Ahhhh, ....Maz, Maz, Maz,
Yes, the mighty USA has all the power when it comes to movie locations, and we measly foreigners must bow down and thank the 'mericans for their grace and bounty... but still, there is a lot more to the USA than LA and New York, especially when there is no specific, unavoidable narrative reason for a film to be set there..
Do not confuse a "statement of fact" with a Straw Man commentary.
The reason why NY is the focus of so many movies is because it IS THE FOCUS of human life. Just like Rome was the focus back in its day, NY is the focus now. NY represents the cumulative force of what mankind can come up with on its own (without God)... and it's not a pretty sight.
Terrorists don't fly passenger jets into bugalows in Albuquerque. They fly them into gigantic towering corporate structures that represent a free society contrary to their religious beliefs.
Giant gorillas don't sit on ball bearing factories in Dayton, Ohio. They don't kick around farm houses in Idaho. They climb up the tallest building ever made in the world (at the time) in New York city.
Magneto isn't interested in wasting his mutant powers on levitating the Market Street bridge in Tennessee. He'd much rather set his sights a little bit higher and take out San Francisco's Golden Gate bridge and increase his overall "shack factor" to human society.
Whenever there is a terrorist threat levied on the world, the two cities that come to mind are Las Angeles and New York city. It's NOT because Birdman thinks NY and LA are sooooo much better than the other "measly" foreign cities of the world. It's because sadly they represent the best that mankind has supposedly come up with to date.
Take out NY and LA.... and you've pretty much destroyed modern civilization.
Now, I would remind you that Tokyo, Paris, Moscow, London and Bangkok are commonly used in movies as they ALSO represent humanity congregating in large masses with notable landmarks that serve as targets and symbols. That's why I say, "When these foreign countries carve out their own version of Hollywood, then other cities will get more movie settings."
For now, you're stuck with NY and LA for the majority of movie settings. If you don't like it... nothing I can do to change it, because it's just LIFE!
-Birdman