The Landlord(1970) is a movie about Elgar, who runs away from home and invests in real estate. The movie, in my opinion, does not focus on gentrification. Elgar wants to gentrify the neighborhood, but the events that take place change him. The movie focuses more on the changes that he goes through as a result of his intended gentrification. The growth of Elgar as a person is clearly evident in his actions and way of thinking throughout the movie. At first, the residents are unwelcoming to the white man in the neighborhood until they realize he’s the new landlord, with the intention of evicting the tenants and turning the tenement into a luxury home however, things don’t work out the way he hoped. As time passes by, he begins to appreciate Marge, Fanny, and the other residents. Instead of getting rid of the residents, he fixes the apartment and brings changes to it. His goal was to bring change to the neighborhood, but the neighborhood brought change for him. He falls in love with Lanie, has a child with Fanny, makes a home for himself in the ghetto neighborhood, takes custody of his child, and moves in with his girlfriend. He ended up becoming more like those he felt a connection with. He rebelled against his parents, the luxurious life he had, and their racism for a different lifestyle.
I do not think Elgar embodies the spirit of gentrification. His intentions were to change an aspect of the neighborhood, but he was changed himself. The people he interacted with affected him strongly as he became a part of them and their community. He left behind his parents, his luxurious lifestyle for a smaller apartment in a ghetto neighborhood to live with his girlfriend and child from another woman. Gentrification usually tends to displace the poorer residents of the neighborhood. However, Elgar lets the residents stay in the tenement, thus not allowing gentrification to occur in Park Slope. Elgar becomes a part of the neighborhood, that he intended to change. His affluent background made him think that he should invest in real estate but living in Park Slope changed his way of thinking and lifestyle.
