If Freddie Prinze Jr. and Molly Ringwald movies taught us anything, it’s the angst of a teenage party goer/thrower. And by teenage I mean 18 and 19 year-olds. Because let’s face it, high school and college parties are not even on the same page, let alone in the same book. Every room in the house is designed to elicit certain feelings and emotions. Whether it is hunger in the kitchen, dancing in the backyard, or rapid conversations in the living room, you’re bound to have fun all over.
Breaking it down room by room, corner by corner, here is the anatomy of a house party.
1. The Bathroom
High school graduation night is undoubtedly a night one can never forget. In this outrageously funny teenage comedy titled Can’t hardly wait (1998), high school graduates attempt to accomplish a list of tasks involving their agenda on life, all on graduation night. No one can forget the epic bathroom scene that took place between Denise (Lauren Ambrose) and Kenny, aka Special K (Seth Green). While trying to prepare for a scandalous night with a lady friend, Kenny gets locked in the bathroom with none other than Denise—polar opposites. After hours of bickering, these two unleash some heartfelt outlooks on life, exchange encouraging words, and find themselves in a kiss by the end of the night. So the next time you’re at a house party, check the bathroom door knob to affirm its quality, or you might end up meeting someone, and possibly have to use the toilet in front of them.
2. The Bedroom
We’ve all knocked out our first party, and we have to admit, the expectations were high. If you’ve made it this far in your night, then congratulations, you’re ready to fake it ‘til you make it. In this bedroom scene from Easy A (2010), Olive (Emma Stone) and Brandon (Dan Byrd) create the ultimate illusion of, in baseball terms, rounding third base and hitting a home run. If you remember this scene though, Brandon wanted to make a modern day indecent proposal in order to maintain status in school, and Olive willingly helped. Brandon of course got served high fives and fist bumps for his “accomplishment”, while Olive was labeled, in biblical terms, a prostitute. The bedroom, thanks to movies like Easy A, and unfortunately American Pie, insinuate that nothing is all as it seems behind closed doors. This room made for security, offers just that. So we salute you Emma Stone and Dan Byrd, thanks.
3. The Stairs
Alright, so we don’t all have winding stairs at our house parties…but if we did…they’d look something like this. The Great Gatsby (2013).
4. The Kitchen
If you’ve made it to the kitchen at a house party, you’re either bored from the hype atmosphere, or you’ve indulged in activities that have suddenly given you a craving for chips and cheese. But if you’re anything like Jake (Michael Schoeffling) and The Geek (Anthony Michael Hall) from Sixteen Candles (1984), you’ve unwillingly slept over, woken up to find the house a catastrophe, and have gathered in the kitchen for a hangover fixer elixir, along with compelling love stories, political awareness, and advice from an unlikely source. Much like the bathroom, the kitchen can be an opportune time and room to socialize with people you’ve never had the chance to. Take advantage of the space, company…and food.
5. The Backyard
There’s usually a pool, a band, or a conveniently located swing in the backyard of your average party thrower’s house. In this case, it’s a Band/Jacuzzi that sets the backyard scene in Euro Trip (2004). If you haven’t already, look up the song “Scotty doesn’t know”, it was the ballad that caused best friends Scott and Cooper to embark on an overseas adventure in search of romance. This hilarious, and at times, revolting comedy sets the stage—literally—for backyard party scenes. You can always expect some grand epiphany to take place in the backyard at parties, are we forgetting about the swing scene from 10 Things I Hate About You?
6. The Living Room
grade dance and the setting is a 1970’s school gym. You can never go wrong with shakin' your groove thang. Just ask the ultimate party experts…
Kid 'N Play! You thought I forgot didn’t you? Outrageous house parties can be traced back to the kings of party throwing in House Party (1990). Please educate yourself on this movie if you haven’t already, and leave the dancing to the experts. Gangnam style who??
