The 2000 Steven Soderbergh film “Traffic” depicts the international drug trade in the United States through three storylines. The production shot in quite a few different places, including Cincinnati, Ohio, Washington, D.C., El Paso, Texas, San Diego, California, Mexico City, Mexico and more.
In the film, Robert Wakefield, played by Michael Douglas, a is a conservative Ohio judge appointed to head the National Drug Control Policy. However, Wakefield faces a losing battle with his own daughter’s addiction problems. The Wakefield home can be found in Cincinnati, Ohio.
LOCATION: 1242 Edwards Rd, Cincinnati, OH 45208
The Ayala house, where Carlos Ayala, played by Steven Bauer, lives with his wife Helena, played by Catherine Zeta-Jones, can be found in La Jolla, California. While the house itself was not modified for the film, the production changed property to appear to have a false front yard and entrance gate to the right. In reality, the home faces directly toward the street and there is no gate.
LOCATION: 7757 Whitefield Pl, La Jolla, CA 92037
Here is a view closer to what is seen in the film, with the road depicted as the home’s front yard and gated driveway. A wall was added to cover the fact that it was part of the road. In one scene, Helena approaches two DEA agents parked in a van, Montel Gordon (Don Cheadle) and Ray Castro (Luis Guzman), who are surveilling her home and offers them beverages.
Helena meets with Francisco Flores, played by Clifton Collins Jr., to arrange an assassination of a witness against her husband. The two meet inside the Botanical Building at Balboa Park in San Diego. At the time of our visit, the building was closed off for renovation, so we were unable to enter. The same building is briefly seen in “Citizen Kate.”
LOCATION: 1549 El Prado, San Diego, CA 92101
Francisco Flores attempts to assassinate Eduardo Ruiz, played by Miguel Ferrer, in a parking lot next to some municipal buildings in Downtown San Diego. The parking lot is located along Front St between W B St and W A St.
LOCATION: Near Front St / W B St, San Diego, CA 92101
Here is a view through the fence of the parking lot.
Unbeknownst to Francisco Flores, he himself is the target of a second assassin from the window of this building, facing W A St and overlooking the parking lot.
LOCATION: 1300 Front St, San Diego, CA 92101 (facing W A St)
The 1992 erotic thriller “Basic Instinct,” starring Michael Douglas and Sharon Stone, was primarily filmed in the San Francisco Bay Area. The opening murder scene takes place at this home in San Francisco, which was under renovation at the time of our visit.
LOCATION: 2104 Broadway, San Francisco, CA 94115
Catherine Tramell, played by Sharon Stone, lives at this house, also located in San Francisco.
LOCATION: 2930 Vallejo St, San Francisco, CA 94123
Detectives are told Catherine is at her beach house, which can be found in Carmel-By-The-Sea, a small beach town near Monterey. Detective Nick Curran, played by Michael Douglas, is seen arriving at this front gate. A wall obscures most of the view of the home.
LOCATION: 157 Spindrift Rd, Carmel-By-The-Sea, CA 93923
You can in fact see a small portion of the home over the wall, but it’s not much. The same home appeared in the TV show “Big Little Lies.”
Nick’s apartment can be found back in San Francisco. While now painted another color, the property for the most part still looks similar to how it appeared in the film.
LOCATION: 1160 Montgomery St, San Francisco, CA 94133
In one scene, Catherine waits for Nick at his home and the two talk in this area, at the corner of Montgomery St and Green St.
The house from the 1989 Danny DeVito film, “The War Of The Roses,” starring Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner, long remained subject to debate. The interiors for the film were shot at Fox Studio Lot (10201 Pico Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90064), where a large set was constructed for interior filming. The exterior of the home is located at Fremont Place in Hancock Park, Los Angeles. Despite being a popular neighborhood for filming, Fremont Place is one of the few gated communities in Los Angeles, making it inaccessible to the general public. Other films showcasing locations inside Fremont Place include “Taken,” “Rocky III,” “Zodiac,” “Gone Girl” and more. It is also a popular location for TV shows, such as “Monk,” “Prison Break, “The Mentalist,” “CSI: Miami,” “Rizzoli & Isles” and many more.
While some of the features of the home match what appears on screen, other elements do not. For example, the real home only has a one story portico, while in the film, it is two stories high. Furthermore, in the film, the home has an addition built onto the left side. It long remained unclear if the filmmakers had built set additions onto the real home to enhance the production, or if the home itself was later remodeled. Due to these discrepancies, there remained debate as to the authenticity of the filming location.
