In case you were wondering where I am, I am at a desk. In the middle of a snowstorm. Once again reminded of how much I wanna get outta town.
As it were, there’s a ticket to Oslo waiting for me in T-minus three weeks. Also as it were, my dog sitting side hustle allows me mucho time to plan, write, and of course watch multiple subscriptions of television.
So, how do I spend that time counting down until my Scandinavian escape? To that I say–what better way to traverse the globe from my own home but through beloved films.
For obvious reasons, I turned to the internet for suggestions. With “One Week” out of the way, I was in want of more globe-trotting tales to satiate that wanderlust. Combine that with my penchant for analysis and research, and I ended up disappointed. You see, several magazines, bloggers, and movie database enthusiasts have posted their top picks for travel flicks. However, many had numerical limits, like 10 or 20. The lists also varied greatly in both titles and in what numerical order they were ranked, which ignited many the comments and suggestions from fellow travel flick aficionados.
As one remarked, one’s favorite film’s sometimes aren’t reflective of the quality of the film, story, or actors’ performances, but of how much an individual resonates personally with the film in question.
I noticed something else about travel films: not all of them are about skipping town in search of adventure, though some are (i.e. “The Lost City of Z.”) Travel films are also about characters in exotic locations in relationship turmoil (“Leap Year”), showcasing a particular city (“Midnight in Paris”), resolving to live one’s life with clarity brought on by the open road (“One Week” and “Into the Wild”) or simply camping, with either dire or pleasant consequences (“Midsommar” and “Without a Paddle”).
(Some are coming-of-age stories about girls looking to find themselves and find hot foreign boys instead, while others are boys looking to get laid and find their life purpose instead. I feel like that’s a whole academic paper waiting to happen, but I’ll just leave it at that.)
But I digress. Homebound for the time being, I’ve done you a favor: I have compiled a (more or less) comprehensive list of the “Best Travel Films You’ve Ever Heard Of.” And, because I found many sites and users did not have titles that were just as good yet not as well-known, I have a corresponding list of “Best Travel Films You’ve Never Heard Of.” And while some are known favorites and household names, I feel it my duty to the snow-bound world to offer suggestions of films that are lesser-known, though no less profound. Each paired heading has their respective summary if you would like to check them out.
And, because I severely mismanaged my time hiking at Arches this week (though no regrets), the summaries will continue on into next week’s post.
And now, in no certain order but with love for each, I present to you:
The Best Travel Movies You’ve. . .
(Ever Heard Of) (Maybe Never heard of)
Eat, Pray, Love / My Life in Ruins
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty / One Week
Midnight in Paris / Under the Eiffel Tower
The Terminal / Lost in Translation
Mrs. Harris goes to Paris / Au Pair
French Kiss / L’Ex de ma Vie
The Prince and Me / A Princess for Christmas
Letters to Juliet / Love in the Villa
Under the Tuscan Sun / Shadows in the Sun
The Lizzie McGuire Movie / Love & Gelato
A Room with a View / Where Angels fear to Tread
A Walk in the Clouds / Dhaai Akshar Prem Ke
Roman Holiday / Chasing Liberty / What a Girl Wants
Wild / On the Wandering Path / The Way
Without a Paddle / Hunt for the Wilderpeople
Into the Wild / A Walk in the Woods
7 Years in Tibet / The Other Side of Heaven
Leap Year / Finding You
Dumb & Dumber / Friendship!
