Megalopolis

I remember back in the glorious day of DVD when I would get a new movie and just devour the “Special Features” menu. From the film school 101 course David Koepp gives on the directors commentary of Stir of Echoes, to the 30-something hours of features on the The Lord of the Rings DVD’s. I watched them all for that elusive peek behind the Hollywood curtain, to see how my favorite filmmakers made it all happen. The latest by legend Francis Ford Coppola, Megalopolis plays like those DVD’s of old. There are Outtakes, Deleted Scenes, and Alternate Endings, unfortunately Coppola decided to include them all in the theatrical cut.

It is the time of New Rome, and there is a power struggle between architect Cesar Catilina (Adam Driver) and Mayor Franklyn Cicero (Giancarlo Esposito) over the future of both the city, as well as the woman torn between the two titans, Cicero’s daughter Julia (Nathalie Emmanuel). As Cesar attempts to construct the perfect utopia, he also discovers he has the ability to stop time. After being the only one to witness this feat Juila falls for the young artist and joins him on his creative journey against her father’s wishes. Surrounding this triangle of drama is a Shakespereian family epic involving Ceasar’s family, including his uncle Hamilton Crassus III (Jon Voight) his insane party animal cousin Clodio Pulcher (Shia LaBeouf) and reporter Wow Platinum (Aubrey Plaza) who seeks their power.

Throughout Megalopolis there are flashes of brilliance, both images and ideas that show a master filmmaker like Coppola at the top of his game. However the air can be too thin that high, as the film is filled with incoherent non sequiturs most of the two plus hour run time. Coppola had a vision, just not a clear one. He allowed Shia LaBeouf to just bounce around, lear at all the other actors and shave his eyebrows as long as he spoke the dialogue written in the script. Speaking of that, it feels like he suffered much in the same way one his contemporaries did back in 1999 when George Lucas both wrote and directed The Phantom Menace. Even if you front all of the money, you should use some of that to bring on some talent to help usher your vision/message to memorable life. That’s what Megalopolis lacks the most. It’s mostly forgettable despite some strong moments and a deep (maybe too deep) positive statement about our future.

Maybe the fact that he started writing this film back in the 1980’s and it has morphed into something different over the decades, he had trouble cutting out what didn’t move the narrative forward. To him it was all important enough to leave in. The artistic flourishes throughout the film are nothing more than that. Its like he bought a $1,000 chair, a $2,000 drafting table, a $200 T-Square, and $100 drafting pencils. Then he carefully drew seven perfect looking squares over a period of four months and then asked, “What do you think of these rabbits I drew?” I don’t doubt Coppola had something to say with this film, and I applaud the swing, I just wished it was a little more focused. He could still keep it weird and profound, that kind of filmmaking is still done today. And while I’m sure he has more to contribute to the world of film, Megalopolis is not a film that will stand side by side with the films that make him a legend,