In the audio commentary for the film, director Danny DeVito finally put that debate to rest, confirming the exteriors were indeed filmed on location at Fremont Place, with facade portions added to give the home a “more federal look.” The scene of the car getting destroyed was a combination of shots at Fremont Place and inserts filmed at the studio. DeVito tells a story about wanting to use a different home, located outside of Los Angeles, but the studio declined, citing budgetary concerns. Shooting at Fremont Place proved difficult, due to a community restriction at the time of no filming after 11:30 PM. This left the production with only a couple hours per night to film night scenes. Filming was further complicated by a difficult neighbor, who parked on the street and threw parties, disrupting the production. The challenges of shooting at the location ultimately put the production seven days behind schedule, which DeVito points out became more expensive than simply opting for his original location outside of the city, which had relaxed night filming policies. Here is the home as it appears now, confirmed once and for all as the location used for exterior scenes in the film.
In the 2006 comedy “You, Me and Dupree,” Molly, played by Kate Winslet, lives in this house with Carl, played by Matt Dillon. The home, located in the West Adams neighborhood of Los Angeles, was curiously given a second story by the film production using vfx.
LOCATION: 2406 Gramercy Park, Los Angeles, CA 90018
Neil, played by Seth Rogan, lives in the house, which is located just around the corner from the above location.
LOCATION: 2170 W 24th St, Los Angeles, CA 90018
The Thompson building where Carl works is the former Nikken Building in Irvine, California, now known as the Masimo Building. The same building has been used in many other productions, including “Iron Man,” “Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story” and “All About Steve.”
Much like the original “Ant-Man,” the 2018 sequel “Ant-Man and the Wasp” divided filming between Georgia and San Francisco, California. The house of Dr. Hank Pym, played by Michael Douglas, once again pops up, located not far from the famous Haight-Ashbury district of San Francisco.
LOCATION: 601 Buena Vista Ave W, San Francisco, CA 94117
Scott Lang, played by Paul Rudd, lives under house arrest at this home, where he spends time with his daughter.
LOCATION: 1400 18th St, San Francisco, CA 94107
Scott, Hank and Hope visit Dr. Bill Foster, played by Laurence Fishburne, passing through the famous Sather Gate at the UC Berkeley campus.
LOCATION: Sather Gate, Sather Rd, Berkeley, CA 94720
Later in the film, an action sequence takes place on Lombard St, a popular tourist destination due to it’s winding, downhill curves. The famous stretch runs between Hyde St and Leavenworth St.
LOCATION: Lombard St, San Francisco, CA 94133 (between Hyde St and Leavenworth St)
Near the end of the film, Scott once again visits the house of his ex-wife Maggie, played by Judy Greer. Maggie’s house is located in Atlanta.
In Joel Schumacher’s 1993 film “Falling Down,” Michael Douglas plays the central character, referred to only as “D-Fens,” which is his license plate number. The film follows D-Fens as he makes his was from Los Angeles to Venice Beach. For the most part, the locations actually do follow this path, with a few exceptions.
The opening traffic jam is set at the 101 interchange of the 110 freeway. The traffic pileup is in the southbound lane to the left, while D-Fens abandons his car and takes the northbound lane to the right on foot.
LOCATION: Interchange of I-110 / I-101, Los Angeles, CA 90012
Beth, the estranged wife of D-Fens, played by Barbara Hershey, lives just off the Venice boardwalk. This view next to her house, facing towards the beach, is seen multiple times in the film.
LOCATION: 201 Ocean Front Walk, Venice, CA 90291
Beth’s house was unfortunately completely remodeled and looks nothing like it did in the film.
LOCATION: 18 Ozone Ave, Venice, CA 90291
The police station where Detective Prendergast, played by Robert Duvall, works was a set built at Warner Bros. Studios (4000 Warner Blvd, Burbank, CA 91522).
D-Fens makes his was to the market of Mr. Lee, where the first outburst of violence occurs over an overpriced can of soda. This location is right next to the 101 freeway, making it a logical stop along the path of D-Fens. The market has since been demolished and a park (Madison West Park) now exists in it’s place.
