Numerous films have been shot in the Veneto region. It's fun to watch them and see sights that you recognize and have cycled past. Here are the ones I know of, listed by province; let me know if you are aware of any others. Additional details on any of these films can be found in the Internet Movie Database and similar sites.

BELLUNO
Cliffhanger - Sly Stallone's adventure film, filmed in the Cortina d'Ampezzo area. It's supposed to take place in Colorado, which has no resemblance to the Dolomites. I watch it now and then for the spectacular scenery, recognizing the mountains where I've ridden and hiked, unable to pretend that they are elsewhere.

The Glass Mountain - a composer turned WWII pilot is shot down in the Dolomites, where he hears a local legend which becomes the inspiration for an opera he writes after the war. Opera star Tito Gobbi, playing a partisan, sings La Montanara, a beloved mountain folk song. Wonderful score by the legendary Nino Rota (who scored many of Fellini's films). Available on videotape from Amazon. I love this film!

A Place for Lovers - the usually wonderful Marcello Mastroianni and Faye Dunaway, with whom he was having a real life affair at the time (it must have clouded his judgement). I recall this film as being dreadful and almost unwatchable...I kept hanging on to just see the part filmed in the Dolomites. If I recall correctly, there was also a scene at the Villa Barbaro in Maser (Treviso province).

The Italian Job - The lake and dam on the Passo Fedaia (on the border between Belluno and Trento provinces) are the backdrop of the scene that takes place in the snow-covered mountains.

For Your Eyes Only - James Bond visits Cortina d'Ampezzo and mayhem ensues. Scenes from the original Pink Panther, with Peter Sellers, were filmed in the area as well.

Ladyhawke - This fantasy romance was, according to offical sources, filmed partly in Misurina and Auronzo, but I noted the Tofana di Rozes (near Cortina) in the background in one scene.

PADOVA
The Priest's Wife - an amusing film featuring two of my favorites, Marcello Mastroianni and Sofia Loren. There are scenes in the center of Padua and in the Euganean Hills, where the Abbey of Praglia can be seen in the background.

TREVISO
I Dreamed of Africa - an excellent film with a fine, touching performance by Kim Basinger. The beautiful opening scene is of the Villa Fietta in Paderno del Grappa, with Monte Grappa in the background. Many scenes were shot in medieval Asolo, the town bordering mine. Most of the film takes place in Africa though.

In Love and War - We may be the only ones who like this film. The affecting battle scenes were shot on Monte Grappa; Vittorio Veneto is the beautiful old city in the background of many scenes. Others were shot in the neighboring provinces of Belluno--at Lake Corlo in Arsiè, and Vicenza, on the Bridge of the Alpini in Bassano del Grappa. Hemingway (the protagonist of the film) actually spent some time in Bassano, and there is a museum there (on Ca' Erizzo, open only on Sunday afternoons) dedicated to him and other American volunteers of WWI. I purchased this film on DVD for $4!

Ripley's Game - This film, a sequel of The Talented Mr. Ripley, experienced a lot of production difficulties, and never even opened in US theaters. Many scenes were filmed in the beautiful hill town of Asolo, including at the Caffè Centrale, where one of the twin brothers who own it can be seen in the background (he's bald). Ripley's home is none other than the Palladian Villa Emo in Fanzolo. Additional scenes were filmed in Padua and Vicenza. Unfortunately, the scenery is the best part of the film. It has none of the qualities that made its predecessor intriguing, is violent and unpleasant, has idiotic dialogue and an off-the-mark characterization by John Malkovich (compare Matt Damon in the original, or perhaps even better, Alain Delon in Purple Noon, an earlier French production based on the same novel).

The Flying Saucer (Il Disco Volante) - a sci-fi/fantasy comedy/satire with the wonderful Alberto Sordi playing four roles (!) and having a field day. It was shot in Asolo and the surrounding hills, and many locals appear in the film. It is quite rare and I only got to see it as part of a summer film series in Asolo. This was especially fun because the audience buzzed, oohed, and ahhed as they recognized familiar sites and faces--now forty years older! The film spoofs Italian, and especially Veneto, society of that period. A real gem. Directed by Tinto Brass, better known for his erotic films.

(left) The Carabinieri scour the Asolo hills in search of Martians!

The Birds, the Bees and the Italians (Signore & Signori) - a tale of daily life and mores in a small Italian city (Treviso) in the 60's. Directed by Pietro Germi. (I haven't yet seen this film).

VENEZIA
There have been too many films shot here to list them all, and at any rate, who doesn't recognize Venice? One film stands out in my mind however: Don't Look Now. This masterpiece, directed by Nicolas Roeg and starring Donald Sutherland and Julie Christie, is a thriller that presents Venice in a whole new light: spooky and menacing! I assure you this film will make your hair stand on end.

VERONA
A Little Romance - a charming film with the great Olivier and a wonderful young Diane Lane in her first film role. Also filmed in Verona, and nearby Soave. is the new film Letters to Juliet.

VICENZA
...an episode of the Inspector Morse series (public television), in which views of the city and of the Palladian villa La Rotonda can be seen.

Police Chief Pepe (Il Commissario Pepe) - A police commissioner in a small town investigates a prostitution ring and discovers that things are worse than he could possibly have imagined. Directed by Ettore Scola. (I haven't yet seen this film).

Click here and here for a complete list of movies filed in Vicenza province..

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FRIULI-VENEZIA GIULIA REGION

UDINE
A Farewell to Arms - starring Rock Hudson and Jennifer Jones. I originally hated this film, finding it shallow, insipid, and banal, but I realized that it is quite faithful to Hemingway's style, which in its simplicity and understatement is difficult to transfer successfully to the screen. If nothing else, watch the beginning for some very atmospheric and affecting scenes of the troops going up into the mountains to wage war. It was filmed around Venzone.

The Veneto Film Commission has produced a location guide for film makers, which you can see here.

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