Table Of Content
- Lights, Camera, Sedona! Explore Movie Magic in Arizona’s Beautiful Desert
- The Karate Kid – US Box Office: USD$91,077,276millions
- National Lampoon’s Vacation – US Box Office: USD$61,418,063millions
- Breakdown – US Box Office: USD$50,159,144millions
- Midnight Run – US Box Office: USD$38,413,606millions
- Universal Soldier – US Box Office: USD$$36,299,898millions
Lights, Camera, Sedona! Explore Movie Magic in Arizona’s Beautiful Desert
Hey there, fellow movie buff! Looking for some cinematic excitement to spice up your life? Well, you’ve come to the right place! Get ready to embark on an adventure through the reel world as we explore the mesmerizing landscape of Sedona, Arizona, and its starring role in countless movies. Trust us, you’ll be itching to grab your camera and hit the road after reading this!
Key takeaways:
- Sedona, Arizona, has served as the backdrop for numerous movies, adding a touch of Hollywood glamour to its already breathtaking scenery.
- Visiting movie filming locations adds an extra layer of excitement and nostalgia to your travel experience.
- Exploring Sedona’s movie magic allows you to recreate your favorite scenes and become part of the cinematic history.
Now, let’s get into the nitty-gritty of why you absolutely can’t miss out on visiting movie filming locations in Sedona. Picture this: you’re standing on the exact spot where your favorite actors delivered unforgettable lines, surrounded by the same stunning vistas that graced the silver screen. It’s like stepping right into the story!
Just imagine the thrill of recreating movie moments with your friends or loved ones. Want to channel your inner western hero? Head to the iconic red rocks spots that echoed with the footsteps of legendary actors like John Wayne. Saddles up, partner!
If you’re a fan of sci-fi or adventure flicks, Sedona has got you covered too. Immerse yourself in the extraterrestrial wonderland that inspired otherworldly tales and explore the landscapes that made your favorite characters’ adventures truly unforgettable. Honestly, you’ll feel like you’re starring in your own blockbuster!
But the fun doesn’t stop there! By visiting movie filming locations, you’re not only stepping into the shoes of your favorite characters, but you’re also supporting local communities.
Many filming locations become popular tourist destinations, boosting the local economy and allowing you to contribute to the preservation of these stunning sites for future generations of movie lovers.
So, here’s our call to action: grab your camera, pack your sense of adventure, and join us as we dive into the world of movies filmed in Sedona, Arizona. Who knows, you might stumble upon a movie set, meet your favorite actors, or just have an unforgettable time exploring the magic that’s been captured on the silver screen in this mesmerizing desert paradise!
Now, without further ado, scroll down to discover the movie marvels that have graced the enchanting land of Sedona. But remember, the real adventure begins when you hit the road and experience it all firsthand! Happy exploring, fellow film enthusiasts!
The Karate Kid – US Box Office: USD$91,077,276millions
Director: John G. Avildsen
Main Cast: Ralph Macchio, Pat Morita, Elisabeth Shue, Martin Kove
Release Date: 22 June 1984
Filming Locations: Golf ‘N’ Stuff – 10555 Firestone Blvd., Norwalk, California, USA; 20924 Gault St, Canoga Park, Los Angeles, California, USA; 19223 Saticoy Street, Reseda, Los Angeles, California, USA; Reseda, Los Angeles, California, USA; Charles Evans Hughes Jr. High School – 5607 Capistrano, Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA
Main Plot: Daniel and his mother relocate to California from New Jersey. Daniel quickly realizes that a dark-haired Italian boy with a New Jersey accent does not blend in with the blonde surfer set. Daniel can negotiate his way out of a few battles, but members of the same karate school eventually surround him. As Daniel is about to fall out from the beating, he sees Miyagi, and the elderly gardener dives into the struggle to save him by besting six youngsters. Miyagi and Daniel quickly discover that the boys’ karate instructor is the source of their aggressive behavior. Miyagi pledges to teach Daniel karate and sets up a fight in the upcoming all-valley tournament. Daniel does not comprehend what is being demonstrated when his training begins. Miyagi appears to be more interested in Daniel painting fences and waxing automobiles than in teaching him Karate.
Famous quotes:
Daniel: “Hey – you ever get into fights when you were a kid?”
Miyagi: “Huh – plenty.”
Daniel: “Yeah, but it wasn’t like the problem I have, right?”
Miyagi: “Why? Fighting fighting. Same same.”
Daniel: “Yeah, but you knew karate.”
Miyagi: “Someone always know more.”
Daniel: “You mean there were times when you were scared to fight?”
Miyagi: “Always scare. Miyagi hate fighting.”
