There's nothing like the big screen to capture big buildings. Here are our favorite movies about skyscrapers and other great buildings. Some are masterpieces and some are just for fun, but these skyscraper movies all deserve accolades for putting architecture in the spotlight. Do you have a favorite? Recommend an architecture film!
Adapted from Ayn Rand's bestselling potboiler, The Fountainhead combines architecture with drama, romance, and sex. Gary Cooper plays Howard Roark, an idealistic architect who refuses to create buildings that violate his aesthetic values. Patricia Neal is his passionate lover, Dominique. 1949
An architect (Paul Newman) and a fire chief ( Steve McQueen) race to rescue the occupants of a burning San Francisco skyscraper, which is touted as the "world's tallest building." 1974
When a dozen international terrorists take over a Los Angeles highrise, a tough New York cop (Bruce Willis) saves the day. 1988.
Directed by Ridley Scott, the 1992 edition of Blade Runner has enhanced the original. In a futuristic Los Angeles, a retired cop (Harrison Ford) pursues a murderous android. Some scenes were filmed inside the Ennis-Brown house by Frank Lloyd Wright. 1982
Directed by Fritz Lang, this silent film classic interprets Le Corbusier's plans for the future, imagining a mile-high city built by slaves. For this DVD version, producer Giorgio Moroder speeded up the pacing, restored the tints, and added a rock and disco soundtrack. 1926
An aging thief (Sean Connery) becomes enmeshed with a beautiful insurance agent (Catherine Zeta-Jones). The real stars of this film are the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 1999
A rising black architect (Wesley Snipes) has an adulterous affair with a working class Italian American (Annabella Sciorra) in present day New York. Directed by Spike Lee. 1991
Who could forget the sight of the giant gorilla clinging to the top of the Empire State Building, his furry hand grasping the terrified Fay Wray? America's favorite skyscraper heightens the drama and brings a sense of scale to the monster movie classic. Forget the remakes; get the original, made in 1933.
OK, you won't see skyscrapers, but The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari is a must-have for anyone who is serious about studying the relationship between film and architecture. In this German Expressionist masterpiece, the evil Dr. Caligari (Werner Krauss) hypnotizes an innocent villager to commit murder. Director Robert Wiene set the eerie tale in a surreal world of twisted angles and contorted buildings. Silent, with music track, 1919
Former Playboy Playmate Anna Nicole Smith is a helicopter pilot who becomes a hostage after flying a terrorist to the top of a skyscraper. Sex and skyscrapers -- what more could you want? 1996