ITALY – Venice, Ca’Rezzonico Palace & Fondamente Fenice // Moonraker (1979)
The beautiful Venetian museum Ca’Rezzonico hosts one of the cities finest art collections. The paintings and statues leave you awe-struck. No surprise, that pompous Drax had to use the palazzo as his office.
Why Bond was here
How embarrassing: In “Moonraker”, Bond (Roger Moore) tries to uncover a sinister plan by Hugo Drax (Michael Lonsdale) in Venice. He breaks into Drax’ laboratory, where the French industrialist works on glass globes with a deadly gas inside. Bond steals the evidence. But when he wants to show his discoveries to M, the British Minister of Defense and the Venetian police the day later – all equiped with gas masks – the laboratory is gone. Instead Drax has fitted his office into the grand hall, that hosted the laboratory. He plays surprised: “You must excuse me gentlemen. Not being English, I sometimes find your sense of humor rather difficult to follow…”. M and the Defense Minister are sincerely sorry – and give Bond a hard time once they are out of the building.
How you gonna get there
Drax’ office is inside the beautiful Ca’Rezzonico in the Venetian quarter Dorsoduro. The exit of the building though, where Bond gets his bollocking, is on the other side of Canal Grande behind the famous Teatro Fenice.
Ca’Rezzonico is an easy find in Venice. There is a vaporetti stop right in front of it bearing the same name. The laboratory was a studio set, but the later office is the Grand Ballroom at the second floor of the museum. You can easily recognize the huge room with the two massive floral chandeliers in gilded wood and the “Chariot of Apollo” fresco on the ceiling.
The street outside is at Fondamente Fenice at the backside of the theatre. You may walk over from Ca’Rezzonico via Ponte dell’Accademia or use a vaporetti getting off at Giglio. Walk north along Campiello Traghetto or eastwards from Campo Santo Stefano.
Good to know
You will find the abbrevation “Ca” a lot in Venice. It is short for “Casa”, but usually doesn’t refer to a mere house, but rather a palace or majestic residence. Ca’Rezzonice is one of Venice’ finest, once belonging to the Bon family, one of Venice’s patrician clans. After being in private ownership for several hundred years, the City Council of Venice acquired the palace in 1935. A year later, it opened as a museum, showing a vast collections of 18th century Venetian art. It is one of the most exquisite museums of the city. The rooms are enriched with beautiful frescos, 18th century statues and paintings by famous Venetian and Italian artists. But it also – unwillingly – shows the dark side of the Venetian riches. You find valet stands in the form of black slaves and other insignia suggeting, how the Venetian families amassed their riches.
Take your time for Ca’Rezzonico, because its beauty is only rivaled by the Palazzo Ducale. You can discover a lot of beautiful art. We were especially awe-struck by “The Veiled Lady”, a bust made by Antonio Corradini in 1772. The marble seems almost transparent, like it is a real flowing veil and not massive stone. After your museum trip head west for Campo Santa Margherita, the heart of vibrant Dorsoduro. Off the main tourist attractions, Dorsoduro is home to the student folk of Venice. You’ll find a lot of cafés and bars that offer a more creative snacks than your average pizza and pasta.
© 2022 Huntingbond (1,3,4), © 1979 Danjaq S.A. & United Artists Corporation