Secrets in the Building

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source: Secrets in the Building

This was a semi-typical Lifetime thriller I guess. There's the widow Michelle and her daughter Helene who move into a two bedroom condo. They are met by divorcee Helene and her daughter Shannon. Almost immediately Shannon acts weird towards Michelle. And it just escalates as the movie progresses. Then there is the building contractor Josh who turns up to do some repair work in Michelle's apartment. Almost immediately sparks fly between the two, and they begin dating. Norah meets new friends at school and likes a boy named Aiden. A lot of accidents and attacks take place with finger pointings. Right from the outset I disliked Josh the handyman. There was something about him and I turned out to be correct. He happened to be Dan the ex-husband of Helene and father of Shannon (psycho girl). As it turned out Don manipulated Shannon into orchestrating everything, because Shannon was led to believe that they were out to force Michelle and Norah out, so that the three of them could get back together and move into their original apartment. As it turned out Shannon did not want her dad killing Michelle and Norah and framing her mom. The ending was not bad I suppose for a Lifetime movie.

I wasn't even going to review this film, but clearly "deedrala" did not pay attention... Or worse, could not comprehend it, even with it being so incredibly simplistic. The ENTIRE reason why Josh/Dan struck up a relationship with the newcomers, was so he can have access to their unit/condo. It literally could not have been more obvious that the teddy bear he brought was a decoy/teddy~cam. The existence of said camera answers all of the questions s/he laid out in her/his review. He could monitor their comings and goings, as well as their guests', and when they'd eat the cake {which, admittedly, is pretty gross that they ate it so long after he made it, even refrigerated}. He used that info as his cues. The screaming match that Helene and Channing had was also fairly obviously about H's ex-husband/C's dad, who Helene pleaded that C avoid, cautioning her that he was "just using" her". Moreover, it was clear that it was a male who Channing was complaining to on the phone in the locker-room after Norah's soccer tryout, when she asked him to "fix it". All hints pointed to it being her estranged dad; though one MIGHT consider/suspect it could POSSIBLY be Aiden, albeit unlikely. "Josh" likely keyed the car in the night, or had his kid be his lookout, which explains his gall and ability to carry it out. Re: the end, Michelle was still moving after Dan attacked her, so she absolutely could've made it downstairs in time to save her kid. This film was a pretty run-of-the-mill soapy original Lifetime movie: terribly predictable, mostly overacted, and at times frustrating. That said, it's hilariously ironic when reviewers can't pick up on that which is COMPLETELY SPELLED OUT in such films, that even they, themselves, deem elementary ("fourth grade" is what that reviewer stated). Laughable, and a bit unfortunate. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the film. The acting by both moms was decent, and the actress who played Michelle was particularly authentic & engaging. The scenery was well lit, but at times confusing between the residence- which looked like an office building or school- in the school itself. (Even the bizarre sign in the elevator at the end alluded to it being such, though I guess they converted the now vacated condo to the CS office.) I completely agree about Lawrence and Channing being WAY OTT, and C's sudden transformation being unrealistic. Norah also irked my soul at times, being too meek an naive, esp in such a new environment. It's true that no one (including Lawrence) liked Helene, but she was admittedly troubled, and did try to connect with Michelle (who reciprocated). There were also a few continuity errors: The nonsensical debate/convo btwn Aiden & Norah re: walking her home was a moot point, being that she DROVE to the party. Channing arrived home before Norah did, even though the disciplinary talk did not take longer than the soccer practice. The hostess of the party did not see C in her home, even when she went to the pool area where the hostess was standing. These errors were minor, but noticeable, thus annoying. I'd say that the most annoying one was in the end when the pair remained inside, as police escorted the assailant out...when the building was about to be FUMIGATED. It's debatable whether or not Helene would know about the true Josh's vaca/absence, but Michelle was uncharacteristically idiotic to eat the cake after what she'd literally JUST learned. I thought the writers missed a good opportunity to have M take "Josh" up on the camera offer, but perhaps they couldn't see a good ending with that. At least they did finally tie her deceased hubby's golf club in at the end. Still, I was interested in seeing the film through, curious how it would all turn out. Light & easy watch. 5.3/10.

"Secrets in the Building" is listed as a thriller, but some of the scenes and situations are so chilling that it might be classified as a horror film. Michelle Green and her daughter Norah have recently moved to California for a fresh start. Michelle is a widow, and the mother and daughter are still grieving the death of Eric. Michelle has purchased a beautiful condominium with a spectacular view of the city of Los Angels that extends all the way to Catalina. But Michelle and Norah are in for the fight of their lives in order to live in peace in their new residence. Specifically, the tormentors of these nice people appear to be everyone!!! There is the aggressive maintenance man, the sadistic school principal, and, above all, the neighbors Helene Mathieson and her bratty daughter Channing. Everything seems to be conspiring to make the lives of Michelle and Norah miserable. The only breath of fresh air for Michelle is contractor named Josh, who would appear to be her knight in shining armor. Or is he? The most repellent of the characters are Helene and Channing, who are so mean-spirited that nearly everyone who crosses their path leaves with a bad impression. For this reason, their complete transformation at the end lacked credibility. The film's denouement was unconvincing in the sharing of cozy vibes after a truly epic struggle on the part of Michelle and Norah to keep their room with a view.

