- MEGALOPOLIS
- Starring: Adam Driver, Giancarlo Esposito and Aubrey Plaza
- Directed by: Francis Ford Coppola
- Rated: R
- Running time: 2 hrs 18 mins
- Lionsgate
I’ve had time to think a lot about what I wanted to write because there are parts of “Megalopolis” that show the touch of a master filmmaker. That being said, a muddled story, and most unsympathetic characters, take a lot of the shine off of the project.
New Rome in the not too distant future is a city in shambles, with supporters of two very different men in a constant battle with each other. On one side you have Cesar Catalina (Driver), an encentric visionary whose ideas are both embraced and ridiculed. On the other side you have newly elected Mayor Cicero (Esposito), who considers himself a man of the people. Both try to get their message to the people by the way of personality Wow Platinum (Plaza, in an amazing dramatic performance). As each side tries to one up the other, the state of the City continues to deteriorate. Who will save New Rome?
Packed with a cast that has sixteen Academy Award nominations (and three Oscars) among them, “Megalopolis” is an acting showcase for the audience. Driver and Esposito, two of the best actors of their generation, give powerhouse performances, doing their best to sell a weakly constructed, and confusingly written, story. Plaza, who I only knew from “Parks and Recreation,” is a revelation as the scheming and manipulative social media diva dealing with declining ratings. Veteran actors like Laurence Fishburne, Talia Shire and Dustin Hoffman shine in smaller roles while Jon Voight proves why he has been one of the best actors of the past six decades with a featured role as Hamilton Crassius III, a man whose money helps things run.
The drawback for me is the script, also written by director Coppola. My thought is that he was trying to make a film similar in style to Baz Luhrmann’s “Romeo + Juliet,” mixing snippets of Shakesperean language with a modern vision but sadly some of the dialogue is clunky and falls flat.
Visually the film is breathtaking, and it is here that Coppola shines. The man has fourteen Academy Award nominations and five Oscars and his place in the history of cinema is assured. While not his best effort, there are still enough flashes of the master at work that make me give the film a favorable review.
On a scale of zero to five, “Megalopolis” receives ★★★