Want a great excuse to hang out at home and enjoy some good entertainment and good company? Plan a movie night! Movie nights can consist of just you and your honey, the whole family or a bunch of friends that you invite over for a more social gathering. Then, all you need is a good movie to watch that everyone agrees on, and some food and drinks and you’ve got yourself an “official” movie night party!

When most people think of movie night, they think of some of the treats they would otherwise get in their local movie theater. This means that there’s usually plenty of popcorn and possibly an assortment of favorite movie candy, such as Twizzlers, Sno-Caps or whatever people like. But, the nice thing about having movie night at home, rather than heading to the local theater (aside from the big difference in price!) is that you can also have a drink or two while enjoying a good flick – something you can’t do at most theaters, amidst all the popcorn and candy.

For those that have a home kegerator, grabbing a couple of draft beers along with some buttery and salty popcorn is a good combination to enjoy while watching a good movie. Home beer kegerators supply great tasting, cold frosty beer on tap, just like the local bar or pub, or the bar at your favorite restaurant. So, if you have a beer or two from your kegerator, along with some good movie treats while watching a first run movie that you rent, you can enjoy all the benefits of a night out without the hefty cost.

Opting to plan a movie night, either as an intimate evening for two or a group get-together, can save you loads of money over a night out. For one, renting a movie can be a really cheap form of entertainment. You can rent a movie on demand for usually $4 – $6, depending on how new the movie is, can head to a store that rents movies (which will cost you about the same amount as renting them from your cable or satellite provider), can plan ahead to get the movie you want from NetFlix, or you can even find one of those Red Box machines at your local supermarket or other location, which allows you to rent a movie for just $1, if you bring it back the next day. If you’re willing to watch a movie that’s not a first run release, you may even be able to rent the movie for free, so the entertainment portion of your evening will cost you nothing.

Then you’ll continue to save on food and drinks. Rather than a bag of popcorn and a drink costing you an arm and a leg at the theatre, you can probably pop a bag of microwave popcorn for about $1 or less, can eat all the candy your sweet tooth can handle for the price of just one movie-sized box of candy at the theater, and can add in pizza, Chinese food or almost any other type of food you want, and you’ll still probably be ahead of the game financially compared with a night out at the local movie theatre. If you also consider having a few draft beers from your home kegerator rather than making a stop at the local bar after the movie, you’re really starting to add up the savings compared to what it would cost if you headed out.

In addition to all the money you can save by planning a movie night at home, complete with favorite munchy foods and draft beer from your own kegerator, you can enjoy some other benefits as well. You’ll have the privacy of being in your own home, so you can talk with friends if you’re in a group or snuggle up on the couch under a blanket if the evening is just planned for two. You can avoid long lines at the theater, nasty weather outside (the best time to plan a movie night is when the weather isn’t so great anyway), and the need to get dressed to impress.

So the next time you’re in the mood to see a good movie, grab some popcorn, candy and great tasting draft beer, choose a good movie and some good company, and have some fun!