All Over Albany

Skipping ahead to the good parts

Hey, that's not Washington, DC...

Amy pointed out recently that both Salt and The Other Guys are now available for streaming from Netflix -- which makes it a lot easier to just watch the scenes shot in Albany.

If you're so inclined, here's where the Albany scenes show up...

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Like Salt in a wound

Angelina, how could you?

Akum pointed this out the other day: Albany gets no love in the credits for Salt.

New York City, New York State, Westchester County, and the Washington Metro all get a "special thanks" -- but not the city that contributed its Beltway-like overpasses. The city with an "elaborate freeway system" specifically praised by the director of the movie, and touted as a "supporting character" in one of the action scenes.

Well. We feel a little used.

Earlier on AOA:
+ So, is Salt any good?
+ More Angelina and more Albany
+ That's Angelina and that's Albany

So, is Salt any good?

Lou got two tickets to see Salt at the Spectrum.

Because Albany makes a cameo -- or, perhaps, even stars as a "supporting character" -- in Salt, we thought it would be fun to have someone do a review. So we asked people to post comments about their favorite movies and we picked one person for the review. That person was Lou. Here's his review...

What isn’t Salt? It isn’t about vampires, hasn’t time for quirky characters, and there’s no sex except for what seeps from Angelina Jolie’s pores. Since that’s not her fault, there’s no sex. Technically.

Let’s stop here for a survey.

Dislike modern action pictures? Trouble suspending mild, fast-moving disbelief? Testosterone-intolerant? Live in an arthouse? Salt is not for you. Ignore it. Your Farmville needs tending.

Salt works. If you like the Bourne films, you’ll like Salt — in some ways less, others more.

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We want you to review Salt

The U-Haul building, serving as an extra with Angelina.

Update: Lou will be reviewing Salt!

Update: The deadline has passed. We'll contact the winner tonight. Thanks to everyone who entered!

As you know, Salt -- the Angelina Jolie movie -- was partially shot here in Albany (the director would like to thank the citizens). And it opens this Friday.

So, we're looking for someone to review the movie. And that person could be you. Here's the deal:

+ Post a comment telling us what your favorite movie is, and explain why. It doesn't have to be anything long. A few sentences will do.

+ Based on the posted comments, we'll pick a winner to review Salt.

+ That person will get two free tickets to see Salt at the Spectrum this weekend -- so you can bring a friend (it's always good to talk about a movie with someone afterward).

+ The winner then sends us a short review of Salt by Monday at 9 am. The review should be no more than 500 words. And we hope you'll pay special attention to Albany's cameos in the movie (787 apparently makes quite an appearance).

+ We post the review later that day.

So, that's the deal. We think this could be fun.

Important: One entry person. You must answer the question to be considered. Your comment must be posted by 5 pm Wednesday July 21. You must include a working email address (that you check regularly) with your comment. The winner will be notified by 11:59 pm on Wednesday and must respond by noon on Thursday July 22.

Earlier on AOA:
+ Lining up for Salt
+ More Angelina and more Albany
+ That's Angelina and that's Albany
+ Angelina Jolie to stop traffic in downtown Albany

screengrab: Sony

The director of Salt would like to thank you

So, a supporting actor nod for 787?

Said Salt director Phillip Noyce of the action scenes shot in Albany, to NBC:

"Due to excessive pork barreling over the years, the capital of New York has built up the most elaborate freeway system you have ever seen," Noyce said at a screening of the film on Monday night.

There was even "one overpass to nowhere which just stopped," he added with a little surprise. While clearly a symbol of taxpayer waste, Noyce had to admit: "It was really convenient to one (movie) sequence," he said. "It's a tragedy (for taxpayers) but great for filming."

The article goes on to mention that Salt "is impressive in its use of the freeway as a supporting character in one memorable action scene."

The movie opens this Friday.

Earlier on AOA:
+ More Angelina and more Albany
+ That's Angelina and that's Albany

screengrab: Sony

Lining up for Salt

They really want to see Angelina on 787.

Mike sent along this picture of people camped out this morning around 9 am for the last 300 tickets for the Salt premiere at the Palace Theatre.

The tickets were released at 10 am, but the line had formed long before that. Shelley Thomas, the box office manager at the Palace, told us that people started lining up at 6 am this morning. At 10 am, she says they gave out all the remaining tickets to people in the line.

The Albany Salt premiere is July 22. It opens July 23.

Earlier on AOA:
+ More Angelina and more Albany
+ That's Angelina and that's Albany

photo: Mike Wren

Last bunch of Salt premiere tickets released today

Will the U-Haul building and other Albany landmarks make it into the final cut?

Update: @tenacioustij reports that the tickets are all gone -- and were gone before 10 am.

After apparently overwhelming demand, the Palace Theatre is releasing its last bunch of tickets to the July 22 Albany premiere of Salt today. The Palace says it will be giving out 300 of the free tickets at its box office starting at 10 am today.

If you're looking to snag tickets, you should show up early. The first batch of tickets was reportedly snapped up right away on Friday. There's a limit of four tickets per person. [Daily Gazette]

One of the big car chase scenes for Salt was shot in downtown Albany -- and Angelina Jolie was here for some of it. It'll be fun to see how much of the city has made it into the final version. You could see parts of the skyline very clearly in some of the trailers.

Salt opens in theaters July 23. The Other Guys -- the Will Ferrell cop comedy that also shot some scenes downtown -- opens August 6.

Earlier on AOA:
+ More Angelina and more Albany
+ That's Angelina and that's Albany

images: Sony Pictures

More Angelina and more Albany

What isn't better with some Egg?

The second trailer for Salt popped up online today -- and it includes more shots of Albany (let's face it, 787 is really the star of this movie). As you can see above, the Egg and ESP get a cameo.

A few more screen grabs are after the jump.

It'll be interesting to see how much of Albany actually makes it into the movie. The first trailer included some shots of local signs -- it looks they've since been fixed with CGI so that they look like they're actually on the Beltway around DC.

Judging from the trailer, Salt looks it could be OK summer movie. Angelina against everybody. Car chases. Stuff blowing up. Chiwetel Ejiofor.

Salt is in theaters July 23. The Other Guys -- the Will Ferrell movie that also shot in downtown Albany last year -- is scheduled to be released August 6.

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That's Angelina and that's Albany

You can see the State Library in the background on the right.

The trailer for Salt, the Angelina Jolie spy movie that filmed in downtown Albany back in April, was posted online today. And you can make out Albany very clearly in some of the shots. (It looks like they digitally added the Washington Monument and a few other DC buildings to make it look like the Beltway.)

The full trailer is embedded after the jump. Albany's cameos start at about the 1:17 mark.

We also pulled another screengrab of a shot from I-787. It looks like the footage has been flipped horizontally. How can you tell? The interstate signs are backwards. We're guessing they'll fix that before the movie's released next year.

(Thanks, JMc and others!)

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