Location for a classic movie
WHS that have been used as a location for films of high public and/or critical acclaim. James Bond, Indiana Jones, Star Wars, Alfred Hitchcock and the Marvel Studios have their own connections and are not repeated here.
Connected Sites
| Site | Rationale | Link |
| Alcala de Henares | Spartacus (1960, Best Motion Picture – Drama at the Golden Globes) | |
| Amphitheater of El Jem | Life of Brian (1979) | |
| Ancient Ksour | Timbuktu (2014, winner of AMAA 2015 Prize for Best Film), filmed in Oualata | |
| Ancient Kyoto | Rashomon (1950, won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival in 1951) | |
| Ancient Nara | Rashomon (1950, won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival in 1951) | |
| Ancient Thebes | The Ten Commandments (1956, preserved in the United States National Film Registry) | |
| Angkor | Lara Croft Tomb Raider (2001), Lord Jim (1965) | |
| Assisi | Some scenes of the film "Brother Sun, Sister Moon" from 1972, directed by Franco Zeffirelli, were filmed inside the Sacro Convento. The film won the David di Donatello Award for Best Director and was nominated for an Oscar for Best Art Direction. | |
| Auschwitz Birkenau | Schindler's List (1993, won Best Picture at Academy Awards, Best Movie at BAFTA, Best Motion Picture Golden Globes) | |
| Babylon | Intolerance (1916, preserved at the United States National Film Registry) | |
| Bam Cultural Landscape | The Desert of the Tartars (1976, it won the Italian film prize David di Donatello and was one of the selected Classics at the Cannes film festival) | |
| Belfries | Welcome to the Sticks (Bienvenue chez les Ch’tis, 2008) : one of the most famous scenes sees the hero playing "I Just Called to Say I Love You" on the carillon atop the Bergues belfry. | |
| Brasilia | That Man from Rio (with JP Belmondo) (1964), where Brasilia during its construction can be seen. | |
| Brugge | In Bruges (2008) | |
| Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks | Dr Zhivago (1965, Best Motion Picture at Golden Globe Awards) | |
| Cartagena | The Mission (1986, won the Cannes Film Festival Palme d'Or) | |
| Central Sikhote-Alin | Dersu Uzala (1975, winner of the critics' prize at Moscow International Film Festival) | |
| Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus | Slumdog Millionaire (2008, Best Picture at Academy Awards and Golden Globes, Best Film at BAFTA) | |
| Cistercian Abbey of Fontenay | Cyrano de Bergerac (1990, best Film at César awards, Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film, and held Oscar & BAFTA nominations) | |
| Cultural Landscape of Kenozero Lake | The Postman's White Nights - Winner of a Silver Lion in 2014 | |
| Dong Phayayen | Khao Yai's waterfalls Heo Narok and Haeo Suwat featured in The Beach (2000). | |
| Durham Castle and Cathedral | Durham Cathedral (Hogwarts - "views of the exterior of the entire school were created from shots of Durham Cathedral with a digital spire added to the towers. Durham Cathedral also served as a set for Hogwarts interiors." in the Harry Potter movies ) | |
| Ferrara | "The Garden of the Finzi-Continis" is set in Ferrara and used the city for exterior shots. The film won the Golden Bear and 1972 Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. | |
| Forts and Castles Gold Coast | Elmina. "Cobra Verde" - Herzog/Kinski 1987 | |
| Frank Lloyd Wright Buildings | Various, including Guggenheim museum in Manhattan (1979, preserved in the National Film Registry.) | |
| Fujisan | Throne of Blood (1957) | |
| Gardens and Castle at Kromeríz | Amadeus (1984, Best Picture at Academy Awards) | |
| Glacier parks | The Shining (1980, preserved in the United States National Film Registry) | |
| Grand Canyon | Into the Wild (2007) | |
| Great Smoky Mountains | Davy Crockett: King of the Wild Frontier (1955) | |
