Still from the movie “Mamma Mia!”
Mamma Mia! (Mamma Mia!, 2008). Greece
This sparkling musical based on the songs of the Swedish mega-group ABBA takes place on the fictional island of Kalokairi. Its role was “played” by two Greek islands Skopelos and Skiathos, located in the Aegean Sea. Both of them are part of the Northern Sporades archipelago. Some scenes were filmed in the small fishing village of Damuchari on the Pelion Peninsula.
The main roles in the film are played by Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth and Stellan Skarsgård. An American architect, an English banker and a Swedish sailor come to their daughter’s wedding at the invitation of their former lover. It’s just not clear which of the three of them is her father…
By the way, next year the sequel to this film will be released: Mamma Mia! Here we go again. The plot is still kept secret, but it is known that filming took place on the island of Vis in Croatia.
Still from the film “Cote d’Azur”
Côte d’Azur (By the Sea, 2015). Malta
A husband and wife, incredibly tired of each other, come to relax on the Cote d’Azur of the French Riviera and settle in a tiny hotel, right on the seashore… The husband and wife are played by Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. And Jolie, moreover, acted as the director of this rather intimate film.
For us, the intrigue lies in the fact that the film was filmed not in France, as one might assume, but in Malta. More precisely, on the island of Gozo. Or more precisely, in Mgarr Bay. Some street scenes were filmed in the small town of Gharb, also in Gozo.
The film company Universal Pictures allocated money to Jolie for the film on the condition that she would then star in a couple of blockbusters, and the money for the production of “Côte d’Azur” would be deducted from her future fees.
Still from the film “The Talented Mr. Ripley”
The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999). Italy
The film by Anthony Minghella and starring Matt Damon takes place in the late 1950s in Italy in the seaside town of Mongibello. True, there is no city with this name in Italy. But the city of Positano, one of the best resorts on the Amalfi Coast, coped with its role quite successfully. It can be easily identified by the dome of the Church of Santa Maria Assunta, which appears in the frame from time to time. Positano was given antique make-up especially for the filming. The film shows a local celebration in honor of the statue of the Black Madonna and Child, which is carried on a stretcher from the sea. The famous beach of Positano was also featured in the film. It is here that Matt Damon’s hero fatally meets Dickie Greenleaf played by Jude Law.
Still from the movie “The Beach”
The Beach (The Beach, 2000). Thailand
The Danny Boyle film starring Leonardo DiCaprio was filmed on Phi Phi Le Island in Thailand. However, according to the book by Alex Garland, on which the film was based, the “secret paradise” described in it was most likely not here, but on one of the islands of Ang Thong National Park, located forty kilometers west of Koh Samui. The Beach filming location, Maya Bay on Phi Phi Le, surrounded on all sides by sheer, forested cliffs, is considered one of the most beautiful in Thailand, and during filming it truly was almost paradise. Unfortunately, today this “paradise” has lost its original charm due to the crowds of tourists attracted here by the film. In addition, this is a nature reserve, so visiting the beach is paid.
Still from the film “The Blue Lagoon”
The Blue Lagoon (1980). Fiji
Despite the fact that this film is relatively old, it looks quite modern. Because the dream of living on a secluded paradise island will be in demand at all times. Let us recall the plot: after a shipwreck, a boy and a girl find themselves on a desert island, where they grow up and comprehend the world. Brooke Shields and Christopher Atkins, who played the main roles, became superstars and youth icons after this film.
All this heavenly splendor was filmed in very different places. In Fiji (Nanuya Levu and Turtle Islands, which are privately owned by businessman Richard Evanson),
Vanuatu (Champagne Bay on the island of Espiritu Santo),
in Jamaica and even on the island of Comino on Malta, already mentioned in this review.
But the geography of the sequel – “Return to the Blue Lagoon” (1991) with the young Milla Jovovich – is much more modest. The film was shot in just one place, on the island of Taveuni, Fiji.
Still from the movie “Kon-Tiki”
Kon-Tiki (Kon-Tiki, 2012). Maldives
The film, based on real events, recreates the historical voyage of the famous Norwegian explorer and scientist Thor Heyerdahl and his international crew on a reed raft across the Pacific Ocean. It was the ocean that became the main character and the main stage of this film. Most of the film’s scenes were filmed in the Maldives, as well as on the islands of Khao Lak and Phuket in Thailand.
Still from the movie “Pirates of the Caribbean”
Pirates of the Caribbean (2003, 2006, 2007, 20011). Caribbean Islands
It is known that the creators of this epic at the very beginning did not expect such enormous popularity. The task was more than modest: to revive interest in one of Disneyland’s pirate attractions. Everyone knows perfectly well what came of it. The first part of the film, “The Curse of the Black Pearl,” was filmed on the island of Grenada, which is located in the southeastern part of the Caribbean Sea, as well as on the Samana Peninsula in the Dominican Republic, all in the same Caribbean. In Dead Man’s Chest, the filming geography expanded to include the Bahamas, and in the film At World’s End, California and Hawaii were involved. On Stranger Tides, Puerto Rico joins this motley crew.
And now here’s a surprise. In the latest film in the franchise this year, Dead Men Tell No Tales, the crew radically changed the scenery. No Hawaii, Bahamas or Puerto Rico… The entire film was shot entirely in Australia. In Queensland.
Preview photo: Still from the movie “Pirates of the Caribbean”
Text author: Dmitry Rzhannikov
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