LOCATION: 458 N Madison Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90004
Later in the film, Prendergast makes his way to the market and climbs this embankment. After spotting a billboard, he correctly places the proximity to the abandoned car and identifies D-Fens as his suspect. A note to those interested in visiting, this dead end next to the park is not a very safe area, serving as a makeshift homeless community.
As D-Fens makes his way through East L.A., he sits to rest and is approached by two gang members demanding his briefcase. D-Fens refuses and things quickly turn violent. The hilltop where the scene was shot has been converted in to a park, Vista Hermosa Natural Park, but the skyline of downtown Los Angeles still matches up.
LOCATION: 100 N Toluca St, Los Angeles, CA 90026
Looking for retribution, the gang members spot D-Fens in front of a theater, where they attempt to ambush him with a drive-by shooting. The theater has since been demolished, but the surrounding buildings where the car rolls up still match.
LOCATION: 2524 East Cesar E Chavez Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90033 (looking down from N Fickett St)
After hitting everyone in sight except D-Fens, their car turns off East Ceasar E Chavez Ave onto N Ficket St and crashes in front of this building. D-Fens walks up and takes their bag of weapons.
LOCATION: 2600 East Cesar E Chavez Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90033 (at N Fickett St)
D-Fens is standing next to a children’s playground in MacArthur Park, when a beggar starts asking him for a handout. The playground has since been moved to another section of the park, but the structure to the left, seen in the film, still stands at the original spot.
LOCATION: 2230 W 6th St, Los Angeles, CA 90057
The beggar follows D-Fens through this tunnel, making up a sob story, which is quickly exposed as a lie. MacArthur Park is not the safest of areas in general. We wouldn’t recommend tourism here. This pedestrian walkway is one of several locations rumored to be the bridge that served as the inspiration for the Red Hot Chili Peppers song “Under the Bridge,” but singer Anthony Kiedis has never confirmed the true location.
On the other side of the tunnel, the D-Fens gives the beggar his briefcase. The lake in the background is also seen in the movie “Drive,” where Ryan Gosling’s character makes a deal with some criminals.
After discovering the briefcase only contains some lunch food, the disappointed beggar throws the apple at D-Fens, who kicks the apple and continues up the stairs to the left.
The “Whammyburger” in the film is the biggest departure from the true path of Los Angeles to Venice Beach. The restaurant, Angelo’s Burgers, is located much further south in Lynwood, California. It still bears a strong resemblance to how it appeared in the film, aside from the fictitious Whammyburger set dressing. Angelo’s was in fact the same restaurant at the time of filming. It has not changed ownership. The burgers there are quite good as well.
LOCATION: 10990 Atlantic Ave, Lynwood, CA 90262
A view inside the Whammyburger.
A poster for the film can be found inside, noting that filming took place on May 12, 1992.
Celebrating his last day, Prendergast eats lunch at a Mexican restaurant.
LOCATION: 4067 Beverly Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90004
In one of the more poignant scenes in the film, D-Fens sees a man protesting, because he has been denied a loan and was determined to be “not economically viable.” The building is now a post office.
LOCATION: 5350 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90036
The scene where D-Fens shoots up a phone booth was shot over on Sunset Blvd in West Hollywood, right along the iconic Sunset Strip. The El Pollo Loco restaurant to the left was seen in the film, although most of the other businesses in the plaza have since changed.
LOCATION: 8148 Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90046
The army surplus store where D-Fens meets a Nazi store owner can be found back towards East L.A. The building really is a surplus store and still operates today. The real owners are nothing like the eccentric man in the film and are very welcoming to visitors.
LOCATION: 3828 Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90026
A view of the front counter, which is brimming with quite a bit more merchandise than seen in the film.
Some of the rocket mortar props seen in the film are still found in the store, albeit a bit tucked away.
The back of the surplus store, where more violence occurs, was actually a set construced at Warner Bros. Studios (4000 Warner Blvd, Burbank, CA 91522).
The construction scene, where D-Fens fires a bazooka, faces towards the 110 and 105 freeway interchange. The same interchange can be seen in the films “Speed” and “La La Land,” the latter of which also opens with a traffic jam, albeit to much different results.
LOCATION: Intersection of S Broadway / W 112th St, Los Angeles, CA 90061
This church can be seen in the background of a few shots during the construction scene.
Near the end of the film, D-Fens finally finds his family at the Venice Fishing Pier. The pier had long been closed at the time of filming and was once set for demolition, but after community backlash, was ultimately saved and restored. The building at the end of the pier is no longer there, but otherwise the area looks the same for the most part.
