5 NYC Locations from Oscar-Winning Movies

This blog post was updated on July 5, 2022.

When it comes to Oscar-winning movies, it’s actually hard to imagine a film where the city of New York doesn’t play a significant part. But, how about those films that received the Academy Award for Best Picture? Yep, that sought-after recognition makes the list quite a bit shorter. Can you remember 5 of them? No? Worry not, avid moviegoer. Next time you find yourself enjoying all the Big Apple has to offer, just keep this list handy to relive some big cinematic moments at these movie locations for Oscar-winning movies set in NYC!

Upper West Side/East Harlem (West Side Story, 1961)

Commonly considered one of the best musicals of all time, West Side Story depicts the rhythmic feud between the Jets and the Sharks featured an emblematic Manhattan neighborhood during its iconic initial sequence. Although most of the movie’s scenes were filmed inside the Samuel Goldwyn Studio — aka “The Lot” — at West Hollywood, the filmmakers set the opening dance scenes at 110th St, right between 2nd and 3rd Avenue. Fun fact: many scenes were shot amid a neighborhood of tenement building that was about to be demolished…in order to make space for the construction of Lincoln Center!

St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral (The Godfather, 1972)

“Old St. Patrick’s Cathedral” by Joseph is licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0

You better keep reading now, because we’re about to make you an offer you can’t refuse…to dive into the real locations where The Godfather was filmed, of course! An atemporal masterpiece to many generations (and counting), the first installment of the epic drama of the Corleone family showed us a good deal of New York from beginning to end. It’s precisely at the epic climax of the movie when Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) attends his nephew’s baptism as the baby’s godfather…while all hell breaks loose outside as part of a citywide “housecleaning” put in place by the man himself. Spoilers aside, the interior of the church where the baptism takes place is none other than the Basilica of St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral, located in Manhattan’s NoLita which served as the “first” St. Patrick’s before its more famous and much-visited reiteration was built in the heart of Fifth Avenue.

East Village (The Godfather – Part II, 1974)

Everybody thought movie sequels weren’t any good…until The Godfather Part II won the Academy Award to Best Picture, that is! Something major indeed, considering the first installment of the Corleone saga already received the same recognition just two years before. There are a lot of iconic scenes we could choose from this movie, but one of the most remembered has to be when a young Vito Corleone (Robert De Niro) assassinates the old-timer racketeer Don Fanucci using the St. Genaro street celebrations that take place every year at Little Italy as the ideal setting. Then, how come we’re referring to Manhattan’s East Village instead? Good question. As it turns out, Sixth St. (between Avenues A and B) was conveniently transformed into the festive and colorful Mulberry St. of 1917 thanks to period dressing and healthy doses of moviemaking magic. So, next time you find yourself pub-crawling Alphabet City’s dive bars, remember that it used to be the true birthplace of the Corleone criminal empire. How cool is that?

Lenox Hill (Annie Hall, 1977)

Few award-winning movies spell “New York” as much as this Woody Allen film. From Brooklyn’s Coney Island to Manhattan’s South Street Seaport, the story of comedian Alvy Singer is a true New York classic on its own right. It would be a gigantic endeavor to name all the places visible in the movie, so we’ll focus on Annie Hall’s apartment, the one with the impressive rooftop deck and, apparently, “spiders and bad plumbing.” The apartment is located at East 68th St. & Madison Avenue, right near Central Park. It’s hard to imagine a fancier neighborhood for Annie to live in than the city’s Upper East Side, filled with art galleries and elegant townhouses anywhere you look.

St. James Theatre (Birdman, 2014)

We put an end to our knickerbocker movie tour by closing the curtain at the very heart of Manhattan’s Theater District. Just a stone’s throw away from Times Square is the theatre where Michael Keaton ran from the backdoor to the front, making his way through the usual crowd of people passing by, in only his underwear. The St. James Theatre on 44th Street is one of the most desirable theaters on Broadway, and housed the original runs of numerous long-running hits, including The Producers, Hello, Dolly!, and The King and I. The St. James is very much present in the Birdman movie: we can appreciate not only its exterior, but the stage, dressing rooms, orchestra seats, and lobby too. So, if you’re looking to book a vacation in MYC to enjoy a good play at the entertainment capital of the world, this is a good option to fans of theater and movies alike!

Do you have a favorite NYC film location? Let us know in the comments below!