Madeline
The United States is a vast country with many beautiful scenes and it is also the motherland of film as it is today. Here is a list of the selected best movies by state they were filmed in.
Alabama – Fried Green Tomatoes
This southern movie is about love and hate. It is about race in the south in the 1950s. It is about a friendship between two women who should not otherwise have a bond, but have been brought together by a tragic event involving them both. It is about life in Alabama.
Alaska – Into The Wild
Ditching all possessions and living a life in the wilderness of Alaska is the ultimate storyline for a movie about Alaska and that is exactly what Into The Wild is. There is excitement and adventure and it makes you wonder: what if?
Arizona – Little Miss Sunshine
When talking about Little Miss Sunshine, of course we would need to talk about the sunny state of Arizona, where the family is from. This is the story of a little girl’s dream to become a pageant princesses living in the unlikely state of Arizona.
Arkansas – Twister
Any movie about tornados need to come out of this part of the United States and that is why Twister is the best movie to represent Arkansas in the list of the best movies by state. Next time you want to chase a tornado, if that is your thing, head on over to this mid country state.
California – Clueless
The list of good movies filmed in California is infinite. Just about every film has some basis is California which is why this was a difficult choice. Clueless was chosen based on it’s amazingness as well as it’s clear stereotype depiction of southern California teenagers in the 90s.
Colorado – The Shining
Taking a trip to the snowy state of Colorado in search of the best movies by state, and The Shining shows the beauty of this state. It starts by showing the majestic beauty of this state and ends in the dark cold snow. Redrum!
Connecticut – The Stepford Wives
Connecticut is the state with the largest spread of income. Both the poorest and the richest Americans live in this state. The Stepford Wives focuses on the later, the life of the rich and perfect and how unglamorous it actually is.
Delaware – Dead Poets Society
I have been fighting the urge to add Wayne’s World to this list for Delaware, as the more explains all I know about Delaware in four words: Hi, I’m in Delaware. Then I realized that one of the best movies of all time, Dead Poets Society, was filmed in Delaware and that was the obvious choice for this state.
Florida – Scarface
Scarface is the story of drug trafficking in beautiful, and yet troublesome state of Florida. That is what makes Scarface the perfect movie for Florida on the list of the best movies by state. See both the beauty and the troubles this state holds.
Georgia – Gone With The Wind
“Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn” that this movie was set in Georgia but golly, I like it. Of course a classic movie set on a plantation would be chosen to represent Georgia and that is why Gone With The Wind is the pick for the best movies by state.
Hawaii – The Decendents
Similar to California, there are a number of movies to pick for Hawaii for the best movies by state list. I chose The Descendants due to the number of times I have visited this part of Hawaii and my familiarity with it. I have drank a beer at the bar, I have walked on the beach. This part of Hawaii is so sweet and so quant that it is my pick for Hawaii.
Idaho – Napoleon Dynamite
Napoleon Dynamite is quotable with the outlandish characters and off the wall storylines. The watcher is brought into small town Idaho and specific in the world of the unpopular in high school.
Illinois – Wayne’s World
One of the best and most funny movies from Mike Myers comes from Illinois. This is the movie about the local television stars who live in their mother’s basement in Aurora Illinois. Take me out of Chicago any day and watch Wayne’s World.
Other Posts About Wayne’s World
Indiana – Hoosiers
Indiana may not be a popular state to film, but yet it has popped out the ever popular sports movie, Hoosiers. Taking a small town high school basketball team to the top of its game, this is a movie of great promise taking the underdogs to the top.
Iowa – Field of Dreams
“If you build it they will come” to Iowa. This film about having a dream to build a baseball diamond in a corn field to attract the population brings the boring fields of Iowa and giving them a spotlight for something new.
Kansas – The Wizard of Oz
The first thing I ever learned about Kansas came from the movie, The Wizard of Oz. Since there is no place like home, there is also no place like Kansas, which makes it perfect for the state of Kansas in the best movies by state list.
