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TOP 5 WINNIPEG IMDB MENTIONS
Last week I was so busy berating the River Heights residents trying to block local businesses from opening patios that I committed what I consider a pretty embarrassing mental mistake. While mentioning the film Footlose I said that Patrick Swayze was the one to return fun to a town that had outlawed dance. I had confused Footlose with Dirty Dancing, an easy mistake considering they’re both about a rebel who plays by nobody’s rules but his own and dances. Also, I’ve never seen either film.
Still I consider myself a big movie trivia nerd in general and should have referred to my bible, the Internet Movie Database (www.imbd.com), before allowing myself to be embarrassed by that slip. So in honor of my mistake I’ve trolled IMDB for the best quotes, trivia and goofs from films that were either filmed in Winnipeg, or had special effects completed by companies here.
5. Shall We Dance (filmed in Winnipeg)
About $4,000 worth of jewelry worn by Susan Sarandon during the filming of the movie was stolen and recovered at murder scene in Winnipeg on 4 July 2003. According to news sources, the jewelry was stolen from a vehicle on the movie set and found in a downtown hotel room.
Go Winnipeg.
4. Christmas Rush (filmed in Winnipeg)
Remember a few years ago when Portage Place had Christmas decorations up in the middle of Summer? Well that was because of the Super Station original film Christmas Rush, a movie we can also thank for this little gem of a quote:
Aurora: [after Aurora and Santa are held at gunpoint] Santa, help!
Santa: [opening his flask for a drink] Santa don’t get paid to play gladiator
Quality screen writing.
3. Shall We Dance (filmed in Winnipeg)
The filming location was moved to Winnipeg from Toronto because of the SARS scare in early 2003.
Good to know we kicked Toronto while it was down, stealing its business while it was reeling already from SARS.
2. Category 6: Day of Destruction (filmed in Winnipeg)
There was a Movie of the Week that was basically just a poor man’s version of The Day After Tomorrow called Category 6: Day of Destruction. From the modest list of goofs:
-Errors in geography: When Mitch and Rebecca are walking by a river (supposedly in Chicago) a big CN logo can be seen painted on a railway bridge behind them, revealing that the scene was shot in Canada. In fact, this scene was shot at The Forks in Winnipeg, although the scene has been altered to include a plant in the distant background.
Now I know why watching this made me want Frogurt. Just kidding. I would never watch this.
1. The Core (special effects done in Winnipeg)
The film The Core had special effects completed by a company in Winnipeg. It has probably the longest list of plot holes and factual errors of any IMDB profile I’ve come across. It is certainly the only film to have this in its list of mistakes:
Incorrectly regarded as goofs: Since almost all of the “science” in the movie is entirely erroneous, we are prepared to accept that the movie’s universe *must* have entirely different rules – it’s the only possible explanation. It’s just for fun.
So awesome. I understand people have to make money but I think Winnipeg would have done well to just keep its fingerprints off this train wreck.
HONORABLE MENTIONS: Woman Wanted
Woman Wanted was filmed in Winnipeg, stars Keifer Sutherland and Holly Hunter, and I have never heard of it. Its probably because I have no context or understanding of the movie, other than that it is a Drama, that I find its only “memorable quote” entry too funny:
Wendell Goddard: You were paid to take care of this house, not fuck my father.
Without having ever seen this movie, I gotta side with whoever Wendell is lecturing. It seems like an easy mistake for a person to make.