| Great Spa Towns of Europe | Many films have been shot on location in Montecatini Terme, some examples including scenes from Franco Zeffirelli's "Camping" (1957), Anthony Asquith's "The Yellow Rolls Royce" (1964), Mario Monicelli's follow-up to "My Friend" (1982), and Nikita Michalkov's "Oci Ciornie" (1987). (Nomination File, p. 268) Marcello Mastrioanni won the award for Best Actor at the 1987 Cannes Film Festival and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for "Oci Ciornie". | |
| Göreme NP and Cappadocia | Winter Sleep (2014, won the Palme d'Or and the FIPRESCI Prize in Cannes) | |
| Hallstatt-Dachstein | The Sound of Music (1965, Best picture at Academy Awards and preserved in the US National Film Registry) | |
| Hatra | Director William Friedkin filmed in Hatra for the first scene in The Exorcist (1973, Best Motion Picture at the Golden Globes), in which a priest at an archaeology dig unearths an ancient talisman belonging to Pazuzu, an ancient Mesopotamian demon. | |
| Himeji-jo | Shogun (European theatrical film remake of the miniseries, 1980), Ran (1985, "Despite its limited commercial success at the time of its release, the film's accolades have improved greatly, and it is now regarded as one of Kurosawa's masterpieces.") | |
| Huangshan | Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (2000, won best foreign language film awards at BAFTA, Academy Awards and Golden Globes) | |
| Iguacu | The Mission (1986, won the Cannes Film Festival Palme d'Or) | |
| Iguazu National Park | The Mission (1986, won the Cannes Film Festival Palme d'Or) | |
| Imperial Palace | The Last Emperor (1987, Best Picture at Academy Awards, Best film at BAFTA, Best foreign film at César Awards) | |
| Independence Hall | Rocky II (1979) | |
| Isole Eolie | Il Postino (1994, won BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language) | |
| Istanbul | Hagia Sophia and Blue Mosque in Argo (2012, Best Picture at Academy Awards, Best film at BAFTA, Best foreign film at César awards) | |
| Kandy | The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957, Best Picture at Academy Awards, Best Film at BAFTA, preserved in the National Film Registry by the United States Library of Congress) | |
| Kasbah of Algiers | La Battaglia di Algeri (Dir - G Pontecorvo, 1966, B+W). Won Venice "Leone d'Oro" and "occupies the 120th place on Empire Magazine's list of the 500 greatest movies of all time" (Wiki). Shot on location in the Algiers Kasbah, it tells the story of the organisation of the FLN guerilla movement there between 1954-57 during the Algerian war against France. Once banned in France and elsewhere it has been accused of inspiring political violence and spreading guerilla tactics around the World. | |
| Kathmandu Valley | Up to His Ears: "The film also includes approximately 15 minutes of footage of the central area of Kathmandu" | |
| Kilimanjaro National Park | The Snows of Kilimanjaro (1952) | |
| Kraków | Schindler's List (1993, won Best Picture at Academy Awards, Best Movie at BAFTA, Best Motion Picture Golden Globes) | |
| Ksar of Aït Ben Haddou | Lawrence of Arabia (1962, Best Picture at Academy Awards, preserved in the US National Film Registry; in 1999, the British Film Institute named the film the third-greatest British film of all time), Gladiator (2000, Best Picture at Academy Awards, Best Film at BAFTA) | |
| Le Havre | Le Havre (2011, prize of the critics at Cannes Film Festival) | |
| Lübeck | The Salzspeicher in Nosferatu (1922, "One of the silent era's most influential masterpieces") | |
| Machu Picchu | "Aguirre, the Wrath of God" . Herzog/Kinski 1972. On the steps of Huayna Picchu | |
| Maloti-Drakensberg Park | In 1964, film director Cy Endfield shot the exterior locations in the mountainous Drakensberg National Park for the epic war film Zulu starring Michael Caine and Stanley Baker (wiki) | |
| Margravial Opera House | Scenes for Farinelli (1994, won Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film), about the life and career of the 18th-century Italian opera singer Carlo Broschi, were filmed here | |
