The Basilica di Santa Croce, commonly referred to as just Santa Croce, is a beautiful Franciscan church located in Piazza di Santa Croce. The location where the church was first constructed on May 12, 1294, was actually outside of the city walls of Florence. It is not known for sure but it was probably designed by Arnoldo di Cambio. The church was finished in 1442, with the exception of the beautiful facade that is on the front of the church. The facade was constructed in the 19th century. The layout of the church reflects the Franciscan's design as the church was a place intended for people to come and listen to them preach. 

 Santa Croce is the largest Franciscan church in the world. The church is very special to Florence and Florentine people as it houses the tombs of many famous and well respected Italian people. Some of the most prominent people buried in Santa Croce are Leon Battista Alberti, Galileo Galilei, Michealangelo, Vittorio Alferi, Leonardo Bruni, and Gioachino Rossino. As well as housing the tombs of very famous Italians, Santa Croce also houses art masterpieces and has beautiful Renaissance architecture. An example of beautiful Renaissance architecture is Filippo Brunelleschi's Pazzi chapel. Brunelleschi was one of the best Renaissance architectures in Italy and designed the famous duomo. 

 Santa Croce is featured in the 1985 film A Room with a View directed by James Ivory. Lucy, the main character, is traveling around Florence by herself, which is a huge deal given the film is set in the early 1900s, and wealthy young women like lucy usually are accompanied by a chaperone. Lucy also does not have her guidebook with her, which symbolizes her becoming freer as she is learning to travel on her own. However, Lucy finds two other guests staying at her hotel, Mr. Emerson and his son, in Santa Croce, and they walk around the church to find the Giotto frescos that Lucy wanted to see. Mr. Emerson is a free thinker and gives his opinion on the frescos, but there is already a tour going on, and the tour guide, Mr. Eager, looks at him very strangely. Lucy feels slightly uncomfortable by the whole scene but chooses to stay with the Emersons. Going with the tour guide would have been more comfortable as he is much more proper and like the people she grew up with, but she chooses to go with the free-thinking Emersons instead. Therefore, this Santa Croce scene acts as one of the first times that Lucy explores what a new way of life could be like. Santa Croce is a perfect place to have this scene because the church itself is far more impressive on the inside than it is on the outside and has to be explored to understand why it is so special. The church in this sense is like the transformation that Lucy undergoes, as she does not understand why people are like the Emersons and such free thinkers, but once she explores that way of life herself, she understands and transforms herself. The view of Santa Croce also offers an outsider's view as the film shows a monument known to Florence and depicts the monument in a very beautiful touristy way.  

 Piazza di Santa Croce also appears in Amici Miei, a 1975 Italian comedy directed by Mario Monicelli. In this film, the main characters' favorite bar is on Borgo Santa Croce, and the piazza is seen in one of the first scenes where one of the main characters gets in his car after the bar and drives around piazza di Santa Croce to his home. The church itself is not seen, so one would only recognize the piazza if they know Santa Croce and the surrounding area well. This film utilizes a more insider's view as the film is more focused on the story of the main characters' lives rather than showing Florence's beauty in an armchair tourism way.