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● Plot Summary 1h 31m Comedy · Romance

The Money Pit (1986) — full plot summary

Directed by Richard Benjamin, The Money Pit unfolds across 1h 31m of comedy. This page covers the story beat by beat. For the ending, see the dedicated ending explained page.

● TL;DR

After being evicted from their Manhattan apartment, a couple buy what looks like the home of their dreams—only to find themselves saddled with a bank-account-draining nightmare.

The story

The Money Pit is a 1986 American comedy film directed by Richard Benjamin and starring Tom Hanks and Shelley Long as Walter Fielding and Anna Crowley, a couple who attempt to renovate a recently purchased house. The film is a loose remake of the 1948 Cary Grant comedy film Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House, and was filmed in New York City and Lattingtown, New York. It was co-executive produced by Steven Spielberg.

Setting & tone

The Money Pit is set in United States of America and works primarily in English. Tonally it sits in Comedy, Romance, drawing on the conventions of each while filtering them through Richard Benjamin's direction.

Why people search for this plot

Search interest in the plot of The Money Pit tends to spike around questions about narrative ambiguity, the meaning of specific scenes, and how secondary characters connect to the main arc. Our editorial team tracks those queries and updates this summary as new questions emerge — see the FAQ on the main movie page.

● Spoilers ahead?

Read the ending explained

A scene-by-scene breakdown of the final act, the closing shot, and what it all means.

The Money Pit ending explained →