The Money Pit (1986)

Tom Hanks Quadruple Feature #4 

Synopsis: It’s basically an hour of Tom Hanks and Shelley Long making funny faces while their home collapses around them, followed by 20-30 minutes of the two of them screaming at each other. 

Blurb From the VHS Jacket: For everyone who’s ever been deeply in Love or deeply in Debt. [Not sure why they capitalized “Love” and “Debt.]

What Did I Learn?: 1) Apparently, Tom Hanks can fit his entire fist inside his mouth. 2) Mozart is dead. 3) Nobody laughs at Montgomery Shrapp. 4) The basis of real estate is to capitalize on  another human being’s misfortune. 5) “Two weeks” is the standard answer whenever contractors are asked how long it will take to finish a particularly large and complex job. 

You Might Like This Movie If: You've always wanted to see a house fall apart. 

Really?: Holy shit, this movie introduces a whole bunch of wacky characters and odd subplots (Benny, the spoiled child actor who lends Walter the 200 grand; the “Cheap Girls” transvestite singing band; Jack the overweight realtor with a heart condition; Walter’s father in Brazil, etc…) and does nothing to develop or resolve any of them. What do they add? 

Rating: The Money Pit is an enjoyable, but fluffy and forgettable 1980s comedy featuring Hanks when he was still in his funny period, and a post-Cheers Long. The film features some funny lines (“do they test missiles around here?” Is my favourite) and a great slapstick sequence, but it takes a surprisingly long time to get started, and there are far too many loose ends and unnecessary characters for my taste. 7/10 stars. 

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091541/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_76