| Maritime Greenwich | Sense and Sensibility (1995, Best film at BAFTA, Golden Bear at the 46th Berlin International Film Festival) | |
| Mazagan | Othello by Orson Welles (1952): "Portuguese cistern.... Several movies have been filmed there, of which Orson Welles' Othello is the best known internationally" (wikivoyage El Jadida) | |
| Medina of Essaouira | Othello directed by (and starring) Orson Welles (1951, winner at Cannes Film Festival). A bust of Welles is situated just outside the Medina. | |
| Mexico City and Xochimilco | Los Olvidados (1950), by Luis Buñuel, ranked as the second-best Mexican movie in history, published in 1994; and that (after public scorn in Mexico for its content and subject matter) won the Palme d'Or for best direction at Cannes. The film's negatives were added to the "Memory of the World" list by UNESCO. Example: • The exact filming locations are pretty unclear to me. Many scenes are shot in slums outside the city center, and in areas that there were just starting to be urbanized. However, some scenes do clearly happen in the historic center, and at the very start, the image of the Zocalo (after those of Paris, London and New York) is shown. | |
| Mycenae and Tiryns | Mycenae: Ilektra (Elektra) - 1962 B+W, Dir - Kakogiannis, Nominated for Oscar and Cannes Palm d'Or | |
| Namib Sand Sea | 2001: A Space Odyssey - "a 1968 epic science-fiction film produced and directed by Stanley Kubrick" (according to nom file) (preserved in the US National Film Registry) | |
| Nemrut Dag | About Dry Grasses (2023 Cannes Palme d'Or Nominee, Best Actress Winner): The last scene (5-10 minutes) of this masterpiece movie is taking place in Mount Nemrut WHS, covering both components (karakus tumulus and main site) | |
| Nice | "La Nuit américaine" (1973), Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film (Nomination file, p. 207) | |
| Odesa | The Potemkin Stairs, made famous by Sergei Eisenstein in his film, Battleship Potemkin. | |
| Old Havana | Our Man in Havana (1959) | |
| Paris, Banks of the Seine | La Traversée de Paris (Claude Autant-Lara 1956), Á bout de souffle (Jean-Luc Godard 1960), Paris brûle-t-il? (René Clément 1966) and others | |
| Pienza | Scenes set in the palace of the Capulets for the 1968 movie "Romeo and Juliet" by Franco Zeffirelli were shot at Palazzo Piccolomini. Some of the street scenes were also shot in Pienza. | |
| Prague | Amadeus (1984, Best Picture at Academy Awards) | |
| Qinghai Hoh Xil | Kekexili: Mountain Patrol (2004, Best film at Golden Horse Film Festival) | |
| Red Fort | Gandhi (1982, Best picture at Academy Awards, best film at BAFTA) | |
| Redwood | Scenes for The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997) as well as the movie Outbreak (1995) were filmed at the nearby Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park. (wiki) | |
| Rio de Janeiro | Christ the Redeemer: As early as the 1940s, Hollywood captured the structure's iconic appeal in such cinematic vehicles as the 1942 Bette Davis film Now, Voyager and Alfred Hitchcock's 1946 film Notorious starring Ingrid Bergman. (wiki) + That Man from Rio (French adventure film 1964) | |
| Rjukan / Notodden | The Heroes of Telemark (1965) | |
| Robben Island | Invictus (2009) | |
| Rome | Roman Holiday (1953, preserved in the United States National Film Registry) / "L'AGE D'OR" (BUNUEL & DALI/1930) WITH VARIOUS SHOTS OF ROME / "LA DOLCE VITA" (FELLINI/1960) AT FONTANA DI TREVI AND OTHERS Palme d'Or at Cannes FF. / "SATYRICON" (FELLINI/1969) AT COLOSSEUM Best Italian Film at Venice FF. / "NOSTALGHIA" (TARKOVSKY/1982) AT CAMPIDOGLIO AND ON VIA CONDOTTI Best Director & FIPRESCI Award at Cannes FF. | |
| Salvador de Bahia | Church of the Blessed Sacrament at Rua do Passo: O Pagador de Promessas, a 1962 drama film by Anselmo Duarte, was filmed on the staircase of the church. The film won the Palme d'Or at the 1962 Cannes Film Festival (wiki) | |