Kentucky – The Insider
The Insider is the drama about the whistleblower of the tobacco industry. The industry who is not short of cash to take someone who threatens their industry down. As Kentucky (along with North Carolina) accounts for more than 70% of the US’s production of tobacco, it makes sense that this movie would take place there.
Louisiana – 12 Years A Slave
The film that encaptures a depiction of Louisiana during slave times is a hard film to watch. But this film is also so good that it is difficult to not add to the list of best movies by state for Louisiana.
Maine – It
Thank you to the horror writer king himself, Stephen King, Maine has also become the state of horror movies. Although It is the movie I chose to represent this state, it can also be represented by Cujo, Pet Seminary, The Mist, and many others. Maine is not just representing a movie but an entire genre.
Maryland – Wedding Crashers
Every time I watch Wedding Crashers, I envy the New England charm of the locations this film takes place. It makes me want to put on a polo shirt and khakis and play touch football. And the charm of the locations in this movie is what makes Wedding Crashers the best pick for Maryland on the list of best movies by state.
Massachusetts – Manchester-By-The-Sea
This depressing and cold movie based off the the location of Manchester-By-The-Sea, Massachusetts needed to be listed as the movie for Massachusetts on this list of best movies by state.
Michigan – 8 Mile
Eminem grew up in Detroit, Michigan and since this movie is loosely based on his life, it only makes sense for it to take place in the same and then naming it after the worse area where he lived and held his rap battles. This movie does not glorify Michigan but it is a star of the show making it the best movie for Michigan in the list of the best movies by state.
Minnesota – Fargo
Fargo is an iconic movie about Fargo, Minnesota. The snow, the characters, and the storyline is what makes this such a great movie. It is only fair that a movie named after a geographic location in Minnesota would take the place for Minnesota on the list of the best movies by state.
Mississippi – O Brother Where Art Thou?
Between the bluegrass music and the running through the landscape, this film screams all the likings of Mississippi, that it needs to be on this list for this state. I have never been to Mississippi but this movie is exactly how I would think it would be.
Watch O Brother Where Art Thou?
Missouri – Gone Girl
Gone Girl is a movie based on a book about a normal family living in Missouri. When she goes missing, all eyes turn to the husband. He has been pointed as the reason for her disappearance.
Montana – The Horse Whisperer
Montana is represented by The Horse Whisperer on the list of the best movies by state due to its shots of the beautiful wilderness of this state. The outdoor shots do not give this state justice.
Nebraska – Election
Nebraska is being represented by Pick Flick flick, Election, on this list of best movies by state. Similar to Texas, Nebraska is being represented by a movie that is the stereotype of what it is like to be a teenager in Nebraska, with this film.
Nevada – Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas
This movie has it all. It shows what it is like on the way to Las Vegas. It shows what it is like on the strip. And it shows what it is like to see it all while on drugs. If this is not the best movie to represent Nevada in the list of best movies by state, then I don’t know what is.
Watch Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas
New Hampshire – Jumanji
Jumanji is a movie based in New Hampshire based on a children’s book where a group plays a game that turns turns New Hampshire into a jungle. In order to get away from the dangerous obstacles the group runs around their New Hampshire town. The tour we get of the town is why Jumanji is the perfect movie for New Hampshire for the list of best movies by state.
New Jersey – The Godfather
One of the best movies of all time just happens to be filmed in New Jersey, showing off the fictional life of Italian gangsters. That is why The Godfather is the perfect movie for New Jersey in the list of best movies by state.
New Mexico – High Noon
When looking at the wild wild west, there is no place like New Mexico which is why this list of best movies by state needed to be represented by one of the best western movies ever, High Noon.
New York – Taxi Driver
Only second to California, New York is the basis of the most movies in the United States. There are many possibilities for the best movies by state for New York but I chose Taxi Driver due to its iconic place in film and its unique views of the city.
North Carolina – Blue Velvet
Wilmington, North Carolina did not know what would happen to it when it let David Lynch in to film Blue Velvet. This film is unique and has its own way of showing this beautiful country.
