Pacific Heights

Patty and Drake, a young couple, put everything they have into buying and renovating a Victorian house in San Francisco. To keep up with the bank payments, they decide to rent out part of the building, and Carter Hayes appears to be the ideal tenant. Once he moves in, however, their plans collapse. Carter has no intention of paying rent or leaving, and he knows how to use the law to his advantage, provoking his landlords until they lose control. The conflict strains Patty and Drake's relationship as much as it threatens their home.

John Schlesinger directed the film, which came after Madame Sousatzka in a career that includes Midnight Cowboy and Marathon Man. Daniel Pyne wrote the screenplay, and Scott Rudin and William Sackheim produced. Melanie Griffith and Matthew Modine play the couple, with Michael Keaton as Carter Hayes, alongside Mako, Nobu McCarthy and Laurie Metcalf.

Released in September 1990, Pacific Heights cost about 18 million dollars and took roughly 55 million worldwide, a solid return on its budget. On IMDb and TMDB, audience ratings sit around the middle of the scale, while the critics' score of 5.2 out of 10 from 27 reviews is lower, suggesting reviewers were harder on the film than viewers were.