One of the Polish reviews: "Your stoned buddy spends 2 hours telling you about the fall of the Roman Empire in comparison to today. Wonderful brothel."
This movie feels like being at a frat party and getting cornered by a first year Sociology major who's had a few too many and wants to talk at you about how they just read Ayn Rand for the first time.
Yes, I've been in this situation many times. I'm actually interested in sociology, art, literature, but can get fatigued from long pretentious conversations. Sometimes I just want to go to the cluuub
@@Houdingplaces And you sound so cultured and cool insulting me as a ‘little man’ don’t you? Glad you enjoyed the movie yourself but, we are allowed to have different tastes. Enjoy the rewatch ✔️ I’m sure such a ‘big’ man like yourself prides himself in languishing in such disorganized ‘art’.
Everyone involved, including Coppola, bought his reputation as a "genius" and then made an unhinged bad movie arguing that we need a misunderstood genius great man with a muse wife to save us from the other bad great men.
@@HALLish-jl5mo I mean... Godfather is a pretty good movie. I just think Coppola's reputation has blinded him, to the point that he thinks he is visionary in everything that he creates. I was wondering why is Catalina so smug in the movie, until i understood it serves as Coppola's self insert.
It was the worst movie going experience I have ever had. I was miserable. About 40 minutes in you realize it isn't going to get any better and your left for nearly another 2 hours with a false sense of hope that something will happen to turn things around. It never does. By the end you will be just begging for it to end so you can go about your business. It was artsy fartsy nonsense. I honestly hated every minute of it. I've never felt so disconnected from something I was wanting and trying so hard to get into.
Half way through I couldn’t take it anymore, walked out. I knew no matter how much it could improve, it wouldn’t be enough to make up for what I’d sat through already.
@@forgottenpath5919any time an artist describes something as a passion project that took years to make, they're setting expectations impossibly high. Sounds like this movie also happens to suck.
@BrettWB Have you not seen "Ingrid Goes West" or "Safety Not Guaranteed"? She's in the new movie titled, "My Old Ass". I discovered her from watching the TV series, "Parks and Recreation".
@@RipleyE-we1hj Havent seen Ingrid Goes West, but I have seen Safety Not Guaranteed. when it came out. Saw My Old Ass, last week. She's great in it, but she isn't the lead. I'll check out Ingrid soon, but she still needs to be in more lead roles. She's progressed so much, and Emily the Criminal really highlighted that.
To answer your question as to why Dustin Hoffman was in this film it’s because John Voight was also in this film think of midnight cowboy. I can’t think of any other reason.
The hat scene “You, pick up my hat.” “You, pick up my hat.” “You, pick up my hat.” got a good chuckle out of me It's like Brazil meets Caligula viewed through a Spy Kids lens and buried under fifteen pounds of shit 😂
8 1/2 too. Yes, haven't seen anyone mentioning this. I think the movie is ultimately bad, but if a critic doesn't know Fellini, they have no context for this movie
And Roma, Satyricon? I also suspect he would have derived inspirations from dreamlike narrative and extravaganzas of Fellini. A challenge with no chance of success. Coppola never showed that kind of talent even in his finest period.
You nailed exactly how I felt watching this on a full-size IMAX screen. I was entertained but confused for almost 2 hours of the runtime. Somewhere between 15 anf 30 minutes I understood the plot. Beautiful movie with beautiful people. Aubrey Plaza was my favorite part as well. Definitely one of the most unintentionally funny movies I've seen all year... maybe ever.
As long as your laughing all the way to the bank withdraw your cash & join your local community groups, Coppola is nobly trying to help us- he just holding mirrors baby
Everything I hear about this says this was meant to be a throwback to the New Hollywood era, only to reenforce the egos and hubris that ended it in the first place.
It's an appeal to nostalgia, but instead of trying to help us pick up those rose-tinted glasses of yesteryear, it is a frustrating and even enraging reminder of every shred of arrogance and ego that brought us to where we are. This isn't art. This is the buck-ass naked Emperor insisting he's wearing fine silks.
Have yet to see 'Megalopolis', but could not help but think of the movie 'Babylon.' Although 'Babylon' was completely different in terms of subplots and themes, it had some of the same qualities insofar as the lavish surroundings and bizarre plot scenarios. 'Babylon' was that misunderstood classic. 'Megalopolis' does not seem to qualify as such.