The Beach / Americano
The Bucket List / Last Holiday
The Holiday / Belle Fille
Sleepless in Seattle / A NY Thing
On the Road / Open Road
Hostel / Brokedown Palace
The Impossible / No Escape
Midsommar / The Ritual / Speak No Evil
Tracks / Cargo / A Far-off Place
Out of Africa / Australia / The Painted Veil
Hidalgo / The Physician / The Four Feathers
Hotel Rwanda / The Last King of Scotland
The Motorcyle Diaries / The Darjeeling Limited
The Mummy / Sahara
The Lord of the Rings / Ash-Lad
Raiders of the Lost Ark / The Lost City of Z / Atlantis: The Lost Empire
The Lost City / Romancing the Stone
The Guernsey Potato Peel Pie & Literary Society / The Ottoman Lieutenant
Lawrence of Arabia / Avatar / Dances with Wolves
Pocahontas / The Light in the Forest
Homeward Bound / The Adventures of Milo & Otis
Robinson Crusoe / Swiss Family Robinson
Land / The Snow Walker
Deliverance / The Decline
Mad Max: Fury Road / Waterworld
Eat, Pray, Love (2010) / My Life in Ruins (2009)
Liz Gilbert’s marriage is over, her money is gone, and she’s on the lookout to fill the void with the one thing she knows how to do: hop a plane. The bestselling memoirs-turned-film chronicle her search for herself, happiness, and a hunky husband. To give details would spoil the surprises she finds along the way, but her stories of destiny do not disappoint.
Georgia is bored of her job as a tour guide, and is looking for some fresh perspective and connection. But she may find it where she least expects: right on the tour bus. The Greek islands make the backdrop for this summer comedy with Greek culture alum Nia Vardalos of “My Big Fat Greek Wedding.”
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013) / One Week (2008)
Walter Mitty is a quiet employee of LIFE magazine. With his job on the line, Walter embarks on a search across the globe for an elusive journalist. Along the way he finds he can indeed live his own adventures in real life, and not just in his head. Besides breathtaking landscapes, one of the oddest yet sincerest covers of Captain Jim will leave you inspired to hop a helicopter, too.
Ben Tyler has just been diagnosed with stage four cancer. On a whim he buys a used motorcycle and hits the road west, seeing sights and meeting people who will forever change the way he looks at his short yet infinite life. For those of you who haven’t read it, the previous week’s blog features an in-depth summary and review of this love letter to Canada. A hidden gem of a performance from Joshua Jackson and a seemingly grim premise with the lighthearted quirkiness of an indie film.
Midnight in Paris (2011) / Under the Eiffel Tower (2018)
A writer plagued with the dreaded writer’s block, our hero visits Paris with his fiancée and her insufferable parents who refuse to acknowledge the magic the city holds. At night he discovers the legendary literary circles of the 1920’s come alive and help him find something worth writing about again. The ensemble cast dazzles with Tom Hiddleston and Corey Stoll scene stealers as their literary counterparts.
While there’s nothing that quite compares to “Midnight to Paris” in its fantastic surrealism, “Under the Eiffel Tower” does match it for charm. What starts off with a cringey relationship with an ill-suited match becomes one man’s journey across France for love. And of course, no French love story would be complete without a cameo appearance from the eponymous tower of love itself.
The Terminal (2004) / Lost in Translation (2003)
Ever feel lost? These men can relate.
Viktor is a man just tryna make it through TSA. With his home country status in limbo due to a political coup, he has to make his own way in the whacky world of an airport terminal. Starring Tom Hanks and Catherine Zeta-Jones.
Bob is a celebrity promoting a whiskey for $2 million, he explains to a starry-eyed newlywed twenty years his junior. And so begins the midlife-crisis fueled yet genuine friendship of two lonely souls lost in a city full of people. But as a character later explains, whatever you lose comes back full circle. Starring Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson, set against the cityscape of Tokyo.
Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris (2022) / Au Pair (1999)
Mrs. Harris is a hard-working cleaning lady who helps all in her small yet eccentric social circle. With the heart-shattering confirmation of her husband’s death in the war, she also gets a widow’s pension. Determined to treat herself as her husband would have wanted, she sets out to find the perfect Dior dress, while helping those she meets make their own dreams come true. You really root for Lesley Manville as the titular heroine to get all the good she deserves, and her newfound friend Lucas Bravo from “Emily in Paris” makes ooh la la for a bonus eye candy treat.
