Megalopolis 2024
I had not heard of this movie, but decided with Francis Ford Coppola directing, and a great cast, I should see it when I was offered a free ticket. It bombed badly in its first week. Reviews are low to mixed. It is presented as a fable as the city (and country?) of New Rome (New York) has some political squabbles of people with ancient Roman names like Caesar, Cicero, and Crassus. Also mixed in is some kind of sci-fi magic where Adam Driver (Cesar) can stop time and has some kind of new building material that can do pretty much anything. There is some Shakespearean drama as the leaders plot against each other and some Nazi imagery from one of the sons, who decides to become a populist mob leader. It is ambitious and often can have some great production values and scenery, but it doesn't work, gets a little repetitive and you struggle to find meaning in any of it. Acting performances are uneven, partly because of the source material, but the standouts are Adam Driver, Nathalie Emmanuel, and Giancarlo Esposito, while Aubrey Plaza, Shia LaBeouf, and Jon Voight struggle. The fable might be how an iconic career doesn't mean you can write, direct, produce, and finance a movie that people want to see when you are 85 years old.
Written: 01 Oct 2024