Dan Aykroyd’s inspiration for the band The Blues Brothers stemmed largely from his formative years spent in the Canadian capital city of Ottawa. Nevertheless, whilst The Blues Brothers (John Landis 1980) was shot in Chicago and felt authentic, The Blues Brothers 2000 uses sparsely decorated studio stages, and disguised Toronto landmarks, as stand-ins for the Windy City.
2000 comes alive in the glimpses when Toronto is surreptitiously involved. Cherry Street, Lakeshore Boulevard, and the Markham Fairgrounds are backdrops to some of the film’s most memorable moments, but the most conspicuous use of the city occurs at the Mercedes-Benz Downtown dealership. The showroom is entirely authentic and functional, built in 1992 with a contemporary glass and steel design and set besides the Don River with a view of the bustling Don Valley Parkway and beyond…
The full 300 word version of this scene location analysis is published in World Film Locations Toronto, edited by Tom Ue, published by Intellect Books, 2014.
Carl Wilson 