This made-for-tv film was a staple of any 90’s pre-teen, and I watched it on cable with wishes of the same. Working hard for her money, Jenny Morgan takes a job as an au pair–a nanny for a wealthy businessman–and gets more than rambunctious children in the end. A real occupation that many young women do in exchange for travel and exposure to European culture, this nonetheless satisfies that fantasy every small town American girl has of rich Europeans whisking us away from our blue collar lives.
French Kiss (1995) / L’Ex de ma Vie (2014)
It’s not a romcom without America’s sweetheart Meg Ryan, and she does not disappoint. In it, she’s a woman tailing her ex-fiancée all the way to Paris. On the plane she meets a thief played by a mustachioed Kevin Kline, and what started as a neurotic attempt to win back her ex becomes a new and much more dijon-flavored chapter in her life.
Ariane is ready to move on and re-marry well away from her failed relationship with Nino. There’s just one problem–she’s still married to him. With a scheme to divorce Nino in Paris (since it’s faster than in Italy) little does she know he will do whatever it takes for that process to be as obnoxious as possible. But if the city of love can do it once, it can do it again. Starring the Italian actor/director/producer/writer/extremely handsome Kim Rossi Stuart, this has a campy romp all the way through the Parisian landmarks that will be sure to make you root for love. (For more dramatic performances of fellow Fantaghirò fans , check out “Keys to the House” and “Cuestione di Cuore.”)
The Prince and Me (2004) / A Princess for Christmas (2011)
Speaking of American girl fantasies with rich Europeans—no other romcom did it better than 90’s/early millennium queen Julia Stiles with her low rider jeans and A-line bob. Paige Morgan is a farm girl with a lifelong dream of becoming a doctor. The Danish prince, Edvard, has no focus and wants nothing more than to party with Midwestern co eds. Their worlds collide when they fall for each other. Life further threatens to break them apart when Paige has to decide if dating a royal, with his very Danish family, is worth her doctoral dreams. (My fast answer is—of course, girl, he has the money and power to make that Johns Hopkins thing come true obvi, but let’s let her decide. . .)
For the record, I have no idea how the Hallmark channel got this princesses-equals-Christmas thing going, but this one gets it right. A blue collar girl, raising her niece and nephew after a tragic accident, is summoned to a castle for the holidays. Full of turrets, hot princes, and of course a Christmas ball, it’s the kind of cheese all feel good we need for the holidays. With Katie McGrath from “Merlin” and Sam Heughan from “Outlander” in the starring roles.
Letters to Juliet (2010) / Love in the Villa (2022)
What Italian romance would be complete without a reference to Romeo and Juliet? Amanda Seyfried and Chris Egan star in this chick flick all about love’s magical power to bring the star-crossed together, no matter the distance. While her fiancée contacts suppliers for his upcoming Italian restaurant, Sophie visits the balcony of Juliet Capulet herself. There the Secretaries of Juliet, feisty Italian women with pens and stationery, answer the letters of lovesick girls all begging Juliet for answers to their woes. One such letter falls into the hands of Sophie, and when she responds 50 years later, the same woman who wrote the letter comes with her grandson to search out her long-lost love. I’m with Roger Ebert on this when he says any moviegoer anywhere knows how the movie ends. . .but between the sensuous landscapes and the Chris Egan grandson, it makes for a sweet and gentle ride. (For an enjoyable auxiliary read, check out Roger Ebert’s review on his website rogerbert.com where he comments on the sweet real-life romance between Franco Nero and Vanessa Redgrave co-starring as the vintage star-crossed lovers Sophie helps reunite.)
Julie is a romantic through and through, and nothing, not even her recent breakup, can squash her Venetian plans. When an AirBnb mix-up means she has to share a villa with a self-proclaimed British cynic, their rivalry turns into love–all within view of Juliet Capulet’s famed balcony. With surprising laughs and a formidable height difference, Tom Hopper from “The Umbrella Academy” and Kat Graham from “The Vampire Diaries” show us what romance can come from even the unlikeliest of pairings.
