MEGALOPOLIS - Review | Cannes Film Festival 2024

Francis Ford Coppola’s latest film is the absolute rare of enormously scaled arthouse epics where nothing about its experimental presentation feels limited. A film that contains some of the highest highs but suffers through some of the lowest lows of Coppola’s career as he presents the fall of the Roman Empire through contemporary America. Even with its grand amount of ideas involving innovation, hope, liberalism vs conservatism, and satirizing the hierarchy that may lack focus/payoff for how much material the story wants to tell. There’s no denying that the film provides an unforgettable experience with a wild set of characters from the inconsistently talented ensemble. The true epitome of a “see it to believe it” film where the endless bold and kaleidoscopic filmmaking choices make the wild journey worth taking.

Still Courtesy – American Zoetrope

In the alternate version of New York City known as New Rome, Cesar Catilinia (portrayed by Adam Driver) is a renowned inventor/architect with the ambition of bringing a more technologically advanced and utopian design to the city. However, conflicts arise with wealthy individuals who attempt to screw him over. This includes Franklyn Cicero (portrayed by Giancarlo Esposito) as New Rome's mayor who opposes and stops his vision from occurring, Wow Platinum (portrayed by Aubrey Plaza) as Cesar's former lover who exploits her way into the family through her marriage with Cesar's uncle, Hamilton Crassus III (portrayed by Jon Voight), and Clodio Pulcher (portrayed by Shia LaBeouf) as Cesar's cousin who attempts to lead city protests against Cesar's actions. However, he also desires Julia Cicero (portrayed by Nathalie Emmanuel) as the mayor's daughter which creates more tension when she and Cesar start forming a relationship.

As readers can tell, there's certainly a lot going on in this film where Coppola's making it very clear that he's leaving no stone unturned. Honestly, the entire existence of this film is basically the epitome of that; as a passion project that has been developing in his mind for 40-50 years. During arguably the most consistently acclaimed decade of any filmmaker ever with Coppola's filmography during the 1970s like The Godfather (1972), The Conversation (1974), The Godfather Part II (1974), and Apocalypse Now (1979). All acclaimed and bold masterpieces where Megalopolis (2024) seemed like it was making the crazy production process of Apocalypse Now (1979) look amateur in comparison. Regardless of what anyone says, Coppola devotion's to art and his vision by going out of his way to fully fund and make an $120 million arthouse sci-fi epic could not be more apparent.

Thus, there's no preparation to the kind of experience that a film like Megalopolis (2024) provides when hearing about Coppola's full creative freedom when making it. A film that displays the qualities that makes Coppola such an audacious and eccentric director while also including elements where a lack of restraint and organization seems noticeable. Even getting to the point where the film that's presented breaks out of that and becomes interactive with the audience in a particular scene. Something paced so relentlessly that sucks in viewers to its grand world and the crazy circumstances that the characters get involved with. At the same time, these events that happen to the characters is a result of incorporating an endless amount of thought-provoking but bloated ideas/themes when they all don't have the same level of focus.

This obviously includes the film's story and characters being allegorical to the fall of the Roman Empire that's presented from a modern American perspective. From this set-up, themes of hope and innovation are prevalent with Cesar attempting to inspire the proletariats and aristocrats of New Rome to unite and build a better future through his vision of a utopia. There's the exaggerated depiction of the upper class with inconsistent attempts at humor that follows characters doing whatever's possible to infiltrate and overthrow it. Also the clear conservatism commentary with Mayor Cicero's refusal to change the system/designs that Cesar's liberal point-of-view insists on pursuing. Not to mention its themes regarding obsession with love doing damage, defamation, nepotism, and more where many of them, along with some impactful moments in the plot, feel underdeveloped or forgotten about by the end of the film.

Still Courtesy – American Zoetrope

The film throws all these ideas, themes, and flashing sequences at such a fast pace that it's hard to keep track of every possible thing that Coppola is attempting to communicate and present. With this being a film that could have had a stronger narrative if it condensed its ideas along several corny moments made to be serious. It's the type of complaints that would negatively affect the viewing experience more if it came from a film that wasn't Megalopolis (2024). This is due to Coppola establishing from the beginning that the characters, story, and world he's created despite being heavily taken by Roman history and current American politics. It's one where everything feels and mostly everyone acts otherworldly, excessive, and idiosyncratic; providing the film with its charm that never feels boring. Not everyone will share this viewing experience since Coppola's bold execution was always going to result with something that caused divisive reactions. However, with his freedom and clear intentions to make the provocative movie that he wanted to make, it's consistently engaging and awe-inspiring to witness his maddening vision come to life.

If one could say this is possibly the "most movie in a movie ever", it'd be hard to disagree since this is likely the most expensive independent film ever made. Featuring maybe every shot type and film editing technique known to man with a big reliance on split screens and

intentionally disorienting and quickly cut sequences, primarily an effective one conveying Cesar's psychological state while intoxicated. Don't forget about the many frames that barely leave any free space when the main foreground action occurs along with heavy visual effects on the background and character-masked faces at a reduced opacity. Sometimes, these very creative and bizarre shot/editing choices create striking and haunting imagery that's hard to imagine another film replicating. Other times, they end up feeling overstuffed and unnecessary where the insane but compelling presentation feels like it wears off at points.

It genuinely feels like Coppola took everything that could be created or imagined from film and applied to Megalopolis (2024). This includes his enormous cast of actors who are rapturous and play wildly different roles to each other. Aubrey Plaza and Shia LaBeouf are certainly given and deliver playing the most eccentric/despicable characters where viewers will either find them as standouts or be repulsed by their overblown acting. These two along with Adam Driver, Giancarlo Esposito, Nathalie Emmanuel, and Jon Voight are given the most vital roles in the story while most of the other actors blend more with the extras. These six already being talented performers means that they naturally do a believable job with what they're given. However, they certainly embrace the craziness whenever Coppola puts them in a scene that requires that from them, especially Audrey Plaza through her multiple seduction scenes and Adam Driver's multiple moments of psychological torment.

During the current state of the industry where films are perceived as soulless content made to be consumed, forgotten, and dumped into the eternal pile of work similar to it. Regardless of how one interprets its quality, Megalopolis (2024) is a truly inventive and singular film coming from true passion by its director which takes viewers on a kaleidoscopic journey that'll be impossible to forget about. More like Babylon (2022) and less like Southland Tales (2006) when comparing it to other excessive and provocative passion projects by auteur filmmakers. Even if the film was not made by Coppola, films of this scale and presentation rarely get made and at least provide a discussion instead of feeling disposable. There's more to appreciate about how Megalopolis (2024) turned out than what could've used work. As a whole, it's just a film whose completed existence and worldwide exposure provide gratitude where it will certainly leave audiences with long-lasting reactions while inspiring them to create a better future.

Verdict

6/10

Still Courtesy – American Zoetrope