Classic 2014 mystery thriller Gone Girl starred Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike in a twisted story of kidnapping and revenge, directed by David Fincher. Filmed in Cape Girardeau and its surrounding areas, and with New York being simulated on an L.A. soundstage, the film has become a great example of the mystery genre and is still referenced when speaking about similar affairs.
Where was Gone Girl filmed?
Cape Girardeau
A quick look at movie-locations.com shows that Gone Girl was filmed almost entirely in Cape Girardeau and surrounding areas. Cape Girardeau is situated in eastern Missouri along the border of Illinois. During the film’s credits, among the montage of shots, eagled-eyed location hunters will spot the town clock, and this is the actual town clock of Cape Girardeau, located downtown.
The bar, called “The Bar”, where Nick is often seen, is not far from the clock and was filmed on the corner of North Spanish Street, which used to be a business address called Socials Cafe and Catering. It appears that the business is now called Socials Cafe and Coffeehouse, and a look at their Facebook page shows a mouth-watering menu of home-cooked food and treats.
As well as the linear narrative, the film features flashbacks to New York, however, these scenes were not filmed in The Big Apple at all.
Gone Girl | Image via 20th Century Fox
Los Angeles
The New York scenes were recorded on a sound studio located in LA. You can see that the scenes of the Dunnes leaving their city brownstone were filmed on the “New York City Street” which was purpose-built on the Universal Studios backlot in Los Angeles and is used consistently for productions such as this.
Another scene of the couple in a bookshop was also recorded in LA, and not in New York. That particular location was a real store and could be found at 453 South Spring Street.
Where is the movie supposed to be set?
The film was set in the fictitious town of North Carthage, which was meant to be located in Missouri. However, it is reported that the writer of the novel, Gillian Flynn, was inspired by the real-life town of Cape Girardeau, and that is where most of the location work was done.
Where is the bridge?
Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge | Image via American Institute of Steel Construction
The bridge that is often seen in the film is The Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge. This style of bridge is called a cable-stayed bridge, and it is used for connecting Route 34 in Missouri with Illinois Route 34 and 74 with Illinois Route 146 across the Mississippi River between Cape Girardeau and East Cape Girardeau. The bridge was named after Bill Emerson, who was a politician in the area from 1981 until 1996 when he died. Bill served in the U.S. House of Representatives.
What happened on the bridge?
Without spoiling too much of the twisted story, a key scene in the film happens on the bridge, and we see Amy, covered in blood, returning to Nick while being surrounded by the paparazzi, who are more than eager to capture the event as it happens.
