L.A. Babylon

L.A. Babylon

Mapping a Metropolis

Many movies continue to be made in L.A. and it is not a coincidence that one of its neighbourhoods, Hollywood, has become a synonym for the American movie industry. One of the reasons the city was chosen as a production hub was the great variety of landscapes and cityscapes nearby, making it possible to dress up parts of L.A. as other locales with ease. But as the city grew, attracting the rich and famous and those hoping to become rich and famous, the city full of contrasts became a beloved cinematic subject itself. From the cramped, cheap quarters in South Central to the ivory towers that pass for individual homes in Beverly Hills and from the hipsters at Venice Beach to the wannabes in San Fernando Valley, L.A. has it all. From comedies to films about films – or, in the case of Show People, both! – and from hard-hitting cop and crime dramas to science fiction and contemporary films in which a Biblical plague might occur, L.A. is a versatile backdrop even – or, perhaps, especially – when playing itself.