Reader J.M. suggested I look closer at the movie "Nightwing" (1979), a movie about vampire bats troubling at Southwestern Indian reservation. So, here is that effort!
I had previously determined that the ranch used in the opening sequence (with vampire-bat-stricken horse corpses) is off Highway 6 on Laguna Pueblo lands (Old Sedillo Unit). So, here is the gate to the ranch. There is a sign saying "No Trespassing." So, I have to decide if I have enough time to walk to the ranch and maybe get jailed if the area is being patrolled today. Tempting, but maybe not enough time today....
This is frustrating. I can see the ranch buildings, about a quarter mile away.
This hill is visible in ranch scenes.
A train passes by.
So, instead, I headed a few miles further south to get photos of dramatic-looking filming landscape for the film "The Host" (2013), starring Saoirse Ronan. Other movies were filmed here too: "Detour to Terror" (1980), starring O.J. Simpson; "Katie Says Goodbye" (2016); and "Army of the Dead" (2021).
The San Jose River is nearly at terrain level just upstream of the Highland Meadows community, but descends into its own canyon and broad valley further south.
A winding channel.
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On the way to Laguna Pueblo, I tried to stop at the outlying community of Mesita, in order to get some pictures. The community had hosted the film "Lost in New Mexico: The Strange Tale of Susan Hero" (2007). The community was closed, however. The various signs suggested Covid was the cause (but it's not 2020, so I'm confused). There were other signs indicating an important meeting would be occurring that evening, and I suspect that was the real reason the community was closed. (Still, there was another confusing sign saying "No Meeting.")
So, I pushed to Laguna Pueblo.
Like other Pueblo communities, photography and sketching are strictly forbidden in the community - anything that can capture human likenesses - without permits and consultation with authorities. The reason is religious. Other tribal groups (Navajos, Apaches) don't have bans like this. I don't know how they square their religion with moviemaking - money helps, of course - but it sure crimps tourism. So, my challenge was to surreptitiously take just a few photos without incorporating any people in them or otherwise stepping on people's sensibilities.
Other movies have been filmed at Laguna Pueblo: "Ace in the Hole" (1962), starring Kirk Douglas; "Sicario" (2015), which used the soccer field at Laguna Pueblo; and "Sicario: Day of the Soldado" (2018). I believe there was a War-on-Terror kind-of movie that was filmed here too.
In "Nightwing," the Pueblo community buildings look fantastically fragile. Forty-five years later, many of the buildings have been replaced. Here are two pictures of the hill on which Old Laguna is built. Many of these buildings are held in families, and are probably inhabited by the elderly, or used on celebration days, when families come into Laguna from outlying communities.
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I took some pictures of the Catholic Church, because I figured they might care a little less about photos there. The church is only fleetingly visible in "Nightwing," but the whitewashed walls surrounding the church are quite noticeable. According to Wikipedia, the church dates to the year 1699, immediately following the Pueblo Revolt, but the community itself is truly ancient. (I notice Wikipedia says 6,500 B.C., but an exact date is unknown.)
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Interesting doors.
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The only place I visited that is assuredly in "Nightwing" is the view from the top of the hill immediately north of town. In the movie, the helicopter raid is filmed from here. Steep hill. Lots of cactus too, which I learned about the hard way.
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Suggestions of a ring of rocks are present on the hill summit.
The view below.
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I wish I had been more successful at getting "Nightwing" photos, but with time and photo limitations, it was hard to get more.
