The Big Blue (1988)

La Raya, Peru

At the La Raya pass, the station is located at over 4,200 meters, on the second highest railway line in the world.

The scene : 24 minJohana, an investigator for an insurance company, gets off the train at this remote station in the Andes, on the line connecting Cuzco to Lake Titicaca.

Amorgos, Greece

A small pebble cove with turquoise water at the foot of the cliff, beneath the Hozoviotissa Monastery, it has become the postcard of the Grand Bleu on Amorgos.

The scene : The first black-and-white images open on this rocky cove: we discover Jacques's father, played by Claude Besson, and it is here that he meets his death while diving. Young Jacques also makes his debut in free diving here.

Ναΐσκος Αγίας Άννας (Αμοργός)

Amorgos, Greece

The scene : The small white chapel perched above the cove of Agia Anna serves as the family home: it is here that young Jacques lives with his father and Uncle Louis, in the childhood scenes that open the film.

Amorgos, Greece

The capital of Amorgos, the village has almost kept the face it offered during filming.

The scene : The white village perched on the heights of Amorgos serves as the backdrop for Jacques and Enzo's childhood: from the opening sequence, the kids run through the alleys. Later, Enzo and Roberto leave in a car after rescuing the diver trapped in the wreck.

Amorgos, Greece

11th century Byzantine monastery built on the side of a cliff above the sea, accessed by approximately 300 steps. Female visitors must enter covered from head to toe.

The scene : To film the death of Jacques's father, the camera glides above the sea in a long tracking shot that reveals the white monastery embedded in the cliff. It reappears at the climax, when Jacques and Enzo return to Amorgos for the dive that turns into a drama.

Ναυάγιο Ολυμπία (Αμοργός)

Amorgos, Greece

The cargo ship Olympia ran aground in 1980 in the bay of Liveros, near Kalotaritissa, in the southwest of the island. Once accessible on foot, the wreck is now surrounded by a fence: it can only be approached by boat, or photographed from the road.

The scene : At the beginning of the film, Enzo, now an adult, dives into the hull of a wreck to free a trapped diver, and demands 10,000 dollars for this rescue. The narrative sets the scene in Sicily.

Katapola, Greece

Café named after the film, it long projected Le Grand Bleu every evening on a large screen for visitors; posters from the shoot still cover the walls.

The scene : This café in the port of Katapola is among the locations in Amorgos associated with the filming of the movie.

Katapola, Greece

Guesthouse in Katapola named after the film.

The scene : Sequences of the film were shot in this villa in Katapola.

Ios, Greece

The scene : In the bay of Manganari, south of Ios, the black and white childhood scenes are filmed, with the shot where young Jacques tames an eel and his first tussles against Enzo. The swims with dolphins in shallow water were also filmed there.

Ios, Greece

The scene : Towards the end of the film, it is in this hotel that Jacques, alone after Enzo's death, is seized by a hallucination.

San Domenico Palace

Taormina, Italy

The scene : Jacques, Enzo, and the other competitors are staying in this palace in Taormina during the world freediving championship, where the hotel scenes take place.

Taormina, Italy

The hotel's restaurant is named after the film.

The scene : By the poolside, Enzo concedes victory to Jacques and the two rivals bet on who can hold their breath the longest at the bottom of the pool. At the restaurant with a view, Enzo, scolded by his mother, finally gives his "spaghetti del mare" to Johana.

Taormina, Italy

The scene : It is from this beach in Taormina that the "No Limit" freediving competition is organized, with moments of suspense filmed here and in Messina.

Taormina, Italy

The scene : The Taormina train station hosts several scenes from the film, shot during the Sicilian part of the story.

Messina, Italy

The scene : Some of the suspense scenes from the apnea championship were filmed in Messina.

Lac du Chardonnet (Tignes)

Tignes, France

The scene : In the depth of winter, beneath the ice of this mountain lake, adult Jacques makes his first appearance from a dive; it is also by the lake that he meets Johana. The story sets the scene in the Peruvian Andes.

