Where it was filmed 'Diabolik'

In the Manetti Bros’ adaptation, Diabolik - the cartoon character created in 1962 by the Giussani sisters – has the (masked) face of Luca Marinelli. Preparation for the film required meticulous production design and location research to recreate the 1960s setting that permeates the cartoons: from costumes to cars, buildings, streets, shops, restaurants and hotels, no detail was left to chance. Clerville, the imaginary state where the masked thief creates havoc, is actually the result of combining three cities (Bologna, Trieste, Milan) and Courmayeur at the foot of Mont Blanc in Val d’Aosta.

Bologna is the city of Clerville, capital of the state also called Clerville, and almost unrecognisable in the scenes where police in two 1962 Lancia Flavias chase Diabolik’s shiny black Jaguar E-Type at top speed. The setting here is via Marconi and the surrounding streets: the facades of a clothing shop, travel agency advertising airplane flights, jewellery shop and opticians were erected in the cross-road of via Grabinski to evoke the city in the 1960s, while the cars parked in the street were all vintage (including a Fiat “Topolino” and Renaults). The presidential Suite Giambologna in the Grand Hotel Majestic in Bologna provided the location for the Grand Hotel Excelsior where Lady Kant (Miriam Leone) stays. In the surrounding areas of the province, a disused warehouse on via Emilia in Ozzano was used for several interiors. Other scenes set in Clerville were shot in Milan.

Courmayeur serves as the mountain area of Bellair, where Eva Kant appears with Deputy Minister Caron (Alessandro Roja) and where Inspector Ginko (Valerio Mastandrea) warns her about the fearsome Diabolik. Iconic locations in Val d’Aosta in the film include the Coeur des Neiges resort and the Grand Hotel Royal e Golf.

Trieste is Ghenf, setting for Diabolik and Eva Kant’s last great heist. Their target is the deposit of the Central Bank of Ghenf, actually the Fondazione CRTrieste. The scenic piazza dell’Unità d’Italia and shoreline provided backdrops for the police capture operation but Diabolik escapes by speed boat from the dock of Stazione Marittima. Also featured, in addition to the streets and squares of the city centre, are the so-called strada Napoleonica which offers a stunning view of the gulf and Portopiccolo, a seaside village set in the Sistiana Bay (hamlet of Duino-Aurisina). The Manetti Bros’ crew even visited Mezzano (hamlet of Ravenna) to plan the big final heist with Marine Consulting, a specialist company offering underwater services.