Exploring Chicago Through The Lens of a Russian Crime Film
A significant part of Brother 2 (also known as Brat 2), a famous Russian film, is set in Chicago. Since it’s one of my favorite movies, I have always wanted to travel there and find the places where it was filmed. This past weekend, my dreams came to reality.
I was visiting a friend of mine and fortunately for me, he was up to go on a long stroll around the city and help me locate the exact spots of the renowned scenes.
Below is an account of our journey, successes, and a few letdowns. Even if you have never seen the movie, feel free to follow along anyway! While it was exciting to discover the streets and the buildings from the movie, it was equally as fascinating to see how much Chicago has changed in just under twenty years.
Map
To make our journey easier to visualize, let’s start with a map. Here are the locations which we intended to hit:
- Union Station Powerhouse
- Maxwell Street Market / Jim’s Original
- 1053 W Lake St
- 333 N Canal St
- McCormick Bridgehouse & Chicago River Museum
- 50 E Wacker Pl
- (Some skyscraper near N Garland Ct?)
- 829 N State St
- 56 W Maple St
- Metro Club
- North Avenue Beach / Photography Point
- Harold Washington Library Center
- 780 N Leavitt St
This list is also available on Google Maps.
(Please note that we were exploring places in an order that made most sense geographically and not according to the chronological events of the movie.)
Union Station Powerhouse (1)
This was our first destination and probably, the easiest one to find. The picture was taken from the Roosevelt Rd bridge.
Maxwell Street Market / Jim’s Original (2)
Unfortunately, we didn’t find this one. The area has been completely rebuilt and Jim’s Original has moved to a new location. While I’m sure we would have found the spot had we searched for it a little more, we decided to move on. It was only the beginning of our trip and we didn’t want to take away time from the other scenes.
1053 W Lake St (3)
This one was surprisingly easier to spot than we expected. It’s worth noting that today the area has a completely different atmosphere than what is seen in Brother 2. Whereas in the movie it appears abandoned and dangerous, today it feels much safer and pleasant to walk around.
(If you would like to learn more about the history of the West Loop, check out this link. I found it particularly helpful in grasping the dynamic of this neighborhood.)
333 N Canal St (4)
Although we were not sure whether we found the exact spot, this one looked close enough. Aside from a few new skyscrapers here and there, the background hasn’t changed that much.
McCormick Bridgehouse (5)
Fortunately, finding the legendary bench wasn’t that complicated at all — we just took a stroll along the river until we spotted it.
50 E Wacker Pl (6)
Thanks to my friend, who noticed the unordinary windows of the Hampton Inn, we found this scene almost right away.
Some skyscraper near N Garland Ct (7)
This one, however, we didn’t find. So if anyone else wants to give it a shot… It should be one of the buildings near N Garland Ct.
829 N State St (8)
Finding this spot was rather straightforward. In the below scene, you can see a sign for Mike’s Fast Food & Bar behind Danila’s back. Even though the restaurant is no longer there, its address is still available online.
56 W Maple St (9)
The same goes for the following two scenes. A big Londo Mondo sign helped us to quickly find the exact place.
Metro Club (10)
This one was quite a disappointment. While we found the Metro Club, the street view on the photo didn’t match what we saw. We are still not sure whether we didn’t find the right club or whether the club has moved or whether the club scenes were filmed in a different area. If anyone can give us more insight on this, we would greatly appreciate it.
North Avenue Beach / Photography Point (11)
It’s no wonder this area is called Photography Point. The view is indeed quite gorgeous.
Harold Washington Library Center (12)
It was relatively hard to find the precise location of this one. As you can see from the shot below, standing in the exact spot will no longer give you a nice view of the library. The phone booth is also no longer there.
780 N Leavitt St (13)
This location was the farthest one and we ran out of time before we could get to it. However, I don’t think it would have been too hard to find, so hopefully someone else will give it a try.
Bonus – O’Hare Airport
The final scene! Sadly, I was in a rush and didn’t end up taking any pictures, so that would also be a quest for someone else.
Thank you for reading :)