Epinay-sur-Seine, France

The Épinay Studios are a complex of film studios located in Épinay-sur-Seine, in Seine-Saint-Denis, and are among the oldest in France. Their origins date back to 1907, when industrialist Charles Jourjon founded the company Éclair, which became the third French firm behind Pathé and Gaumont in the 1910s. The studio itself was set up in 1913 and was then acquired by Éclair in 1914. By the end of the 1920s, the German company Tobis established one of the first sound studios in France at the same address, utilizing the Tobis-Klangfilm process; these neighboring facilities were absorbed by Éclair in 1938. The site long housed film sets and significant development and post-production laboratories, with its studios being taken over by the TSF group in 2009, before the opening of the nearby Cité du cinéma reduced their activity from 2012.

The scene : Several interiors were filmed on the Épinay sets, including Jacques' dream.

Maisons-Laffitte, France

The scene : The municipal swimming pool of Maisons-Laffitte serves as the backdrop for the reunion of Enzo and Jacques.

Cannes, France

Belle Époque Palace inaugurated in 1911 on the Croisette in Cannes, with its two iconic domes, is a major venue for the International Film Festival. Designed by architect Charles Dalmas in Art Deco Belle Époque style, it is a listed historic monument and holds the label Heritage of the 20th century.

The scene : A taxi drives up the Croisette and stops in front of the Carlton: this is where Johana meets Jacques.

Nice, France

Nice International Airport, the main airport of the French Riviera, located on the seafront.

The scene : Johana and Jacques meet at the Nice terminal.

Antibes, France

The scene : The marine park basins of Antibes appear several times on screen: Jacques swims with the dolphins, and it is there that Enzo comes to invite him to the world championship in Taormina.

Marseille, France

The scene : At Comex, a Marseille-based underwater expertise company, the descent into the depths in the capsule of the oil platform was filmed, along with its uncontrollable laughter.

Hyères, France

The scene : A scene was filmed in this small port of the Giens peninsula.

Hyères, France

The scene : Around the island of Port-Cros, the crew filmed underwater sequences from a diving boat.

Calvi, France

The scene : Some of the underwater scenes were filmed off the beach of La Pinède, in Calvi.

Paris, France

The scene : Paris is one of the filming locations of the movie.

Abra La Raya

La Raya, Peru

The scene : On this pass in the Andes, Johana reunites with Jacques at the diving research center; this is where their love story begins.

One Liberty Plaza

New York, United States

The tower was still called US Steel Building at the time of filming.

The scene : In New York, Johana works in this tower for an insurance company, and it is there that she gets fired.

New York, United States

Suspension bridge spanning the East River to connect Manhattan to Brooklyn, opened in 1909. Designed by Carrère & Hastings, this two-level bridge combines the functions of a railway and a vehicular bridge, and is designated a Historic Civil Engineering Landmark and a New York City Landmark, listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The scene : Back in New York, Johana crosses the bridge by taxi and plunges back into the hustle and bustle of the city.

New York, United States

The Twin Towers of the World Trade Center (1973-2001), in Lower Manhattan.

The scene : The Twin Towers are among the New York settings of the film.

Chattanooga, United States

The scene : Many dolphin jumps were filmed in Chattanooga, including the final shot of the film.

St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands

String of shallow bays lined with red mangroves, at St. John, the smallest of the three main U.S. Virgin Islands.

The scene : Most of the underwater shots in the film were filmed in this bay of St. John, including Jacques' final dives.

Saint Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands

The scene : Saint Croix, in the U.S. Virgin Islands, served as the backdrop for several scenes in the film.

Nassau, Bahamas

The scene : Some scenes with the dolphins were filmed in Nassau, Bahamas.

Cádiz, Spain

The scene : Cadiz is among the filming locations of the film.

Ios, Greece

Former hotel of Manganari Bay, without access road, now a private residence.

The scene : On this small dock at the foot of white houses, the gang of children from the black and white opening dives to retrieve a gold coin.

Ios, Greece

The scene : A swimming scene was filmed off this point, east of Manganari Bay, facing the islets of Varvaronisi.

Amorgos, Greece

The scene : After the expedition on the wreck, Enzo and Roberto drive back on this road and burst out laughing.

Amorgos, Greece

The scene : At the beginning of the film, Roberto runs alone, barefoot, and swallows this pin from the road.

Amorgos, Greece

The scene : Still at the beginning of the film, Roberto pulls himself up from the roadside, above the sea, and then starts running on the road.

Amorgos, Greece

The scene : Enzo and Roberto park their Fiat 500 here before going diving on the wreck.

Ios, Greece

The scene : At the beginning of the film, young Jacques hides his mask and diving gear in a niche of the cliff, from where he jumps into the sea.