LOCATION: Venice Fishing Pier, Los Angeles, CA 90292
Prendergast approaches and finally meets D-Fens.
Prendergast and D-Fens have a standoff in the film’s climactic scene.
There are quite a few locations to this film, some demolished or remodeled, others still standing. Other than a few slightly unsafe areas, if you’re a fan of visiting filming locations, most of them are worth a visit. “Falling Down” has grown in stature in the years since the film’s release and it has rightly taken it’s place among the the most iconic Los Angeles-based films.
While the 2015 Marvel film “Ant-Man,” starring Paul Rudd, was set in San Francisco, filming was actually split between San Francisco and Atlanta, Georgia.
Dr. Hank Pym, played by Michael Douglas, lives at this Victorian Gingerbread house in San Francisco, not far from the famous Haight-Ashbury district.
LOCATION: 601 Buena Vista Ave W, San Francisco, CA 94117
Maggie Lang, Scott’s ex-wife, lives at this house with their daughter, located in Atlanta.
LOCATION: 840 Clemont Dr NE, Atlanta, GA 30306
Scott meets up with his friends in Chinatown. This scene was actually filmed in Los Angeles.
LOCATION: Chinatown Central Plaza, 943 N Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90012
Curtis Hanson’s excellent, overlooked 2000 film “Wonder Boys” takes place within the literary circles of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where the film was also shot. The film ranks among Hanson’s finest works and features an impressive, ensemble cast. We highly recommend it if you’ve never seen it.
This house is where Michael Douglas’ character lives in the film, disheveled and struggling to finish writing his second book.
LOCATION: 359 S Atlantic Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15224
Later in the film, the confrontation with “Vernon Hardapple” takes place in the parking lot of this bowling alley. The bowling alley is also seen in the Farrelly Brothers comedy “Kingpin,” where Woody Harrelson’s character loses his hand.
David Fincher’s 1997 thriller “The Game” mostly shot around the San Francisco area. However, the home of Nicholas van Orton, played by Michael Douglas, is tucked away in Woodside, California. The house is known as the “Filoli Mansion.” The house has also been seen in the films “Heaven Can Wait,” “George of the Jungle,” “The Joy Luck Club” and the 1980s TV drama “Dynasty.”
It is not a private residence and tours of the property are open to the public. There are a couple things to keep in mind, however, if you do plan a visit. First of all, the house can be tricky to locate if you’re using GPS. The property is not visible at all from Cañada Road. All you’ll see is land and trees. Also, most GPS systems do not show the driveway to the property, which is off to the side a short drive, so it’ll appear on most maps as having no access. This is not the case of course. Simply head past the house until you see an opening to the north. This driveway will lead you up to the guard house. The second thing to keep in mind is the property is intermittently closed. Anything from special events to seasonal closings may prevent you from visiting, so be sure to schedule in advance and verify the place is open when you plan on stopping.
LOCATION: 86 Cañada Rd, Woodside, CA 94062
The office of Nicholas van Orton is seen through the alleyway of Leidesdorff Street in San Francisco.
LOCATION: 465 California St, San Francisco, CA 94104 (view seen in the film is from Leidesdorff St)
Nick’s brother Conrad, played by Sean Penn, becomes paranoid and accuses Nick of conspiring with the creators of the game. He runs from Nicholas down these stairs.
LOCATION: Joice St Steps, Joice St, San Francisco, CA 94108 (located between 740 and 750 Joice St, San Francisco, CA 94108)
Later in the film, Nicholas visits the home of Christine, played by Deborah Kara Unger, where they soon finds themselves under attack. This location can actually be found in Los Angeles, not far from Dodger Stadium.
LOCATION: 439 Savoy St, Los Angeles, CA 90012
After escaping from Mexico, Nicholas visits the former Johnie’s Broiler in Downey, where he attempts to get a ride back to San Francisco. The restaurant has a unique history, having appeared in many other films, such as “Heat,” “Short Cuts,” “License To Drive,” “What’s Love Got To Do With It,” “One Hour Photo,” “My Stepmother Is An Alien” and many more. In 2007, the building was unfortunately demolished. However, Bob’s Big Boy purchased the property years later and rebuilt it based on the original blueprints and even some of the same materials. So what stands now closely resembles what was seen in the film.
Film Oblivion 