The Landlord

PG

Released May 20, 1970

1h 53m

Comedy

Drama

List

93%

Tomatometer

14 Reviews

79%

Audience Score

500+ Ratings

As his 30th birthday nears, the aristocratic Elger Winthrop Enders (Beau Bridges) finally decides to leave his parents' home, and he purchases an apartment complex in the slums of New York. The coldhearted Elger plans to boot out the current residents and refashion the crumbling dwelling into a luxurious bachelor pad. But after the spoiled young man befriends locals Francine (Diana Sands) and Margie (Pearl Bailey), he abandons his plans and instead focuses on charming his lovely neighbors.

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Pauline Kael

New Yorker

Hal Ashby's dbut film as a director is one of his best.

Apr 7, 2016

Full Review

Dave Kehr

Chicago Reader

Liberal guilt, with a few good laughs, a lot of frantic activity, and the occasional backfire.

May 7, 2013

Full Review

TIME Magazine

A glossy, flat, fake Hollywood attempt at black social comedy.

May 7, 2013

Full Review

Kathy Fennessy

Seattle Film Blog

Though Harold and Maude would secure his reputation the following year--once it caught on, that is--Ashby's first film proves he was a natural.

Rated: 3.5/4

Jul 18, 2022

Full Review

Jas Keimig

The Stranger (Seattle, WA)

Anchored by Gunn's sharp, irreverent script, The Landlord does well because it focuses on the ridiculousness of wealthy white people.

Dec 8, 2021

Full Review

Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Hal Ashby's feature directing debut is a poignant social satire about racial tensions in New York, extremely well acted by Beau Bridges and Lee Grant in an Oscar-nominated role.

Rated: B+

Aug 7, 2010

Full Review

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Alec B

Still provocative but it's the film's deep humanity and the empathy for the characters that really endures.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

02/28/24

Full Review

Shioka O

I first watched this in 2022, it was unexpectedly good. This is categorised as a comedy, but definitely more than that. Glueing script, and cinematography is too good. (I found this was by Gordon Willis) Recommend for someone looking for 70s feel.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

10/23/22

Full Review

dave s

Despite being a bit stylistically dated, Hal Ashby's first directorial effort about race relations in America is as timely today as it was fifty years ago. Elger Enders is a 29-year-old aristocrat who decides to move out of his parents' palatial mansion, buy a rundown tenement building in New York, evict the tenants, and convert it into one massive and swinging bachelor pad. The social commentary offered up in The Landlord foreshadowed what was to come from Ashby over the remainder of the 70s decade – an unequaled string of great satires that tore at the fabric of American society.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

Full Review

Audience Member

It almost had me...but that evil "Dr" character ruined it for me in the last few minutes.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

02/07/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Firmly rooted in the fashions, sounds, language, and styles of the moment in which it was produced, The Landlord breaks free from these nostalgic anchors by authentically handling the timeless themes of race, sexuality, and class with a humor and intelligence rarely seen in motion pictures. Individual scenes dripping with the same Woodstock-era aesthetic that relegate lesser films to period curios are infused with uncommon charm and depth by cinematographer Gordon Willis, screenwriter Bill Gunn, and director Hal Ashby. An essential piece of early 70s filmmaking.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/01/23

Full Review

steve d

Its story does little with it's admittedly worthy goals.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

Full Review

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Hal Ashby

Director

Beau Bridges

Elgar Winthrop Julius Enders

Pearl Bailey

Marge

Diana Sands

Francine Marie Johnson

Louis Gossett Jr.

Copee Johnson

Lee Grant

Joyce Enders

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Synopsis

As his 30th birthday nears, the aristocratic Elger Winthrop Enders (Beau Bridges) finally decides to leave his parents' home, and he purchases an apartment complex in the slums of New York. The coldhearted Elger plans to boot out the current residents and refashion the crumbling dwelling into a luxurious bachelor pad. But after the spoiled young man befriends locals Francine (Diana Sands) and Margie (Pearl Bailey), he abandons his plans and instead focuses on charming his lovely neighbors.

Director: Hal Ashby
Producer: Norman Jewison
Screenwriter: William Gunn
Distributor: United Artists
Production Co: Cartier Productions, Mirisch Corporation
Rating: PG
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): May 20, 1970, Original
Release Date (DVD): May 3, 2010
Runtime: 1h 53m