Ultimate Watch Party Guide
One of my favorite things is having a watch party, and not just any watch party, but a truly themed watch party. The works (and ‘the works’ varies on time and money, of course) are what I strive for. A touch of decor, a themed drink or two, a themed dinner if it’s also a dinner party, and snacks if it’s not. There’s also the possibility of games, before or after, or games during such as the drinking kind.
While going forward I will be doing breakdowns of suggestions for one particular film, here I want to give a outline of how a watch party emphasizing the fun and love of the film being watched can go.
PICKING YOUR FILM
Sometimes the easiest, sometimes the hardest part of the party. The Watch part. What do you choose? Why do you choose it?
It could happen on a whim, with a new film coming out on streaming that your friends and/or family want to watch (or rewatch after a theatrical experience) together. Could be an older film that someone in the group hasn’t seen yet, and this (in your opinion) just has to be rectified, and a good enough reason to get together and make it not just sitting and watching, but an experience, upping the fun and the memories.
This could also just be planned because you want to experience this movie (for the first time, or all over again), and want to make it an event. Passion for the film can help to add to the inspiration for what you want to add to the party, so I do love choosing a beloved film, though this is not necessary.
A thing to note is that some films are way easier to create a watch party for than others. While not impossible, a drama such as Oppenheimer might be a touch more difficult than Barbie. Barbie has a more obvious color scheme, noticeable food and drink (waffles and orange juice), and a lighter overall thing going for it if you want to figure out a game. This doesn’t mean you can’t choose Oppenheimer for your watch party, but ‘The Works’ might need more creative thinking.
Whatever your film, you can make it as chill or elaborate as you please. I’ll show you how to find all the right elements.
SETTING THE SCENE
Where are we watching the film? Do you have a place for all your guests, and will they be comfortable? How’s the television situation? Do you want to decorate at all?
Comfort and space are most important. You want your guests to not worry about feeling sore or cramped midway through the film. It kills the vibe, especially with a longer film.
See how many seats you have, or can easily fit into your space. Are your guests comfortable sitting on the floor? Excellent. Make sure there are plenty of pillows and even blankets hanging around and give that slumber party vibe. Once you know how many can be at ease, best to not go over that amount.
As far as your television, unless your guests will be sitting strangely far back from an average-sized television, it’s most likely fine. If not, you can purchase projectors for relatively cheap online. Get yourself a nice crisp white sheet if it doesn’t come with a screen, hang it up, and be on your way. If you choose this way, and you’re guaranteed nice weather, you could always do an outside situation under the stars.
Decoration is the thing I will cut if budget is an issue, however, I myself am quite handy with cardboard, a pair of scissors, and some paint. Depending on your film, decorations could be easy to find online. Pink streamers and university paraphernalia for Legally Blonde, or licensed party decorating sets for films such as Toy Story or Despicable Me.
If you don’t want to hand over the cash for something you might only use once (though the pink streamers could be used again for Mean Girls, and the school decor for Animal House), which I don’t blame you, then you could nix the decor all together, or get into that arts and craft supply. A cardboard sign that says Harvard and painted in the school’s colors with splatters of pink on it, or recreations of Andy’s cardboard sets in the Toy Story film, can be endearing and I’ve found that people love the creativity.
Another element to add to the setting of the scene is party favors. A little something for your guests to have and remember the night. Things like individually wrapped bars of soap for Fight Club, pink glow sticks for I Saw the TV Glow, or bubbles for underwater films link Finding Nemo, The Little Mermaid, or The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. The latter two examples are great ways to add an interactive element to the movie-watching experience.
Another route to go if you want decor and don’t want to go all out every time, especially if this is a regular thing, is to buy generic movie decorations. The usual popcorn, film strip, stars, and movie cameras aesthetic. This is usually what I use for my annual Oscar party. It gives that fun Hollywood vibe and sets the scene, without having to spend anything on each and every movie night in terms of ambiance. We’ll be revisiting this base theme throughout the article.
ATTIRE / COSTUMES
While this is the most optional as there are a lot of people not interested in dressing up, if you have an up-for-anything group who live for putting together a costume, having a theme for what clothes everyone is wearing can be a blast.
You can go all out and ask for it to be a true costume party dressing up as particular characters, dressing up as the decade the film takes place in like the roaring 20s for The Great Gatsby, or going for the vibes, like a simple animal costume for Zootopia.
Some Hollywood glamour of suits and nice dresses can be for your base movie party, or you can go for the slumber party aspect and have everyone come in their soft clothes or nicest pajamas. If want to merge the interaction of a game with the attire, you could also hold a shirt-making session with tie dye or fabric paints with the theme centering around the film, and everyone sports their creations while watching the film, or at least takes them home at the end of the night.