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I wasn't even going to review this film, but clearly "deedrala" did not pay attention... Or worse, could not comprehend it, even with it being so incredibly simplistic. The ENTIRE reason why Josh/Dan struck up a relationship with the newcomers, was so he can have access to their unit/condo. It literally could not have been more obvious that the teddy bear he brought was a decoy/teddy~cam. The existence of said camera answers all of the questions s/he laid out in her/his review. He could monitor their comings and goings, as well as their guests', and when they'd eat the cake {which, admittedly, is pretty gross that they ate it so long after he made it, even refrigerated}. He used that info as his cues. The screaming match that Helene and Channing had was also fairly obviously about H's ex-husband/C's dad, who Helene pleaded that C avoid, cautioning her that he was "just using" her". Moreover, it was clear that it was a male who Channing was complaining to on the phone in the locker-room after Norah's soccer tryout, when she asked him to "fix it". All hints pointed to it being her estranged dad; though one MIGHT consider/suspect it could POSSIBLY be Aiden, albeit unlikely. "Josh" likely keyed the car in the night, or had his kid be his lookout, which explains his gall and ability to carry it out. Re: the end, Michelle was still moving after Dan attacked her, so she absolutely could've made it downstairs in time to save her kid. This film was a pretty run-of-the-mill soapy original Lifetime movie: terribly predictable, mostly overacted, and at times frustrating. That said, it's hilariously ironic when reviewers can't pick up on that which is COMPLETELY SPELLED OUT in such films, that even they, themselves, deem elementary ("fourth grade" is what that reviewer stated). Laughable, and a bit unfortunate. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the film. The acting by both moms was decent, and the actress who played Michelle was particularly authentic & engaging. The scenery was well lit, but at times confusing between the residence- which looked like an office building or school- in the school itself. (Even the bizarre sign in the elevator at the end alluded to it being such, though I guess they converted the now vacated condo to the CS office.) I completely agree about Lawrence and Channing being WAY OTT, and C's sudden transformation being unrealistic. Norah also irked my soul at times, being too meek an naive, esp in such a new environment. It's true that no one (including Lawrence) liked Helene, but she was admittedly troubled, and did try to connect with Michelle (who reciprocated). There were also a few continuity errors: The nonsensical debate/convo btwn Aiden & Norah re: walking her home was a moot point, being that she DROVE to the party. Channing arrived home before Norah did, even though the disciplinary talk did not take longer than the soccer practice. The hostess of the party did not see C in her home, even when she went to the pool area where the hostess was standing. These errors were minor, but noticeable, thus annoying. I'd say that the most annoying one was in the end when the pair remained inside, as police escorted the assailant out...when the building was about to be FUMIGATED. It's debatable whether or not Helene would know about the true Josh's vaca/absence, but Michelle was uncharacteristically idiotic to eat the cake after what she'd literally JUST learned. I thought the writers missed a good opportunity to have M take "Josh" up on the camera offer, but perhaps they couldn't see a good ending with that. At least they did finally tie her deceased hubby's golf club in at the end. Still, I was interested in seeing the film through, curious how it would all turn out. Light & easy watch. 5.3/10.

source: Secrets in the Building

"Secrets in the Building" is listed as a thriller, but some of the scenes and situations are so chilling that it might be classified as a horror film. Michelle Green and her daughter Norah have recently moved to California for a fresh start. Michelle is a widow, and the mother and daughter are still grieving the death of Eric. Michelle has purchased a beautiful condominium with a spectacular view of the city of Los Angels that extends all the way to Catalina. But Michelle and Norah are in for the fight of their lives in order to live in peace in their new residence. Specifically, the tormentors of these nice people appear to be everyone!!! There is the aggressive maintenance man, the sadistic school principal, and, above all, the neighbors Helene Mathieson and her bratty daughter Channing. Everything seems to be conspiring to make the lives of Michelle and Norah miserable. The only breath of fresh air for Michelle is contractor named Josh, who would appear to be her knight in shining armor. Or is he? The most repellent of the characters are Helene and Channing, who are so mean-spirited that nearly everyone who crosses their path leaves with a bad impression. For this reason, their complete transformation at the end lacked credibility. The film's denouement was unconvincing in the sharing of cozy vibes after a truly epic struggle on the part of Michelle and Norah to keep their room with a view.