Issue 15 / Gorgeous Homes That You've Seen In Movies

by Denise Wild

Gorgeous Homes That You’ve Seen In Movies

Aug 27, 2015

Here's our list of favourite cinematic mansions that left us drooling.

When it comes to movies, there are so many things that can make them stand out. Whether it’s the actors, the music, the unexpected plot twists or the elaborate special effects, there’s often a notable detail in a movie that leaves a lasting impression. And that memorable detail is often a beautiful, impressive home. Here's our list of homes (including some hotels — travel op, anyone?) that have made their presence known in film.

Something’s Gotta Give

The gorgeous Hamptons estate.
Photo Credit: www.dailymail.co.uk

A Manhattan ladies man (played by Jack Nicholson), who prides himself on never dating anyone over 30, reluctantly falls in love with his latest girlfriend’s mother (Diane Keaton) in this film from 2003. The two meet at her home in the Hamptons, a Nantucket-style beachfront home that boasts an ocean view and beautiful interiors. Fun fact: The Hamptons home featured in Something’s Gotta Give was sold in 2014 for $41 million.

Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham

^{Waddesdon Manor

Photo Credit: www.waddesdon.org.uk}

In this 2001 feature film, Shah Rukh Khan plays the adopted son of a wealthy business magnate, and in a tale of family, love and division between classes, Khan falls for someone (played by Kajol) who comes from a working-class background. Khan and Kajol leave Khan’s family to start a life of their own, and it takes the persistence of Khan’s brother years later to finally bring the couple back into the lives of Khan’s family and back to the majestic family estate. England’s Waddesdon Manor, a National Trust property that was at one point a single-family home, plays the facade of the family home. Waddesdon Manor, which was Haxby Park in the second season of Downton Abbey, has a jaw-dropping intricate exterior reminiscent of a French chateau.

3 Idiots

^{Woodville Palace Hotel

Photo Credit: www.woodvillepalacehotel.com}

Three engineering student friends (R. Madhavan, Sharman Joshi and Aamir Khan) go through a series of misadventures that include harassing their nemesis, one of their college professors. In this popular 2009 dramedy, it’s at a wedding when one of the friends falls in love with their professor’s daughter (Kareena Kapoor). The wedding scenes were filmed at Woodville Palace Hotel in Shimla. Think of Woodville Palace as a royal cottage. Its traditional rooms and impressive exterior have been the backdrop for over 25 movies and television shows.

The Holiday

^{The houses in The Holiday.

Photo Credit: www.imdb.com}

This 2006 rom-com has a two-for-one deal on memorable homes. Cameron Diaz and Kate Winslet’s characters swap homes for the holidays, each to escape a recent heartbreak, and find in each other’s spaces the happiness and solitude they were after. (And new love, of course, in the form of Jude Law and Jack Black.) Diaz’s luxurious contemporary Los Angeles style contrasts with Winslet’s quaint stone cottage in Surrey. It’s the perfect mix of city and country.

Sangam

^{Grandhotel Giessbach

Photo Credit: www.giessbach.ch/en/}

Likely Raj Kapoor’s most notable film, the classic 1964 romantic movie Sangam has more than a love triangle to capture audiences. The movie, which is produced, directed by, and stars Kapoor, is set in beautiful exotic locales including the historic and breathtaking Grandhotel Giessbach hotel in Switzerland. Built in 1873, the hotel is an official Historic Hotel of Europe, rich with restored antiques from the Gilded Age, boasting an exterior that stands out against its lush, natural backdrop.

Gone Girl

^{The houses in Gone Girl.

Photo Credit: www.hookedonhouses.net}

In 2014 Gone Girl gives us another two-for-one in the movie-house department. Based on the book by Gillian Flynn, Gone Girl is a thriller about a husband (Ben Affleck) who is the prime suspect for the disappearance of his wife (Rosamund Pike). The couple’s quintessentially suburban home has stark interiors but a picture-perfect exterior, and the house of the wife’s ex-boyfriend (Neil Patrick Harris) gives us eye candy on a different level — in a Frank Lloyd Wright style.

War of the Roses

^{The War of the Roses house.

Photo Credit: www.blu-ray.com}

A married couple, played by Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner, are on the verge of divorce in this 1989 classic dark comedy. The two are working on splitting their assets, and can’t decide who will take their large home. As they battle things out, things get destructive, and unfortunately the house ends up in the centre of it all, slowly falling to pieces at their own hands.

The Lake House

^{The show-stealing house in The Lake House.

Photo Credit: www.hookedonhouses.net}

When Sandra Bullock and Keanu Reeves teamed up post-Speed in the 2006 romantic movie The Lake House, it was more than their on-screen chemistry that moviegoers loved watching. The home the two live in (albeit two years apart) nearly steals the show with its all-window exterior perched atop a beautiful lake.

Twilight

^{The Twilight house.

Photo Credit: www.homedesignlover.com}

This unexpected 2008 blockbuster based on the book series by Stephenie Meyer introduced audiences to more than just vampires and werewolves. Starring Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson as forbidden lovers (she’s a regular teenage girl and he’s a centuries-old vampire), Twilight fans talked about more than the fantasy love-triangle after seeing the movie. The vampire family home also made a lasting impression with its impressive contemporary presence.

^{Main Image Photo Credit: www.waddesdon.org.uk}

Denise Wild

Author

Denise Wild is a sewing expert, magazine editor (including ANOKHI’s former Beauty Editor), media personality, author, and entrepreneur. Denise founded LoveSewing & The Sewing Studio, North America’s largest sewing school for 10 years, with locations in Toronto and New York City. Yo...