How many times have you been watching an action-packed thrill-ride of a film, marveled at its locale and thought, “Wow, it sure would be cool to go to a place like that!” Well, what’s stopping you? Many of your favorite adventure films have equally famous filming locations that you can absolutely visit. Since a quick movie awards guide check reveals there isn’t a category for best location scouting, why not pay tribute to these unsung heroes of the silver screen with our next vacation itinerary?
San Francisco, for example, has been used as the backdrop for many an adventure film. When you see rankings of different movies, it’s not unusual to see at least one which is set in the City by the Bay. One of the most legendary examples is the Steve McQueen film Bullitt (1968). Word has it that the chase scene was pieced together from several sections of the city, but one spot you can definitely spot is the corner of Taylor and Vallejo. If you gaze from there towards the water, you can easily identify where the cars in the film were taking flight while navigating the city’s hilly streets.
During your visit to San Francisco, you will want to also consider visiting Alcatraz. It is world-famous as once being the most difficult prison to escape from– being surrounded by at least a mile of water on all sides, for one thing. Now, it is one of San Francisco’s most popular tourist destinations and has come up in several films, Escape from Alcatraz (1979) being the most obvious. As far as adventure films, the most extensive use of the prison would arguably be The Rock (1996). Starring Sean Connery and Nicholas Cage, the filmmakers initially were going to film the scenes taking place at the prison on a studio lot but instead opted to use the real deal, working around tourist tours. You too can tour the landmark, just make sure to book in advance.
Now, for something more exotic, might I recommend a trip to Guatemala? If you fly into Guatemala City and then take an overnight bus to Flores, you will be able to then take a cab or chicken bus and then a hike to the ruins of the ancient Mayan temples of Tikal. Savvy adventure-film fans know that this location is the stand-in for Yavin in Stars Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (1977). The last temple that the public is able to climb is Temple IV and if you do, you can easily spot Temple I, II, and III above where the Millenium Falcon comes in for a landing.
If you visit New Zealand, there will be no doubt that you are in the land where the Lord Of The Rings Trilogy (2001-2003) and The Hobbit (2012-2014) were filmed as soon as you arrive at the Wellington International Airport. Here, you will encounter huge representations of Gandalf and Gollum designed by the same team that built the props and physical effects for the films. From there, you can find various filming locations along the six-hour drive to Hobbiton. You can actually visit The Shire and drink Hobbit beers at The Green Dragon Inn! There is a tour of the 12-acre set, complete with Hobbit holes, the mill seen in the films and a family sheep farm.
This is merely one sampling out of many regarding famous filming locations, none of which are comprehensive. Many resources exist for following in the footsteps of your on-screen heroes and turning those steps into an adventure of your own so I suggest a bit of digging and further research. Plan ahead and have fun.
Final thought: when you get to the exact location, consider taking a photo with your phone from the same angle as a shot in the movie. This makes for a good social media post. Just don’t do anything too dangerous!
1 comment
I would like to visit the filming locations of Harry Potter. I really like this series of films and the books are fantastic. Now I’m studying guides like this one that can tell the difference between the characters or just other not obvious facts from this universe.