‘It’s not just an investment, it’s our home…’
The yuppie nightmare subgenre reared its tanned head in the ’80s and ’90s and included films such as Fatal Attraction, The Hand That Rocks the Cradle and Unlawful Entry. While the subgenre isn’t completely dead and buried, 2014’s Gone Girl was a prominent example, there is no doubt that the late ’80s and early ’90s were the heyday for yuppies in peril. While many of these films share similar themes and even a similar aesthetic, there is something comforting about the slick, adult orientated style that feels satisfying now. Especially as films for adults have never been more under attack in an age of Marvel and DC domination. And so, to Pacific Heights…
When Drake Goodman (Matthew Modine) and Patty Palmer (Melanie Griffith) buy an apartment block with a view to making their money back on renting it out, they don’t anticipate that the tenant from hell (Michael Keaton) will embed himself deep within the bowels of the building.
Released in 1990, Pacific Heights is right in that sweet spot of movies that remind me of my childhood and adolescence. This is exactly the kind of movie my parents might have had on the TV on a Saturday night as I peered over the takeaway pizza boxes trying to catch a peek of the action. At one point, Drake Goodman, sporting a wonderful pair of ’90s curtains, falls asleep to the sound of a Soundgarden music video playing in the background. You just wouldn’t get that in 2022.
The tenant/neighbour/landlord from hell is always a solid premise as it forces us to confront our greatest fear. The concept of being afraid inside our own home. A place that is supposed to be a refuge. What sets Pacific Heights aside from other similar films is the cast. Modine and Griffith are both great as the yuppies in trouble, making for a believable couple, but it is Keaton as their psychotic neighbour Carter Hayes who really elevates John Schlesinger’s movie into more than just another ’90s thriller. It speaks to Keaton’s versatility that he can play a psychopath just as convincingly as he can a superhero.
While it might not be the most original movie in the world, Pacific Heights is a thriller that genuinely thrills with a trio of great performances at its heart. Well worth seeking out.