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Los Angeles : Top 10 of Pretty Woman's filming locations
“Pretty woman, walkin’ down the street
Lyrics of the soundtrack
Pretty woman the kind I’d like to meet
Pretty woman I don’t believe you, you’re not the truth…
No one could look as good as you – mercy”
Eternal words for an immortal film. Pretty Woman has marked several generations and has not stolen its status as a cult film. Discover these mythical filming locations.
1. Beverly Wilshire
The hotel where Edward Lewis (Richard Gere) and Vivian Ward (Julia Roberts) are staying is the Beverly Wilshire Hotel. If the exterior is indeed that of this building, the interior, on the other hand, has been entirely reconstructed as a studio. This was not the case for Beverly Hills Cop, the feature film actually used the establishment’s lobby.
Address: 9500 Wilshire Blvd, Beverly Hills, California, USA
2. Hollywood Boulevard
Vivan practises her profession on this famous avenue. This is where she is approached by Edward, simply looking for her way, but who finally hires her to be his girlfriend. The Walk of Fame, on which the greatest artists have their stars, is located on this famous path. If Julia Roberts doesn’t have hers yet, she can take comfort in that. A similar street exists in Dingle, Ireland, on which it has this distinction.
Address: Hollywood Boulevard, Los Angeles, California, USA
3. Boulmiche Boutique
During his shopping session, the saleswomen of this store make a “big mistake”, that of snubbing Vivian. This one will come back to make them swallow their judgments. This mythical scene will be repeated many times, notably in the series The Office (US), when Dwight (Rainn Wilson) is excluded from a miniature store. Jim (John Krasinski) and Andy (Ed Helms) will help him to improve his image thanks to the film and the line “You work on commission right?” La Cité de la peur (1994), Dumb and Dumber (1994) or Warm Bodies (2013) also did not hesitate to parody the famous shopping scenes. Today, the sign has moved to 321 North Beverly Drive.
Address: 9501 Santa Monica Blvd, Beverly Hills, California, USA
4. Le Voltaire (closed)
In this very chic restaurant, Vivan has some problems with snails. The locations also appear in Bruce Almighty, Mr and Mrs Smith and Suicide Squad. Now closed, the establishment has been replaced by a discotheque called Cicada Club.
Address: 617 S Olive Street, Los Angeles, California, USA
5. Opera
The San Francisco Opera? Actually, it’s the Los Angeles Museum of Natural History. At least for the interior, since the exterior façade is that of the Carnegie Music Hall in Pittsburgh. In this scene, the two future lovebirds are about to see Verdi’s La Traviata. This choice is not insignificant, since it is a reverse mise en abyme. Violetta, the heroine of this opera, is a courtesan, in other words a prostitute. On the other hand, she will not have the same chance as Vivian, since she is forced to leave her lover because of social conventions.
Address: Natural History Museum, 900 W Exposition Boulevard, Los Angeles, California, USA
6. Vivian’s apartment
To a tune from La Traviata, Edward climbs the fire escape to Vivian’s apartment at the end of the film. His home is actually at the Hotel Las Palmas.
Address: Las Palmas Hotel, 1738 Las Palmas Avenue, Los Angeles, California, USA
7. “Sylvester Stallone” house
Edward is a little lost in his thoughts in front of a house, until a homeless man breaks out of his torpor and shouts that the house belongs to Sylvester Stallone. Located in Beverly Hills, the actor’s residence is just a few hundred square meters larger. Sylvester Stallone came close to playing Edward, but declined the role. Plus, the homeless man is none other than the director himself, Garry Marshall.
Address: 1735 North Hudson Avenue, Hollywood, California, USA
8. Bank of America Financial Center
Edward goes to his offices at the Bank of America Financial Center. It’s on the lawn, in front of these huge buildings, that he walks barefoot, on Vivian’s advice.
Address: Bank of America Tower Plaza, Los Angeles, California, USA
9. Polo match
Vivian and Edward are watching a polo match at the equestrian center. One of the film’s cult scenes is the one in which Edward presents Vivian with a beautiful necklace. Richard Gere suddenly closes the lid on Julia Roberts’ hand, causing her to laugh out loud. This scene, not foreseen in the script, pleased the director who kept it.
Address: Los Angeles Equestrian Center, 480 Riverside Dr, Burbank, California, USA
10. Pool
Vivian and Kit (Laura San Giacomo) walk by the pool at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel. This pool is actually the one at the W Los Angeles Hotel. The film’s props range from luxury to low-cost. The necklace Vivian wore was estimated to cost $250,000, which earned her the presence of a security guard at every scene where she was wearing it. Vivian’s red jacket, on the other hand, cost only $30 and was bought from a bellboy during the shooting.
Address: W Los Angeles, 930 Hilgard Ave, Los Angeles, California, USA
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Cult! movies: 100 mythical places of cinema [French Edition]
Since the dawn of cinema, films have invaded the world and highlighted sometimes unexpected places. Every film location has its secrets. The latter are sometimes as exciting as the feature films themselves.
Did you know that the cemetery where the final duel of The Good, the Bad and the Ugly was built from scratch and that no body lies there? Or that the bus ofInto The Wild has been moved to discourage fans from spending the night there? From the story of the construction of The Bridge on the River Kwai to the incredible encounter during the shooting of the last scene ofIndiana Jones and the Last Crusadeembark on an exciting world tour with the greatest stars of the seventh art. Shiver in the real haunted house ofAmityville and discover the terrifying anecdotes of the making ofApocalypse Now in the Philippines. Visit the building of Blade Runner before stopping at Hogwarts and finally landing in Jurassic Parkin the middle of the Hawaiian archipelago. What if we also took you behind the scenes of the making of the Hobbits’ village of Lord of the Rings ?
Produced by a team of pop-culture specialists and enhanced by numerous anecdotes, Cult! movies tells the secrets of the places that made the history of cinema.
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By Damien Duarte
Passionné par la culture pop depuis son enfance, ses références vont de Donald Duck à Batman en passant par Marty McFly. Fantripper dans l'âme, voyager sur les traces de Ghostbusters, James Bond ou des héros de romans comme Cotton Malone fait partie d'un séjour idéal et réussi !