I keep hearing some common threads amongst the channels I am subbed to: 1. One called it jaundiced, which had me in stitches💀You called it sickly. 2. Lacking cohesion. 3. Poorly written/narrative. 4. Too many ideas. 5. Contrived. 6. Plot points that go nowhere, have no effect on the outcome/overall plot. 7. Lack of direction: Actors being in different movies. I think this was the gist. I’m not watching it in theaters. I’ll wait for streaming.
@@bigdreams5554 lmao xD I guess unintended comedy. I went to see Killers of the Flower Moon, just because it might be the last Scorsese film. Maybe this is that too.
If it helps, the 'theater' is the best part, IMO. I may never re-watch on a small screen but I am going a second time this week to understand if the whole idea WAS to polarize - 'are you not entertained?" Cheers.
Let’s also think about the technical failures that are utterly infuriating. The building demolition, where everyone coughs and swats away dust that… isn’t near them. There’s literally no dust in the foreground but theyre all fake coughing and gagging.
Too bad. I was hoping it would be great. And I feel bad for Francis Ford Coppola, since he has made great movies in the past that I love. Also, I understand that he sold his vineyard to finance this movie. Sometimes our passions get the better of us. Even film directors.
A generic femme fatale? There's plenty of movies like that and I feel aubrey will have more opportunities to act in better movies with better developed characters.
I saw this movie today. I was slumped in my cinema seat in disbelief half the time. The thing that redeemed the experience was delighting in the confused reactions telling my friends about it. Every ten minutes I remember a wild thing that happened in this movie I had forgotten about because the movie itself glosses over it minutes later. Watching this video made me go “oh yeah there was a Russian satellite that crashed and destroyed part of the city… you’d think the movie would have treated that as a bigger deal”
I honestly had such a good time. As far as I'm concerned FFC has been in some sort of slump. This at least felt like him trying to convey something in multiple ways. It does slow down a bit 2/3rds of the way in, but overall, I wasn't bored and I have a hard time believing that the cast would have done what they did if it wasnt for Coppola. It does have a disparate feel, but it did attempt to tie it all up in the end. Maybe I'm grading on a curve but if it's a mess it's a fun optimistic mess.
You make such a great point about if it was made by any other director like Neill Blomkamp, people would HATE this film. I’m seeing Coppola fans trying to say Megalopolis is being misunderstood but I swear it’s denial. I like his films too but I gave this 1.5/5 stars 😬 I checked my watch 3 times, the first time I thought I made it near the end and I was only a hour in 🤣
A friend of mine said to me recently that many filmmakers’ passion projects, like Michael Mann’s Ferrari for example, get to the point where they don’t know what story they want to tell and how to communicate it properly. That’s what it sounds like when it comes to this. Besides, I honestly can’t recall the last time Francis Ford Coppola made a damn good movie. I think the movie Jack starring Robin Williams kinda soured his reputation. Like, how do you go from directing some of the greatest films ever made like The Godfather 1&2 and Apocalypse Now to a shitty family comedy that you wouldn’t expect someone like him to direct? It’s like if Quentin Tarantino directed something like… I don’t know, name me a bad family comedy movie from the 2000s where it relied on gross out humor and whatnot.
Coppola had a lot of things going against him. Shitting on other movies and, how he could do "so much better", becoming more and more the meme of "Old man yells at clouds" and of course...Victor Salva. So his return is less a triumphant revival of a legend, and more like seeing an old rock star sagging and absolutely wasted.
And perhaps this is why Tarantino only wants to direct 10 films and call it a day and why he has said that directors don’t get better as they get older.
@@nickoftimeproductions8719 Exactly. I could honestly see him doing a movie that his kids can watch like how Martin Scorsese made Hugo so his daughter, who was a child when the film came out, could watch a film that he directed that wasn’t something like GoodFellas, Taxi Driver or Raging Bull. But I doubt that’ll ever happen.
Marianna, that was the nicest, most fair, most hopeful savaging of a new release I've ever heard from you. By all accounts it sounds like it couldn't have happened to a better film.
Imo the film should have been told from the perspective of Aubrey Plaza's character. Remove Nathalie Emmanuel's character and the 'love triangle' completely. Same for a lot of the unnecessary subplots. The main focus should be the ideological 'battle' between Driver and Esposito, with Jon Voight and Shia LeBeouf lurking in the shadows.
