Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986)

September 17, 2017September 1, 2024 / filmoblivion / Leave a comment

Few filmmakers have ever captured adolescence as well as John Hughes did with a string of hit films in the 1980s. Most of his films were set in the fictitous town of Shermer, Illinois and “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” is no exception.

While much of the film did indeed film in the Greater Chicago area, Ferris’ house is actually located far from the neighborhoods of Chicago, in Long Beach, California. The same house appears in the films “Red Dragon” and “Not Another Teen Movie.”

LOCATION: 4160 Country Club Dr, Long Beach, CA 90807

Ferris’ high school scenes were filmed at Glenbrook North High School, in Northbrook Illinois. Hughes had previously used the hallways of the school in another of his 80s hits, “The Breakfast Club.” Later in the film, Ferris poses as his girlfriend Sloane’s father, coming up with a scheme to get her out of school. This scene was actually filmed at the Center for Performing Arts, a separate building on the grounds of the high school. The stairs still look exactly the same as they did in the film.

LOCATION: 2300 Shermer Rd, Northbrook, IL 60062

A reverse view at the parking lot from the stairs, where Ferris posed as Sloane’s father.

The police station where Jeanie, played by Jennifer Grey, meets a mysterious man, played by Charlie Sheen, can be found in Downtown Los Angeles. It is only seen from interior views in the film. The building has been featured in countless films and television series, including “Beverly Hills Cop,” “Beverly Hills Cop II,” “Divergent,” “The Muppets,” “Wrath Of Man,” “License To Drive,” “Unlawful Entry,” “Inspector Gadget,” “Child’s Play 2,” “Enough” and dozens more.

LOCATION: 635 Mateo St, Los Angeles, CA 90021

Ferris’ best friend Cameron lives at this house in Highland Park, Illinois. It has unfortunately since been remodeled, but we were able to capture it long before remodeling took place.

LOCATION: 370 Beech St, Highland Park, IL 60035

Late in the film, disaster strikes when Ferris and Cameron accidentally reverse Cameron’s father’s car through the glass wall of this building, down a steep canyon. The building really does exist behind the above house and there really is a steep canyon beneath it, exactly as depicted in the film. This building has not been remodeled.

Some outfits worn by Ferris and Cameron in the film can be seen on display at Planet Hollywood in Florida.

LOCATION: 1506 E Buena Vista Dr, Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830

Randy’s Donuts

September 15, 2017December 22, 2022 / filmoblivion / Leave a comment

Arguably the most famous donut shop in movies, Randy’s Donuts has been featured in countless television shows and films. Robert Downey Jr. famously sat inside the building’s giant donut hole in “Iron Man 2.” Even “The Simpsons” famously depicted a donut shop in their fictional town of Springfield, which strongly resembled Randy’s Donuts.

There are actually several donut shops which use the giant donut atop a drive-thru, however Randy’s is by far the most well-known of the bunch. The building was built in 1953 and has been going strong since. It’s been seen in such films as “Get Shorty,” “2012,” “Crocodile Dundee In Los Angeles,” “Dope” and “The Golden Child,” as well as television shows such as “Californication,” “Arrested Development,” “Entourage” and many more. It’s worth mentioning as well that their donuts are quite good!

LOCATION: 805 W Manchester Blvd, Inglewood, CA 90301

The Devil’s Rejects (2005)

September 9, 2017November 8, 2024 / filmoblivion / Leave a comment

Like most of Rob Zombie’s films, “The Devil’s Rejects,” which is arguably his finest, shot around Southern California. The opening standoff at the Firefly house was shot at Sable Ranch in Santa Clarita, California, which is not open to the public. Quite a number of buildings at Sable Ranch were lost, due to a wildfire in 2016. The Firefly house, however, was one of the buildings which survived the fires. In case you’re wondering, the Firefly house is not very visible from the road, if you were to drive up to the ranch entrance.

