or whatever it’s called because of this, featuring super phone-in animation and voice acting from a group of people who I imagine run the copy office at Disney as their primary gig.

3. Even after your two-year commitment ends, you still have to either remember to cancel completely or respond to their mailers every. single. month. Otherwise (you guessed it!) you’ll be charged for that month’s movie, regardless of having already met your purchase requirement.

The only time we were even pleasantly surprised was when we got Doctor Strange in the mail. Confused for sure, but still pleasantly surprised. You can fulfill your obligation by selecting any four movies you want, but the monthly selection is still a thing, and if you forget, well that’s how you end up with Aladdin 4: Aladdin Does His Taxes.

Movie Club Disney

is disney movie club worth it

Disney Movie Club Prices

I may have exaggerated the price of a random Bjork CD from the 90s, but the movies you get in this subscription typically cost you around $35 once shipping/processing is factored in.

I don’t care if the location of Atlantis is etched into it, $35 is a LOT of money to spend on a movie when you can usually grab them from Amazon for less than $20. Consider that you need to buy another 5 movies to fulfill your contractual obligation, you’re looking at a conservative estimate of $175.

Divided out over 9 movies, this is about $19/movie, which isn’t all that bad, but after your 4 free movies, are there really another 5 movies you would personally go out and buy unless you had a contractual gun to your head? If I gave you $175 right now, would your first instinct be to go scoop up a handful of random Disney movies?

Disney Movies Club Digital Copies

A lot of movies you get now come with a DVD, Blu-ray, and a “digital copy”. Digital copy implies ownership – that I can download this to my kids’ tablets and they’ll be quiet while we drive to grandma’s house.

That’s not how this works, at least with Disney movies. The digital copies go into an account online, like your own personal Disney vault, where you can stream them. So if you don’t have persistent data or internet access, you can’t watch *your* club Disney movies.

This is frustrating itself, but couple it with the fact that streaming from their site was pretty poor on our home Wi-Fi and it’s just downright infuriating.

Disney Movie Club – Scam or Good Deal?

As I said above, I truly love Disney and their movies. My daughter adores Minnie Mouse and my son is convinced he’s Simba. Do I think the Disney Club Movie is a smart thing to enroll in? No, not really, not even if you’re a diehard fan.

In an age where you can stream nearly anything you want all the time, the concept of a hard copy of media is less relevant than ever before (and it’ll almost certainly become less so in the next two years, which is how long you’d have to buy those five movies!)

The added bonus of getting a digital copy to save to multiple devices is tempting, but it’s smoke and mirrors. In addition, paying a $10 markup or more to get 3 copies of a movie is absurd, considering most people have either DVD or Blu-ray, or at least prefer one to the other.

Coupled with the price of the average selection and the automated, rapid-fire of unwanted movies each month, I think I can safely suggest you stay away from the Disney Movie Club. There are cheaper, easier, and simply better ways to get your Disney fix.

Have you tried out Disney Movie Club? Let me know about your experience below!

7 Tricks to a Cheaper Disney Vacation

7 Tricks to a Cheaper Disney Vacation

by Mark Garro | Thrifty Tips, Parenting

Disney World vacations are a right-of-passage for many American families, but goodness knows they can be pricey!

As the single most visited vacation resort in the world, this Orlando-area destination is comprised of four theme parks, two water parks, over 25 resort hotels, and enough restaurants, sports, nightlife, and shopping to keep everyone thoroughly engaged and entertained. While Disney is often considered a park for kids, adults love it just as much as the kids!

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5 Very Simple Budget Cuts You Can Make Today

5 Very Simple Budget Cuts You Can Make Today

by Mark Garro | Thrifty Tips

Saving money and cutting expenses are never the favorite dinner table topic, but they are vitally important for individuals and families to discuss. And while there are quite a few drastic ways to save money on your monthly bills, there are actually quite a few small but simple ways to save that you can start TODAY. These seemingly easy adjustments probably won’t have that big of an impact on your day-to-day, but could result in some substantial savings.

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Is Civic Withdrawal Now the Norm?

Is Civic Withdrawal Now the Norm?

by Mark Garro | Inspirational

As a frugal living blogger, you’ve seen me post from time-to-time about how I firmly believe living a “frugal life” requires not just letting go, but also giving back. Meaning, not only do you have to consciously let go of the “stuff” (and live a more minimalist lifestyle), but you have to be WILLING to give that which you may very well need – such as money.

Now I’m by no means encouraging you to put yourself in debt in order to better someone else’s life – that’s just silly – but rather to simply recognize that giving may very well be a part of the path you must travel in order to find the freedom you’re looking for.

When was the last time you helped a stranger in need? Or are you too busy? Too lost in your own chaos? Or, like many of us, are you too overwhelmed by constant access to information that sometimes you’re just blinded to it all?

Despite the motivational memes and inspirational pins flashing otherwise, we are often discouraged when it comes to shaping the world we’ll pass on to our children. We instead leave the tough choices to corrupt political leaders, money-hungry corporate directors, or social activists whose lifestyles seem alien and jarring. It is both sad and ironic that in a country born from a revolution, few of us do more beyond “signing” yet another online petition.

For many, civic withdrawal is now the norm.

Is it any wonder, though? You can’t log into Facebook or open your e-mail without being bombarded by sad stories of families in need, babies dying, or homes burning. It’s easier to ignore it, turn a blind eye and go on your merry way.

Those who don’t, those who choose to feel, are often thought to be crazy. Deemed “zealots” or “drama queens” by their peers.

When our individual autonomy is brought into question, by ourselves or others, our instinct is to bristle and call the others obsessed or ignorant. You can’t get onto any public thread these days without hate raging from all sides, name-calling like school yard bullies.

Perhaps it’s because we need this cynical submission to numb the pain of our own unrealized hopes…?

Imagine, though, if we applied that cynicism to all areas of our life. Rather than encouraging little Billy to try to hit the ball just one more time, we tell him to lay down the bat and go home, he’ll never go pro!

Or when our toddler runs up to us after a day away, rather than swoop her up in a hug, we jerk away and look at her with suspecting eyes, assuming she wants more from us than simply our love.

We have to take chances on people, to believe in them and motivate them, lest we crumble as an entire society. If we continue to turn in and look only at our screens, the physical world WILL gray and decompose.

Being an adult is brutal, especially if you’re an adult born of the “Millennial” generation.

You’re caught between those who recall life before “the Facebook” and those who think you’re old because you’re not sure just how SnapChat works, but you’re pretty sure you want to avoid any risk of d*** pics.

It’s exhausting trying to balance it all, to keep all those balls in the air while remembering to breathe.

We have to, though.

We must carry on and set a better example for our children.

We must be involved, not just from our computer screens, but actually, physically, involved.

March in a protest. Attend a political rally. Volunteer one weekend a month with your children.

While I by no means think everyone should constantly worry about everyone else, nothing will ever get better in this world if we all remain on autopilot, hiding behind our screens. Break free from your routine and become an active member of your community. ANYTHING that gets you out that door and physically involved in molding our world.

Change your world by changing someone else’s.

As Howard Thurman once said: “Don’t ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive and then go do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”