REEL ADVENTURES: Badlands and Bad Guys Calgary to Drumheller, Brooks and Hanna Th E Land, Broken by the Unique Geography of Dinosaur Country, Provides the Perfect
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REEL ADVENTURES: Badlands and Bad Guys Calgary to Drumheller, Brooks and Hanna Th e land, broken by the unique geography of dinosaur country, provides the perfect . scenery for the moody (Unforgiven), the dangerous (Texas Rangers) and the rollicking (Knockaround Guys). Th ere’s plenty of Brokeback Mountain here, too, and Th e Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. Th e Assassination of Jesse James by the 10 Lake Coward Robert Ford (2007) puts Brad Pitt Louise Banff in the lead role in the retelling of the in- Stoney Morley Reserve 1A famous outlaw’s last days, and Casey Canmore Seebe Affl eck in the role of his killer. 1 Brokeback Mountain (2005) tells the poignant story of love between two ranch 1 BassanoBassano hands and of how it aff ects their lives over Siksika Nation 873 544 the years. Jake Gyllenhaal and the late MillicentMillicent Heath Ledger star. Knockaround Guys (2001) is a comedy 873 about the misadventures of sons of mob- km 10 20 30 535 mi sters sent on an errand to a small town. RainierRainier 10 20 Barry Pepper stars with Vin Diesel and Th ere’s an imposing size to the country east of Film Location John Malkovich. Calgary, a swatch of broad plain under a big Texas Rangers (2001) tells the story how Drive-by Film Location sky that needs only the silhouette of horse and Leander McNelly (Dylan McDermott) rider to conjure up images of bold cinematic Photo Opportunity shaped the legendary lawmen from a westerns. So choose your hat colour, black or bunch of post-Civil-War ne’er-do-wells. It white, and let’s ride the sage of the silver screen Walk or Hike Experience also starts Tom Skerritt, Randy Travis and to a place where bullets, broncos and bravado Robert Patrick. hold sway. Museum Unforgiven (1991) is Clint Eastwood’s dark Western of a retired gunfi ghter who takes on one last assignment. With Eastwood directing and playing the lead role, the movie won the Oscar for best picture. Also starring are Morgan Freeman and Richard Harris. “Unforgiven © Warner Bros., a division of “Knockaround Guys” Time Warner Entertainment Copyright MMII, Company, L.P. New Line Productions, Inc. All rights reserved Poster appear courtesy of New Line Productions, Inc. 1 Calgary Calgary Detail 1 While in Calgary, a visit to Heritage 1 Heritage Park Park, 1900 Heritage Drive S.W., will #ROWCHILD4RAIL.7 -C+NIGHT"LVD.% help spur our western movie tour. Situated #ENTRE3TREET. on a sprawl of land on the shore of the 1 !VENUE.7 Glenmore Reservoir, the park includes an 1 !VENUE.% 1 authentic period town crafted from build- -EMORIAL$RIVE% -EMORIAL$RIVE.7 ings found across southern Alberta and an -ACLEOD4RAIL37 !VE3% operating steam locomotive. It furnished #ROWCHILD4RAIL37 !VE37 the makers of Th e Assassination of Jesse 3T3% James by the Coward Robert Ford with $EERFOOT4RAIL3% Courtesy Travel Alberta the perfect set, along with a locale in the Kananaskis, for Creede, Colorado, al- 'LENMORE4RAIL37 though the train robbery scenes were shot 1 "ARLOW4RAIL3% at Fort Edmonton in the province’s capital. (ERITAGE$R37 3OUTHLAND$R37 Trip to Drumheller !NDERSON2OAD37 We’ll be heading east out of Calgary on Heritage Park, Calgary the Trans-Canada Highway for about 25 kilometres before turning north and east on Highway 9 toward Drumheller, home to the Royal Tyrrell Museum and sur- rounded by its famous dinosaur badlands. It’s easy to see why Eastwood, who fl ew over the area in 1991 while scoping scenes FindingBrokeback.com for Unforgiven, chose this area for much of the fi lm’s backdrop. Siesta Motel, Beiseke Site of Twist Ranch, Beiseker r Courtesy www. Beiseker – Brokeback Mountain – Brokeback Mountain ack.com Before Drumheller, where Highway FindingBrokeb Courtesy www. 9 turns east at Highway 72, sits Beiseker private property, so permission must be and a touch of Brokeback Mountain obtained before entering the ranch. (2005). Ennis Del Mar (Health Ledger) Rockyford lived in his trailer here, visited by his daughter Alma. To fi nd the spot, take First Th ere’s plenty more Avenue just under a kilometre to the town Brokeback Mountain in dump and turn right at the dump sign for the tiny community of 300 metres; the site is surrounded by a Rockyford. From Beiseker, continue east Courtesy www.FindingBrokeback.com Courtesy white fence. on Highway 9 about 19 km then south on Highway 21. In town you’ll fi nd JT’s At the intersection of the two highways is CIBC Bank, Rockyford Bar where the phone booth was located; the Siesta Motel; the exterior was used in – Brokeback Mountain the Childress Dancehall façade and the the fi lm. If you have time, take Highway 72 Riverton Post Offi ce at Main and First west 6.6 km to Range Road 264, turn south Avenue. and go 3.2 km to Township