Filming Location


I was wondering where this movie was filmed especially the town. However, the usually detailed information provided by IMDB does not include filming locations for this film. Anyone have any idea?

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According to IMDB, and the post broadcast announcer, it was filmed on MGM's backlot, the last film shot there prior to the valuable land being sold to developers. Whether the one lane tunnel exists or was fabricated for the movie I don't know.

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Thanks for your input. Some of the scenes looked like actual parts of town, including downtown and individual homes. Also, there was some beach scenes with ocean. Just curious if everything was on the "backlot". thanks a gain.

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Hello, Emailtom: I hope it's not too late to weigh in on this.

I'm surprised by the Trivia section for this film describing the use of the backlot because much of this appears be be shot on location. I suspect the backlot scenes were probably for the police station, the vets' office and James Garner's house, but there are a lot of downtown, neighborhood, landscape and ocean scenes that look much larger than a backlot.

I'm guessing that some of those larger scenes were filmed in Marin County, perhaps Mill Valley (which is referenced here) or San Rafael, or even in the Sonoma County towns of Petaluma or Bodega Bay (home of Hitchcock's "The Birds"). This is just speculation on my part, but maybe someone with greater familiarity with those areas can confirm?

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Malibu is mentioned in the filming locations. Maybe that's where the beach house was?



No two persons ever watch the same movie.

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I suspect you are right about Malibu...but that includes a pretty long tract of land/beach... I suspect the producers found a small cottage that was sold or to be demolished, arranged to dress it up for the on-location shoot, and then burn it down as part of the package deal. The interiors, especially the bathroom tub scene, were probably on a soundstage.
You can usually spot a soundstage sceen by the amount of backlighting that sets off an actor's hair or by the lack of a hollow sound when miking within a small room.

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breathOair
I suspect you are right about Malibu...but that includes a pretty long tract of land/beach... I suspect the producers found a small cottage that was sold or to be demolished, arranged to dress it up for the on-location shoot, and then burn it down as part of the package deal. The interiors, especially the bathroom tub scene, were probably on a soundstage.

You can usually spot a soundstage sceen by the amount of backlighting that sets off an actor's hair or by the lack of a hollow sound when miking within a small room.

Don't forget the sounds. Soundstages tend to be very quiet. I don't remember hearing the surf at any time while anyone was in the house on the beach.




No two persons ever watch the same movie.

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No sir, the town doesn't exist anymore...it was only exterior locations around the square and the courthouse on the MGM backlot. The interiors were probably on a soundstage, and I doubt the tunnel and beach house were on that same back lot. The producers probably scouted and found an abandoned cottage due for demolition that they fixed up for the shoot and burned it down... but I think some of the interior work (shots) could have been on a soundstage OR shot on location. It depends on if you can see the footage of the ocean beach through the doors and windows.

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