A lot of movies use a variety of international locations to make their stories come to life. Madrid has been used as the backdrop for a number of national and international films. Here are some of the most famous ones.
Index
Quantum of Solace
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Fans of the James Bond saga have had the chance to see the most famous secret service agent in the world face his foes in a variety of locations around the world. In Quantum of Solace, James Bond is played by English actor Daniel Craig. The action of the movie takes place in different worldwide locations such as Lake Garda, in northern Italy, Lake Constance in Austria, Panama City in Panama, and Italy, Lake Constance in Austria, Panama City in Panama, and Madrid, in Spain. Curiously enough, this Paul Haggis directed 007 movie is not the one that features Spanish actor Javier Bardem, who only joined the British secret agent saga later, in 2012, to play villain Silva in Skyfall.
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The Bourne Ultimatum
This 2007 mystery/crime film directed by Paul Greengrass brings us another adventure in the life of Jason Bourne, brought to life by actor Matt Damon. The characters travels through different locations in Europe, including Madrid, in a scene shot at the famous Atocha train station. The Bourne Ultimatum is the third movie in the Bourne saga, and it packs all the same type of fast-paced action the previous offered the viewers.
Women on the verge of a nervous breakdown
Pedro Almodòvar has directed a number of interesting and zany Spanish films, including the famous 1988 flick “Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios”. The main character, Pepa, is played by Carmen Maura, who is abandoned by her boyfriend, Iván. During the movie, she tries to find him and confront him to get answers and understand why he decided to leave her, running into his ex-lover, a young couple, and a woman who is afraid the police may be looking for her due to the fact that she used to date a terrorist. Like most of Almodòvar‘s movies, Women on the verge of a nervous breakdown presents the viewers with lots of amusing and peculiar situations, which take place in the Spanish capital.
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Doctor Zhivago
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Many will be surprised to learn that the 1965 classic Doctor Zhivago, directed by David Lean, and starring Omar Shariff, Julie Christie, and Geraldine Chaplin was in great part shot in Madrid. Though the story of the movie takes place in Russia, a set was built in the capital of Spain, close to the Canillas cemetery, to mimic the city of Moscow. Another area where scenes were filmed was the Delicias station. An anecdote about the shooting of Doctor Zhivago in Madrid says that a lot of the locals were not aware that there was a movie being shot and thought that dictator Franco had been overthrown.
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* Main photo by Alan in Belfast via Visualhunt.