Road 280. It’s where Ennis worked on the paving crew. Across from the Post Offi ce is a CIBC Bank, used as the exterior of the dancehall East of town, 6.5 km along Highway 72, where the Twists and the Malones spend is the Twist Ranch, home of Jack Twist’s an evening and where Jack sits outside parents, visited by Ennis after Jack’s death. with Randall. Turn south on Range Road 252 at the Grande Ole West Villa Ranch sign for 1.6 Here, too, is the Rockyford Rodeo km and you’ll fi nd the abandoned ranch Outside Beiseker town dump Grounds, used in the movie for both the house on the left side of the road. Th is is – Brokeback Mountain Electra and Childress rodeos, and the parking spot where Jack and Lureen made 2 Courtesy www .FindingBrokeback.com out in the car. B 10 Lake A Louise Banff 1A Stoney Morley Reserve 1A Canmore Seebe 1 1 BassanoBassano Siksika C Nation 873 544 MillicentMillicent d r NON-MOVIE SITES TO SEE: 0 km 10 20 30 mi 10 20 . RainierRainier Towards Drumheller From Rockyford, double back on Unforgiven Highway 21 north towards Highway 9. A Alberta Courtesy Travel At the intersection, go east on Highway 9 for about 45 km to Drumheller. Atlas Coal Mine, East Coulee? Th e road to Drumheller and beyond is also Unforgiven territory, a fi lm . that also won Oscars for best direc- tor (Eastwood), best supporting actor (Gene Hackman) and best editing. More importantly for Alberta, Unforgiven is credited with reviving the province as a prime movie location, and set the B stage, so to speak, for later fi lms such Royal Tyrrell Museum Museum Courtesy RoyalTyrrell Parks, Recre- /Alberta Tourism, ation and Culture as Legends of the Fall, Brokeback Mountain and RV, ending a dry spell that set in after Little Big Man and Superman in the 1970s. UNFORGIVEN Unforgiven © Warner Bros., a division of Time Warner Entertainment Company, L.P. All rights reserved C Alberta Courtesy Travel Dinosaur Provincial Park 3 About 17 kms before you reach Drumheller – and still on Highway 9 – is Horseshoe Canyon in the Drumheller Valley; next to the valley is the location of Morgan Freeman’s shack in Unforgiven. Parts of Superman were also fi lmed in the canyon. Th e area has doubled for several world locales, primarily the Middle East. It also served as backdrop for a Shanghai Noon (1999) scene with Jackie Chan, who plays Horseshoe Canyon – Unforgiven, Superman a Chinese man travelling to the Wild West and a luckless Owen Wilson who plays a Courtesy Drumheller Cham of Commerce ber Knockaround train robber, both trying to rescue a kid- Guys napped princess. Th e pair take on a Chinese traitor and his boss. Drumheller In Drumheller, leave the make-believe for a moment, and step back millions of years to the real-life world of the dinosaurs at the Royal Tyrrell Museum, a world-class exhi- bition and research facility. Devoted entirely KNOCKAROUND GUYS to paleontology, it displays more than 200 di- “Knockaround Guys” Copyright MMII, New Line Productions, Inc. nosaur specimens, video theatres and hands- All Rights Reserved. Top Two Photos by Michael Ginsberg. Third photo by Takashi Seida on scientifi c experiments. Th e museum is lo- Photos appear courtesy of New Line Productions, Inc. cated six kilometres west of Drumheller on Rat Race, fi lmed in the North Dinosaur Trail (Highway 838). Brad Greentree Area of Drumheller Pitt and Angelina Jolie visited the museum Courtesy Jerry Brett/ OTHER MOVIES FILMED NEAR Town of Drumheller DRUMHELLER with their children Maddox and Zahara dur- Dreamkeeper (2003) ing the fi lming of Jesse James. Ararat (2001) Drumheller Golf Course provided the Knockaround Guys (2001) setting for Where the Dinosaurs Roam, Rat Race (2001) while Midland Provincial Park provided Th e Matthew Shepard Story the backdrop for Roughing It, a TV movie (2001) about a teenaged Mark Twain who travels Th e Hitcher II (2001) to the American West during the “Gold Children of Fortune (2000) Rush“ days. Rat Race with Cuba Gooding Train positioning for Shanghai Noon (1999) Jr. has cars fl ying in the Greentree area Shanghai Wild America (1996) Noon, in of Drumheller. Th is 2001 movie starring Drumheller Unforgiven (1991) Courtesy Jerry Brett Whoopi Goldberg and Seth Green features a Superman (1977) /Town of Drumheller race for money set up by a Las Vegas casino magnate. 1 2 Courtesy of Ray Telford Drumheller Detail 3 1 Drumheller Golf Course Noon 2 Royal Tyrrell Museum and Shanghai Roughing It shoot at at Midland Provincial Park Midland Pro Roughing It shoot vincial Park 3 Greentree Area vincial Park Courtesy Jerry Brett/Town of Drumheller Courtesy Jerry Brett/Town of Drumheller Midland Pro 4 Tow n of Drumheller Courtesy Jerry Brett/ Short Side Trips Drumheller Area Map from Drumheller: 1 El Coyote Bar 2 Last Chance Saloon 1 If you’re thirsty, take a short drive 1 3 Dino Sapien shoot site, from Drumheller to Nacmine on East Coulee Highway 838, where you’ll fi nd El Coyote 4 Ararat shoot site, Bar.