A lot of people saw Francis Ford Coppola’s “Megalopolis” last night. A lot of people didn’t like it.
We knew that was going to happen.
“Megalopolis” was shown in a bunch of IMAX theaters along with a live streamed Q&A with Coppola, Robert De Niro, Spike Lee, and some of the cast before — not after– the movie. That was a clever move so no one could react to actually seeing the extravaganza. Star Adam Driver was absent because he’s beginning performances tonight in his off Broadway play. De Niro declared during the Q&A “Just imagine Donald Trump directing this film. It’ll never go anywhere, He cannot do anything. He cannot hold anything together … He wants to destroy the country. And he could not do this movie. He could not do anything that has a structure.”
Coppola added, “I know him. We went to military school together.” It seemed odd, but it’s true. The difference was that Coppola ran away from the New York Military School, while Trump’s father made him stay.Coppola has spent 40 years getting this film together. He’s put more than $100 million of his own money into it. This is a passion project by a visionary director. But the audience received it as a mess. To be fair, a few people liked it for its audacity, and a couple of them complimented the cinematography.
And yes, an actor came on stage and spoke to the screen during the film. But this will not happen when the movie begins showings tomorrow night.Megalopolis Q&A was painful lmao. Spike Lee said something like “do they eat cats and dogs in Rome?” laughing crazy at his own joke and Francis Ford Coppola was like “funny you mention that cause I do have a Haitian subplot in my film and they’re all beautiful people”
— Jae / JamKam (@jammkamm) September 24, 2024
Megalopolis is a fascinating, ambitious, unfiltered, unintentionally hilarious, incoherent jumble of disorganized ideas from the greatest filmmaker of the 70s half a century past his prime with nobody to rein him in. I encourage everyone to experience it and I'm sorry in advance.
— Kestrel Swift (@FullmetalKyouma) September 24, 2024
MEGALOPOLIS – man that was one crazy movie!! Preceded by the most awkward livestream Q&A I’ve ever seen. Shia LaBeouf (in a dress) stole the show. Aubrey Plaza doing terrible acting. Lots of UNOBTAINIUM. Hard to even describe this. Felt like STRANGE DAYS meets THE PHANTOM MENACE.
— Matt Landsman (@MattLandsman) September 24, 2024