Megalopolis is a lot to digest, and I want to have a second viewing before I make a decision whether I think it's good or bad. For right now, I'm going with it being a poetic, surrealistic film in which the director is ticking off a lot of ideas for a purposeful chaos, and (I think) wants the viewer's mind to assemble the images into order out of the chaos. I think everybody should take a crack at it, it's an extraordinary experience that pushes the view to not be so passive and have to think abt the ideas more than an average movie which pretty much hands the viewer a point of view and what to think abt it. Megalopolis is getting a big release exactly because of who the director is and is getting an art film to a much larger audience than if this were a lesser-known director.
The studied artificiality reminded me of "One from the Heart" . But that film piled on the Baroque touches on a very straightforward story. This thing...
Always great reviews. I’m gonna see this mess eventually. Its not like we are going to get much more from Francis. I hope we do, though. All these old directors I grew up with in the ‘70’s and 80’s are now in their 70’s and 80’s. If they still have something to say, mess or not, I’ll watch it. At least this.
I agree that the film is a mess but my final assessment is nevertheless more positive than yours. It is at least a film that is different from yet another "just a movie" and it's the kind of film that sticks with you for a few days after you've seen it. While I think it is far from perfect, and I do wish it had a more apparent narrative structure, there are a lot of interesting things to ponder and talk about: ideas, philosophies, visuals, performances. It is, at worst, an "interesting failure," but I think it probably succeeds on too many levels to deserve even that appendage.
There are more films produced RIGHT NOW TODAY than at any previous time in human history. If you aren't happy with the movies you personally pick to watch, try harder because that's a you problem.
There was not much opposition from Cicero. Catilini could do anything he wanted to do. He recovered from all the things done to him. He also had Megalon to solve anything. No problem, no conflict, no story. Just a messy visual spectacle.
I actually enjoyed the vibe... It's such a statement about history, unhinged ambition, dreams, futility, and more. It might be "all over the place," but so are we, civilization after civilization. I cried at the end.
It deals with our present and ends with the great collapse of our society, the point at which we will demand a dialogue about our future, we will leave this shitty society of poverty behind us! The last 10 minutes are magical, especially when the attack on the World Trade Center is shown in the fictional New Rome and Cesar starts the revolution of Megalopolis!
I saw it yesterday and thought it was pretty intriguing. Today I had a friend watch this review so I wouldn’t have to. It’s a visually stunning, wildly ambitious, very abstract & expressionist film that some love and some hate. I think most people even interested will never get an informed opinion until they see it, I would recommend people keep it in their consideration set. It was not what I expected based on the thrashing its gotten from certain circles. But this film will be watched and discussed for a long time, probably a cult classic in the making, and from this director, if you reject it out of hand it’s probably not for you. But the curious should see it. And many may need to see it twice.
I liked this movie and will watch it again. It doesn't deserve the amount of flack it seems to be getting. Everyone is raving about The Substance right now but to me that was just as much of a mess that breaks its own logic constantly, and almost all scenes were derivative of better films. This is original and even toward the end gets the brain working. I do think it will get re-analysed and appreciated more after the mainstream media have finished with it. Coppola knows all of this of course. This is the swansong he wanted to make before he shuffles off and wont give an F what the initial response is or what the box office take is.
It's so original, uplifting and gorgeous looking that I'm baffled by the low ratings. My favorite IMAX experience of the year so far! What other utopian scifi movies do we have to enjoy besides this one? Oh that's right... only one: Tomorrowland. That's crazy!
It felt like a movie based on an obscure sci-fi novel from the 60s, that the studio insisted had to be a normal length. But it's not, so it has no excuse
It seems that as much as people can criticize producers for wanting too much control in a movie production, being an artist that to various degrees had to work in that very system might create someone too willing to self-indulgence when free from it, not even to mention the questionable casting of several people with actual terrible and documented behavior and of course the director very ongoing news in the production
True. As much as we do-understandably-rail against the ceaseless meddling from producers and executives, sometimes artists really are more "Mad" than "Genius." In this case though, Coppola funded this crap with his own money so, no one really had much of a ground to tell him otherwise.
Thank you. I think I'm going to wait for the streaming version and watch it like a 5 part mini series. Perhaps given time to reflect each part is needed. That's how I watched Atlas Shrugged
It was terrible movie. Entertaining in a train wreck sort of way. Very much seems like Coppola was trying to leave his message for the future. Too bad his message is really dumb and some bizzare Wilsonian appeal to your betters.
I enjoyed it. It's mad as a box of frogs. It took about 20 minutes for my brain to tune into its insane wavelength, but once there I didn't find it boring or slow, and I didn't find the plot confusing. It's actually a pretty simple plot. Plaza, LaBeouf and Voight are all tremendous fun. See it for yourself and make up your own mind.
