Clouds of Sils Maria - Courtesy of sils.ch

A peek of new silver screen films that aspire to make the most of travel.

Film is a powerful cultural medium. It can blaze trend trails, shine a spotlight on any subject and get people hungry for anything- travel, for example.

Barely a year goes by without one destination or another seeing a surge in popularity after being portrayed in or used as a shooting location for a film. Some seem designed to seduce the viewer, like Eat, Pray, Love and The Secret Life of Walter Mitty; others include a spot'€™s beauty incidentally, as The Lord of the Rings has done for New Zealand.

Here, we pick a few films that have only been recently released, and a few that are coming soon, that might inspire you to travel.

'€˜Timbuktu'€™

As a child reading too many Donald Duck comics, I saw the name Timbuktu a few times.

In the world of Donald Duck, Timbuktu is portrayed as the far end of the earth, where Donald goes to escape the messes he makes.

As a matter of fact, Timbuktu is an actual region in the African nation of Mali. Sadly, it has been plagued by civil war in recent years, a war that inspired the creation of a film named after region.

The region is presented as a beautiful and tranquil desert in the film, contrasting sharply with the theme of religious extremism.

Travel highlights: Production of the film did not take place on location in Timbuktu; a representative location in the neighboring country of Mauritania was chosen. The filming took place in the town of Oulata, which borders the Timbuktu region.

'€˜Monkey Kingdom'€™

The film follows the life of toque macaque monkeys living in ancient ruins at Sri Lanka. This documentary from Walt Disney Studios tells the story of a monkey family and their surprisingly complicated social problems.

Actress Tina Fey narrates the story, whose protagonist is a playful and adventurous monkey named Maya. Along with her curious newborn, Kip, she is forced to move from her natural habitat.

Travel highlights: Follow the journey of Maya leading her pack to find a new home, from the ancient ruins in the jungle of Polonnaruwa to the urban jungles of Sri Lanka.

The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel - Courtesy of Pearl Palace Heritage

'€˜The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel'€™

Besides alluring scenery, some particularly exquisite buildings also work wonders as a film setting. The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel is an example of this.

The film is a sequel to 2012'€™s surprise box-office hit The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, which told the story of a group of immigrant pensioners moving into a hotel in Jaipur, India.

Travel highlights: The Pearl Palace Heritage in Jaipur is used as the main setting of the film '€“ as the Marigold Hotel.

'€˜Somewhere Only We Know'€™

Asian films also have their fair share of filming in beautiful locations. Somewhere Only We Know is one such film that optimizes the charm of the surrounding scenery.

The film was shot in the Czech Republic, a fitting location for a grand film that ended up debuting at the top of the box office in mainland China.

Travel highlights: The story of the film moves back and forth between old and modern-day Prague, the capital city of the Czech Republic.

'€˜Clouds of Sils Maria'€™

This drama film boasts a cast of famous actors from three generations: Juliette Binoche, Kristen Stewart and Chloe Grace Moretz. However, the scenes in the stunning village of Sils Maria in Switzerland might steal your focus for a moment.

Travel highlights: Being the landscape that inspired Friedrich Nietzsche to write his magnum opus Thus Spoke Zarathustra, the Sils is a majestic location.

'€˜The Salt of the Earth'€™

The Salt of the Earth follows the journey of photographer Sebastiao Salgado on a recent project.

The journeys of a traveling photographer are often as interesting as the picture he or she captures. Salgado has worked on more than 100 projects, sending him to the corners of the earth and seeing what most people don'€™t.

Travel highlights: Salgado'€™s projects took him to visit various interesting places, such as the Yali tribe in Papua, the Arctic island of Wrangel in Russia and the Zo'€™e tribe in Para, Brazil.  (jakpost.travel/Raditya Margi)