I'm reiterating here in a summary of several old posts from others, but here are a few interesting and dramatic movies...
Vertigo by Alfred Hitchcock, set in SF, San Juan Bautista, etc.
Chinatown by John Huston, about LA water rights and the corruption involved. Somewhat film-noir-ish.
Grapes of Wrath, By John Ford, with Henry Fonda..set in the depression and the agricultural valleys of California.
The Maltese Falcon, set in SF, from the original book written by Dashiell Hammett dir. By John Huston and acted by Humphrey Bogart. A film noir.
George Lucas' "American Grafitti" a true to life movie about teens growing up in a small town. It's a modern classic filmed here and in the central valley.
BOOKS:
Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin...SF in the '70s, with viewpoint by a naive woman from out of town who befriends all sorts of characters in the City, some in the gay scene. A scream.
Ordeal by Hunger, the story of the Donner Party, trying to get to California during the beginning of the Gold Rush.
Books about the gold rush abound. When younger, I liked The Long Wharf by Howard Pease, a story about a teen who sails to SF during the turbulent days of the gold rush. Do you know that areas of the City are built right over ships which sailed and never left their moorings?

The obvious choice for movies is Sideways.

Oh My Gosh! I forgot "Sideways" a recent movie by Alexander Payne. This is good for your Paso Robles/Santa Barbara section. A character-driven comedy-tragedy about two guys in the wine country. Brilliant.

John Steinbeck's "Cannery Row" gives a good feel for the Monterey area (although I found the book depressing). Most of his books are set in California. There's a museum to him in Monterey.

"Sideways" is a great movie but a "sleeper". took me a while to decide I liked it.

Check out some of the old Beach Boy movies - or Gidget http://tinyurl.com/7doca93 - or Annette Funicello (sp) http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0002088/ in the early beach stuff.

For a more modern take/drama (well - around '91) - see Point Break with Patrick Swayze, Keenau Reeves and Garry Busse. http://tinyurl.com/7as3bwj

For even more current stuff - just start following USC Trojan Football.

And Lori Petty was also great in this movie. http://tinyurl.com/7wp5geb

You may remember her as the little/younger sister/pitcher/ultimate rival to Geena Davis in WWII women's baseball movie classic - A League of Their Own - http://tinyurl.com/7fpe25a with Madonna ("All the Way May)", Rose O'Donnell and Tom Hanks as the former All-Star player - now "reduced" to being a women's baseball coach. Hanks was injured and now has become a wee bit of a drinking lad to boot.

Or what about the classic coming of age high school/stoner movie - Fast Times at Ridgemont High - with a young Sean Penn - and Judge Reinhold, Phoebe (va va voom) Cates, et al:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0083929/ and a good U Tube take/preview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhUfmDGdK7M

Or - hey - how about Steve McQueen and the dazzling British gal Jacqueline Bisset - in Bullet. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0062765/

I moved to SF shortly after the movie - and we loved being able to identify the scenes - and also - we freuqently enjoyed curry chicken, etc - at the Coffee Contada on Union St. - where Steve and Jacqueline has a dinner date with other people. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0062765/

If I can find it again - here is part of one of the greatest car chase scenes in cinematic history -with Steve in his hot Mustang - and Steve was quite a race car driver in real life - including motorcycles.

Here is the infamous car chase - just electric in the day:

http://www.streetfire.net/video/bullitt-steve-mcqueen-famous-car-chase_160758.htm

Mrs. Doubtfire for SF. Play Misty for Me for Carmel/Monterey.

Clint Eastwood's Dirty Harry movies are set in SF.

oh wow, i just went off to have dinner and come back to all of this- thank you all so much!!

need to take a minute to digest all the stuff but thank you- genuinely appreciate it. Will look into all the suggestions

will have to think about the movies-- but as a sonoma county resident-- encourage you to fit it in. napa is fantastic-- but sonoma county's wine regions are more varied. oh-- and we have redwoods. oh, yea... and did i mention our coastline?? anyway-- when you go to calistoga-- make sure you stop in at indian springs. even if you don't stay there (they have gotten very pricey) you can use the pool if you have a massage or mineral bath. world class pool... so so warm and huge. just a wonderful place to hang out for the day.

Hi Kawh, thanks for the indian springs tip we are based in Caligosta for 3 days so will definitely try and take in a bit of Sonoma too i think in the end we just really liked the feel of the B&B there or we could have quite happily gone to Sonoma too and maybe botega bay. I just want to go everywhere thats my problem!

There is a tiny possibility of adding on two more nights between napa and SF and pushing the san francisco days back by 2 nights- where would you say would be a good spot on the coast north of SF- maybe somewhere comfortably within 3 hours drive of SF?

It's been a few weeks but there were some lively posts in here about staying north of SF on the Coast - and one was about fun, friendly, funky Gualala. Can't remember her name but a resident there knew about the hotel/restaurant bar we (4 couples) stayed at for a getaway weekend way back in the 70's - and the town retains it's same charm. http://www.gualala.com/

There were also other recommendations for both north and south of there. On our way back - we (two couples)drove north - toward Mendicino - and enjoyed taking temporary shelter under a giant redwood/grove when a shower hit.

http://www.mendocino.com/forest.html

BTW - way back in the 70's - when they were much more plentiful - we went free diving for abolone by Ft. Ross (The Russian Fort. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Ross,_California )

We were successful that trip - and brought home some abs and pounded them and had a marvelous dinner - but a couple months later - my buddy - who was a stockbroker - took another one of our college classmates up there to go ab diving.

