# Movies that Take Place in Your State **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 26, 2000, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-take-place-in-your-state/34529 "2000-09-26T00:24:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2000, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-take-place-in-your-state/34529/1 "2000-09-26T00:24:46Z")
I don’t think this has been done before, so here goes… In my home state of **Illinois** _The Blues Brothers_: Takes place in and around Chicago. _Ordinary People_: Takes place in a suburb of Chicago. _The Fugitive_: First 45 minutes or so in various locales throughout southern Illinois, the rest in Chicago. _Dennis the Menace_: Although no town is mentioned by name, the Wilsons’ car has Illinois plates. _Home Alone_: Takes place in or around Chicago (they fly out of o’Hare). _The Sting_: Takes place in Chicago. _The Untouchables_: Chicago again. _Ferris Bueller’s Day Off_: Chicago again. _Babysitter’s Blues_: Chicago yet again. _The Journey of Natty Gann_ (OK, I’m reaching here) The first part takes place in Chicago. _Halloween_: Takes place in the fictitious town of Haddonfield, Illinois. That’s all I can come up with for my state. What about yours? ---
**Author:** ![wring](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/838e76/32.png) [@wring](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wring)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2000, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-take-place-in-your-state/34529/2 "2000-09-26T00:29:26Z")
Michigan - Die Hard II was filmed here in Alpena, since they wanted snow. Of course, it was the warmest winter in quite a while, so they had to bring in the snow machines anyhow. Anatomy of a Murder with Jimmy Stewart, Lee Remick and several other notables was the true (semi) story of a murder up in the UP Then of course there was Bird on A Wire with the famous Detroit to Racine Wisconsin ferry ( :rolleyes: ) , but it also had Mel, so who cared. And a whole lotta stories about D-troit, and the one about the Battle Creek guy who started Kellogs? ---
**Author:** ![relic\_11](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/50afbb/32.png) [@relic\_11](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/relic_11)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2000, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-take-place-in-your-state/34529/3 "2000-09-26T00:36:06Z")
_Stir of Echos_ was filmed a few blocks from my fiance’s house, in good ol’ **Joliet, Il**! ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2000, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-take-place-in-your-state/34529/4 "2000-09-26T00:37:11Z")
More Illinois movies: _Abe Lincoln in Illinois Adventures in Babysitting Call Northside 777 Carmen Jones Eight Men Out The Front Page Risky Business Some Like It Hot Young Mr. Lincoln_ to name a few. ---
**Author:** ![sk8rixtx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/858c86/32.png) [@sk8rixtx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sk8rixtx)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2000, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-take-place-in-your-state/34529/5 "2000-09-26T00:39:00Z")
Lets see… hmmmmm… thinking… The Ref w/ Dennis Leary. Amistad. In Dumb&Dumber Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels drove through Connecticut to get from Rhode Island to Vermont. Those are all I can think off. ---
**Author:** ![sk8rixtx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/858c86/32.png) [@sk8rixtx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sk8rixtx)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2000, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-take-place-in-your-state/34529/6 "2000-09-26T00:42:13Z")
rastahomie Don’t forget about Adventures In Babysitting with Elizabeth Shue and Anthony Michael Hall. ---
**Author:** ![deb2world](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7cd45c/32.png) [@deb2world](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/deb2world)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2000, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-take-place-in-your-state/34529/7 "2000-09-26T00:57:03Z")
There are way too many movies about California. If I were to reduce it to county, that would be L.A., also that would bore you to tears. So let’s go with city–Long Beach–that would be _Gone in Sixty Seconds_. _Baywatch_ was also filmed at the Long Beach Harbor. BTW. Some of the outside scene for that Gone with the Wind Part 2 (Scarlett) was filmed at the park which is within a few mile of my home even though it was suppose to be Georgia. I find it interesting to see places I go to in movies, and I don’t mean those touristy places, but places like shopping centers. If you see a movie/TV show with a large, blue pyramid, that is in Long Beach. The pyramid is a basketball gymnasium at the Cal State University of LB. ---
**Author:** ![racinchikki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/eada6e/32.png) [@racinchikki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racinchikki)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2000, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-take-place-in-your-state/34529/8 "2000-09-26T00:58:36Z")
Well, most of the movies about New York take place in the city. There’s probably one or two from not-the-city, like me, but I can’t think of any. There was that movie Lake Placid, and Lake Placid is somewhere near me, but I think for the purposes of the movie it was in Maine, or else they filmed it in Maine or somethign. Last summer they filmed some movie in Buffalo but I don’t remember what. ---
**Author:** ![JosephFinn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/3bc359/32.png) [@JosephFinn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JosephFinn)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2000, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-take-place-in-your-state/34529/9 "2000-09-26T01:15:37Z")
Two more set in Chicago: Judgement Night High Fidelity, though it was London in the novel (Nick Hornsby, the novelist, was reportedly quite happy withe the transplanting). ---
**Author:** ![Lsura](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7993a0/32.png) [@Lsura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lsura)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2000, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-take-place-in-your-state/34529/10 "2000-09-26T01:24:01Z")
Georgia First one that pops to mind is _Deliverance_ I know there are many, many more, but you know- I can’t think of any more right now. Other states I have lived in… Tennessee _Nashville_ part of _Coal Miner’s Daughter_ Mississippi _Mississippi Burning_ Maine _Shawshank Redemption_ I know there are more for each, but… ---