| Salzburg | The Sound of Music (1965, Best picture at Academy Awards and preserved in the US National Film Registry) | |
| San Antonio Missions | The Alamo (1960): an American historical epic film about the 1836 Battle of the Alamo produced and directed by John Wayne and starring Wayne as Davy Crockett | |
| San Gimignano | Tea with Mussolini (1999); Where Angels Fear to Tread (1991) with Helena Bonham Carter, directed by Merchant Ivory. | |
| Santiago de Compostela | "THE MILKY WAY" (BUNUEL/1969) AT THE CATHEDRAL Milky Way / La Voie lactée refers to the Route itself. It is about two pilgrims walking on the Routes in France and Spain to Santiago de Compostela. | |
| Schönbrunn | Sissi (1955) | |
| St. Petersburg | Oktyabr (Ten Days That Shook the World) (Eisenstein 1928) | |
| Statue of Liberty | On the Town (1949, preserved in the United States National Film Registry) | |
| Stralsund and Wismar | the 1922 version of Nosfaratu ("One of the silent era's most influential masterpieces") is set and filmed in Wismar | |
| Summer Palace | The Last Emperor (1987, Best Picture at Academy Awards, Best film at BAFTA, Best foreign film at César Awards) | |
| Taj Mahal | Slumdog Millionaire (2008, Best Picture at Academy Awards and Golden Globes, Best Film at BAFTA), Shiraz (silent film from 1928) | |
| Te Wahipounamu | Lord of the Rings (2001, Best motion picture at Academy Awards for The Return of the King), Oldboy (2003) | |
| Teide National Park | This dramatic scenery has been featured in films such as One Million Years B.C. (1966), Clash of the Titans (2010),[22] and Wrath of the Titans (2012). | |
| Tongariro National Park | The Lord of the Rings (2001, 2003) | |
| Trinity Sergius Lavra | "ANDREI RUBLEV" (TARKOVSKY/1966) AT THE TRINITY CATHEDRAL. FIPRESCI Award at Cannes. | |
| Val d'Orcia | "NOSTALGHIA" (TARKOVSKY/1982) AT BAGNO VIGNONI. Best Director & FIPRESCI Award at Cannes. | |
| Valletta | Fort St Elmo - Midnight Express (1978, Best motion picture at the Golden Globes) | |
| Vatnajökull National Park | Interstellar, a 2014 American science fiction film | |
| Venice and its Lagoon | Venice is the location of "Summertime" (1955) with Katherine Hepburn, directed by David Lean | |
| Versailles | Various, such as A Little Romance (1978) and Dangerous Liaisons (1988, best foreign film at the César awards) | |
| Vienna | The Third Man (1949, in 1999 the British Film Institute voted The Third Man the greatest British film of all time), Amadeus (1984, Best Picture at Academy Awards) | |
| Villa d'Este | Three Coins in the Fountain, a 1954 American romantic comedy film (won 2 Oscars in 1955) | |
| Wadi Rum | Lawrence of Arabia -much of the movie directed by David Lean (1962, Best Picture at Academy Awards, preserved in the US National Film Registry; in 1999, the British Film Institute named the film the third-greatest British film of all time) | |
| White Monuments of Vladimir and Suzdal | "ANDREI RUBLEV" (TARKOVSKY/1966). Most of the movie was shot on locations at Vladimir and Suzdal. FIPRESCI Award at Cannes. There is even a Tarkovsky monument in Suzdal for making this movie there. | |
| Wudang Mountains | The Assassin (2015, released on DVD without cinematic release) | |
| Wulingyuan | Wulingyuan (known as Zhangjiajie in Wiki), many scenic areas have been used as Pandora planet's Hallelujah Mountains in Avatar (2009) | |
| Xidi and Hongcun | Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000, won best foreign language film awards at BAFTA, Academy Awards and Golden Globes) |
Suggestions?
Do you know of another WHS we could connect to Location for a classic movie?
A connection should:
- Not be "self evident"
- Link at least 3 different sites
- Not duplicate or merely subdivide the "Category" assignment already identified on this site.
- Add some knowledge or insight (whether significant or trivial!) about WHS for the users of this site
- Be explained, with reference to a source