Robert Downey Jr

Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)

Posted on by Kent Film Office
the artificial intelligence, Ulton staring at the camera with a building behind

Ultron in Marvel’s Avengers ©Marvel 2015

Director: Joss Whedon

Writer: Joss Whedon (Screenplay), Stan Lee, Jack Kirby (Comic Book)

Starring: Robert Downey Jr, Scarlett Johansson, Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, James Spader, Tom Hiddleston, Samuel L. Jackson, Mark Ruffalo, Jeremy Renner, Cobie Smulders

Production company: Marvel Studios

Kent locations: Dover Castle

Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015) is the next thrilling installment set in the Marvel Universe and is a follow up to the award winning film, Avengers Assemble (2012).

At the heart of the story is Iron Man, Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr) who attempts to start a peacekeeping program based around Artificial Intelligence. However, inevitably things take a turn for the worse when the autonomous technology runs awry and the initial attempt of mediation turns sour. It is up to The Avengers including; Captain America (Chris Evans), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), The Incredible Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and adding Hawkeye (Clint Barton) to come to the rescue and save the planet as its population hangs in the balance.

Hawkeye (Clint Barton) running through a snowy forest as there's an explosion in the background

Hawkeye (Clint Barton) ©Marvel 2015

Directed by Joss Whedon (Avengers Assemble, Much Ado About Nothing), the film has a star studded ensemble cast with an array of acting talent including Robert Downey Jr (Sherlock Holmes, Iron Man 3 ), Scarlett Johansson (Lucy, Lost in Translation), Chris Evans (Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Avengers Assemble), Chris Hemsworth (Thor: The Dark World, Star Trek), James Spader (The Blacklist, Boston Legal), Tom Hiddleston (Thor: The Dark World, Avengers Assemble) Samuel L. Jackson (Django Unchained, Pulp Fiction) Mark Ruffalo (Avengers Assemble, The Kids are alright) and Jeremy Renner (The Bourne Legacy, The Hurt Locker).

The Marvel Studios production visited Dover Castle in June 2014 for a week to film several action sequences and local runners were involved to ensure a smooth shoot. Dover Castle was used as part of the interior for the Hydra Outpost in Sovokia and you may also be able to spot the entrance to the wartime tunnels that is used a secret entrance.

Dover Castle is a stunning medieval castle situated on the White Cliffs of Dover, overlooking the English Channel. Dover Castle is a popular film location having featured in Into the Woods (2015), Poirot “The Clocks” (2009), The Other Boleyn Girl (2008) and Hamlet (1990).

Avengers Age of Ultron was released in cinemas on Thursday 23rd April 2015 and is now available on DVD.

 

 

For more information about Kent’s Filming History please visit our Movie Map. 

Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows (2011)

Posted on by Kent Film Office

 

 

Jude Law and Robert Downey Jr infront of a view of London

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows Movie Poster © Warner Bros.

Director: Guy Ritchie

Producer:  Bruce Berman

Writers: Michael Mulroney, Kieran Mulroney (Screenplay) & Arthur Conan Doyle (Novel)

Starring: Robert Downey Jr, Jude Law, Eddie Marsan, Noomi Rapace, Jared Harris & Stephen Fry

Production Company: Village Roadshow Pictures, Silver Pictures, Wigram Productions

Kent Locations Used: The Historic Dockyard Chatham, Port of Dover, White Cliffs of Dover, The Waverley Paddlesteamer, Knole & Fort Amherst

Robert Downey Jr and Jude Law revisit their roles as the great Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson in Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows. When the Crown Prince of Austria is found dead, inspector Lestrade (Eddie Marsdan-Law and Order UK ) believes it to be suicide. But Holmes deduces that the prince has been a victim in a murder that is part of a larger and more elaborate plot designed by Professor Moriarty (Jared Harris- Fringe).

Holmes tracks down the clues to a gentleman’s club where he and his brother Mycroft Holmes (Stephen Fry-Alice in Wonderland) celebrate to Dr Watson’s final night of bachelorhood. There Holmes meets the mysterious fortune teller Sim (Noomi Rapace-The Girl Who kicked the Hornet’s Nest) whose unwitting involvement with the Crown Prince’s murder makes her the next target for the killer.

Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows was adapted by Michele Mulroney (Unlikely Hero, Sunny & Share Love You) and Kieran Mulroney (Paper Man) and directed by Guy Ritchie (Snatch, RocknRolla).  Robert Downey Jr. (Iron Man, Tropic Thunder) and Jude Law (The Talented Mr. Ripley, Enemy at the Gates) return in the starring roles alongside Noomi Rapace (The Drop, Child 44), Rachel McAdams (The Notebook, Spotlight), Stephen Fry (V for Vendetta Alice in Wonderland) and Jared Harris (Lincoln, The Boxtrolls).

A number of popular Kent locations take a starring role in this latest blockbuster from director Guy Ritchie. The cast and crew returned to The Historic Dockyard Chatham where the Punchbowl Pub fight scenes and the hanging of Lord Blackwood amongst other scenes were filmed for the first movie.  Eagle eyed viewers should watch the trailer below and see if they can spot the dockyards alongside the other Kent Locations! The Historic Dockyard Chatham is a popular film location, having previously featured in Rustom (2016) and Oliver Twist (2007).