Daniel: “Yeah, but you like karate.”
Sequel: The Karate Kid Part II (1986); The Karate Kid Part III (1989)
Fun Fact about The Karate Kid:
- The yellow vintage car that Daniel polishes in the iconic “wax-on/wax-off” training sequence and that Mr. Miyagi subsequently offers as a birthday present to Daniel was given to Ralph Macchio by the film’s producer, and he still owns it. This automobile is a 1948 Ford Super De Luxe.
National Lampoon’s Vacation – US Box Office: USD$61,418,063millions
Director: Harold Ramis
Main Cast: Chevy Chase, Beverly D’Angelo, Imogene Coca, Randy Quaid
Release Date: 29 July 1983
Filming Locations: Six Flags Magic Mountain – 26101 Magic Mountain Parkway, Valencia, California, USA; Saddleback Inn, 12500 Firestone Blvd, Norwalk, California, USA; Schnebly Hill Road Overlook, Sedona, Arizona, USA; 2310 North Vermont Avenue, Los Feliz, Los Angeles, California, USA; Chicago, Illinois, USA
Main Plot: The well-intentioned American patriarch Clark Griswold and his supportive wife Ellen take their two teenagers, Rusty and Audrey, on a cross-country journey from the Chicago suburbs to the sunny California amusement park Walley World. Nonetheless, everything that may go wrong does go wrong, and by the time Ellen’s cousin Catherine and her husband Eddie join the picture, Clark is on the edge of exploding. Clark must do the right thing and find the promised land, despite the allure of a covert rendezvous with the attractive blonde in her 1981 Ferrari 308 GTSi, and Roy Walley’s wonderful park is becoming further away.
Famous quotes:
Ellen Griswold: “The next time you have one of your outbursts, I’d really appreciate it if you think about the consideration of our kids.”
Clark Griswald: “What are you talking about?”
Ellen Griswold: “You don’t know? After everything that happened, you still don’t get it?”
Clark Griswald: “I’m just trying to treat my family to a little fun.”
Ellen Griswold: “Oh spare me, Clark! I know your brand of family fun. Tomorrow you’ll probably kill the desk clerk, hold up a McDonalds, and drive us 1,000 miles out of the way to see the world’s largest pile of mud!”
Sequel: National Lampoon’s European Vacation (1985); National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989); Vegas Vacation (1997)
Fun Fact about National Lampoon’s Vacation:
- When it came to filming scenes inside Walley World, where they rode all the roller coasters and other rides, the entire cast had dreadful experiences. Chevy Chase adds in the commentary that several passages made him and the other cast members queasy, especially because they had to ride them multiple times for each take. Dana Barron stated in the commentary that the roller coasters made her so unwell that she needed motion sickness medication and would pass out on nearby benches between takes. Finally, Anthony Michael Hall states that in the roller coaster scenes where he appears terrified, he is not acting; his terror is genuine.
Breakdown – US Box Office: USD$50,159,144millions
Director: Jonathan Mostow
Main Cast: Kurt Russell, J.T. Walsh, Kathleen Quinlan, M.C. Gainey
Release Date: 2 May 1997
Filming Locations: Sedona, Arizona, USA; 240 St E, Lancaster, California, USA; American River, Sacramento, California, USA; Moab, Utah, USA; Victorville, California, USA
Main Plot: The Taylors are going to California, and to get there, Jeff and Amy will have to drive across the nation. Their journey is brought to an abrupt end when they find themselves trapped in the middle of a desert with very few people and very little else for miles around them. Amy had hitched a ride to a local diner with a kind truck driver so she could make a call for assistance, but Jeff started to get concerned after a considerable amount of time. He discovers that no one in the diner has seen or heard from his wife, and he realizes this is a problem. When he tracks down the trucker who gave Amy a ride, the trucker claims he has no memory of her. Now that his wife has been abducted and held for ransom, Jeff feels obligated to try to find her.
Famous quotes:
Sheriff Boyd: “Mr. Taylor, did you, uh, by any chance, have a beef with your wife today?”
Jeff: “What has that got to do with anything!”
Sheriff Boyd: “Well, for starters, maybe there’s a possibility that she could have left you.”
Jeff: “I don’t – I don’t believe this! My wife did not leave me!”
Sheriff Boyd: “Mr Taylor, I’ve seen it a hundred times. You put two people in a car long enough, they’re gonna go at it. Lovers, married couples, gay guys- hell, I’ve seen men dump their women on the side of the road and vice versa.”
Fun Fact about Breakdown:
- The road layout in the opening titles is derived from a map of north-central New Mexico. However, the names of the roads, landmarks, and towns have been altered or replaced with fictitious names.