FOOD AND DRINKS
DRINKS
A themed drink is something I’ve always loved. Going to holiday events at theme parks and getting specialty themed drinks is always a highlight of my night. Figuring out what flavors represent aspects of a film and creating something fun to drink can be a blast. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves though.
Providing drinks for your cinema shindig can be as easy as buying a bottle of wine, or some appropriate juice/soda and liquor situation. An Italian red wine (especially Coppola wine) that pairs well with pasta is fabulous for The Godfather, or be really simplistic and punny with a Hawaiian Punch with vodka, which is what I did for a viewing of Rocky.
There’s the great option for providing cocktails that are featured in your chosen film, such as a White Russian for The Big Lebowski, or a Bloody Mary for Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. Drink it right along your favorite, or not-so-favorite characters.
If you want to get elaborate though, there are a lot of recipes out there for movie-themed cocktails or even just ones that give off the right vibe to fit your feature. A lot of these can be turned into mocktails if you prefer the sober variety of drinks.
If you are going the base movie night route, BYOB is an easy win, or going for a couple of bottles of wine, canned liquors, soda, bottled water, etc. Just make sure everyone is well hydrated and has a drink in hand, especially if one wants to play a corresponding drinking game.
FOOD
Do you want to make your event a dinner party? This is something I love to do if the time is available for you and your guests. It can really bring the theme all together.
Some films are easy, like food-centric ones like Julie and Julia, where you can pick and choose from Julia Child’s or any other French cookbook and have at it. Make things easier by having your guests help out by each bringing their own spin on a French dish. It can be more fun and bonding to swap stories of your cooking adventures and takes the weight of cooking an entire meal for possibly many off your plate.
Others are trickier. If there is at least one food scene present where the meal is obviously seen or talked about, I usually take from that. If the food isn’t to your liking, too expensive, or not available, get creative. Chilean Sea Bass isn’t for everybody, but you can still have Dino nuggets and green jello for Jurassic Park, along with a salad worthy of a herbivore.
Others, like the drinks, you’ll have to go off of vibes. If there is nothing obvious in the way of flavors, you can go by location, coloring, and the time it’s set in, among other things. There wasn’t a lot of food going on in 1917, but a quick search for meals eaten by the English in the 1910s could spur ideas, or going for New England seafood dishes for Jaws.
You don’t have to provide a full meal either if you don’t want it to be a dinner party. Providing themed snacks like a mix-and-match candy selection for Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, a salumi board (the Italian version of a charcuterie board) for the Goodfellas, or a cheese and fruit platter for Ratatouille.
For the baseline movie theater party, and even one with a theme, you can’t go wrong with popcorn. Good old-fashioned popcorn. An order of pizza or an easy throw-in-the-air fryer/oven appetizers can make things quick and easy. I enjoy going back to old-school junk food like I had as a kid, like bagel bites, pizza rolls, and mozzarella sticks. A potluck is also a nice alternative.
GAMES AND ACTIVITIES
To place before or after dinner, having game time is a great way to get laughing and even active before settling down for your film. While any party game that you love or sounds fun and want to share with your guests can be a great choice, we prefer to theme the night to the max and match it to the film.
Of course, there are levels to how specifically themed you can get.
First off, there are games that are literally inspired by, or inspired the film. Playing some rounds of Mario Kart before watching either Super Mario Bros film can be a blast, seeing who the murderer is in Clue before watching Clue, or trying out the Labyrinth board game.
There are games that are actually in the film, like playing poker before settling down to watch Casino or Ocean’s Eleven, or Jumanji before Jumanji (which of course the game came out after).
You can get creative with the vibes, like being punny and playing Twisters before either of the Twister films or testing your knowledge with horror Trivial Pursuit before any horror endeavor.
For the base movie night, there are a lot of fun movie board games, like the Blockbuster game, Pass the Popcorn, or the myriad of movie trivia videos on YouTube (particularly the last option if you want to keep it low budget).
During your film, to help keep the audience engaged, there is always the classic drinking game. An easy search and you’ll find a long list of moments to drink to that you tailor down so that no one gets alcohol poisoning before the last act. If you aren’t a fan of drinking, there’s also staying hydrating and drinking water instead, which can allow for more frequent stings to drink to. This can still be pretty fun and keeps you focused on the film as you look out for things to drink to.
I hope this guide has been helpful in giving you ideas or just inspiration for your future movie watch party experience. The amount of theming you put into it really comes down to you and your guests’ creativity. Most importantly, whatever you do, keep it fun and keep it to the pressure that you as host find best to handle, because you can be having just as much fun as your guests.
I’ll be adding specific-to-the-film watch party guides, with these year’s options including Jaws, The Blues Brothers, Back to the Future, and more so stay tuned!
Now, pick your film, and spark your cinema!