The production company also visited the Port of Dover  where they boarded the Waverley Paddle Steamer to film the White Cliffs of Dover. The paddle steamer was re-built in 1947 after the original was sunk off Dunkirk in 1940 and now sails around the country offering tours to the general public. The Port of Dover can be seen in Johnny English (2003) starring Rowan Atkinson and in the James Bond classic Diamonds are Forever (1971) starring Sean Connery as the location for a dramatic hovercraft scene.

National Trust Property Knole in Sevenoaks was also used, though you’ll have a hard time spotting the structure of the inner courtyard in its new Alpine setting. Adored by Henry VII and given to him by the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1538, it later was presented to the Sackville family by Elizabeth I. The house showcases stunning architecture, priceless Stuart furniture and is set at the heart of the only remaining deer park in the county.  A popular film location it has appeared in Great British Railway Journeys – Series 7 (2016) and Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011).

Lastly, crews took to Fort Amherst in Chatham to shoot scenes for the film. The extensive tunnels were the perfect double for the Paris sewer system. The fort is Britain’s largest Napoleonic Fortress and with an impressive network of historic buildings across 20 acres, it is becoming a firm favourite for film productions. Fort Amherst has also featured in Jekyll and Hyde (2016) and The Saint (1997). Considered one of Britain’s most haunted Forts, it is open to the public, though apparently you’ll risk meeting one of the many poltergeists and ghostly apparitions that walk there.

Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows was released in cinemas in  December 2011 and is now available to buy on DVD.

For more information about Kent’s Filming History please visit our Movie Map. 

Sherlock Holmes (2009)

Posted on by Kent Film Office
Sherlock Holmes Poster- Sherlock holmes staring at the camera with his hands in his pockets, smokey london skyline can be seen behind. HOLMES reads across the middle

Sherlock Holmes Poster

The Victorian Sleuth returns to our screens in an all action film

Director: Guy Richie

Writer: Simon Kinberg, Anthony Peckham

Starring: Robert Downey Jr, Jude Law, Rachel McAdams, Mark Strong, Eddie Marsan and Kelly Reilly

Production Company: Silver Pictures, Village Roadshow Pictures, Wigram Productions

Kent Filming Locations: The Historic Dockyard Chatham

Boxing day 2009 saw the release of the new Sherlock Holmes movie directed by British filmmaker Guy Ritchie. Fans expecting a classic ‘Sherlock’ adaptation complete with smoking pipe and deerstalker hat will be disappointed. This interpretation of Holmes is fast paced and action filled, taking its cue from modern graphic novels.

Based on an unpublished comic book by Lionel Wigram, the film features

Arthur Conan Doyle’s legendary characters Sherlock Holmes (Robert Downey Jr) and Dr Watson (Jude Law). Set in 1891, the film sees Holmes and Watson trying to stop Lord Blackwood’s (Mark Strong) conspiracy to destroy Britain. To thwart this deadly plot, Sherlock’s brilliance and intellect are called upon alongside some newly acquired skills:bare knuckle and sword fighting.

Directed by Guy Ritchie (Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Snatch) written by Simon Kinberg (Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Jumper) and Anthony Peckham (Don’t Say A Word, Invictus) and starring Robert Downey Jr (Zodiac, Iron Man) and Jude Law (Cold Mountain, Alfie). Rachel McAdams (Mean Girls, The Notebook), Mark Strong (Body of Lies, The Young Victoria), Eddie Marsan (V for Vendetta, Happy-Go-Lucky) and Kelly Reilly (Pride & Prejudice, Me and Orson Welles.

Ritchie and the all star cast came to The Historic Dockyard Chatham to film parts of the movie. The Historic Dockyard Chatham proved to be an ideal location with its cobbled streets, industrial buildings and authentic Victorian architecture. If you watch carefully you will notice the following locations.

  • Punchbowl Pub interior: fight scene
  • Punch Bowl pub exterior: various characters entering the pub
  • Main Gate (the seal): entering the prison to see Blackwood
  • Hemp House 3: Hanging of Lord Blackwood
  • Ropery courtyard: Prison exterior scene with Holmes and Watson locked up in the prison yard
  • Chain and Cable shed: chase scene with hansom cabs before the slip 7 scene where the ship enters the Thames
  • Slip 7: The fight with Dredger around the ship in slip 7
 

Behind the scenes image of the shipyard at Ship 7 at The Historic Dockyard Chatham

Behind the scenes image of the shipyard at Ship 7 at The Historic Dockyard Chatham © The Historic Dockyard Chatham

  

Behind the scenes image of the exterior of the Punch Bowl Pub at The Historic Dockyard Chatham at the bottom of a cobbled street

Behind the scenes image of the exterior of the Punch Bowl Pub at The Historic Dockyard Chatham © The Historic Dockyard Chatham

The Historic Dockyard Chatham remains a top Kent filming location due to its unblemished historical surroundings, authentic backdrops, cobbled streets and Georgian and Victorian architecture. It has previously been used in productions such as BBC’s Oliver Twist (2007), The Golden Compass (2007) and Vanity Fair (2005).

Sherlock Holmes was released in cinemas on December 2009 and is now available to buy on DVD.

For more information about Kent’s Filming History please visit our Movie Map.