Full disclosure: As I’ve been working on movies from each state, I’ve been dreading the list of movies set in California because I know how long it has the potential to be! I feel like no matter how many movies I list, I’m going to miss people’s favorites.
I’ve decided that since I can’t possibly list ALL of the movies set in the Golden State, I’m going to try something else instead.
Here is a list of movies that shows just how diverse the films set in California can be! Comedies, dramas, biopics, historical pieces, horror, sci-fi; it’s all here.
Let’s get started. I’m listing these in order of their Rotten Tomatoes scores, from best to worst.
The Artist (2011): 95%
Michael Hazanavicius directed this black-and-white movie set in Hollywood during the early days of the movie industry. George Valentin (Jean Dujardin) is a silent film actor who is struggling to adapt to “the talkies,” and Peppy Miller (Bérénice Bejo) is the actress he helped to discover — and who is becoming more famous and more successful than him. The movie won 5 out of the 10 Academy Awards it was nominated for, including Best Picture.
LA Story (1991): 93%
Mick Jackson’s LA Story is a comedy set in LA. Harris K. Telemacher (played by Steve Martin) is a TV weatherman who has become disillusioned with life. Secret messages sent through the freeway sign near his house lead him to a whirlwind romance with a British journalist (Victoria Tennant) AND an up-and-coming model (Sarah Jessica Parker).
True Romance (1993): 93%
Tony Scott’s True Romance is a crime thriller film that follows a young couple who are on the run after stealing a suitcase full of cocaine from the mafia. Clarence (Christian Slater) and Alabama (Patricia Arquette) try to sell the drugs but end up in dangerous situation after dangerous situation as they encounter both criminals and cops.
There Will Be Blood (2007): 91%
Director Paul Thomas Anderson tells a bleak tale in There Will Be Blood, which takes place in California during the early 20th Century. Daniel Plainview (Daniel Day-Lewis) is a ruthless oil prospector who obsesses over his desire for wealth and power. He fails to care for his son, and he finds himself in a conflict with a strange charismatic preacher (Paul Dano). His paranoia grows, as does his isolation.
Easy A (2010): 85%
Easy A is a coming-of-age comedy that takes place in Ojai, California. Olive Penderghast (Emma Stone) is a clean-cut high school student who makes up a little lie about having sex that is overheard by a gossip-y classmate (Amanda Bynes). Soon, the lie is spread across the whole school, and Olive has to deal with the fallout.
Beverly Hills Cop (1984): 83%
Beverly Hills Cop was the first in a 4-part series of movies starring Eddie Murphy as Axel Foley, a Detroit police detective who travels to Beverly Hills, California to investigate the murder of his childhood friend, all while pretending to be on vacation. As he investigates art dealer Victor Maitland (Steven Berkoff), the local police department keeps getting in the way of his attempts to solve the murder.
Clueless (1995): 81%
Amy Heckerling directed this coming-of-age comedy, set in Beverly Hills. Alicia Silverstone played the rich, spoiled, but sincere Cher, who takes a new friend, Tai, under her wing. The movie is set on Emma, the Jane Austen novel. Clueless also starred Brittany Murphy, Paul Rudd, and Stacey Dash. One of the most iconic California moments in Clueless is when Cher’s friend Dionne accidentally ends up driving on the freeway.
The Big Lebowski (1998): 79%
This cult classic by Joel and Ethan Coen is part film noir and part stoner comedy that follows “The Dude,” played by the brilliant Jeff Bridges. The Dude is a slacker and a bowler who ends up out of his element, caught up in a potential kidnapping scheme, a conflict with the Chief of Police of Malibu, and an eccentric millionaire who shares his name: Jeffrey Lebowski. The movie also stars John Goodman, Steve Buscemi, Julianne Moore, and John Turturro. Though the film wasn’t immediately well received, it has become a cult classic that has inspired a series of festivals, a bunch of books, and even a religion called Dudeism.
Pretty Woman (1990): 65%
Directed by acclaimed director Garry Marshall, Pretty Woman is one of the most iconic romantic comedies of all time. Set in Los Angeles, the movie’s leads Edward and Vivian were played by Richard Gere and Julia Roberts. The movie tells the story of Edward, a wealthy businessman who hires a sex worker to accompany him to a handful of social events, only to fall in love with her. Julia Roberts’s Vivian is a beloved character. Even though the film only received middling reviews, the movie has influenced countless other movies.
Rush Hour (1998): 61%
This buddy cop comedy is set in LA County. Detective Inspector Lee (Jackie Chan) and Detective Carter (Chris Tucker) are an odd couple-style pair who have to work together to solve the kidnapping of a Chinese diplomat’s daughter. It’s a movie about cultural differences, friendship, and taking down criminals. The movie also starred Tom Wilkinson, Elizabeth Peña, and Tzi Ma.
Lords of Dogtown (2005): 55%
Lords of Dogtown is a biographical drama set in Venice, California that tells the true story of the rise of skateboarding culture in the 1970s. The movie follows Stacy Peralta (John Robinson), Tony Alva (Victora Rasuk), and Jay Adams (Emile Hirsch). These three teenagers revolutionized skateboarding, and the movie includes iconic images of Venice Beach.
Additional Movies Set in California
- Milk
- (500) Days of Summer
- The Bachelor
- Get Him to the Greek
- America’s Sweethearts
- Confessions of a Dangerous Mind
- Collateral
- When a Man Loves a Woman
- Sister Act
- Serendipity
- Nine Months
- The Princess Diaries
- Hulk
- Die Hard
- Drive
- Face/Off
- The Fast and the Furious
- Father of the Bride
- The Graduate
- Hard Candy
- The Holiday
- Transformers
- Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
- Nurse Betty
- Training Day
- Old School
- Erin Brockovich
- Crazy Stupid Love
- The Kids Are All Right
- The Fall
- I Love You, Man
- Seven Psychopaths
- Boyz n the Hood
- People Like Us
- This is 40
- Spanglish
- Barton Fink
- Mulholland Drive
- Blue Jasmine
- This Is the End
- The Internship
- Larry Crowne
- Saving Mr. Banks
- Her
This may not be an all-inclusive list, but it certainly shows just how many movies Hollywood makes about California!
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