"See this film, get mad and then get involved." Bill Moyers - PBS

The film kicks off when the biggest mall developer in the Northeast comes to the smallest county in New York to build its biggest mall yet on a toxic dump, one mile from the filmmakers' homes. That move sparks a citizen uprising which lasts almost 20 years. It also inspires the filmmakers' quest to understand the dramatic events unfolding right in their backyard.

MEGAMALL turns out to be a local saga of epic proportions. We see big money overwhelm local governments, zoning and planning boards to impose a massive development project on a community, extract millions, and move on -- leaving the local community to bear the costs of road maintenance, increased crime, and shuttered stores downtown.

Featured throughout the film is provocative commentary from leading urban critics and writers, who give viewers the real story behind the mall-building business and challenge Americans to think about the consequences of our obsession with shopping. They include authors James Howard Kunstler (The Geography of Nowhere); Roberta Brandes Gratz ("Malling the Northeast" for The New York Times Magazine); and real estate economist Donavan Rypkema.

MEGAMALL is a gripping story of ordinary Americans who confront the forces that are changing the face of our nation. It is designed to give students and communities around the country the tools they need to understand the forces propelling growth. It encourages people to think of themselves as citizens--not consumers--and to take action in their own communities.



Grade Level: 9-12, General, Adults
US Release Date: 2010     Copyright Date: 2010
DVD ISBN: 1-59458-916-X     VHS ISBN: 1-59458-915-1

Reviews "Is local democracy for sale?...[The film] examines how greed, hypocrisy and treachery used under the banner of consumption-oriented economic development can invade and overwhelm local politics, but it also demonstrates that this can be contested. Megamall traces the complex path of the development of the Palisades Center and presents the perspectives of the developer, local government, community residents and shop owners, as well as outside analysts. Megamall is outstanding as a cautionary tale about the legacy of economic development decisions. The film delivers a strong message - complete with a close look into the hurly burly of local politics - about the importance of critical thinking, persistence and active participation by local residents in determining the fate of our communities. " Greg Andranovich, Professor of Political Science, California State University, Los Angeles "Megamall is a hard-hitting documentary film about the power of shopping mall developers to destroy communities. Everyone who cares about the quality of life and local control over land use should see it. The film dramatizes the twenty-year struggle of the citizens of suburban Rockland County, New York, to preserve their shared sense of community from outside forces that sought to build the second largest shopping mall in the country in their back yard...It was a hard lesson, but in the end Rockland County citizens learned they could seize control of their own neighborhood and guide their own destiny--an inspiration for all communities." Emil Pocock, Professor of History and American Studies, Eastern Connecticut State University "Megamall is a powerful documentary that masterfully tells the story of how one community confronts the pressures of suburban development and retail growth. Megamall is a call to action for local communities to engage in the political process to chart their own course. The documentary is loaded with rich archival history of the development of Palisades Center, interwoven with vivid personal interviews. Megamall is an objective inquiry into how politics, planning, and policy intersect into one of the most fascinating issues facing local governments: the growth and development of commercial suburban centers. All communities will find this documentary engaging and a story worth learning from." Dr. Thomas Vicino, Department of Political Science, Northeastern University, Co-Author, Cities and Suburbs: New Metropolitan Realities in the US "Megamall pulls back the curtain to reveal the complex inner-workings of small-town America, telling a fascinating story of local government caught between the outside influence of regional economic forces and the desires of the local community. [The film contains] a startling series of lessons for small towns in America that desire growth, that desire jobs, that desire economic sustainability, that desire access to the goods and services of everyday life closer to home, yet desire to retain their small-town way of life...Megamall explores in great detail a complicated story not just effecting the towns and villages of Rockland County, New York, but a story that is unfolding in countless small towns across the United States." Robert Dorgan, Director, Institute for Small Town Studies "It was fascinating to watch the story of the development unfold. Told partially through the eyes of one activist who rallied the community over the years, the arguments with hapless solicitors, raucous public meetings, technical setbacks and other mishaps that befell the citizens trying to stop the project seem like a page torn out of countless other stories of unsuccessful battles against unwanted developments... The film also depicted the impacts of the mall on surrounding businesses and local government. The other retail centers in the region fell into decline as their anchor stores moved to the big new mall. The town center suffered as shoppers migrated to the superstores. Promised jobs turned out to be minimum wage, part-time positions. Public safety costs soared for both West Nyack and surrounding communities...