Ten Best Films Set in Venice
The Travel Pages picks the ten best films set in Venice, from classics like Death in Venice and Don’t Look Now to films made by Woody Allen and Orson Welles.
Venice, Italy, with its intricate network of canals, historic palazzi, and timeless atmosphere, has served as a beautiful backdrop for countless films across various genres. From haunting thrillers to romantic comedies and period dramas, the city’s unique beauty and mysterious charm have inspired filmmakers for decades.
Here are ten of the best films set in the Serenissima, each offering a distinct cinematic journey through its unique streets and waterways.
Ten Best Films Set in Venice
Death in Venice (1971)
Directed by Luchino Visconti
Stars: Dirk Bogarde, Björn Andrésen, Silvana Mangano
Based on Thomas Mann’s novella, the film follows Gustav von Aschenbach, an aging and ailing composer who travels to Venice for rest. Staying at a luxurious hotel on the Lido, he becomes infatuated with Tadzio, a beautiful adolescent boy. As Aschenbach’s obsession grows, a cholera epidemic silently takes hold of the city, mirroring his own physical and emotional decline. The film is a visually stunning and melancholic exploration of beauty, desire, and mortality, using Venice’s languid summer heat and subtle decay to reflect the protagonist’s internal state.
Specific locations you can visit:
Lido Beach: The lengthy sandy beach where the Hotel des Bains (a key film location) is located.
Piazza San Marco: The iconic main square, featured in scenes depicting the bustling heart of the city.
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Don’t Look Now (1973)
Directed by Nicolas Roeg
Stars: Donald Sutherland, Julie Christie, Hilary Mason
Still reeling from the accidental death of their young daughter, a British couple, John and Laura Baxter, are in Venice while John works on restoring a church. Laura encounters two elderly sisters, one of whom claims to be a psychic and delivers cryptic messages from their deceased child. As John struggles with his grief and skepticism, he is haunted by fleeting glimpses of a figure in a red raincoat, the same color his daughter wore. The unsettling atmosphere of Venice’s narrow alleyways and murky canals becomes a disorienting and terrifying maze, blurring the lines between reality and the supernatural.
Specific locations you can visit:
Basilica di San Giorgio Maggiore: The church on the island across the basin from Piazza San Marco, where John does restoration work.
Various canals and bridges: The film features numerous evocative shots throughout the lesser-known parts of the Castello and Dorsoduro districts.
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Summertime (1955)
Directed by David Lean
Stars: Katharine Hepburn, Rossano Brazzi
Jane Hudson, a single, middle-aged secretary from the United States, arrives in Venice seeking romance and adventure during her summer holiday. Initially overwhelmed by the city’s beauty and her own solitude, she eventually meets Renato de Rossi, a charming Venetian antique dealer. Despite knowing he is married, Jane embarks on a passionate affair that brings both joy and heartache. The film beautifully captures the romance and charm of Venice in vibrant Technicolor, showing Jane’s journey of self-discovery against the backdrop of sun-drenched campi and picturesque canals.
Specific locations you can visit:
Piazza San Marco: Seen as Jane first takes in the grandeur of Venice.
Campo San Barnaba: Famous for the scene where Jane accidentally falls into the canal.
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The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999)
Directed by Anthony Minghella
Stars: Matt Damon, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jude Law, Cate Blanchett, Philip Seymour Hoffman
In the late 1950s, Tom Ripley, a young man struggling to make his way in New York, is hired by a wealthy industrialist to travel to Italy and convince his wayward son, Dickie Greenleaf, to return home. Ripley is quickly drawn into Dickie’s opulent lifestyle and becomes obsessed with him and his girlfriend, Marge. As his attempts to integrate himself fail, Ripley’s dark side emerges, leading him to commit murder and assume Dickie’s identity. Venice serves as a key location in the film’s second half, a beautiful but increasingly claustrophobic setting for Ripley’s escalating deception and paranoia.
Specific locations you can visit:
Grand Canal: Various palazzi and views along the main waterway are featured prominently.
Piazza San Marco: Seen during scenes of Ripley navigating the city.
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Casino Royale (2006)
Directed by Martin Campbell
Stars: Daniel Craig, Eva Green, Mads Mikkelsen
This reboot of the James Bond series introduces Daniel Craig as a more rugged and vulnerable 007. After earning his license to kill, Bond’s first major mission involves confronting Le Chiffre, a terrorist financier, in a high-stakes poker game in Montenegro. Bond teams up with Treasury agent Vesper Lynd, and they develop a complex relationship. The film’s thrilling climax takes place in Venice, where Bond uncovers Vesper’s betrayal and engages in a destructive confrontation inside a palazzo that dramatically collapses into the Grand Canal, showcasing the city’s precarious beauty and hidden dangers.