LOCATION: 25933 Sand Canyon Rd, Santa Clarita, CA 91387

Captain Spaulding’s house can be found in Lancaster. No address seems to show up on GPS, but the house can be found on E Ave J, between 60th St E and 65th St E. Exact GPS coordinates are listed below.

LOCATION: E Ave J, between 60th St E and 65th St E, Lancaster, CA 93535 (GPS coordinates: 34.689478, -118.018095)

On the run, Baby, played by Sheri Moon Zombie, makes a phone call to Captain Spaulding from this gas station. It’s never seen in a wide shot in the film, which is why it may not look immediately recognizable. The gas station is located right beside the motel location seen later in the film.

LOCATION: 42848 150th St, Lancaster, CA 93535

Otis and Baby make their way to the “Kahiki Palms Motel,” where some unsuspecting guests have the unfortunate luck of crossing their paths. The real location is the Club Ed movie set, out in Lancaster, California, in an area of mostly desert terrain. The building is not an actual running business and is used strictly for filming purposes today. This too is private property and closed to the public. However, unlike Sable Ranch, these locations can be seen quite easily from the road.

LOCATION: 42848 150th St, Lancaster, CA 93535

Another angle of the motel, including the rooms to the left, where many scenes with the hotel guests were shot. Club Ed has been in many films, including “Nothing To Lose,” “Rubber” “Woman of the Hour” and “Eye Of The Storm.”

After Captain Spaulding’s truck runs out of fuel, he stops at Buck’s Grab ‘N Go, where he steals the vehicle of a mother and her son. The same location appeared in the film “The Last Starfighter.”

LOCATION: 9411 Soledad Canyon Rd, Santa Clarita, CA 91390

The film’s climactic standoff with the police was filmed on a closed section of Golden State Hwy in Castaic. We’ve provided GPS coordinates below.

LOCATION: Golden State Hwy, Castaic, CA 91384 (GPS coordinates: 34°37’21.6″N, 118°44’40.6″W)

The police set up a barricade at this bridge, which runs over Piru Creek.

Here’s a wider view of where the car speeds towards the police.

While this last shot is not seen in the film, this is the furthest point you can drive on Golden State Hwy before the road is blocked. The road to get to this point from the 5 freeway is a bit rough, but it is also a scenic drive, free from traffic. It is permissible to continue on foot or bike from this point and its about a half mile to reach where the scene was filmed. The path is flat and a modest walk for most.

Wayne’s World (1992)

September 8, 2017December 13, 2022 / filmoblivion / Leave a comment

Based on the classic “Saturday Night Live” skit, “Wayne’s World” is set in the town of Aurora, Illinois. However, while a small bit of the film did shoot in Illinois, the majority was filmed in California. Wayne’s house can be found in a neighborhood of Van Nuys, in the San Fernando Valley north of Los Angeles.

LOCATION: 7105 Texhoma Ave, Van Nuys, CA 91406

Garth’s house is located directly across the street. However, in the time that has passed since filming, the house has undergone such heavy remodeling, it no longer bears any resemblance to how it appeared in the film.

LOCATION: 7102 Texhoma Ave, Van Nuys, CA 91406

The music store where Wayne sees his dream guitar can be found in San Fernando. The store is still in business and has photos from the film, as well as a signed guitar on display, although it is not the one seen in the film.

LOCATION: 901 N Maclay Ave, San Fernando, CA 91340

The diner where Wayne apologizes to Garth can be found in Inglewood. The hockey player on the roof was added by the production.

LOCATION: 1220 N La Brea Ave, Inglewood, CA 90302

Wayne’s actual guitar from the film can be found on display at Planet Hollywood in Florida.

LOCATION: 1506 E Buena Vista Dr, Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830

Avengers: Age Of Ultron (2015)

September 6, 2017October 5, 2022 / filmoblivion / Leave a comment

Film locations are of course not limited only to the United States and neither are we! Several sequences in Marvel’s “Avengers: Age Of Ultron” were shot in Seoul, South Korea.