When it comes to great directors getting a pass by critics - movies that would have received far more criticism if anyone else had directed them - I can think of a long list, including The Wolverine by James Mangold (71% on RT), Land of the Dead by George A. Romero (74% on RT), Alien: Covenant by Ridley Scott (65% on RT), and quite a few others. This movie has a 46% which is not exactly kind...even Mother of Tears by Dario Argento, one of the worst movies I've ever seen, has a higher RT score at 49%. If anything, I would almost argue that many critics are even more disappointed by this movie because the attached director got their hopes way too high. I didn't think it was great, but it was refreshing to see something that was not a remake, reboot, sequel, prequel, or other franchise installment.
I don't think our opinion on a film has ever diverged so much before, we have similar taste in movies and I'm almost guaranteed to like anything you recommend I saw megalopolis a couple of days ago, and i consider it one of the best films of the year. i guess that's the beauty of artistic interpretation.
Hey. I randomly stumbled upon this video and didn't like to click on it, but here I am. I would like to make this thing worth seeing, so the only reason this video is worth clicking is the movie itself, which was so over this woman's head that I tried to balance it out with a comment under her video, which I don't regret seeing because of this comment made about the film.
Great review. I admit I'd like to the see the glorious disaster on the big screen, but I doubt I'll get the chance due to some travel. I'll definitely be there for its streaming debut tho. I'm excited for the spectacle of it all, good, bad, ugly, beautiful, over the top, unintentional humorous, whatever. I actually really enjoyed the over the top spectacle of Babylon so bring the Meg on!
It's a 1960s avant-gard movie, released to a 2024 audience. I pretty much followed it to the end, and thought it was pretty good. And consistent, as a commentary on how decadent, factious, hedonistic, and unjust our society has become. How we stifle genius, and how we "fight like Hell" against all possible solutions to our problems. Cesar Catalina could see this, and the evil in his own heart. Julia could see it. If the viewer sees this "New Rome" as a decadent version of modern American society, told in part through symbolism, it can work. But, most younger viewers were not raised to view movies through that lens.
Having sat through Jake Gyllenall’s “Enemy” and Colin Farrell’s “The Banshees of Inisheeran” as the 2 worst movies I’d ever seen (at the end of “Enemy”, it was nothing but dead silence when a patron said out loud “WTF did I just watch”?… I can tell by the trailer and the comments….I’ll be passing on this one.
Like “ valley of the dolls” except this movie doesn’t have all the characters , dolls , subject after , dialogue, music but despite this the movie is just like Valley of the Dolls .
Megaflopolis is yet another example of why millions of dollars don't matter. Instead, support independent projects which actually comprehend STORYTELLING BASICS. 🐲✨🐲✨🐲✨ "Before I start, I must see my end. Destination known, my mind's journey now begins. Upon my chariot, heart and soul's fate revealed. In time, all points converge; hope's strength, resteeled. But to earn final peace at the universe's endless refrain, we must see all in nothingness... before we start again." 🐲✨🐲✨🐲✨ --Diamond Dragons (series)
When Coppola started unneccessarily tinkering with his older and far superior films, I knew something was going wrong upstairs. This movie is the culmination of that fear.
It seems like a movie like this is best done as a limited series. Where you can do 10 hour long episodes as opposed to cramming everything in 2 1/2 hours. I saw Jeremy Jahns' review, and after watching this, it sounded like the second act was just rushed.
While I haven't see this one yet, Marianna, I'm not surprise to hear what a mess this film is. It seems to me that Francis had a bunch of ideas in his mind and thought he could put them all together as a film and this is the end result.
I can't explain it, but aesthetically this looks like Coppola watched the Hunger Games trilogy (especially Songbirds and Snakes) and saw the Capitol's design and went "hm .. that."
Excellent review! Am actually still planning on seeing it as I’m just so curious about it. If anything, it sounds like everyone agrees that at least Aubrey Plaza is great.
I gots to be honest, I just got off of RUclips channel which was clearly trying to brainwash his audience into thinking that Megalopolis was the single hottest thing in cinema ever since the dawn of time, despite not having a clear,cohesive clue what the hell was going on. Thank you, for seeing this movie as the hot Glorious mess that it is and not being afraid to call it out as such.