North Dakota – Dangerous Company
Dangerous Company is the film of a man who is able to turn his life around after living his life in and out of jail. The entire film takes place in Bismarck, North Dakota highlighting this part of the country.
Ohio – The Faculty
The Faculty represents a time when teen thrillers were at an all time high. Part of teen thrillers was giving the viewer the feeling that this could be them, which is why the Faculty took small town Ohio and turned it into the high school you could be attending.
Oklahoma – The Outsiders
The Outsiders is based on the book by the same name about a group of poor kids in Tulsa, Oklahoma. They go through some tough hurdles that shapes their lives.
Oregon – The Goonies
This classic 80’s adventure film wonders around the Oregon wilderness as if it was their backyard. The mix between these outdoor scenes and the iconic nature of this movie is what makes it the best movie for Oregon on the list of the best movies by state.
Pennsylvania – Silence of The Lambs
Silence Of The Lambs is one of the best films of all time. So when it came time to put it on this list, it was the clear front runner for Pennsylvania. As Jodie Foster is running through the Pennsylvania forest, there is plenty to see of the beautiful state.
Rhode Island – There’s Something About Mary
There may be something about Mary but there is also something about Rhode Island, which is why this movie has been chosen to represent Rhode Island on the list of best movies by state.
Watch There’s Something About Mary
South Carolina – The Big Chill
The Big Chill is mostly based on estate in South Carolina that is the epitome of South Carolina plantations. It takes a dark part of this state’s history and turns it into a modern movie.
South Dakota – Dances With Wolfs
Dances with Wolfs is the story of a white man being brought into and learning about the Native American culture in South Dakota. It shows not just South Dakota culture since the white man arrived, but much longer than that, which is why Dances With Wolfs has been picked to represent South Dakota on the list of best movies by state.
Tennessee – The Green Mile
A majority of The Green Mile takes place inside a prison and although there is little to be seen of this state in this movie, it is also one of the best movies of all time and should be dismissed. Give me another movie that highlights Tennessee, such as The Matrix, and perhaps I will consider it.
Texas – Varsity Blues
Nothing says Texas like high school football games, trucks, country music, and whip cream bikinis and that is exactly what you will find in Varsity Blues. This movie does not focus on the big cities but, instead, what it would be like to live in rural Texas which is why it is the perfect movie for Texas in the list of best movies by state.
Utah – The Sandlot
A group of kids in Salt Lake City, Utah spend the summer together. The main place they spend their time together is on a sandlot where they play baseball. Although the movie highlights the sandlot, they spend their summer around the Utah city, which is why The Sandlot is the best movie by state for Utah.
Vermont – Beetlejuice
Due to being a Tim Burton film, Beetlejuice has an eccentric look on Vermont different from all other movies filmed in this state. Due to being an iconic field with this unique take on this state, it belongs on the list of best movies by state.
Virginia – The Bourne Identity
Virginia’s close proximity to Washington D.C. makes it the perfect place for political movies, this is why I am placing The Bourne Identity as the perfect movie on the list of best movies by state for Virginia.
Washington – Sleepless In Seattle
If you are looking for a classic romance film, look no further than Sleepless In Seattle. This is the story of how two people come together and the pinnacle of the takes place on top of Seattle in the Space Needle which is why it is the perfect movie for Washington on the list of the best movies by state.
West Virginia – Fools’ Parade
Although West Virginia is not a favorite state for filming, Fools’ Parade decided to film in this state as its main location and for this reason it is the pick for West Virginia for the best movies by state list.
Wisconsin – Bridesmaides
Bridesmaids is the hilarious film about an eclectic group of women who are brought together by their friend or family member that is getting married. They are based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and the humor of this film is why it is representing Wisconsin on the list of best movies by state.
Wyoming – Brokeback Mountain
Brokeback Mountain was the first of its kind, spotlighting two men who are struggling with their sexuality. Having a relationship with each other when they are in the wilderness of Wyoming and then returning to their girlfriends back home.
