Bachelor Party Ideas for the Movie Buff

BACHELOR PARTY, Bradford Bancroft, Tom Hanks, Michael Dudikoff, Barry Diamond, Adrian Zmed, William Tepper, 1984.

The bachelor party is one of the quintessential precursors to marriage. It’s a rite of passage from single life to marriage. And as the best man, you’re responsible for planning and coordinating the party. This means setting dates, inviting the right people, and – of course – establishing an itinerary of events and experiences that the groom will love.

But generic bachelor parties are going out of style. The days of rallying the troops and heading out for a night of bar-hopping and questionable decision making is no longer the expectation. Instead, if you want your friend to have a blast, you need to come up with a themed party that appeals to their hobbies or interests.

In this article, we’re going to focus on the cinephile – because who doesn’t have a close friend who’s a crazy movie buff? And by the end of this post, you’ll have some practical ideas that you can use to throw a killer bachelor party that everyone remembers.

Quick Pointers for Bachelor Party Success

Before we dive into some specific ideas and themes for a film-buff bachelor party, let’s touch on a couple of important ideas that will set you up for success:

• Guest list. Who do you invite? That’s always the question. For optimum results, include people from the wedding party, as well as close friends who didn’t make the wedding party but are still high-priority guests at the wedding. (It’s always a good idea to invite more people than you think will show, since there will inevitably be some who can’t make it.)

• Try to schedule the event as far out as possible, without coming up too close to the wedding date. Two to four weekends before the wedding is ideal. This is close enough for everyone to be excited about the big day, but far enough out that it won’t conflict with other events.

• Just because you’re hosting the bachelor party, doesn’t mean you have to cover the bill. It’s a common expectation that the groomsmen split the tab. Run costs ahead of time and give everyone a basic estimate so that they know what to expect.

If you can square away these three elements, you’ll significantly increase your odds of throwing a fun and well-attended party.

4 Ideas for a Move-Themed Bachelor Party

Whether the groom loves old classics or contemporary action flicks and thrillers, there are plenty of options. Here are a few ideas to bounce around:

1. Movie Marathon

There’s nothing like a movie marathon. Find a series that your friend likes – such as Star Wars, Planet of the Apes, Harry Potter, etc. – and watch them sequentially back-to-back-to-back. You can probably fill up an entire day with this. (You don’t have to sit there and soak up every minute. It can be playing in the background while other things are happening.)

2. Special Theater Screening

Call a local movie theater and see if you can rent out one of their screens for a private showing of a movie. (This one is costly, but also pretty cool. If you pull it off, your friend will give you major kudos.)

3. Oscars-Themed Award Show

If you’re a serious planner and have a knack for detail, an Oscars-themed award show party is an awesome way to honor the groom’s love of movies.

There are numerous directions you could go with this one. You could be the host and hand out Oscars trophies to everyone in attendance – picking and choosing humorous categories. Or you could find pictures and videos from the groom’s past and give him awards based on embarrassing things he’s done (as well as neat accomplishments).

The more you embrace this theme the better. Have guests wear tuxedos. Create a red carpet with a backdrop. Play Oscars music in the background. Have people prepare acceptance speeches.

4. Favorite Movie-Themed Party

Not up for something as crazy as an awards show? There’s nothing wrong with a party themed after the groom’s favorite movie. Invite people, stream the movie, do some basic trivia, and enjoy a few drinks. If that sounds like the groom’s pace, go for it!

Embrace the Role of Party Planner

This might be the first party that you’ve ever planned and hosted in your entire life – and that’s fine. By taking the responsibility seriously, you can ensure everyone is able to have fun (especially the groom). And whether it’s a movie-themed party or something else entirely, now you have an idea framework to help you conjure up some creative ideas. Good luck!