12mins is realtively short but this movie review I peered down my watch twice and only 2mins had elapsed in between. Adam Driver is the Timothy Dalton of the 90s and Gabriel Byrne of the 2000s. Dull and colorless. All can flattened KFC biscuit in 1 second just by touching. NO CLUE what Hoffman is saying or Esposito. I love you Coppola. Hope you make a movie people want to see and you love telling
I wanted to give this a chance, but every thing I see takes me further and further away from this movie. At this point the only one holding what's left of my interest is Aubrey Plaza. 😅
In spite of the criticism Megapolis received, the movie features a formidable cast starting with Adam Driver, who I'm a fan of since he starred on the serie "Girls". Frankly, he's the new Al Pacino of these times, you should watch him in House of Gucci, on the other hand I dunno if I see this Ford Coppola's new film after watching Joker: Folie á Deux "a sequel nobody wanted".
I had no idea what was going on in the trailer, and still have barely an idea what this movie is about after your review. Skipping this like a jump rope.
I say this genuinely, not trying to be smarmy. Instead of getting your opinions from hack reviewers on youtube, you should see the movie for yourself before forming an opinion. And if you just have to know what it is about before you see it...just look up a plot summary. I promise you, in years to come, this will be viewed as a masterpiece. See it while it's fresh.
@@colellioleh3504 No. Also, if you think Marianna is a hack (she isn't), why are you here? Because a movie you love got a negative review? Are you that insecure?
@@colellioleh3504 I honestly had that thought myself while watching it. In 10 years people will be making videos about how they loved it from the very beginning. That said, I don't think it was that good of a movie. I didn't hate it as much as all these people did though. Makes me wonder how people felt about Brazil when it came out. This sort of reminded me of a Gilliam film.
By curiosity, what is your favorite Coppola movies? I haven't saw this one yet, I will save my money for other movies and will watch it later. I'm curious to see by myself the mess it is. It should have been a TV show or a movie in several parts.
Aubrey Plaza clearly had a lot of fun playing a very different character than those roles she has been cast in before. Even though I’m aware of her medical history, I still wish her eyebrows moved a bit more.
One of the Polish reviews: "Your stoned buddy spends 2 hours telling you about the fall of the Roman Empire in comparison to today. Wonderful brothel."
This movie feels like being at a frat party and getting cornered by a first year Sociology major who's had a few too many and wants to talk at you about how they just read Ayn Rand for the first time.
Yes, I've been in this situation many times. I'm actually interested in sociology, art, literature, but can get fatigued from long pretentious conversations. Sometimes I just want to go to the cluuub
Of all the movies I've ever seen, this is the most recent.
facts
Of all the most recent things I've done, this comment is the most recent.
😆😆
😆
Crazy! Of all the replies I’ve written this is the most recent!
Jon Voight is going to be shocked when he finds out he was in this movie.
What about Dustin Hoffman? He has literally 3 Lines in this movie.
@@doublep1980 I think Hoffman was at least aware that he was on camera. Voight, I'm not so sure.
FFC let Shia LaBeouf and Aubrey Plaza cut loose--- and not Dustin Hoffman and Jon Voight.
And they're actually--- y'know--- GOOD AT IT. :D
🤣
Voight was brilliant, his character was a goofy old man and he played it brilliantly.
A lady left during the movie saying she had enough 😂
Sounds like my reaction. Lol. I left right after the…
*spoilers, if anyone cares*
party faux pas where most people were like ‘F Cesar!!’…🙄
Hmmm dont like mirrors maybe🤔🤔
@@hallowedclaret Glad you left. You can’t understand its voice or speak its cadence. Let the geniuses enjoy this film little man.
@@Houdingplaces And you sound so cultured and cool insulting me as a ‘little man’ don’t you?
Glad you enjoyed the movie yourself but, we are allowed to have different tastes. Enjoy the rewatch ✔️ I’m sure such a ‘big’ man like yourself prides himself in languishing in such disorganized ‘art’.
Lady’s stop fighting 😂
I don't think we're ever going to see another cut of this movie. Because Coppola had total creative control, this *is* the director's cut.
omg wooooooooooooooooooooow
Why not an Editor's Cut?
You just blew my mind 😂
Everyone involved, including Coppola, bought his reputation as a "genius" and then made an unhinged bad movie arguing that we need a misunderstood genius great man with a muse wife to save us from the other bad great men.
He got that reputation from the Godfather.
Presumably from people who didn't see it because it's not a particularly good movie.
Yes. He's got a bad case of Lady in the Water Shyamalan-itis.
Don't forget Victor Salva, which is why I refuse to ever watch Francis's films.
