Unlimited Movies: Odeon Limitless vs Cineworld Unlimited vs Curzon Cult
Cinema can be a pricey affair in London & for the film geeks amongst us, price can really be a turn off to our cinephile nature.
This year, Odeon Limitless has joined the unlimited cinema scene, already populated by Cineworld’s Unlimited scheme and Curzon’s Cult membership.
The chance to see unlimited cinema for the same price as one ticket in the West End seems irresistible to us. We thought it was time to have a closer look at these schemes which offer unlimited cinema visits for a monthly or yearly fee…
To Do List presents our no-holds-barred findings & frank conclusions on the LIMITLESS world of cinema in London…
Here’s a quick run down of the key benefits, small print & details:
Odeon Limitless |
Cineworld Unlimited |
Curzon Cult |
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| Price without Central London
Price with Central London Cinemas
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£17.99/month (£205/year)
£19.99/month (£228/year) |
£17.40/month (£208.80/year)
£19.90/month (£238.80/year) |
£350/year |
| Outer London Cinemas | Beckenham / Greenwich / Holloway / Kingston / Lee Valley / Putney / Richmond / South Woodford / Streatham / Surrey Quays / Swiss Cottage / Uxbridge / Wimbledon | Bexleyheath / Enfield / Feltham / Hammersmith / Ilford / The O2, Greenwich / Wandsworth / Wembley / West India Quay / Wood Green | Goldsmiths (New Cross) / Wimbledon / Richmond |
| Central London Cinemas |
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| Discounts |
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| Other Benefits |
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| Not included | 3D screenings, 3D glasses, IMAX, ISENSE, The Gallery, D-Box, Premier seating and any premium screening or seat type. ODEON Event Cinema (music, theatre, sport etc.), and special or private screenings such as film festivals and premières.
BFI IMAX and The Lounge at Whiteleys are not part of any Limitless package. |
3D uplifts payable for standard membership. IMAX, D-Box and Alternative Content uplifts payable. 3D glasses and VIP/Delux seating excluded. | Discount is not applicable for food and drink purchases at Mondrian Hotel London
Discount is not applicable for DVDs purchased at hmvcurzon Wimbledon C Events include Q&As, opera, ballet and theatre broadcasts and other alternative content Local rate membership available only at Wimbledon, Canterbury, Sheffield, Knutsford and Ripon Discounted admission varies on time and type of screening and is never less than £1. |
| Other small print | Advance booking: You can book as many tickets on the day but only 2 tickets for future screenings.
12 Month Contract |
Advance bookings: 3 advance bookings at one time.
12 Month Contract |
Only available as a year long one fee commitment. |
Conclusions
Breathe! Wow, that was a lot to take in! Well, our final thoughts about all the pros and cons of all three unlimited cinema schemes are:
Odeon Limitless is best for cinema choice including some high-profile cinemas in the West End for just £19.99/month and you save 5% by paying yearly. However, the downer is there aren’t many (advertised) added benefits of membership.
Cineworld Unlimited is best for added extras such as advanced screenings and discounts on food and drink. If you live near an outer London cinema this one could be perfect for you as it’s currently £17.40 (so cheaper than Odeon unless you’re paying for 12 months up front). Cineworld is more competitive on Central London cinemas now, too, with the recent takeover of the Empire on Leicester Square.
Curzon Cult Membership is best for if you want the premium experience with gorgeous cinemas, but it is pricier so not for the budget conscious out there. It’s also worth noting that Cult Membership is for the lower price of £200/year if you just want to visit Wimbledon, making it much more affordable.
Bonus Cheap Cinema Tips:
£4.99 Cinema Ticket at PeckhamPlex
For the price of one month of Odeon Limitless you can go to PeckhamPlex four times. Seems like a good deal to us, and no 12 month commitment which is useful when you get a dud month with no good films out. The downside is not being able to book online but you can book tickets over the phone.
Cult Classics & Recent Blockbusters at Prince Charles Cinema
Not bothered about the latest Marvel outing? Then head on down to the Prince Charles Cinema to see a classic antique cinema gem for a reasonable price near Leicester Square.
I am Joint Editor at To Do List. I like free, cheap & offbeat London, especially: cabaret, art, theatre, pop-ups, eating out, quirky films, museums, day trips, social enterprise & much more.
It’s amazing just how many people are quick off the mark to attack a brand new scheme that is in its infancy whilst comparing it to Unlimited which has been around for years even before Cineworld inherited it. Unlimited has only introduced the extras in recent years and they have changed the scheme recently too and not always advising members.
For instance, an Unlimited member cannot make an advance booking to see the same film twice. So for those who want to see Batman V Superman at midnight, they then cannot make a second booking to see it at the same cinema until after that screening. Cineworld never advised of this.
BTW I think you’ll find that a red card holder can only make two advanced bookings not three.
Also included in Limitless apart from standard 2D films are tickets to Odeon Screen Unseen, Silver Cinema and Kid’s Club.
Personally, I am happy to have a fairly basic package for the first twelve months of a new scheme in the hope that it is successful and will flourish from year two rather than a new scheme with all the bells and whistles attached which fails and is withdrawn.
Maybe in the interest of fairness, you would like to dissect Infinity too.
We’re sorry you feel like we’ve attacked Limitless – we actually think it sounds like a good deal (“best for cinema choice including some high-profile cinemas in the West End for just £19.99/month”).
Ouch! Does poochface work for Odeon or something? While they have a point that Odeon have only just launched limitless, not once does this article “attack” limitless. It’s a fair comparison, and if you want choice in cinema, Odeon is blatantly the best choice, especially outside of London.
In other news, the adverts for limitless in cinema say “plus exclusive benefits just for members”, so there’s clearly things coming up that haven’t been made public yet. I did receive an email with 50% off tickets for friends who go with you (also works on IMAX/3D upgrades with limitless), but also 20% off food and drink. Both discounts are just for this week, but it’s a good start! I reckon there’ll be other things on the way for members, but as poochface was so keen to tell us, it’s in its infancy, so a bit early to tell. Would appreciate food discount parity with cineworld, but might have to hold out on that one.
Worth noting you can use Cineworld Unlimited with Meerkat Movies whereas you can’t with Odeon Limitless, also that after the first year the food and drink discount increases to 25% and no uplift for 3D, also you can use Picturehouse Central for £5 a time.
The former empire is great to have however 2 of its 9 screens incur an uplift (IMAX or Superscreen) and six of the remaining seven are tiny little rooms. Sadly Haymarket with its wonderfully ornate Screen 1 will eventually transfer to Empire, reducing choice.
Thanks Tom great to know!
We decided not to switch from unlimited to limitless. Part if it was due to the food and drink discounts. But the biggest reason is that you can’t use more than one card per booking. So if me and my husband wanted to book we would have to do individually at the same time hoping to get tickets next to each other. Not realistic so we have stuck with cineworld despite the odeon being newer and closer to home.