Coppola’s 'Megalopolis' is another disappointment on screen and at the box office

Since its debut at the Cannes Film Festival in May, Francis Ford Coppola’s “Megalopolis” has divided critics and audiences alike. A renowned director well-known for “The Godfather” trilogy, Coppola delivers yet another disappointment on the screens and at the box office.

Much like the development of some of Coppola’s previous movies — such as “Apocalypse Now” — the production of “Megalopolis” was not without numerous challenges and controversies. The initial idea for the film was conceived during the late 1970s, but production was stalled by debts Coppola accumulated from prior box office failures. 

After 9/11, Coppola continued to struggle to convince studios to sign his project, “Megalopolis,” which takes place in a fictionalized, Romanesque version of New York City aptly named “New Rome.” Production was delayed after studios at the time felt its plot was too evocative of the terror attacks.

The $120 million of funding for “Megalopolis” ultimately was paid for by Coppola, who sold part of his wine estate to finance the film. When production did start, it had bizarre elements and was mired in controversy.

Coppola allowed actors to improvise and re-write parts of the script during the filming process, which, in a viewer’s retrospect, was a mistake. Coppola also fired the entire visual effects team along with much of the crew in the art department, a decision that was likely responsible for the numerous gaffes on set and in the final cut of the film. 

Although it was made apparent that New Rome was a modern-day parallel to the Roman Empire in its final days, other worldbuilding elements were simply overlooked by Coppola. One cutscene featured a flag with the letters “NYSE,” representing the New York Stock Exchange, even though the movie was set in the city of New Rome, not New York. The license plates on cars were identical to the real-life New York State license plates, and the actual flags of New York State, the US and the Confederacy were used at various points throughout the film. These numerous contradicting elements made it quite confusing to understand the historical background of the film. Was it an alternate history based on the Roman Empire, or was it merely New York City with Roman aesthetics?

At moments, the visual effects and CGI in the film missed the mark. Rather than striving for the realism seen in other high-budget films, scenes in “Megalopolis” resembled poorly green-screened middle school projects edited in iMovie. 

The film begins by introducing its central conflict between architect and mastermind Cesar Catilina (Adam Driver) and New Rome mayor Franklyn Cicero (Giancarlo Esposito). Catilina seeks to redevelop New Rome into a futuristic utopia, whereas Cicero resists these potential changes and attempts to preserve the city’s current state.

At the start, Catilina is in a relationship with Wow Platinum (Aubrey Plaza), a TV presenter who values power over morals. Platinum soon leaves her relationship with Catilina to marry his multi-billionaire, bank CEO uncle, Hamilton Crassus III (Jon Voight). This semi-incestuous trope reoccurs later in the film, when Platinum seduces Catilina’s cousin and Crassus’s nephew, Clodio Pulcher (Shia LeBeouf), to seize control of the bank. 

As Crassus and Platinum have their wedding celebration, Catilina is seen having drug-induced hallucinations outside the venue, mirroring the experience one has while watching this film. Within the venue, pop sensation Vesta Sweetwater (Grace VanderWaal) — advertised as New Rome’s own “Vestal Virgin” — delivers an utterly absurd performance with her multiple clones to advertise the desirability of virginity. However, near the end of her performance, Sweetwater is revealed to be a fraud (and Catilina a womanizer), when a video of her having sex with Catilina is projected on the venue’s screens.

Audiences, misled by the dramatic nature of the film’s trailers, may be confused by the comic intermissions that appear excessively throughout “Megalopolis.” As the film progresses, it becomes increasingly tumultuous and chaotic, making it feel more like a 138-minute-long SNL skit rather than a potential blockbuster. In one (hopefully improvised) scene, Catilina ridicules Cicero’s daughter Julia (Nathalie Emmanuel), telling her to “go back to the club,” but the unserious delivery of this line undermines the dramatic nature of the confrontation between Julia and Catilina.

Still, some moments of comedic relief were welcome. Scenes featuring Platinum seemed more like intentional gags, rather than hilariously awkward lines or nonsensical circumstances. The film features surprisingly strong performances from Plaza and her co-stars, considering the lack of quality material. 

One particularly creative moment in the movie occurs when Catilina holds a press conference during the middle of the film. At select movie theaters, a live performer plays the role of a reporter interviewing Catilina, entirely breaking the fourth wall. Although this sort of act is impractical at most locations, it is a unique method of capturing the attention of audiences which is especially needed in a movie like this.

At times entertaining and hilarious, the film is by no means an example of art. Rather, it is a passion project doomed by Coppola’s own involvement, best watched for comedy rather than plot. A crazy and confusing film, “Megalopolis” leaves audiences bewildered and makes them wonder: What the hell just happened?