Ultron tries to force Dr. Helen Cho to make him a new body at U-Gin Genetics Research Lab, where Captain America later shows up. The research lab is in fact a cultural building used for restaurants, exhibitions, conferences and performances on the Some Sevit Floating Islands. The islands were man-made on the banks of the Han River, in an effort to bring more cultural activity to the area. There are three islands there, which are all interconnected. The research lab building is on the largest of the three islands; Some Gavit. The building was designed to resemble a flower in full bloom. All three islands can be easily accessed by foot, don’t be mislead by the “island” distinction.

LOCATION: 683 Olympic-daero, Seocho-gu, Seoul, 06500, South Korea

Later in the film, Captain America, Hawkeye and Black Widow are in pursuit of Ultron in an action piece that takes place all over the streets of Seoul. It would be exhaustive trying to cover every street piece, so instead we’ll highlight one key area. Hawkeye and Black Widow soar in a jet over this sculpture in front of the MBC building. MBC is one of the major broadcast stations of South Korea. Several other broadcast stations’ headquarters can also be found in this area.

LOCATION: 267 Seongram-ro, Mapo-gu, Seoul, 121-904, South Korea

They even commemorated the shooting of the film by placing a Captain America shield and Avengers plaque in the ground at the base of the sculpture.

There is also a video monitor at the location, which plays the Seoul action sequences from the film on repeated rotation. Below the video screen is information (in Korean) about the shooting of the film at this location. It’s always a pleasure to see locations embrace and commemorate films in this manor.

Almost Famous (2000)

September 2, 2017March 17, 2024 / filmoblivion / Leave a comment

The house of Patrick Fugit’s character, where he lives with Francis McDormand and Zooey Deschanel in Cameron Crowe’s semi-autobiographical film “Almost Famous,” is set in San Diego, California. However, the real home used in the film is actually located in Santa Monica, California.

LOCATION: 1047 Maple St, Santa Monica, CA 90405

Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (2004)

August 31, 2017October 15, 2022 / filmoblivion / Leave a comment

White Goodman, played by Ben Stiller in “Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story” runs “Globo Gym,” where he heads up the “Purple Cobras” dodgeball team. The lobby of the former Nikken Building in Irvine, California, now known as the Masimo Building, served as the location of “Globo Gym.” The same building has been used in many other productions, including “Iron Man,” “You, Me And Dupree” and “All About Steve.”

LOCATION: 52 Discovery, Irvine, CA 92618

The Dirty Sanchez bar can be found here.

LOCATION: 3387 Motor Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90034

Training Day (2001)

August 30, 2017March 12, 2025 / filmoblivion / Leave a comment

Jake, played by Ethan Hawke, first meets Alonzo, played by Denzel Washington, at the Quality Cafe in Antoine Fuqua’s 2001 film “Training Day.” The diner was a one-time staple of films, appearing in “Seven,” “Ghost World,” “Catch Me If You Can,” “Another Day In Paradise,” “(500) Days Of Summer” “Million Dollar Baby,” “The Rules Of Attraction,” “What’s Love Got To Do With It,” “The Heartbreak Kid” and dozens more. However, it was not an actual restaurant open to the public. Instead it was used solely for filming. Sadly, it ceased to function as a filming location and was completely renovated in 2014. The interior of the property no longer bears any resemblance inside to how it appeared in so many films.

LOCATION: 1238 W 7th St, Los Angeles, CA 90017 (since closed and remodeled)

Later in the film, Jake finds himself set up inside this drug dealer’s house. The house can be found perched on a hill in the Everett Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. The home was used again in the 2009 Sam Raimi film, “Drag Me To Hell,” as the residence of Alison Lohman’s character.

