The Best New Orleans Movies, in Honor of Fat Tuesday: ‘A Streetcar Named Desire,’ ‘Easy Rider,’ ‘Skeleton Key,’ and More

Wilson Chapman and Alison Foreman
·3 min read

When Fat Tuesday rules around every year, thousands of tourists flock to one destination: New Orleans, Louisiana. Almost 1.5 million celebrants of the holiday, celebrating the end of Carnival before Ash Wednesday (this year taking place right on Valentine’s Day) kicks off the season of Lent, spend their day partying in the Big Easy, donning purple, green, and gold beads as they dance the night away. And if you’ve ever been to New Orleans, you know just how intoxicating a party there can be.

Founded in the Spring of 1718 (the exact date is unknown) by the French Mississippi Company on the land of the indigenous Chitimacha people, New Orleans is one of the most culturally distinct cities in the entire United States. Its Creole cultural roots manifest in unique cuisine, dialects, and architecture, particularly in the iconic French Quarter. The nightlife along Bourbon Street is particularly legendary, as are the many sights you can see, like the Superdome, the swamp rides, or the various streetcars that dot the city.

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That unique, singular culture makes New Orleans a prime place to set a film. Although the tradition of New Orleans films is certainly rarer compared to Los Angeles or New York films, the movies that do frequently make extensive use of the city’s culture and architecture. It’s a great place to set a Southern Gothic tale like Anne Rice’s “Interview With the Vampire,” or a thriller like 1950 classic “Panic in the Streets” or 1990’s “Miller’s Crossing.” Other films like “A Princess and the Frog” celebrate the city’s vibrant music and culinary communities, while movies like “Girls Trip” embrace the celebratory and joyous atmosphere that makes NOLA so iconic.

Of course, New Orleans isn’t party city everyday, or merely a place to set a film; it’s a vibrant community where over 1.26 million people live and work every single day. And it’s a city that’s undergone its fair share of hardships. Inextricable from the history of the city in the 21st century is the devastating impact of Hurricane Katrina. In 2005, the Category 5 hurricane killed more than 1,800 residents and flooded over eighty percent of the city, resulting in massive population decline and displacement for thousands of residents. The city has since recovered, but remnants of Katrina can be felt even today. Despite this, the films directly addressing the impact that Katrina has had are considerably rare, although nonfiction works like Spike Lee’s “When the Levees Broke” have proven essential documents of the city’s darkest hours.

In honor of Mari Gras, IndieWire has decided to round up the films that best celebrate and embrace the Big Easy. Films selected need to be set in New Orleans, but may not necessarily have been shot there. Read on for IndieWire’s list of the 15 Best New Orleans films of all time, presented in chronological order.

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