“Secret Mall Apartment”: A Quirky Experiment That Feels Both Ingenious and Incomplete

So, I’m sitting in this dimly lit theater, the air’s a bit chilly, and I’m squished into one of those uncomfortable seats that never seem to be quite clean enough. My friend next to me is chattering away about how excited he is for this movie, and I’m just trying to keep my popcorn from spilling all over the place. Then, the screen flickers to life, and I’m immediately drawn into the weird, fascinating world of “Secret Mall Apartment.”

The movie kicks off with this incredible scene where these artists are sneaking furniture into the mall. It’s like watching a heist movie, but with couches and cement blocks instead of jewels. The tension is palpable, and I found myself leaning forward in my seat, totally invested. It reminded me of those late-night missions my friends and I used to pull off when we were kids—sneaking into the backyard to build a fort or something. Only this time, it’s in a mall, and it feels like they’re making a statement about something bigger.

One of the most striking things about the film is how it uses grainy, old footage. It’s like looking at a photo album from a decade ago—fuzzy, nostalgic, and just a bit off. The director, Jeremy Workman, really leans into this lo-fi aesthetic, and it works. It makes the whole thing feel authentic, like you’re getting a glimpse into something that wasn’t meant to be seen. But then there are these moments when the film tries to be more than just a quirky story. It wants to be a deep, philosophical exploration of gentrification and capitalism, and that’s where it starts to lose me a bit.

I mean, don’t get me wrong, I love a good think-piece as much as the next person, but sometimes the movie just feels like it’s trying too hard. There are these long stretches where it’s more focused on making Michael Townsend, the main guy behind the apartment, look like a saint. I get it—he’s an artist, he’s passionate, but come on. It felt a bit hagiographic, like they were trying to convince me of something that I wasn’t quite buying. And then there’s the whole thing with his wife. She’s clearly not happy about him spending all this time on this “project” instead of working on their actual home. It’s a bit awkward, honestly. It makes the whole thing feel less like a home and more like a clubhouse for grown-ups.

But let’s talk about the music. Oh man, the soundtrack is something else. It’s this fizzy, jazzy score that just adds this layer of whimsy to the whole thing. It’s like the music is trying to tell you that even though what they’re doing is a bit weird and maybe a bit illegal, it’s also kind of magical. It makes you want to tap your foot and smile, even when you know things are about to go south.

And speaking of going south, the ending is something else. They reconstruct the apartment on a soundstage and have Townsend reenact the moment he got caught. It’s this weird, surreal sequence that feels like something out of a different movie altogether. It’s like they wanted to give you this big, dramatic payoff, but it just feels a bit forced. I mean, I get why they did it, but it just didn’t quite land for me.

Throughout the movie, I kept thinking about my own experiences with spaces and places. I remember when I was a kid, my family moved into this old, run-down house. We spent months fixing it up, and by the time we were done, it felt like home. But there was always this sense that it was temporary, like one day we’d have to leave. And that’s what this movie is about, I think. It’s about finding a place that feels like home, even if it’s in the most unlikely of places.

In the end, I left the theater feeling a bit conflicted. On one hand, “Secret Mall Apartment” is this charming, quirky little film that makes you smile and think. On the other hand, it feels like it’s trying to be something more, and it doesn’t always succeed. It’s like the filmmakers were so excited about the idea of the secret apartment that they forgot to really dig into why it mattered. But maybe that’s the point. Maybe it doesn’t have to mean anything more than just a group of friends having an adventure.

So, would I recommend “Secret Mall Apartment”? Yeah, I think I would. It’s not perfect, but it’s got heart. It’s got this weird, lovable energy that makes it worth watching. Just don’t go in expecting a deep, philosophical treatise on gentrification. Instead, enjoy it for what it is—a quirky, charming experiment that, for all its flaws, feels genuinely human.

Tags: Secret Mall Apartment, Jeremy Workman, documentary, Providence Place Mall, gentrification, DIY artistry