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Going to see The Infiltrator? Here are the spots around Tampa Bay that show up in the movie

 
Cephas Hot Shop Restaurant, Ybor City: Filming at the colorful Jamaican eatery occurred over several days, said owner Cephas Gilbert, standing in his restaurant. [LUIS SANTANA  |   Times]
Cephas Hot Shop Restaurant, Ybor City: Filming at the colorful Jamaican eatery occurred over several days, said owner Cephas Gilbert, standing in his restaurant. [LUIS SANTANA | Times]
Published July 11, 2016

A rooftop pool. A liquor store sign. A small Jamaican restaurant.

During the U.S. premiere last week of The Infiltrator at Tampa Theatre, the crowd cheered not only for the actors, but for more than a dozen Tampa Bay landmarks that appeared throughout the film.

Other movies have been filmed locally and some, like Spring Breakers and Magic Mike, have even been set here. But The Infiltrator, starring Bryan Cranston as Tampa resident and former federal undercover agent Robert Mazur, featured more of the region than almost any other major motion picture.

PERSALL'S REVIEW:Bryan Cranston dominates in evocative crime drama 'The Infiltrator'

The movie opens in theaters Wednesday. Here are a handful of local spots to look out for as you watch:

Cephas Hot Shop Restaurant, Ybor City

Broad Green Pictures

Outside Cephas HotShop, Ybor City: Juan Cely, left, John Leguizamo

Broad Green Pictures

Outside Cephas HotShop, Ybor City: Juan Cely, left, John Leguizamo

Filming at the colorful Jamaican eatery occurred over several days, said owner Cephas Gilbert. In one scene, John Leguizamo's undercover agent walks out of the store, into a waiting car on Fourth Avenue. In another, Cranston's character endures a creepy voodoo security check, taking place in a back yard corner of the restaurant.

Derby Lane, St. Petersburg

Broad Green Pictures

Derby Lane, St. Petersburg: Bryan Cranston and Michael Pare

Broad Green Pictures

Derby Lane, St. Petersburg: Bryan Cranston and Michael Pare

A big screen encore for the greyhound race track featured in Ocean's Eleven 15 years ago. In The Infiltrator, Cranston visits the track to meet an informer at the finish line, played by Michael Paré ("Eddie" without his Cruisers). They leave after a race finishes, climb into a car and drive away.

In a case of Hollywood geography, Cranston and his associate are instantly driving along Nebraska Avenue in Tampa's Seminole Heights district when a drive-by shooting occurs. Their car flips to a stop directly in front of Alpine Liquor, at the base of its blue sign.

Dolphin Motel, St. Pete Beach

Broad Green Pictures

Dolphin Motel, St. Pete Beach: Olympia Dukakis and Bryan Cranston

Broad Green Pictures

Dolphin Motel, St. Pete Beach: Olympia Dukakis and Bryan Cranston

In an early scene, Cranston's character meets poolside with his aunt (Olympia Dukakis), a real estate queen who owns the beach motel, and later assists Mazur with the investigation.

Tampa Theatre

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Tampa Theatre: Director Brad Furman, left, talks with Benjamin Bratt during filming

Broad Green Pictures

Tampa Theatre: Director Brad Furman, left, talks with Benjamin Bratt during filming

Benjamin Bratt's cocaine cartel lieutenant is introduced here, sitting in the balcony, watching a Latin movie and smoking a cigar. Thing is, the character lives in Miami and Mazur is visiting, so Hollywood "moved" the historic movie palace with its unmistakable red velvet chairs. Cranston also walks through the ornate lobby.

Port of Tampa Bay

The film's biggest drug bust happens at the port, and clandestine meetings occur there. Before the U.S. premiere began last week, Tampa-Hillsborough County film commissioner Dale Gordon thanked port chief executive Paul Anderson for providing free production space for the film crew.

2001 Odyssey Strip Club, Tampa

Cranston's high rolling character visits a strip club, leading to an undercover improvisation that could blow his cover. An exterior shot of the Odyssey on Tampa's Dale Mabry Highway leaves an impression that it's where the action occurs. Actually, the interior footage was filmed elsewhere.

Innisbrook Golf Resort, Tarpon Springs

Broad Green Pictures

Innisbrook Golf Resort, Palm Harbor: John Leguizamo, Ruben Ochandiano and Bryan Cranston

Broad Green Pictures

Innisbrook Golf Resort, Palm Harbor: John Leguizamo, Ruben Ochandiano and Bryan Cranston

Sharp eyes noticed the logo in The Infiltrator's trailer. A wedding sting in an Innisbrook Golf Resort ballroom sets up the climatic take-down. Leguizamo gets the movie's biggest laugh in the lobby.

Loews Don CeSar Hotel, St. Pete Beach

CHERIE DIEZ | Times

Bryan Cranston, third from left, waits to walk in a scene with actor Saïd Taghmaoui, seated at right, while filming in the Loews Don CeSar Hotel's Spa Oceana in April 2015.

CHERIE DIEZ | Times

Bryan Cranston, third from left, waits to walk in a scene with actor Saïd Taghmaoui, seated at right, while filming in the Loews Don CeSar Hotel's Spa Oceana in April 2015.

In another lunch meeting, Cranston sits down with international banking executives on the rooftop deck of this distinctively pink beachside resort.

Tampa International Airport

"This feels like a second home to me," said director Brad Furman. In a few candid remarks to the crowd, he said he got to know the city well and on the last day of filming, without permits or extra planning, "we snuck into your airport" and shot a final scene.

Hyde Park, South Tampa

On a jog through the tree-lined streets of Hyde Park, Cranston runs through a manicured lawn to escape a car following him.

Times Movie Critic Steve Persall contributed to this report. Contact Alli Knothe at aknothe@tampabay.com. Follow @KnotheA.