Jasper Mall

The epitome of a slice-of-life documentary! Jasper Mall offers such straightforward Middle America vibes that anyone who's never left the big city they grew up in might find this pretty alien. It's so low key, so go-with-the-flow, so "real time" feeling that it manages a dreamlike quality. Of course, the dreamlike pace also comes from the disciplined editing, the reflective ambient score, and the beautiful photography. There is an endearing quality to this doc, but also an underlying melancholy all the way through.

I think the average person would think "nothing happens in this movie", but that's beside the point. What it comes down to is: I never thought I would see malls become a thing of the past in my entire lifetime. Now, suddenly, we're here, and slowly, one by one, they're gonna start shutting down. What's the primary reason for this? Amazon, of course. Where did I watch this movie? On Amazon (Prime Video) - how meta is that?

The fact that this was shot in 2019, the year before the pandemic hit, also adds another element of surrealism to the viewing experience. It's almost like a precursor to the vacant vibes we were about to face. It makes you wonder - is the pandemic really expediting the obsoletion of so many things that we've been accustomed to our whole lives, as much as we think it is? Or, would most of this be happening soon any way?

In the end, I don't think you will walk away from Jasper Mall remembering many of the specific scenes for the rest of your life, maybe none of them at all, but it's an equally comforting and eerie thing to watch in our current state (nearly one year into the COVID-19 pandemic). It floats in this strange limbo between nostalgic warmth and dystopian apathy. It's a tasteful doc - subtle but with great purpose.

The documentary provides a good picture of the current state of the American middle class. The various causes of the mall's decline emerge throughout the documentary.

My son and I fell like we were watching a car wreck in slow motion. A group of lovely people caught up in an inevitable economic tragedy that is coming their way. The cinematography and editing is very well done. Admittedly, this is a minor film, but worth every one of the 86 minutes you'll spend watching.

The movie was so unexpected to me. I kept rooting for the store managers that have put their lives into their business. A few key retail places moved so the whole mall is dying. It is a touching story of the mall manager, who used to keep wildlife in Australia, to the older white men who like to play dominoes at the mall. It is a clip, a small view into what makes our communities work. It is worth watching..make some popcorn and watch the Jasper Mall.

I remember when I was young always being at the mall. Whether it was just hanging out or hitting the food court, it was the place to go in a small town. The traditional mall is a dying world and this documentary captures one example of this. Great film, it's a must watch.