Shadows on the Wall | Megalopolis

Megalopolis A Fable

dir-scr Francis Ford Coppola
prd Francis Ford Coppola, Michael Bederman, Barry Hirsch, Fred Roos
with Adam Driver, Giancarlo Esposito, Nathalie Emmanuel, Aubrey Plaza, Shia LaBeouf, Jon Voight, Laurence Fishburne, Dustin Hoffman, Talia Shire, Jason Schwartzman, Kathryn Hunter, Grace VanderWaal
release US/UK 27.Sep.24
24/US American Zoetrope 2h18

CANNES FILM FEST
TORONTO FILM FEST

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A long-time passion project of film icon Francis Ford Coppola, this epic drama fuses history, theatre and literature into a fantastical tale about the possibilities of humanity. Some of the more audacious elements are the best things about this film: provocative and involving, using a sharp sense of humanity and humour to wrestle with big ideas. So even in the rather messy final act, this is riveting, engulfing filmmaking.

In an alternate present-day New Rome, Nobel Prize-winning architect Cesar (Driver) believes his malleable, indestructible new building material can transform the world. But he's locked in a battle of wills with Mayor Cicero (Esposito), while his party-boy cousin Clodio (LaBeouf) jealously plots against him. He also has an angry ex-mistress, Wow (Plaza), who wants him back, and marries his uber-wealthy grandfather (Voight). Trying to smooth things over, the mayor's daughter Julia (Emmanuel) is transfixed by Cesar's hopeful vision of the future, which contrasts with her father's rhetoric about the need to wage war.

Political ideas swirl through the film, with dialog that quotes a range of sources to explore what people need, why they revolt, and that men seeking power have always driven their civilisations to destruction. Indeed, the very nature of society is a question in this story, which Coppola assembles with lavish visual flourishes, gorgeous design work and elaborately staged set pieces, including a coliseum-style wedding complete with chariot races and wrestlers. And realistically jolting touches abound, including the mix of hope and fear in reaction to Cesar's invention.

Performances ground these heightened characters, including big names in colourful side roles. At the centre, Driver evokes Cesar's yearning to realise his dream, isolating himself from others until Julia appears. Driver and Emmanuel engage in terrifically smart banter, as Cesar becomes empowered by Julia, locking his focus on the future. LaBeouf's rowdy Clodio is superbly petty and dangerous, in a different way than Plaza's determined Wow. Meanwhile, Esposito's too-focussed Cicero bullishly misses the point until it's right in his face.

It's very easy to identify with the issues Cesar rages against, most notably the idea that no society can survive if power and money are held by only a few people. The mayor wants to build a casino to raise cash, but Cesar thinks further ahead: "Don't let the now destroy the future". His perhaps overstated question is whether humanity has survived so far due to kindness and community, or due to civilisation and war. And it's very clear that Coppola takes the more hopeful view.

themes, language, sexuality 27.Sep.24

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