Megalopolis
He did it his way
A lot of self-appointed cinema experts have commented on what a
financial flop this movie is, noting that Francis Ford Coppola spent
$100 million of his own money on it and is unlikely to ever see a
profit. But what they don't know is that Coppola is admired, not
for making moneymakers, but for making the films he wants to
make. He made movies like The Godfathe r (I&II) and Apocalypse
Now so he could fund The Conversation, One From the Heart and
Rumble Fish. Francis has never shied away from risk, and maybe
today's film industry needs more of that.
So, what's it about? Reader, I have no friggin' idea. The production
notes call it 'An epic Roman fable set in an imagined modern
America.' Here's some of the critical buzz: 'Dazzling and
audacious, uncompromising, satirical yet sincere, magical,
meandering and maddening, windy, overstuffed, baffling, too
talky, an idea-bloated monstrosity, a garish wonder to behold, a
nakedly personal statement.' See what I mean?
The massive, often baffled but uniformly committed cast includes
Adam Driver, Giancarlo Esposito, Nathalie Emmanuel, Aubrey
Plaza, Laurence Fishburne, Jon Voight, Dustin Hoffman, and
dozens more. The whole thing eventually buckles under its own
weight, but it's a thrilling demolition to behold.
In sum, it's precisely the movie Coppola wanted to make. Whether
it's a movie you want to watch depends on who you are, and I
can't help you there. It's one of those you have to see to believe.
Then we'll talk. (138 min)
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