**Author:** ![OrcaChow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e47c2d/32.png) [@OrcaChow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OrcaChow)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2000, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-take-place-in-your-state/34529/11 "2000-09-26T01:30:42Z")
I used to live in Humboldt County, northern CA: Darby O’Gill and the Little People Salem’s Lot (TV) A Death in Canaan (TV) Heroes (argh. starring Fonzie) Halloween III (ARGH) Outbreak Return of the Jedi (technically, Del Norte county) Current home of Seattle, WA: Five Easy Pieces The Last Detail Little Buddha Love Stinks Assassins Some Elvis poop about the World’s Fair The Fabulous Baker Boys Sleepless in… The Hand That Rocks the Cradle (Strange: the Seattle scene were filmed in Tacoma and the Tacoma scenes were filmed in Seattle.) ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2000, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-take-place-in-your-state/34529/12 "2000-09-26T01:42:34Z")
Hey! Pennsylvania – Johnstown (I should know, I was born there): “Get me a generic dying steel town!” All the Right Moves Slap Shot Gravy Train, aka The Dion Brothers In and around Pittsburgh: The Deer Hunter The Fish That Saved Pittsburgh Flashdance (?) – was supposed to be set there but was filmed elswhere, I think Innocent Blood Night of the Living Dead/Dawn of the Dead Striking Distance Sudden Death In and around Philly: Philadelphia Rocky I, etc. The Sixth Sense Witness Groundhog Day, while set in Punxsutawney, was actually filmed mainly in a small town in Wisconsin, IIRC. All I can think of; I’m sure there are more… ---
**Author:** ![Spider\_Woman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cdc98d/32.png) [@Spider\_Woman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spider_Woman)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2000, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-take-place-in-your-state/34529/13 "2000-09-26T01:50:00Z")
Both _Grumpy Old Men_ movies were made in Minnesota. Part of _The Mighty Ducks_ was filmed in the old courthouse right here in St. Cloud, Minnesota. I believe that _Jingle All the Way_, with Arnold Schwarzenegger, was partially filmed in and around the Twin Cities. There are probably more that I can’t think of right off hand. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2000, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-take-place-in-your-state/34529/14 "2000-09-26T01:55:53Z")
Something sort of like this was done about six months ago. Someone asked for a movie set in every state and we came up with a fairly complete list. I don’t know how to search for that thread. ---
**Author:** ![rockstar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/73ab20/32.png) [@rockstar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rockstar)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2000, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-take-place-in-your-state/34529/15 "2000-09-26T02:28:04Z")
Probably about half of all westerns made were set in Texas and I don’t feel like going into that. But The Last Picture Show was set near where I live and Texasville was filmed in Wichita Falls (though I have no idea where it is set since I have never seen the movie). And some movie with Emilio Estevez was set in Wichita Falls but I have no idea what the name was nor do I feel like looking it up. Goodness, I just have nothing interesting to say. ---
**Author:** ![BigGiantHead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b4bc9f/32.png) [@BigGiantHead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigGiantHead)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2000, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-take-place-in-your-state/34529/16 "2000-09-26T02:38:48Z")
And for those of you who, like myself, are completely prosaic: [http://us.imdb.com/Sections/Locations/](http://us.imdb.com/Sections/Locations/) gets you a handy reference for _aaallll of these you could ever want._ **rockstar** ’s (and mine coincidentally) state, by way of example, nets you a mere 636 hits. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2000, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-take-place-in-your-state/34529/17 "2000-09-26T03:04:15Z")
New Mexico in general and Santa Fe in particular show up in the damnedest movies. Not just the obvious stuff, like _City Slickers_ and _Young Guns_, but some you wouldn’t think of, like _Twins_ (remember that Schwarzenegger/DeVito flick?) and _John Carpenter’s Vampires_. In fact, _Vampires_ shows the very Santa Fe church (St. Michael’s Cathedral) in which my brother was married. ---
**Author:** ![beakerxf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc79bd/32.png) [@beakerxf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beakerxf)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2000, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-take-place-in-your-state/34529/18 "2000-09-26T03:44:25Z")
I haven’t paid attention to Texas movies. Movies from my home state of Nevada were : Sister Act - Reno Rain Man - Vegas Mars Attacks - Pahrump Father’s Day - Reno, IIRC Bonzanza - Lake Tahoe Leaving Las Vegas - obvious Honeymoon in Vegas - ditto Vegas Vacation - ditto that ditto Snake Eyes - Vegas An X-Files ep - Elko/Wendover ---
**Author:** ![Silver\_Fire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@Silver\_Fire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_Fire)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2000, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-take-place-in-your-state/34529/19 "2000-09-26T04:17:52Z")
Fargo (1996) Feeling Minnesota (1996) Drop Dead Gorgeous (1999) Highway 61 (1994) Overnight Delivery (1998) Movies that were at least filmed in MN: The Cure ('95) Drop Dead Fred ('91) The Good Son ('93) Iron Will ('94) Mallrats ('95) MST3K: The Movie ('96) Purple Rain ('84) Here On Earth (2000) I included these because I’m not sure if they take place in Minnesota or if they were just filmed here. ---
**Author:** ![evilbeth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/evilbeth/32/2268_2.png) [@evilbeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/evilbeth)\ **Post date:** [September 26, 2000, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-take-place-in-your-state/34529/20 "2000-09-26T05:03:51Z")
Well, in addition to the ones already mentioned, filmed (at least in part) in Tennessee: **Big Business** **The River** –a girl (semi-friend) I went to school with has a non-speaking role **The Client** **Great Balls of Fire** **The Firm** **Wag the Dog** **Silence of the Lambs** **Goodbye, Miss 4th of July** –a made-for-TV movie filmed a few miles from my house **The People vs Larry FLint** and more recently, **The Rainmaker** **October Sky** **The Green Mile** and the absolute coolest- **The Evil Dead** –not far from my house! (The actual house they filmed in no longer exists ☹ ) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-take-place-in-your-state/34529.md?page=2)