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WhenMegalopolis, the newest film byFrancis Ford Coppola, arrives, we’ll be witnessing movie history. That’s if anyone shows up. Struggling against a lifetime of financial problems, self-esteem issues, and political upheaval, Coppola’sMegalopolismight have gone down in the annals of film history as one of the classic “What if?” scenarios.The script took on mythical propositions to movie buffs as one of the much celebrated “Greatest Films Never Made,” the treatment serving as fodder for countless internet discussions, lists, and think pieces pining and speculating what could have been.Cinephiles, wish no longer. Undeterred by the lack of interest from Hollywood, he took drastic measures to bring the epic narrative to life.
The methodically constructed film reflects a deeply meaningful narrative that has been smoldering in Coppola’s brain for more than half his life. Trying to describe it is so perplexing that not even the writer-director himself can adequately define what it is or who he is making it for. Based on his last few interviews, he’s making it for himself. We’re just invited to tag along for the ride. Coppola isn’t dumbing down his vision, and with costs soaring, he’s not cutting any corners either. That may well be a grave error, as he is the one footing the bill this time. However, he doesn’t seem fazed by having to face yet another bankruptcy,selling off his own properties to raise the capital needed to produce and market the frequently-delayed film. Still, the themes of the film are a hard sell, and the early reception has been mixed.
With anIMAX opening day releaseconfirmed, the venerable director is undeniably going all in on his baby, convinced it will stand the test of time.However, history has not been kind to such passion projects, especially by directors in their golden years. The track record is dismal when it comes to this kind of high-budget, high-risk, high-concept film.This has all the makings of a classic gamble, which will either produce a surprise hit of the year or an abject dud that will probably financially ruin Coppola for years. But what else is new? A masterpiece robbed from us is one thing, but heaven help us when they actually get made.
Megalopolis
Megalopolis, directed by Francis Ford Coppola, is a visionary 2024 film exploring the ambitious dream of reconstructing New York City into a utopia, following a devastating disaster. The narrative delves into the clash between the architect’s utopian vision and the political and personal turmoil that ensues. With a star-studded cast, the film examines themes of ambition, power, and the human spirit’s resilience against the backdrop of a futuristic metropolis.
What the Heck Is Megalopolis,and Why Does Adam Driver Have That Haircut?
Riding a high fromThe Godfatherduology andApocalypse Now, Coppola shopped aroundMegalopolisat the worst time. Big-budget experimental films were dead by the dawn of the ’80s, Michael Cimino’sHeaven’s Gatestamping out the last embers ofthe auteur erain the US film industry.The film was further hampered by the poor state of Coppola’s career, with no one wanting to give him any money in the ’80s as he released a series of poorly performing movies. Under extreme duress to pay off his creditors, he only acceptedThe Godfather: Part IIIgig for a stack of cash, diverting him fromMegalopolisonce more.He took another stab at it around 2000, but it also came to nothing for reasons still unclear.
False starts aside, he never gave up, waiting until he had wrapped up several smaller, more obscure films in the 2000s. Why?Coppola’s output since 1979has been customarily met with a shrug from audiences and critics, making it hard to experiment with others' resources. As his reputation has gone up and down,Megalopolisalways lingered in his mind. It was now or never, Coppola approaching his 90th birthday. In an interview withGQback in 2022, he showed little doubt in the scheme of putting up $100 million (and counting) of his own money:
“I know thatMegalopolis, the more personal I make it, and the more like a dream in me that I do it, the harder it will be to finance. And the longer it will earn money because people will be spending the next 50 years trying to think: What’s really inMegalopolis? What is he saying? My God, what does that mean when that happens?”
Taking cues from the waning days of the Roman Republic as much as from contemporary American politics, the film is set in a loose version of New York that reportedly isn’t really supposed to be New York but clearly is, based on the skyline on the poster at least. Think Gotham City, but sci-fi and marinated in political themes.Initial reactions described the film as slightly convoluted and overtly theatrical, drawing parallels between ancient and modern history, with a touch of Ayn Rand’sThe Fountainheadsprinkled on top.Several decades in incubation, and Coppola has had plenty of time to cram in historical references and philosophical themes.
Francis Ford Coppola Loves That Megalopolis Has Studios Confused
Francis Ford Coppola described how Hollywood executives are wrongly attempting to label Megalopolis as a certain type of movie.
