Getting Toho Cinemas Discount Tickets

Above, a giant movie poster at the Yurakucho Mullion. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

There have been three occasions where I screened a movie in Tokyo.

The first time was when Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-out Attack premiered at the 2001 Tokyo International Film Festival at Orchard Hall in Shibuya's Bunkamura. The second time was in 2006 when Gamera The Brave (listed on the ticket as Gamera: The Little Braves) premiered at the Marunouchi Piccadilly Theaters in the Yurakucho Mullion. The third time was also in the Yurakucho Mullion at the Toho Cinemas Nichigeki for Space Battleship Yamato in 2010.

Going to a movie theater is a little different than going to one in the U.S. In Japan, I was able to pick out what seats I wanted and the row and seat number would then be printed on the ticket. I also noticed that ticket prices for movies in Japan were higher than in the U.S., around ¥1,800 (roughly $18.00).

Current ticket prices in the U.S., I've noticed, have also shot up to the $15.00-$18.00 range as well. But, cheaper tickets can be obtained by going to a daytime matinee screening where the prices are cut to about half.

Gaijinpot.com has a new article on getting discounted movie tickets. Their recommended theaters to see Hollywood movies are Toho Cinemas. They prefer Toho's theaters because "the digital picture and sound quality are top notch – so clear and crisp. The seats are clean, well-tiered, and extremely comfortable. Hollywood movies are shown in English with Japanese subtitles, so you don’t need to worry about awkward dubbing."

On getting discounted movie tickets, the article says:

Ticket prices start at 1,800 yen, but there are opportunities each month to watch movies at a discounted rate! The public can watch movies for 1,000 yen every first and fourteenth of each month. Women have additional benefits; every Wednesday is Lady’s Day for 1,000 yen.

To read the full article, with information on ordering tickets online from Toho Cinemas (which is a little tricky as some knowledge of Japanese is necessary), go here.