Specific locations you can visit:
Grand Canal: Featured extensively in boat chases and establishing shots.
Exterior of buildings around Piazza San Marco: Used for scenes involving banks and pursuits.
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Everyone Says I Love You (1996)
Directed by Woody Allen
Stars: Woody Allen, Julia Roberts, Goldie Hawn, Edward Norton, Drew Barrymore, Alan Alda
Woody Allen’s musical comedy ensemble film follows the romantic entanglements of a large, affluent New York family and their friends. One of the film’s storylines finds Woody Allen’s character, Joe Berlin, pursuing a romantic interest, Von, while she is vacationing in Venice. Their courtship unfolds through song and dance against the picturesque canals and bridges of the city. The Venice segment is characterized by its whimsical tone and serves as a charmingly idealized backdrop for the characters’ lighthearted romantic pursuits, showcasing the city’s undeniable romantic appeal.
Specific locations you can visit:
Grand Canal: Seen during boat journeys and as a backdrop to scenes.
Hotel Gritti Palace: Featured as a location where characters stay or meet.
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Bread and Tulips (Pane e Tulipani) (2000)
Directed by Silvio Soldini
Stars: Licia Maglietta, Bruno Ganz
Rosalba Barletta, a weary housewife from a provincial Italian town, is accidentally left behind at a rest stop during a family coach tour. Seizing an unexpected opportunity for freedom, she impulsively decides not to wait for her negligent family and instead hitchhikes to Venice. With no money or plans, she begins a new life, taking a room with a philosophical Icelandic waiter and finding work in a flower shop. The film is a gentle and charming comedy about finding independence and happiness in unexpected places, portraying Venice not just as a tourist destination but as a place where a new, authentic life can be built amidst its everyday beauty.
Specific locations you can visit:
Campo San Francesco della Vigna: A quiet campo where key scenes involving Rosalba and her new friends take place.
Fondamenta dei Mendicanti: A canal-side walkway that features in her new life in the city.
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Dangerous Beauty (1998)
Directed by Marshall Herskovitz
Stars: Catherine McCormack, Rufus Sewell, Jacqueline Bisset
Set in 16th-century Venice, this historical drama tells the story of Veronica Franco, a real-life courtesan renowned for her beauty, intelligence, and wit. Due to the rigid social structure, she is unable to marry the man she loves, Marco Venier, from a noble family. Trained by her mother, she becomes a courtesan, a profession that allows her access to education and influence among the city’s powerful men. As Venice faces threats of war and plague, Veronica’s position becomes precarious, and she is eventually put on trial by the Inquisition, forcing her to defend herself and the role of courtesans in Venetian society.
Specific locations suggested by the setting:
San Giorgio Maggiore island: Offers iconic views across the basin towards Piazza San Marco, representing the grandeur of Venice.
Areas around the Rialto Bridge: Hint at the bustling commercial and social heart of the historical city.
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Othello (1951)
Directed by Orson Welles
Stars: Orson Welles, Micheál Mac Liammóir, Suzanne Cloutier
Orson Welles’s acclaimed, though famously troubled, adaptation of Shakespeare’s tragedy begins in Venice. The opening scenes establish Othello as a respected Moorish general in the Venetian army who has secretly married Desdemona, the daughter of a prominent Venetian senator. This act sets in motion the events that Iago, resentful of Othello, will manipulate to devastating effect. While much of the play’s tragic action occurs later in Cyprus, the initial Venetian setting is crucial for establishing Othello’s status within Venetian society and the societal prejudices that contribute to his downfall. The film’s visual style creates an atmospheric, if historically composite, sense of Renaissance Venice.
Specific locations suggested by the setting:
Grand Canal: Establishing shots convey the importance of the waterway.
The Palazzo Contarini del Bovolo, Santa Maria dei Miracoli, Ca’ d’Oro, and the Doge’s Palace, were all used as backdrops for scenes in the film.
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The Tourist (2010)
Directed by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck
Stars: Angelina Jolie, Johnny Depp
Frank Tupelo, an American tourist visiting Italy to mend a broken heart, finds his life dramatically upturned when he is deliberately chosen by Elise Clifton-Ward, a mysterious woman being tracked by police and mobsters. Elise is the mistress of Alexander Pearce, a criminal mastermind who stole a vast sum of money. Led on a chase primarily through Venice, Frank is mistaken for Pearce and becomes entangled in a dangerous plot of intrigue, deception, and romance. The film showcases the luxurious side of Venice, featuring grand hotels and iconic landmarks as the backdrop for the stylish, if convoluted, cat-and-mouse game.
Specific locations you can visit:
Hotel Danieli: A famous luxury hotel on the Riva degli Schiavoni, used as a key location.
Piazza San Marco: Featured in chase sequences and establishing shots.
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