Films Shot In Keansburg

Films Shot In Keansburg:

1.   Big Night (1997)  Starring Stanley Tucci and Tony Shaloub.  The story of a failing Italian restaurant run by two brothers.  They gamble on one special night to try to save the business with the help of an influential jazz musician.  Shot mostly in NYC and Keyport.  One scene shows the brothers driving by a wooded section of shore on Beachway Ave in a vintage car before the new raised boardwalk was installed at either end of the avenue.

2.   Down the Shore [aka as Kiddie Ride] (2011)  Starring Famke Jansen and James Gandolfini.  Set on the Jersey shore, the lives of three childhood friends begin to unravel when a secret from their past is revealed.  Various scenes were shot at the Stadium Bar, Keansburg Amusement Park and Bayview Ave.  Lou Taylor Pucci was rumored to be in the film but this is incorrect.  However, a scene in the film was shot on the same block he grew up on, one block from the beach.  

The film was never released to theaters but is available for rental or purchase on 4/9/13, after sitting idle for many years.  Several cuts were submitted to film festivals before its commercial release.  Principal photography was completed in 2009 but the film was not edited for several years before being released this year.  

Down The Shore (movie clip)

See Also:  Gandolfini Remembered

3.  The Kill-Off (1989)  Based on the pulp novel by Jim Thompson.  Like most Thompson books, the story involves several desperate characters at odds with one another, inevitably leading to a violent conclusion.  The Kill-Off is a poison pen tale of small town intrigue and revenge.  Several scenes were shot in and around the Keansburg Amusement Park and the surrounding beach area. 

The "Pavilion Bar" referred to in the film was actually "King's Diner" on Laurel Ave. used for exteriors.  The diner was never a bar and is now used for storage.  The actual Pavilion Bar was not used in the film for some reason.  The Casino Theater can be seen as in its last form as the Midway Arcade in the beginning of the film, along with the "Oldtimer's Bar" by another name "Moran's Landing".  The film is out of print and difficult to find, only available on VHS tape.

4. Never Among Friends (2002)  The story set in the present in Freehold, NJ, a small suburban town in central New Jersey. The story takes place over a number of weeks in early summer. The plot focuses on a group of four friends who become romantically involved with each other.  The film was shot at several locations throughout Monmouth County.  There were several scenes filmed in Applejack's Bar in Keansburg.

5.  Two Heads Are Better Than One (2012 Short Film)  Two hit men looking to make a name for themselves in the boardwalk's crime organization just can't seem to get ahead.  Several scenes shot in Sea Bright,  the Point Pleasant Boardwalk and the Keansburg Boardwalk.

Behind the Scenes Featurette in Keansburg

Interview with the director Matthew Szczerbienski

6. Ghetto Dawg (2002)  with Drena DeNiro and J-King.  Urban drama about a mechanic who is coerced into stealing cars for a gangster but looks to change his criminal life after he falls in love.  The film was shot around Monmouth County in several locations.  A few scenes were shot at the bumper cars on the Keansburg Boardwalk and Asbury Park.  There was additional filming in Sea Bright at McLoone's Rum Runner and Monmouth Horse Race Track.  A sequel was filmed in 2005, "Ghetto Dawg 2" but was shot primarily in Queens, NY.

7. Flesh Wounds (2003 Short Film) A simple revenge story on its surface, Flesh Wounds takes a sideways glance at the reality people create, the traps into which they fall, and the roles in which they (mis) cast themselves.  Filmed in Union Beach, Hazlet and Keansburg Boardwalk.  The production company for the filmed was called Terminal Lunch after the restaurant in town of the same name.

8. Open Return (2000)  A comedy about a woman who retreats to her New Jersey hometown. It's not what she expected. Her frustrated friends, frenzied family and new love aren't quite the stress-release she was looking for.  The film was mostly shot around Middlesex county in Metuchen, Perth Amboy, Avenel and New Brunswick.  A few  scenes shot at the Keansburg Boardwalk.

9.  Z is for Xanax (2007 Short Film)  follows one man's violent and desperate odyssey as he struggles with drug addiction, an evil veterinarian bent on his destruction and chronic poor spelling.  This odd, dark comedy was not shot in town but was written by a Keansburg native.  Dan Milczarski, who is the author of "Shoretown" a thinly veiled novel about a poor, corrupt boardwalk town.  The complete film is available below for free:

Z is for Xanax (Complete Film)

10.  Chasing Amy (1997)  with Joey Lauren Adams and Ben Affleck.  The Kevin Smith comedy about a comic book artist who falls in love with a lesbian and tries to win her over.  Filmed mostly in Red Bank and Rumson but a few scenes were shot in Keansburg, near the Boardwalk and the Marina Diner in Belford.

Chasing Amy trailer

11.  Girl Most Likely (2012) Kristen Wiig stars as Imogene, a failed New York playwright awkwardly navigating the transition from Next Big Thing to Last Year's News. After both her career and relationship hit the skids, she's forced to make the humiliating move back home to Ocean City, New Jersey with her eccentric mother and younger brother (Annette Bening and Christopher Fitzgerald).  

There's an uncredited scene shot at the Keansburg Boardwalk, in place of the more expensive / expansive Atlantic City Boardwalk.  Signage for the Stadium Bar can be seen in the background of the "My ultimate plan" scene at the 55 minute mark.

Girl Most Likely trailer

See also:  Films Shot in Keansburg - imdb.com; Film in New Jersey - Wikipedia.org