They got caught in an seemingly sudden incoming tide (when you are diving you are really focused on getting some dinner) - and were being banged against the rocks, and then pulled/swept back to sea. A young boy scout was able to reach down with his fishing pole to help save the stockbroker (gave him just enough of a support by grabbing on to the end of the fishing pole to scramble up the rocks between waves) and he thought our classmate was gone.

Turns out the other classmate has luckily made shore in a slightly less rocky area and was able to climb out by himself.

And both these guys were good/strong swimmers.

A few days later - the story made the front page of the Wall St. Journal: Boy Scout saves Stockbroker.

True story.

And to properly enjoy the beautiful coastal drive - I would suggest you head back from Napa/Calistoga down the 101 - and then by Sausalito (before you get to the Golden Gate Bridge) - take the Coast hiway 1 up the Coast - maybe even driving to the top of Mt. Tamalpais for a great view . http://tinyurl.com/7wjv32g

Way back in the "hippy" 70's - we used to love to play frisbee up in the meadow by Mt. Tam ( while properly "elevated" ) - and then from Mt. Tam - keep going on past Stinson Beach and further up to where-ever you will be staying.

On the way back - you can zip over to the 101 and make better time if you have to boogey back to SF for your flight. see: http://tinyurl.com/6wxtc8n

Tom, thanks so much u really are a wealth of info on the california and hawaii stuff. Getting me very tempted to try and fit in those extra days. Like the Frisbee idea and u have hsown me a whole bunch of sites i had no clue on- thanks!

For the San Diego area, don't forget Top Gun, Traffic, Bring It On, and of course, Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy!

cool, thanks barbaba!! will add them!

haha the top-gun song video just came on!!

LOL Barbara: Went to lunch on El Cajon Blvd - 1984 was it? - and some of the cast from Top Gun, between takes - were cooling their heels in a van parked on the street.

They were in Navy Uniforms and were filming the scene at the beginning of the movie where Tom Cruise sings the song in the club to Kelly McGillis - not knowing she is the Top Gun PhD/techie expert.

Bummer - googled for the - the disco scene/song - She's lost that loving feeling - and came up with this - but think Paramount studio has kaboshed this with a copyright claim.

http://www.youtube.com/embed/LTbASqoqH3Q

Yahoooooooooooo - found something that might work?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1GcWXij_l-g

Steve Martins' Shopgirl captures L.A nicely, and he also did "L.A. Story". "Rebel Without a Cause" if you're going to visit Griffith Observatory. "A Better Life" is about a Mexican immigrant to the area. And of course there is "Down & Out in Beverly Hills". Meryl Streep "It's Complicated", , that's set in Santa Barbara. And "Milk" about Harvey Milk in San Francisco, though that's not fiction.

yeah! awww i saw its complicated and loved it, glad we have 3 nights there!!

haha, love the videos!!! but may also be slightly due to a Mr Cruise... do we get him thrown in too when we get to San diego????

did anyone mention 'the birds' -- filmed just 7 miles (as the crow flys-- no pun at all) from our house in bodega bay. (bodega bay, the town, being quite a bit inland from bodega bay the bay... but the schoolhouse and home are still in bodega bay to see)...

there are so many choices along the coast here-- i would recommend mendocino, but that's further from s.f. than you are wanting... so stinson beach is fun (sort of surfer, hippie vibe) or sausalito on the water (more high-end vibe but slightly hippie)or rent a house at searanch (beautiful and wild- houses generally somewhat far apart) or a hotel or cottage in jenner or stay by the coast at russian river and find a place overlooking the peaceful river where you can watch the kayakers go by all day. (extreme hippie vibe) are you going in the summer?? i really love going to the beach at russian river in the summer-- it takes you back in time.

thanks kawh!! oohh we soooo need another week just for the north of SF coast!!! all those places will get researched for sure. Thanks

OMG - thinking about movies set in California, and the list is seemingly endless:

If you want another good So-Cal movie - with action and grit - Tequila Sunrise has Mel Gibson, Raul Julia, Kurt Russell and Michelle Pfeiffer at her sweetest and hottest.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tequila_Sunrise_(film) and the trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IS4HAcSp0rA

For a somewhat similar So Cal action/grit movie - Jeff Bridges is the main star in Against All Odds -- a "love" story with little lost trust girl/scorching hot Aussie lass Rachael Ward - and perhaps the best actor of the three - James Woods as the heavy. In fact - there is a scene from Mexico that should be Triple X rated - even with their clothes on.

And hey - "Mongo" from Blazing Saddles makes an appearance - former All Pro football player Alex Carras - and he's always good. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Against_All_Odds_(film) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0086859/ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0086859/ and for Mongo, one of the all time favorite Hollywood characters: http://tinyurl.com/7ut8oue

Holy Slipped my mind: Have we also forgotten one of the best films about California lifestyle of all time? The Graduate - with a young Dustin Hoffman - "coming of age" - and the whole "Plastics" thing. Back in the late 60's - this was a humongous hit, with sweetie Katharine Ross and the scheming/jilted mother - the infamous Mrs Robinson - expertly played by Ann Bancroft.
http://tinyurl.com/7cegj82 and: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0061722/

Q: Besides winning for Best Director - how many other Oscar nominations/awards did it have? And there was some real competition that year:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/40th_Academy_Awards

And sure - I will throw in Tom Cruise when you get to San Diego. He's not real big and easy to toss around.

Tom, wow so helpful again!! i am going to have to bookmark this lot and revisit tomorrow night as running out of time! we will try and rent at least one of these films soonish. So excited- loving california already!! just watched a Man v Food....we are expecting som great seafood.

California-do not let us down!

LA Story is one of my favorite movies!