3 films that will make you want to live in Barcelona
We romanticise everything we see in the movies, that’s a fact of life. When a city appears on the big screen, a compelling urge to rush off to that part of the world becomes irrepressible and suddenly, you’re looking for flights and fantasising about what it would be like to live there for a while.
Barcelona in particular is one of those cities that inspires and makes you dream, and to our delight, many filmmakers have chosen it as the setting for their films. That’s why we bring you a selection of films that you absolutely must see, to discover that side of Barcelona that you’ve never seen before.
Moreover, watching them can also help you make preparations for that trip you’ve been planning for so long, or to make you decide to take that 180-degree turn in your life.
The Laws of Thermodynamics (2018)
In this cinematographic creation, Manel (Vito Sanz) – a physicist with a neurotic disorder – tells the story of his relationship with his girlfriend Elena (Berta Vázquez), a sought-after model and actress. The disastrous love story unfolds in different parts of Barcelona, such as the Born and the Gothic Quarter, as the protagonist tries to prove that the couple’s lack of understanding is due to the three laws of thermodynamics, which had already predicted the terrible outcome of their love affair in advance.
The Last Days (2013)
The film shows us a dystopian future in an apocalyptic Barcelona of empty streets. In fact, this initially unreal scenario is not very different from the images captured during the coronavirus pandemic, as the plot tells the story of a mysterious disease that spreads across the planet.
The population, panic-stricken by the epidemic, refuses to go out into the streets to avoid becoming infected. As civilisation crumbles, Marc, a young man played by Quim Gutiérrez, sets out in search of his missing girlfriend.
The film features emblematic locations in Barcelona, such as Passeig de Lluís Companys and Arc de Triomf with the city in flames, the Agbar Tower, Via Laietana, which was closed for three Sundays because of the filming, and Calle Balmes, which was closed to traffic for a day. In addition, much of the filming also took place on the unfinished Line 9 of the metro.
Barcelona Summer Night (2013)
That’s right, you guessed it: as can be deduced from the title, the backdrop for the film is Barcelona. Specifically, the special night of 18 August 2013 when the comet Rose crossed the sky over Barcelona.
In this feature film, several love stories follow one another, each with their differences, similarities, details and anecdotes. All of them (some with first love as the main character, or also about paternity) take place in such well-known settings as Barceloneta, Las Ramblas or the Bunkers del Carmel.
Where to live in Barcelona?
Well, spending the afternoon watching films is a great plan, but now that you’ve got a taste for Catalonia, doesn’t it occur to you that it could be the perfect location for your next adventure? It’s a place full of opportunities (both in terms of work and education).
If you’re considering Barcelona as your next residence, we’ll tell you about the best neighbourhoods to make the most of the experience of living in Barcelona (in the hypothetical case that you decide -wink, wink-).
How do you see it? Are you switching to the easy way of doing things? Yes, we’re talking about coliving and Cotown.