FILMING: Throughout the United States, various locales have been forever immortalized as the site of movie filming. In our area, Bradford, Emporium, Eldred and Turtlepoint were all captured during the film “Unstoppable,” when two men, one a veteran train engineer and the other a novice conductor at his first day of work, were pitted against a full-speed out-of-control train and potential carnage in residential areas.
For those leaving the state of Pennsylvania for a scenic tour of the United States, it might be worth considering some notable stops along the way to see what certain locations look like outside of the movie screen.
A trip to the south can land tourists at the National Mall and Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., which have made cameos in numerous television shows and films. The National Mall has been seen in films like “Forrest Gump,” “National Treasure” and “White House Down.”
The U.S. Department of the Interior Main Building in Washington is another popular backdrop for television shows. The building has been seen in the finale of “Parks and Recreation.”
Meanwhile, heading west can take you toward various national parks, some of which have had their 15 minutes of movie fame.
“The Shining” uses the Going to The Sun Road in Glacier National Park in Montana as the backdrop to the opening credits. This infamous 1980s film goes on to stage the majority of the movie at the Overlook Hotel.
Action and drama can both share the beautiful backdrop of a national park in certain situations. For example, both “Thelma and Louise” and “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade” have scenes set in Arches National Park in Utah.
For “Thelma and Louise,” the park is the location where the duo locks a policeman in the trunk of his cruiser. Meanwhile, 13-year-old Indiana Jones takes a trip with his Boy Scout troop and rides on horseback through the easily recognized locale.
Finally, a trip to California can provide numerous stops worthy of a halt to the tourist trek and some shock and awe. Of those, one great option is to visit the Imperial Sand Dunes in the midst of the Sonoran Desert. This area was the site of the Great Pit of Carkoon portion of “Star Wars: Return of the Jedi.”
