I JUST REWATCHED (FOR THE UMPTEENTH TIME) ONE OF MY ALL-TIME FAVORITE TRILOGIES - BACK TO THE FUTURE. WHAT A WILD RIDE.
As a child of the 80s, Back to the Future was so cool. Marty McFly was definitely the opposite of uptight Alex P. Keaton. Yep, this time Michael J. Fox played a skate-boarding, electric guitar rockin’, friend of an eccentric inventor, time traveler.
Great Scott! That’s heavy.
Full disclosure: This is not a movie review blog. It’s not a recipe blog. It’s your guide to creating the perfect party atmosphere for your Back to the Future binge. And, if you know someone who still drives a DeLorean, they better be at the top of your invite list. (According to Wikipedia, an estimated 6,500 DeLoreans are still on the road.)
Image by Dave Tavres from Pixabay
So, without further ado… as Huey Lewis and the News would say: “Is this the 50's, or 1999? Get me Back in Time!”
All Day Marathon or Dinner and a Movie?
You could go all out and schedule a full day movie marathon this weekend - breakfast through dessert, with activities sprinkled throughout. Or, opt for the classic dinner and a movie with some friends and just a couple party games.
Here’s our suggested order of events:
All Day Movie Marathon Schedule
8:00 am - Breakfast Buffet
9:00 am - Activity #1
10:00 am - Watch Back to the Future Part 1
12:30 pm - Lunch
1:30 pm - Activity #2
2:30 pm - Watch Back to the Future Part 2
5:00 pm - Activity #3
6:00 pm - Dinner
7:30 pm -Watch Back to the Future Part 3
9:30 pm - Dessert
Dinner and a Movie Schedule
4:00 pm - Drinks & Appetizers
5:00 pm - Game #1
6:00 pm Dinner
7:30 pm - Watch Back to the Future
9:30 pm - Dessert
10:00 pm - Game #2
FILM INSPIRED FOOD
Food is always central to a party. Whether it’s a three course meal or a bunch of Super Bowl snacks, we all love (the option) to eat at a party. You can use whatever recipes you google or toss out some store bought tv dinners. Either way, provide the food and then tack on some of these imaginative titles. It will enhance the fun atmosphere and your guests will appreciate the effort.
Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay
Breakfast Menu Ideas:
Giga-waffles
Clock Tower of Pancakes
Eggs Lorraine
Clint Maplewood Bacon
Blast from the Pastry
Lou’s Diner Coffee, No Sugar
Wake Up Juice
Lunch Choices:
Hey, McFries!
Hot “Mad Dogs”
"Are ya' Yellow?" Chicken Nuggets
Enchantment Under the Sea Shell Pasta Salad
Peanut Butter and Honeymooner’s Sandwich
Garden Center Future Fruit Tray
Hill Valley Ranch & Veggies
Get me a Milk, Chocolate
Diet Pepsi, Pepsi Free, Pepsi Perfect
And, if you can still find it - Tab
Dinner Options :
Pizza Hut (no rehydrating, needed) or get personal size pizzas
Tombstone Pizza
ZZ Top Doubleback Ribs
Hoverboard Plank Salmon
Mesquite Grilled Sushi
1955 Meatloaf and Mashed Potatoes
OUTAThyme Roasted Veggies
Rockin’ Rolls
Perrier Sparkling Mineral Water (seen in the antique window in 2015)
Brown Water from 1885 (could be your choice of liquor or use food coloring to create, well, brown water)
(For more beverage options, see Drink Ideas below or use same options from lunchtime)
Always room for Dessert:
Doc Brownies
Marvin Berry Cobbler
Clocktower Cookies
Frisbee Pie
Earth Angel Cake
DeLorean Delight
Welcome Home Uncle Joey Cake
A Batch (of cookies) Made in Space
Appetizers and/or Snack Bowls:
Plutonium Poppers
“Nobody calls me Chicken” Wings
Honest Joe Statler’s Fine Horseradish Dip
Make like a tree and Gouda Dip
Gray’s Sports Alma-Snacks
Peanut Brittle
Johnny B. Goodies
Too Darn Loud Chips and Salsa
Pleasure Paradise and Casino Chips and Dip
MAY I OFFER YOU A DRINK?
Image by Social Butterfly from Pixabay
I’m not much of a drinker. So bear with me as I attempt to get creative with cocktail and mocktail names in order to enhance your Back to the Future party mood.
Cocktails and Mocktails
Marty’s Martini
The Grifflet
Mayor “Goldie” Wilson
Old West Whiskey
Oh LàLà Liqueurs
Power of Long Island Iced Tea
Flux Cosmopolitan
Steam Loco-mojito
Hilldale Highball
Popva Vodka
Bud Light
A LITTLE FRIENDLY COMPETITION
Hit pause on your remote. It's game time! Some activities are simple enough that no one has to get out of their seats. Others listed below are for your die hard competitors who don’t mind a round of charades now and again.
Image by Oleg Gamulinskiy from Pixabay
Let the competition begin!
Frisbee tossing contest (use a metal pie plate if you can)
Nerf gun arcade game
Bet on a (make believe) horse race
Costume contest
Dance contest with all 50s music
Karaoke to 80s music
ZZ Top airband competition
Back to the Future Movie Trivia*
Make Words game from the phrase NOW PLAYING: BACK TO THE FUTURE**
Password Game using a Back to the Future theme***
*There are 242 questions and answers for a BTTF movie trivia contest at funtrivia.com. You could play pub trivia team style or have individuals answer on their own.
**Give each player paper and pen. Have them write NOW PLAYING: BACK TO THE FUTURE on the top of the page. Then, they list as many words as they can from those letters. For example, they can write NOW, OWN, WON, PLAYING, PLAY, PAY, etc. The person with the most words after the time limit, wins. If you have a tie, you could award both players or have a tie breaker and have them compete again with another phrase and shorter time limit.
