Vegas Montage



A specific case of the Eiffel Tower Effect: When for some reason characters travel to Las Vegas, we are treated to a nighttime drive along "The Strip", displaying the brightly-lit signs of the landmark hotels and casinos from time period of the film or TV show. It will always include shots of the "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" sign and Vegas Vic, the neon cowboy. Older versions of the montage will highlight Caesar's Palace, The Golden Nugget, The Sands and The Stardust; newer ones will feature the Bellagio (and its fountains), the Venetian, Treasure Island, Paris Las Vegas, and/or the Luxor.

The route taken during the montage usually employs generous amounts of Television Geography; casinos and hotels a fair distance from each other will appear to be neighbors, and the entire Strip will sometimes seem short enough to traverse in a couple of minutes. And because the Strip is always changing, the older versions are always a good example of Time Marches On.

Almost always used upon arrival in the city during a Viva Las Vegas story. Nobody ever enters Vegas by day, apparently.

Film

 * The 2008 film 21, which is about a team of MIT students who come up with a scheme to win at cards, includes a classic example.
 * The original Ocean's 11 from 1960.
 * Ocean's Eleven, the 2001 remake.
 * The James Bond film Diamonds Are Forever.
 * The 1987 grade-Z teen comedy Jocks provides an almost obligatory Vegas Montage when the football team around which the action revolves arrives in Vegas for the playoffs.
 * The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas gives us a mock-prehistoric version about 40-45 minutes in when Fred, Wilma, Barney and Betty actually make it to the titular Rock Vegas.

Live-Action TV

 * We occasionally see nighttime views of the Strip on CSI, although they might be too brief to qualify.
 * "Yes Men", episode 15 of season 1 of Marvel's Agents of SHIELD, includes a daytime excursion along the Strip circa 2013. In the grand tradition, the route taken through Vegas makes no sense, with Ward and Lorelei randomly switching directions back and forth along the Strip for no other reason than to show off one building or another.
 * Las Vegas often used this as a kind of Establishing Shot.
 * The Twilight Zone episode "The Fever" (S1E17) includes one.
 * Twin Peaks: The Return has a day-time Vegas Montage at one point.