If you enjoy a good detective story, you will probably be eager to check out the Netflix thriller Reptile, starring Benicio Del Toro, Justin Timberlake, and Alicia Silverstone. We explore where it was filmed and break down the locations for those eager-eyed viewers.
Someone at Netflix must have also been a fan, as Reptile feels like it is almost a throwback to a lost age of filmmaking. Coming from an older generation, I remember when the detective genre was a staple of the cinema.
It would seem that there was no end to detective movies featuring A-list actors and grim plot lines, usually offering a twist and a downbeat finale with flawed and traumatized characters left to wallow in the darkness of their celluloid nightmare.
Since films began, we have had tales of private eyes and femme fatales, many considered classics now.
Think of Bogart in The Maltese Falcon or Nicholson in Chinatown, and then filmmakers would adapt the format, taking it into the future with Harrison Ford’s Dekker in Bladerunner, still dressed in the traditional overcoat of the PI, using his skills of detection to track down renegade replicants.
Even into the realms of supernatural horror, with Mickey Rourke in possibly his finest role, playing troubled investigator Harry Angel, looking for the missing Johnny Favourite and encountering the sinister Robert DeNiro as Louis Cypher in Alan Parker’s Angel Heart.
However, the noir detective would follow the path of many film genres, hot then fading, then forgotten, but eventually reignited as fans grow up and become writers and directors, returning to the format once again.
Reptile is a detective story with a strong ensemble cast, a flawed protagonist with a determined edge, and secrets that slowly reveal themselves.
The film would sadly only have a limited theatrical release, but hopefully, it will find an audience on Netflix.
Where was the Netflix film Reptile filmed – a breakdown of filming locations
Atlanta, Georgia
A tight shoot and a localized premise meant filming would be in Metro Atlanta. Featuring the death of a real estate agent, the film required a suburban location that could appear ordinary but also sinister when needed.
Atlanta could offer everything the director needed, as it has many locations ideal for the movie. Atlanta has long been used for location shooting, and the honest reason is probably found when you follow the money.
Atlanta decided to actively pursue the Hollywood Dollar in 2008. The Governor at the time, Sonny Perdue, would agree to offer a desirable tax incentive for film producers.
It seems that the motivation for the action came after the state would not be used to film the biopic, Ray.
The story of Georgia’s very own Ray Charles, who would win Jamie Foxx an Oscar, would be filmed in Louisiana, not Atlanta, and that stinging rebuttal would lead to Georgia refining their location incentives for companies, resulting in a desirable 20% incentive, if your movie has a production cost of over 500 thousand dollars.
Throw a peach logo in the credits, and you get another ten percent off. Other states offer similar incentives, but the law has no end date in Georgia, making it an open invitation for future projects.
This has led to many productions being made there, including Netflix’s Reptile.
Manley Firm Law Offices Marietta, Georgia
Collider reports that the cast and crew were spotted at this location for some shots.
The law offices are at 211 Roswell St, Marietta, GA 30060.
Marietta, Georgia
As well as the above location in Marietta, cast and crew were spotted in various other locations across the city.
The city has a stunning mountainous backdrop, five National Register Historic Districts, and a town square.
It is only a short distance from downtown Atlanta, and if you are a location buff, you will also find a film trail with guided tours of locations used in some of the most iconic films and TV.
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