***Found some simplified rules on how to play Password from boardgamegeek.com. Come up with a list of target words based on the movie. You could have characters like Doc Brown or props like hoverboard.
PRIZES NEVER HURT
Back to the Future is full of product placement, making it easy to find things today that were featured in the 1985 movie.
Here’s a list of pretty random ideas to reward your winners and losers. Some are a little more, shall we say, obscure than others.
Pack of Pepsi or Mountain Dew - winner
Peanut Brittle - loser
Gift Cards: Pizza Hut, Burger King, Texaco, JCPenney - winner
Save the Clock Tower Donation Can - loser
Aviator Sunglasses - costume contest winner
Black Suspenders - costume contest loser
Gray's Sports Almanac - horse race winner
Autographed The Pinheads CD - (fake signature of Marty McFly) for the Karaoke contest
SUCH A CHARACTER
If dressing up is a must-have at your parties, don’t forget you have multiple themes and time periods to choose from: 1885, 1955, 1985, or 2015 - theirs 2015, not ours.
You could give your guests the option to dress up from any of the three movies. Or, maybe you want to assign guests certain characters like the blacksmith version of Doc or Biff from the 50s or Marty McFly’s daughter from the future. Or, maybe you want it to feel like the Enchantment Under the Sea dance and go prom style.
So many possibilities for your party guests to go over the top or just roll up their jeans and call it good.
Image by 👀 Mabel Amber, who will one day from Pixabay
DECORATIONS
Although decorations aren’t needed, they often help set the party mood.
You can also go crazy with all these decoration suggestions or keep it simple and choose one or two additions to your viewing space. Just don’t forget the clocks. Lots of clocks.
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
Simple Decor
A variety of knickknacks decorating the buffet table and tv room could be enough to add to the party atmosphere without having to go crazy with party decorations. If you don’t have anything at home that would work, take a quick trip to a dollar store. Here are some ideas for the various time periods from the trilogy:
1885 - cap gun, cowboy hat, steam train set, toy horses
1955 - hula hoop, slinky, coonskin cap, 3-D glasses
1985 - rubik’s cube, skateboard, 80's costume jewelry
2015 - toy shark (Jaws 19), double tie (tie 2 men's ties together), computer visor (use futuristic looking sunglasses)
Go All Out
On the other hand, if you love going all out when decorating for a party, I suggest taking the 4 different movie years and decorating 4 different areas of your home. People can feel like they are time traveling when moving about the house.
1885 - Serve your beverages & snacks from a saloon-themed table, complete with shot glasses and spittoon. Keep the colors dull and the environment feeling dusty. Display the quote "Come on, runt! You can dance better than that!"
1985 (from the perspective of 2015) - Turn your food/buffet area into Café 80s with pictures of Michael Jackson, Ronald Reagan, and Max Headroom hanging on the wall. Lots of bright colors. If you own an exercise bicycle, add it to the room with the quote "Keep pedaling you two!"
2015 - Make your tv room feel like Marty's living room from 2015… fax machine, picture window screen, chapel of love photo. Display the quote "Read my fax!"
1955 - Add a 50s feel to the bathroom. How about Enchantment Under the Sink. Streamers, glitter, and cut out paper shells taped to the walls could decorate the bathroom. Add "Guess you guys aren't ready for that yet... but your kids are gonna love it..." while a loop of the song Johnny B. Goode keeps playing.
Additional Touches
So many possibilities with this one-of-a-kind trilogy.
Create coupons for the various businesses in BTTF.
10% off at Biff's Automotive Detailing
Mr. Fusion - Buy one get one 1/2 off
1 free session at Lou's Aerobic Fitness Center
Or announce the sponsors for your movie marathon. This feature film is brought to you by...
The Pleasure Paradise & Casino
D. Jones Manure Hauling
Goldie Wilson III Hover Conversion Systems
MUSIC PLAYLIST
No party is complete without the right music.
Image by Markus Winkler from Pixabay
There's the instrumental background music from the Back to the Future Original Motion Picture Soundtracks (Pt. I, II, III), composed by Alan Silvestri.
But if you are like me and love singing along, here are the songs from the movies to create your own Back to the Future party playlist:
Back to the Future Pt. I & II
Back to the Future Main Title (Theme Song)
Power of Love - Huey Lewis and the News
Time Bomb Town - Lindsey Buckingham
Mr. Sandman - The Four Aces
The Wallflower (Dance with Me, Henry) - Etta James
Night Train - Marvin Berry & the Starlighters
Earth Angel (Will You Be Mine) - Marvin Berry & the Starlighters
Johnny B. Goode - Chuck Berry
Heaven is One Step Away - Eric Clapton
Pledging My Love - Johnny Ace
Out the Window - Eddie Van Halen
Back in Time - Huey Lewis and the News
Jaws Main Title (Theme Song) - John Williams
Beat It - Michael Jackson
I Can’t Drive 55 - Sammy Hagar
Papa Loves Mambo - Perry Como
Back to the Future Pt. III
Doubleback - ZZ Top
Turkey in the Straw
The Battle Cry of Freedom - George Frederick Root
Oh! My Darling, Clementine
THE END… OR IS IT?
If you don’t own the trilogy on DVD (or retro VHS), here are some ways to watch:
Check out the DVDs from your local library
Rent or buy from an online store
Find if it’s currently streaming
Would love to see your watch party photos! Let me know how it went or if you have some ideas to share for future (pun intended) NOW PLAYING watch party planning articles.
Coming soon... A Movie, a Mystery and a Meal. We take on another 1985 classic, also starring Christopher Lloyd. Man, he was busy that year.