Midnight Run – US Box Office: USD$38,413,606millions
Director: Martin Brest
Main Cast: Robert De Niro, Charles Grodin, Yaphet Kotto, John Ashton
Release Date: 20 July 1988
Filming Locations: New Zealand; Miami, Arizona, USA; Upper Salt River Canyon, Arizona, USA; Cameron, Arizona, USA; Flagstaff, Arizona, USA
Main Plot: Jonathan “The Duke” Mardukas, a former Mafia accountant and bail jumper, is the subject of bounty hunter Jack Walsh’s (Robert De Niro) mission to locate and return him (Charles Grodin). The FBI has been unsuccessful in identifying The Duke, so they are ashamed when Jack discovers him in a matter of minutes. Jack must drive The Duke from New York to Los Angeles to collect his $100,000 compensation. The Mafia and FBI, as well as rival bounty hunter Marvin Dorfler (John Ashton), have other plans. During their long travel across the country to Los Angeles, the two become acquainted and form an odd friendship.
Famous quotes:
Jack Walsh: “Where am I? I’m in Boise, Idaho. No, no, no, wait a minute, I’m in Anchorage, Alaska. No, no, wait, I’m in Casper, Wyoming. I’m in the lobby of a Howard Johnson’s and I’m wearing a pink carnation.”
Eddie Moscone: “What the fuck are you talking about?”
Jack Walsh: “I am not talking to you, I am talking to the other guys.”
Eddie Moscone: “What other guys?”
Jack Walsh: “Well, let me describe the scene to you. There are these guys, see? They’ve probably been up for like two days. They stink of B.O., they have coffee breath, they’re constipated from sittin’ on their asses for so long, they’re sitting in a van, and they’re probably parked right up the street from your office, Eddie. YOUR PHONE IS TAPPED!”
Sequel: Another Midnight Run; Midnight Runaround; Midnight Run for Your Life
Fun Fact about Midnight Run:
- Scars from the real handcuffs that Charles Grodin wore for a large portion of the film were a lifelong reminder of his experience. Robert De Niro, ever the method actor, insisted that Grodin utilize the steel handcuffs in most of the film’s sequences, despite the availability of rubber and plastic versions for usage in wide views.
Universal Soldier – US Box Office: USD$$36,299,898millions
Director: Roland Emmerich
Main Cast: Jean-Claude Van Damme, Dolph Lundgren, Ally Walker, Ed O’Ross
Release Date: 10 July 1992
Filming Locations: Kingman, Arizona, USA; Chloride, Arizona, USA; Sedona, Arizona, USA; Hualapai Indian Reservation, Arizona, USA; Bagdad, Arizona, USA
Main Plot: In the struggle against terrorism, a special force consisting of soldiers who have received extensive training has been dispatched. These service members are counting on the incredible physical power they possess to accomplish success. A reporter name Victoria pursues them and, in the end, is successfully discovering some of the secrets they have been keeping. She attempts to flee after learning that one of the team members is responsible for killing her cameraman. When one of the soldiers, Luc, starts having flashbacks, he ultimately switches sides and aids her, and the rest of the group swiftly follows suit so that they can keep their secrets to themselves.
Famous quotes:
Brenda the Waitress: [to Luc, who has devoured many, many plates of food at the diner] “That’s a lot of food you’ve put away, boy.”
Luc: “It’s good food.”
Brenda the Waitress: “Yup. You gonna be able to pay for all that?”
[Luc looks at her dumbfounded, she senses the answer and calls to the back]
Brenda the Waitress: “Hey Hank! We got a deadbeat here!”
Hank the Cook: [Comes out from the kitchen] “Hey, punk, I been slavin’ all day makin’ that slop!”
Luc: “The food is good.”
Hank the Cook: “Fuckin’ A it is. The question is, how are you going to pay for it?”
Luc: “I – I don’t know.”
Hank the Cook: “You don’t know. Ain’t that cute? I’m gonna bust your head, punk!”
Luc: “I – I don’t want to hurt you.”
Hank the Cook: “Awww, he don’t wanna hurt ol’ Hank.”
Sequel: Universal Soldier II: Brother in Arms and Universal Soldier: The Return
Fun Fact about Universal Soldier:
- Both Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren showed up at the 1992 Cannes Film Festival to promote their film. Security guards interfered when they saw Van Damme and Lundgren arguing, pushing, and threatening each other outside the festival venue. The media picked up on the fight between the two and covered it extensively. Years later, though, in an interview, Lundgren admitted that the whole thing had been manufactured to promote the movie. In a podcast from 2018, Van Damme also shared his confirmation of this.
