A Godzilla Video Extravaganza! - Vancouver Island Location Footage!

Source: National Post (Canada)

Residents along a disused Vancouver Island rail spur may have been justifiably spooked by the sudden appearance of a weapons train loaded down with U.S. ballistic missiles several days ago — although the train was nothing more than a movie prop for a big-budget reboot of Godzilla.

“Yes, those are large US Ballistic Missiles headed for CFB Nanoose,” read a March 21 email being passed around in Victoria by an aloof bystander, alongside a photo of backed-up highway traffic waiting for the train to pass.

By “CFB Nanoose,” the author is referring to Canadian Forces Maritime Experimental and Test Ranges, a military facility located at nearby Nanoose Bay used for testing unarmed torpedoes.

Nevertheless, despite the missile’s “USAF” markings and faux armed escort, the missiles were simply set pieces for the first shots of the film, which stars Aaron Johnson and is set for release in May, 2014.

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The missile train first poked its head into the Vancouver area on St. Patrick’s Day, where its arrival was documented by train spotters before it was loaded on a barge for Vancouver Island.

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“As you can imagine these missiles turned lots of heads on its short journey,” wrote photographer Christian Vazzaz in a recent post to RailPictures.net.

The train in question ran along the E&N Railway, a Vancouver Island rail spur that has been closed since 2011. Use of the semi-abandoned rail line was reportedly a major draw to the island, as was the “industrial” look of Nanaimo, B.C.

A writer for the blog YVRShoots.com captured images of the set, including olive-green Humvees, dozens of armed, uniformed U.S. soldiers, a crashed helicopter and burned-out cars. More than 300 crewmembers converged on Nanaimo for the shoot.

Although residents were given ample advance notice of the production, the same may not be said for passing drivers who happened to sneak a peek at the train.

A YouTube video posted on March 28 shows the passing train interrupting a backyard gathering.

Godzilla is the second U.S.-made reboot of the franchise, after 1998’s Godzilla.