This is a Public Service Announcement (PSA) for the good of mankind not to spend their hard earned cash and time (as time is futile) on Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis film. It is difficult to reconcile the drivel that occupies the screen for almost two and a half hours with the iconic, groundbreaking films that made Coppola’s name.
There are no rules in Coppola’s film and I mean none in terms of tone, style, aesthetic. Consistency did not reign in any aspect except quality, it was consistently poor the entire way through and that’s not an exaggeration. Every minute was agonising waiting for it to be over, every scene was a chore, with melodrama taking centre stage so it resembled a Spanish daytime soap opera. The storytelling was lazy and nonsensical, with the plot virtually missing for great swathes of the film. And the acting.. where even was it? A very capable cast completely led astray, including Dustin Hoffman shouting out random words about union workers on the docks because he clearly had no direction and just thought he was in an On the Waterfront remake. Dustin Hoffman and Jon Voight, two iconic cowboys of the midnight hour completely wasted on this chaotic mess, clearly both determined to get a last minute Coppola credit under their belts at all costs. Even all of the extras looked bored rigid in every scene. Aubrey Plaza was a rose among thorns and she lit up the screen any time she was on.
It’s hard to communicate just how many endless platitudes and trivial truisms were littered throughout this script, groundbreaking statements such as GREED CORRUPTS and THE FUTILITY OF TIME. Questions that have plagued the human race since the beginning of time that you would think by now we don’t need to shout these into the abyss with no context or added original thought. Empty statements about the human experience were clearly indicated as themes early on, but never developed it further than that. The empty verbiage without context that is peppered throughout is demonstrated best in the sequence where a character quotes three separate, non-related Marcus Aurelius quotes one after the other, whilst also verbally attributing the quote – ‘- Marcus Aurelius’ – at the end of each. Listen, we all love Marcus but this is turning the poor emperor into a parody.
Adam Driver was absolutely shanghaied by Coppola, in such a disastrous role that has truly embarrassed him. In the interest of green lights, there is just one singular shot worthy of Coppola’s reputation and that is the reflection of the calvacade against a mirrored New York building – that is it. Everything else is overbloated, undercooked and obnoxious. It’s clear from Megalopolis that Coppola selectively ignored any truisms about excess, and that everything should be enjoyed in moderation, including film budgets. Like its characters who purport to be greedy citizens Coppola has guzzled up all his own money that could have been better spent planting more grape vines.
FILM FOR THOUGHT 