Picture this, readers: a member of the 2024 movie schedule that’s arrived to pans and jeers from reviewer and fan alike. A picture that is a long-awaited follow-up to the previous works of wonder from a director heralded as a visionary, only to crater in its opening weekend. That description could be applied to two very prolific films that have taken center stage in the last couple of weeks, but the one I’m here to specifically defend is Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis.
After seeing the film last week prior to my Joker: Folie à Deux screening, I came out of the theater ready to defend this much maligned work of utopian fantasy. However, the case I’m about to make isn't without regard to the various controversies at which Francis Ford Coppola has been at the center.
While those are troubling caveats that are present on the man’s record, I’m here to talk about Megalopolis and its merits as a feature film. With that in mind, here’s why I think Coppola’s latest career-risking project is better than our own Megalopolis review says it was.
Of Course Those Megalopolis Looks Hysterical Out Of Context
Ok, I have to start us off with the fact that two clips from Megalopolis showed up online just as the film was opening, and of course they were viral sensations. One of those moments involves a conversation between Adam Driver’s Cesar and Nathalie Emmanuel’s Julia. I’m not even going to bother describing it, as you can watch it for yourself out of context, thank to that moment being officially released:
The other scene I saw is one that involves Jon Voight’s Hamilton Crassus III, Aubrey Plaza’s unmissable performance as Wow Platinum, and a crossbow. Again, the less said about this, the better, but even if you watch those scenes out of context, they’re natural fits for laugh riots. Going back to Adam Driver playing a frosty intellectual against Nathalie Emmanuel, that scene is clearly going to look ridiculous without the proper context that Megalopolis gives for that moment.
Can I still chuckle at those scenes, even in the proper context? Absolutely, But that doesn’t overwrite the fact that Francis Ford Coppola kind of set up the expectation for this entire movie in a simple subtitle that everyone seems to forget.
Everyone Forgets That Megalopolis Is A Fable
This movie is literally billed as Megalopolis: A Fable. If you look at the typical definition of such a story, it’s a tale that holds a moral and is typically told with animals. Now while there are no donkeys in the Megalopolis cast, we’re still treated to heightened human characters that fit the fanciful bill that one would expect from a narrative that’s more adjacent to a fairy tale than The Godfather.
Influenced by Roman history and his current viewpoint on America, Francis Ford Coppola has told a story removed enough from our reality that it’s spectacle laden fiction. Using “A Fable” as the film’s subtitle, Megalopolis is something we should have known from the start would be ridiculous to a point. There may not be animals, but the humans of this crumbling dystopia certainly act like they’re running on their basest impulses at times.
After Seeing Megalopolis, I Think The ‘Immersive Experience’ Is A Requirement
Something else that people have talked about leading up to Megalopolis’ release is “the immersive experience.” You may have seen clips of this displayed online as well, as Adam Driver’s big press conference scene is where an “immersive” screening allows an audience member to recite the questions aloud, as if they were playing the journalist interviewing Cesar.
If you ask me, this is something that should be required in every screening, solely because it drops the viewer into the world of Megalopolis for a brief moment. That moment is a pretty huge one, as it’s a pivot point for Adam Driver’s character, as he starts to become more human.
For the audience member holding this “conversation” with Cesar, the point of the film could be much more potent when they engage it as a participant, rather than a spectator. It's a realization that makes The Wrap's report of a scrapped Alexa experience meant to mimic the same thing all the more desirable.
Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis Is The Latest Underrated Utopian Blockbuster
It warmed my heart to see writer/director Brad Bird included in the Special Thanks credits for Megalopolis; and I think it’s a hint towards why this movie landed so favorably with me. In its own way Francis Ford Coppola’s intellectual/sociopolitical fairy tale is a companion piece to some other utopian blockbusters that I’ve championed in the past.
Most notably, thanks to the invocation of Mr. Bird’s name, Tomorrowland is one such movie that comes to mind, and The Wachowski’s IMAX ready masterpiece Speed Racer also fits that bill. I couldn’t have imagined that the man that made The Godfather would craft such a grand and colorful spectacle such as Megalopolis. That said, it totally fits in with these other favorites of mine because of the message of people pushing past cynicism for a better tomorrow.
Yes, There Is A Clear Moral In Megalopolis’ Messy But Moving Fable
I’ve read a lot of reactions stating that Megalopolis is a mess of varying degrees, and I can’t disagree with that. However, I think that’s part of the point that Francis Ford Coppola is trying to make, especially in the earlier acts. Populating New Rome with memetic spectacle, petty celebrity drama and looming disaster through false populism, that mess could be seen as an allegory for the modern world.
So does the solution, as Cesar’s utopian vision requires that “great debate” on the future. It also requires people to come together and work towards that vision’s execution and preservation. Even in the final moment of seeming victory, Adam Driver’s utterance of “We have no more time” suggests that this great work isn’t finished, but just getting started. If the world can put aside the noise and focus, it can solve its problems and save itself.
I can totally see why some wouldn’t appreciate Megalopolis, as it’s basically run into the same problem that Brad Bird's 2015 picture ran into - right down to our in-house Tomorrowland review. The story may feel too colorful and too untraditional for people who aren’t used to optimistic fables on the big screen. It's a movie that wears its heart on its sleeve, and that's the sort of tale that's almost always an acquired taste waiting to be made into a fan favorite.
If you have an open mind and want to see something that’s undoubtedly new and unusual, Megalopolis is still showing in theaters. Who knows? You might like it better than Joker: Folie à Deux! And while you're at it, check out ReelBlend's Francis Ford Coppola interview, as there's plenty of further insight into what makes this picture so unique.