Under the Tuscan Sun (2003) / Shadows in the Sun (2005)
Frances Mayes may be an author, but even she didn’t see this turn of events in a real-life plot twist–following her failed marriage, she buys a Tuscan villa on a whim and finds a new life. Comparable to Liz Gilbert and “Eat, Pray, Love” this story is also based on memoirs.
When his publisher boss asks him to track down an elusive author in rural Italy, Jeremy thinks his trip is all just a quick business deal. But the stubborn author gives him more runaround than he anticipated. Threatened with losing the career-making contract, his frustration soon gives way to the inviting countryside and antics of the eccentric author—as well as his beautiful daughter. Will he return to London with contract in hand? Or will he rekindle his own passion for writing and human connection? We all know how this one ends but hey, it’s Pacey Witter we’re dealing with, so I’m all for it. Side notes: For any who have enjoyed “Finding Forrester” you will find the characters’ mentor/student relationship similarly endearing. Also, after viewing it recently for a second time, I realized how much the famous author resembled aspects of Ernest Hemingway, which for any literati could not have been coincidental.
The Lizzie McGuire Movie (2003) / Love & Gelato (2022)
I still remember seeing this in theaters. It was one of those movies I hated to admit I loved. Nowadays, still single (though unabashed) I still love it, and it still holds up as a solid staple of teenage fancy. Who wouldn’t risk a school trip to be whisked away by an Italian pop star? It is a little too good to be true as her best friend Gordo finds out, and in the end the besties get the just desserts we were all rooting for since season one of the titular show.
Lina promised her mother she would go to Italy, though it seems pointless now with her mother’s untimely death. At her best friend’s urging she goes, meeting Alessandro and Lorenzo, two cute locals both vying for her affection in different ways. Saul Nanni stars as the handsome bad boy Alessandro, co-starring in “Brado” as Kim Rossi Stuart’s son. The lovable Tobia De Angelis stars as this generation’s Gordo, fluffy hair and all.
A Room with a View (1986) / Where Angels fear to Tread (1992)
Remember how teen girls searching for love in Italy is its own sub-genre? This guy did it first back in 1908 with his novel of the same name. In it, Lucy Honeychurch—and with a name like that, ya know homegirl is snowflake virgin pure—goes on holiday with her bitter cousin in Florence. There she meets an unorthodox yet cute boy staying in the same pension, and they have a brief (and I mean one-hot-kiss-and-that’s-it-brief) romance in a field. Later, engaged and allegedly-happy, she meets homeboy again, and her feelings of freedom and passion from Italy follow her home. The film with Helena Bonham-Carter and the ever-ancient Maggie Smith is a Merchant-Ivory classic, though its remake with Timothy and Rafe Spall is just as good.
With one daughter run off to Italy with an Italian lover, it is of course up to her stuffy elitist family to rescue her. With somewhat sad consequences, the interfering family only make things worse with their meddling. Not his happiest ending, E.M. Forster nonetheless delivers a commentary of people who misunderstand those who won’t accept society’s advice as the epitome of wisdom, especially regarding their disdain of “foreign” life.
A Walk in the Clouds (1995) / Dhaai Akshar Prem Ke (2000)
Paul may not have much of a job or marriage since returning from the war, but he does have his honor. In his attempt to save the honor of an innocent girl he meets on the bus, he goes home to her vineyard and poses as her husband. With scenes of pure magic filmed on location in Napa Valley, it’s an escapist romance with an Italian neo-realism feel. Based on the original film “Four Steps in the Clouds,” its ending is a significant deviation from the original source material, though I would argue the ending we all wanted 50 years ago.
Rescued from violence at her school, a girl is again offered protection from her family’s shame by a soldier returning home. Based on the previous film, this Hindi version also has a murder plot, Hindi, and the beautiful Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. Also starring the heroine’s real-life husband Abhishek Bachchan.
For more titles and summaries to fill your summer couch travels, tune in next week for the continuation. Adiós.