10 awesomest fictional cities in the movies

10 places you won't see before you die

Ever wanted to step into the world of your favourite film? Depending on what your fave movie is, that might or might not be possible if you love Before Sunrise or Casablanca, for example, you can buy a plane ticket to Vienna or Morocco, but if your tastes run more to the fantastic, it might be trickier to arrange a pilgrimage. None of the cities on this list actually exists in the real world, and some of them you wouldnt wanna visit anyway, but why not let us play fictional travel agent anyway?

10. Zion, The Matrix (1999)

Location: Underground, in a secret location about 4km below the Earths surface.

Character: Desperate. Its the only human city left after the machines took over, so it functions as a place of refuge for the tiny percentage of the human race whose minds reject the Matrix. They might be better off learning to accept it, though, because Zions a pretty uncomfortable alternative.

Why its awesome: Because its a multi-layered underground city that manages to function (just about) even when the rest of the world has been destroyed.

9. Basin City, Sin City (2005)

Location: Somewhere in the American west probably California?

Character: Grim. Basin City, aka Sin City, doesnt so much have a criminal underworld as a criminal over-world; theres corruption everywhere you look. Unless youre a criminal kingpin of some colour, youre gonna find Sin City pretty unwelcoming.

Why its awesome: Okay, we wouldnt wanna move there, but its one of the most stylish hellholes ever to grace the silver screen.

8. The City, Brazil (1985)

Location: Unknown the city doesnt even have a name.

Character: Absurdist. Brazil pushes stereotypes of bureaucracy past their breaking point, creating a weird world of fatal printing errors and terrorists sick of the paperwork; the city might have been dreamed up by George Orwell if he was in a particularly whimsical mood.

Why its awesome: Its another place we wouldnt fancy living in, but for a brief visit it looks amazing the daft attempts that have been made to soften the edges of its Brutalist aesthetic make for a weirdly compelling landscape.

7. Metropolis, Metropolis (1927)

Location: Somewhere in Germany.

Character: Divided its full of delights for its richer citizens to enjoy, while the underclasses are doomed to hard, dangerous, and short lives trying to keep all the generators running. Assuming you can find a place among the aristocracy (and avoid getting killed in a workers revolt) itd be a pretty great place to live.

Why its awesome: Mostly because it just looks so cool, with all its dramatic Futurist architecture and creepy yet striking statues.

6. Gotham City, Batman and Robin (1997)

Location: On the East Coast, roughly where New York City is currently.

Character: Demented. Batmans home town has seen various incarnations in the movies and comics, but Schumachers version gets included here because its the most striking its drenched in neon, with all sorts of improbable architecture livening up the city skyline. Yes, there are terrifying criminals on every corner, but itd be worth it to live near enough to visit the Gotham Observatory.

Why its awesome: It looks like nowhere on Earth. Its just spectacular.

5. Christmas Town, The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

Location: At the North Pole.

Character: Jolly! The home of Santa Claus, his elves, and various other Christmas-related creatures, Christmas Town is Christmassy all year round. Theres always snow, always fairy lights, and always candy canes. What more could you want?

Why its awesome: Because its the permanent home of Christmas, officially the best time of the year. Or, okay, if thats not quite your thing, you could always go and hang out in Halloween Town, but Christmas Town is much cosier.

4. Hogsmeade, Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban (2004)

Location: Somewhere in the north-east of England, where Muggles arent likely to stray into town.

Character: Magical. Founded more than a thousand years ago and located conveniently near Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Hogsmeade is one of those charmingly old-fashioned villages you see on Christmas cards.

Why its awesome: For magical types, it offers all the shopping opportunities you could want from Honeydukes sweet shop to Ollivanders wand shop plus plenty of places to hang out, including several wizard pubs.

3. Emerald City, The Wizard Of Oz (1939)

Location: At the end of the Yellow Brick Road.

Character: Green. The home of the legendary Wizard is grand and green, with buildings made of green glass and jewels. Although everything might not be quite what it seems

Why its awesome: Its inhabitants are crying out for someone to start a street style blog, and the Wizard can grant pretty much any wish you care to name. Plus its loads better than the Haunted Forest

2. Cloud City, Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

Location: In the clouds, hovering above the gas planet Bespin.

Character: Luxurious, particularly in its upper levels. Established as a gas mining colony, its become better known as a kind of luxury holiday resort, packed with posh hotels and casinos. It should be the perfect place to stop and relax while your spaceships in for repairs, provided your visit doesnt coincide with that of an intergalactic dictator.

Why its awesome: Its a floating city! Whats not awesome about that?!

1. The Capitol, The Hunger Games (2012)

Location: West of the Rockies.

Character: Pampered. The Capitol is where the wealthiest citizens of Panem live while the citizens of the outer Districts slave away at whatever their areas specialism is, the inhabitants of the Capitol spend their time dyeing their skin bizarre colours and trying out new fashion styles. Yes, life in the Capitol is superficial and trivial, but its also a non-stop party.

Why its awesome: Because the citizens of the Capitol have access to all of lifes luxuries. They come at the expense of everyone else in the world, but when you can watch children fighting to the death on live TV, whos got time to worry about that?