What to do when you have already discovered Andalusia, saw all the monuments, tasted many dishes and photographed things worth immortalising?
Everyone is looking for something that interests them most. We love movies, and so we went onto looking for ... movies that were set in Andalusia.
Andalusia is an ideal region for filmmakers. Everything you need is here: mountains, valleys, sea, ocean, forests, deserts, rivers, beaches, castles, palaces and Arab fortresses. European film producers do not have to go far to find Cuban beaches, the Wild West or Jerusalem.
These local landscapes have been used to film many American productions. Here we outline a few of them:
1. Die another day (2002)
James Bond tries to reclaim his good name by finding a real traitor. The trail leads him to Cuba, Havana, where he meets a beautiful NSA Jinx agent.
However, this is not Havana, but ... Cadiz. On the upper photograph, on the right you can see the back wall of Catedral de Santa Cruz (Cathedral of the Holy Cross), and on the left a boulevard on the background of colourful buildings.
In the picture below, in turn, what is visible in the background is the Castillo de Santa Catalina (Castle of St. Catherine). Pictures on the beach, the scene where Hale Berry goes out of the ocean, were shot at Playa de la Caleta.
2. Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones, 2002
The Star Wars fans will be delighted to hear that the Naboo planet really exists! A place where Padme and Anakin's love blossomed. Scenes were filmed in two places: on Lake Como in northern Italy and in Seville, specifically on the Plaza de España. This is the only place in the world that can not be mistaken for any other.
3. Marshland, (La isla mínima), 2014
The film tells a story of two detectives who are trying to solve the brutal murder of young girls. Some of the scenes from the film were shot in Seville. The action of the movie, however, concentrates on the wetlands, fields and backwaters of the Guadalquivir River in the Doñana National Park, north of Cadiz and south-west of Seville.
4. Knight and day, (2010)
Cameron Diaz and Tom Cruise's movie is an action comedy with full of romance, explosions and lots of laughter. The scene of the chase on a motorcycle was shot in Seville and Cadiz. The bulls, released specially for this scene, were a representation of the Festival of St. Fermina in Pamplona. Apparently there were some problems with controlling the bulls, and for some time the bulls ran slowly through the streets to finally reach the beach (La Caleta).
5. Conan the Barbarian, (1982)
The scene in which Conan meets the witch was filmed near the town of Cuenca, in the Castilla-La Mancha region. However, many scenes, including the final battle, took place in the desert areas of the province of Almería, in the south-east of Spain.
6. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, (1989)
Pictures for this film were shot all around the world, but there were also Spanish landscapes. The scene on the beach when Henry Jones frightened the birds with an umbrella to blind them and destroy their pursuing aircraft was created in the Natural Park of Cabo de Gata - Níjar in the province of Almería. Part of the film was shot in the town of Tabernas or in the nearby desert. In turn, the stage where Dr Brody is besieged by beggars at the train station was used by the railway station in Guadix, in the region of Granada.
7. Delusions of grandeur, ( La folie des grandeurs), (1971)
Famous Louis de Funès in the cult costume comedy. The film takes place in the seventeenth-century Andalusia and most of the photos were shot here. Photographs were made in Almeria, Seville, Madrid, Toledo and Segovia.
8. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966)
The Tabernas Desert has been known to American western producers for decades. The best films of this genre were created here, including "For a few dollars more", "Once upon a time in the west", “A fistful of dollars" or "The good, the bad and the ugly".
Currently, there are three theme parks in Tabernas. Their themes are based on the Wild West films that were shot around.
9. Kingdom of Heaven, (2005)
Spain and Morocco were known to the director (Ridley Scott) from earlier productions. He decided to come back to these places when making the "Kingdom of Heaven". The landscapes of the province of Córdoba and Seville were used in Andalusia. In the film, we can see the Pontocarrero Palace (courtyard in Ibelina) in the city of Palma del Rio and the House of Pilate and Alcázar in Seville (the palace in Jerusalem).
10. The dictator, (2012)
It is an American comedy showing contemporary society, customs and politics in a well-timed and comic way. The film was made in the United States, Morocco and Spain. Behind the palace of the dictator, located in the middle of the desert, is Plaza de España, in Seville.