LOCATION: 1031 Everett St, Los Angeles, CA 90026

Mullholland Drive (2001)

August 26, 2017September 21, 2024 / filmoblivion / Leave a comment

Given the title, it’s a given that David Lynch’s 2001 film “Mullholland Drive,” like many of his other films, is based around Los Angeles. When Betty, played by Naomi Watts, first arrives in L.A., she stays at this apartment complex.

LOCATION: 450 N Sycamore Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90036

In the Silverlake neighborhood of Los Angeles, you’ll find the “Sierra Bonita” apartments, where Diane lives. Located just a few blocks from the original site of Walt Disney Studios, the eight cottages are said to have inspired the animation designs for the dwarf houses in “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.”

LOCATION: 2900 Griffith Park Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90027

The iconic Pink’s Hot Dogs is seen where the hitman speaks with a prostitute. Pink’s has appeared in many films, such as “The Muppets,” “The Golden Child,” “Minnie and Moskowitz,” “loha, Bobby and Rose,” “Hickey & Boggs” and more.

LOCATION: 709 N La Brea Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90038

The Winkie’s Diner on Sunset Blvd is not actually on Sunset or even in Hollywood. The building can actually be found in the city of Gardena. The “Winkie’s” name was also created by the filmmakers. The real restaurant was at one time a Denny’s, before later becoming Caesar’s Restaurant. It currently sits vacant.

LOCATION: 1016 W El Segundo Blvd, Gardena, CA 90247

In one of the film’s more unsettling scenes, Dan, played by Patrick Fischler, is haunted by the image of a man behind a wall in the back lot of the restaurant. He makes his way down the sidewalk and stairs to the wall behind the restaurant, to face his nightmare.

As he approaches the wall, he collapses when he sees the man in his nightmares personified. As you can see, the wall appears a bit different now than how it appeared in the film, no longer extending out as far.

In Downtown Los Angeles, you’ll find the entrance to Club Silenco. This is actually the back of the Palace Theatre, facing S Spring St

LOCATION: 630 S Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90014 (rear entrance, near 621 S Spring St, Los Angeles, CA 90014)

The interior of Club Silenco was filmed at the Tower Theater in Downtown Los Angeles. It has since been converted into a retail store and is open to the public. Lynch revisited this location for “Inland Empire,” as well as “Twin Peaks: The Return.” The same building has also appeared in the films “Buffy The Vampire Slayer,” “The Omega Man,” “Fight Club,” “The Prestige,” “Coyote Ugly,” “Last Action Hero,” “Transformers,” “Ed Wood,” “End of Days,” ““She’s So Lovely,” “The Replacement Killers,” “The Good German,” “Dark Streets” and “The Mambo King.”

LOCATION: 800 S Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90014

Batman (1989)

August 23, 2017June 24, 2025 / filmoblivion / Leave a comment

While Tim Burton’s 1989 “Batman” film was originally considered to be shot at Warner Bros. Studios, the film instead primarily shot at Pinewood Studios, just outside of London, England. However, the Batmobile from the original film can today be seen at the Warner Bros. lot, as part of their studio tour.

LOCATION: 4000 Warner Blvd, Burbank, CA 91505

In 2019, the Peterson Automotive Museum in Los Angeles held a limited exhibition called “Hollywood Dream Machines: Vehicles of Science Fiction and Fantasy,” which featured one of the original, screen-used costumes worn by Michael Keaton in the film.

LOCATION: Peterson Automotive Museum, 6060 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90036

A couple models of the Batmobile can be found on display at Planet Hollywood in Florida.

LOCATION: 1506 E Buena Vista Dr, Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830

Film Oblivion

Movie and TV locations, points of interest.

Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986)

Randy’s Donuts

The Devil’s Rejects (2005)

Wayne’s World (1992)

Avengers: Age Of Ultron (2015)

Almost Famous (2000)

Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (2004)

Training Day (2001)

Mullholland Drive (2001)

Batman (1989)