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An Oscar-Worthy Party The first step in hosting an unforgettable Movie Night party is to make your guests feel like movie stars, says IMI party planner extraordinaire Russell Lefebvre. Roll out the red carpet—literally. “Before the party starts,” Lefebvre says, “send one or two limos to pick people up. It’s a safe and fun way for people to get around. Then, rent a red carpet so guests can make a grand entrance.” Create a musical backdrop. Play your favorite movie soundtracks while guests are arriving and during movie intermissions or breaks. Some classic crowd pleasers include Footloose, Grease, Dirty Dancing, Chicago and Pulp Fiction. But if you’re feeling really ambitious, burn a soundtrack playlist of your favorite movie singles to CD and give it to guests as a parting gift. Think ambiance. When it comes to mood, you could reflect the feel of the specific movie you’re screening. If it’s Saturday Night Fever, for example, you may want to hang up a disco ball for a post-picture dance party. To make it even campier or over the top, go to hollywoodmegastore.com, where you can get big cardboard cut-outs of your favorite stars, such as John Travolta or Marilyn Monroe, Lefebvre suggests. For a more elegant, black-tie affair, he recommends adorning the room with grand sterling-silver candelabras. Make concessions. If you’ve invited more than 10 or 15 people to your movie party, Lefebvre suggests hiring waiters and wait resses dressed up as famous actors. (“Hey! What’s Brad Pitt doing with all that shrimp cocktail?”) Or if it’s an evening in which you’re honoring Academy Award–winning films, ask your wait staff to dress as gold Oscars. Finally, no movie party is complete without popcorn. An old-fashioned popcorn machine is an ideal prop. Rent one, Lefebvre says, or buy your own from a catalog such as Frontgate (frontgate.com). “And go with real movie-theater popcorn buckets to add authenticity,” Lefebvre recommends. “Theaters are usually willing to sell them at a reasonable price.”
Let Them Eat Cake To add a little South of France flair to your Movie Night, Steve Leitch, executive chef at La Bastide at The Cliffs, S.C., plays to your sweet tooth with this mouth-watering Movie Night recipe: Individual Chocolate Cakes
Directions : Preheat oven to 300 degrees. In a saucepan, melt chocolate. Pour in a mixing bowl and whisk in salt, sugar and vanilla. Beat in two eggs at a time. Fold in flour. Pour into buttered ramekins. Bake 20 minutes. Let cool; release from ramekins while still warm and serve with red wine sauce and ice cream. (Makes 12 4-ounce servings.) Red Wine Sauce
Directions : In a saucepan, bring wine, sugar and grapes to a boil. Remove grapes and reduce liquid until thick. Return grapes to sauce. Keep at room temperature until served. Ice Cream
Directions : Mix sugar, water and orange peel in a saucepan and bring to a simmer. With an electric mixer, beat egg yolks until light and fluffy. On medium speed slowly add sugar syrup to eggs. Fold in whipped cream. Freeze. (Makes 32 servings)
If You Build It, They Will Come Today’s home theater technology offers amazing options for recreating the sights and sounds—and even seating—of a movie theater in your own home. According to Mark Russell of Bang & Olufsen, a state-of-the-art home theater can cost anywhere from $25,000 to more than $100,000, depending upon the gear that’s chosen and how you decorate your space. While that would certainly buy enough popcorn to feed all of Hollywood, Russell says if you’re a movie buff, it’s worth it. The Big Picture When building a home theater, Russell recommends a 50-inch plasma television for the best possible picture. Other screen options include rear- projection (in screen sizes up to 65 inches), direct-view (with screens up to 35 inches), DLP sets (which use a chip created by Texas Instruments that creates an amazingly sharp picture) and front-projection (which projects images onto a drop-down or stationary screen like those at a commercial theater). Regardless of the model you choose, make sure the set is “digital,” meaning it’s capable of receiving high-definition video signals. Pump Up the Volume Shoot for 6-foot-tall, floor-standing speakers, Russell says. A pair in the front and a pair in the rear will give you a nice, balanced, tonal effect. “They’ll make you feel like you are actually sitting in the driver’s seat of that Formula 1 race car,” Russell says . B&O’s BeoLab speakers have 2,500 watts of power and microphones inside that measure the acoustics of the room and make necessary adjustments to optimize sound for the entire room. Another important sound consideration, Russell says, is the reproduction of sound at low listening levels. “If you walk into a store and say, ‘I want to listen to a home theater system,’ the first thing everybody does is play Top Gun with the volume at ear-splitting levels,” Russell says. “It’s pretty easy to make something sound impressive and loud, but it’s very difficult to take that same technology and make it sound very good at a normal listening level.” Getting Creative Aesthetically speaking, you can go simple and fashion your home theater in an existing family room. Or you go could go all out and re-create an entirely separate movie theater—complete with plush, cupholder-equipped seating—in a designated room. Either way, consider hiding equipment in a closet or inside a piece of furniture, Russell says. “I have a client whose plasma screen is hidden in a piece of artwork on the wall. They push a button, and the screen lifts out of the artwork.” Remote Possibilities These days, the average home theater has at least a receiver, DVD player and cable to navigate through, so a sophisticated remote control is essential. B&O makes remotes that will do practically everything but vacuum your red carpet. Press a button to dim the lights, open the curtains, change the temperature—it’s all at your fingertips. “I have a client in New York City who specifically had us program in temperature control for certain movies,” Russell says. “For example, during the scene in Titanic where Leo and Kate are freezing in the water, the temperature in the client’s theater drops to 62 degrees. That’s extreme, but you do have that capability.” |
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These days, thanks to state-of-the-art home theater technology, it’s getting tougher and tougher to get off the couch. So here’s our suggestion: Invite your best critics to a Movie Night party, complete with a feature film, tasty snacks and a few special surprises. Even if your inner circle doesn’t include Ebert and Roeper, your Movie Night party will receive two (very big!) thumbs up.