Now, at long last, the film is ready for the masses. Early reviews don’t bode well. This one appears to be a love-it-or-hate-it kind of movie.The L.A. Timescompared it toThe Bonfire of the Vanitiesin an early screen preview, ridiculing it for “swing[ing] manically between clunky dialogue and classic quotations.” If you know about thenotorious Tom Wolfe adaptation, theBonfirereference should be interpreted as a back-handed compliment. Coppola is fighting against a nasty precedent.
Why Great Directors Are Often Stranded in Developmental Hell
Coppola is lucky in comparison to his ilk. Orson Welles never got the chance to direct his dream movie. His adaptation of Joseph Conrad’s novellaHeart of Darknessnever got past pre-production. The unrealized H.P. Lovecraft adaptation ofAt the Mountains of Madnessby Guillermo del Toro was never to be either, in large part due to his refusal to bend to executives and make the movie adhere to a PG-13 rating. Not even the backing of superstar producers Tom Cruise and James Cameron could get the ball rolling. Alejandro Jodorowsky’s ambitious surrealDuneplans were abandoned and ultimately turned into a lousy film in 1985.
In his quest for the ultimate, realistic film that explored his quirks and a historically accurate perspective, Stanley Kubrick spent 40 years in pre-production on a Napoleon epic he was too neurotic to commit to. An obsessive to the detriment of his output and the sanity of his collaborators and crew, he conducted exhaustive research on Napoleon’s life. Working out the kinks, figuring out how to film candlelight and dress 20,000 extras with time-appropriate military kit (paper smocks), he was too overwhelmed by the task and delayed filming his entire career. With the tepid reception ofRidley Scott’s 2023Napoleon, you have to wonder if Kubrick was wise to throw in the towel, anticipating the same sour reaction.
Why Stanley Kubrick’s Napoleon Film Was Never Made
In honor of Ridley Scott’s upcoming Napoleon film, we’re looking back to one of the most famous examples of an unrealized movie.
When a film takes on such significance, it’s common for an artist to choke under pressure. That’s not a bad thing. They took their craft and stories seriously and would rather see them unfulfilled than be undertaken in a half-hearted or rushed way. Maybe the money ran out, maybe the sets or special effects weren’t up to snuff, or some other variable proved insurmountable. A movie can flop for many reasons, and a savvy director can usually sniff out these problems well before the cameras roll.The reason so many speculative “masterpieces” don’t get made is because the expectations were simply too high.
Hype May Build Mystique, But It Doesn’t Sell Tickets
Production hell is one thing. The only thing worse than never realizing your passion project? Releasing it and being greeted by deafening silence.Terry Gilliam’sThe Man Who Killed Don Quixote, often touted as the ultimate unfilmed, sure-fire classic during most of the aughts, was finally released in 2018 after 20 years of hype. It went badly and has since been completely forgotten. After all the talk of the legendary project, the final result did not define Gilliam’s directing career but extinguished it. After all that buzz, it’s a footnote in film classes and nothing more.
He’s in good company. You’ve never heard of Warren Beatty’s Howard Hughes biographyRules Don’t Apply, a concept he’d been tinkering with since the ’70s. He came out of retirement after 18 years to direct it because he felt so strongly in the story. No one else did. Likewise, Kevin Costner first started pitching his western opusHorizon36 years ago, but through a series of career missteps and other arrangements, he never did get around to securing funding for the multi-installment epic until the 2020s. Like most of these examples,Horizonfailed to win over viewers, at least through its first three installments. The less said about Kevin Spacey’s toupee-heavy vanity projectBeyond the Sea, the better. Spacey’s budding directing career died on the spot.
Turns out the title “Greatest Film Never Made” means absolutely nothing in practice.With all respect to Chris Gore, it’s just an attention-grabbing title and does nobody any favors. When you hear someone talking up a script based solely on the fame of the director associated with it, take it with a grain of salt. We can only hope Coppola busts the streak. Regardless of how you may feel aboutJackorOne From the Heart(if you even remember them), it is immensely pleasing to see the 85-year-old putting it all on the line, placing all his eggs in one basket, gambling on himself as he did withApocalypse Now. He might have lost a fortune or two, but he never lost his nerve, convinced that the grand epic will eventually be hailed a masterpiece.Coppola’s neoclassical allegory,Megalopolis, opens in US theaters on September 27.