@@HALLish-jl5mo It has the best opening scene I've yet seen, but I agree that it's not among the greatest films.
@@HALLish-jl5mo I mean... Godfather is a pretty good movie. I just think Coppola's reputation has blinded him, to the point that he thinks he is visionary in everything that he creates.
I was wondering why is Catalina so smug in the movie, until i understood it serves as Coppola's self insert.
It was the worst movie going experience I have ever had. I was miserable. About 40 minutes in you realize it isn't going to get any better and your left for nearly another 2 hours with a false sense of hope that something will happen to turn things around. It never does. By the end you will be just begging for it to end so you can go about your business. It was artsy fartsy nonsense. I honestly hated every minute of it. I've never felt so disconnected from something I was wanting and trying so hard to get into.
Half way through I couldn’t take it anymore, walked out. I knew no matter how much it could improve, it wouldn’t be enough to make up for what I’d sat through already.
@@Micoke12 wise move!
Yes. It's a distressingly uninvolving film for a passion project 40 years in the making.
@@forgottenpath5919any time an artist describes something as a passion project that took years to make, they're setting expectations impossibly high. Sounds like this movie also happens to suck.
How did you really feel? 😂
Sounds like there's too much movie in this movie
Way too much movie, but not enough Aubrey Plaza
@@ImpressionBlendIs there ever enough Aubrey Plaza?? I want to see her in more lead roles, like Emily the Criminal
@BrettWB Have you not seen "Ingrid Goes West" or "Safety Not Guaranteed"? She's in the new movie titled, "My Old Ass". I discovered her from watching the TV series, "Parks and Recreation".
"So much going, so many different elements, story threads and stylistic choices...."
Sounds like art reflecting life, doesn't it?
@@RipleyE-we1hj Havent seen Ingrid Goes West, but I have seen Safety Not Guaranteed. when it came out. Saw My Old Ass, last week. She's great in it, but she isn't the lead. I'll check out Ingrid soon, but she still needs to be in more lead roles. She's progressed so much, and Emily the Criminal really highlighted that.
One of the most egotistical movies I’ve ever seen. I don’t necessarily regret seeing it, but I hated it lol
Isn't all Romantic art egotistical?
@@Tolstoy111 Not necessarily. Off the top of my head, Andrew Haigh’s Weekend might be a good counter example
Half the audience left the theatre. It was really hard to get through it
I'm not surprised
To answer your question as to why Dustin Hoffman was in this film it’s because John Voight was also in this film think of midnight cowboy. I can’t think of any other reason.
Honestly as good a reason as any, considering how messy this is
The hat scene “You, pick up my hat.” “You, pick up my hat.” “You, pick up my hat.” got a good chuckle out of me
It's like Brazil meets Caligula viewed through a Spy Kids lens and buried under fifteen pounds of shit 😂
The arrow scene with Cassius got me cracking up hard. It was so random that it was funny
@@infinitesession5439 yeah that was the only good part.
Yes, that really cracked me up. (It was very Coen Brothers, don't you think?)
That sounds like a film I want to see!
This is Coppola trying to do Fellini.
Megalopolis is no La Dolce Vita.
@@marcemerson5757 Tell me you've never seen La Dolce Vita without telling me you've never seen La Dolce Vita.
8 1/2 too. Yes, haven't seen anyone mentioning this. I think the movie is ultimately bad, but if a critic doesn't know Fellini, they have no context for this movie
And Roma, Satyricon? I also suspect he would have derived inspirations from dreamlike narrative and extravaganzas of Fellini. A challenge with no chance of success. Coppola never showed that kind of talent even in his finest period.
@@radiofriendly I don't think any movie should require seeing another movie to have context; even as a critic. Unless it's a prequel/sequel.
Megalopolis is MOST DEFINITELY a movie... maybe
You nailed exactly how I felt watching this on a full-size IMAX screen. I was entertained but confused for almost 2 hours of the runtime. Somewhere between 15 anf 30 minutes I understood the plot. Beautiful movie with beautiful people. Aubrey Plaza was my favorite part as well. Definitely one of the most unintentionally funny movies I've seen all year... maybe ever.
Unintentional comedy full of error
I know I'm gonna be laughing like a maniac when I see this
I know I was in some parts!
Marianna, where do you stand on this being a movie that people watch to make fun of? Because, after watching it, that was my biggest takeaway.
Me too 😂
As long as your laughing all the way to the bank withdraw your cash & join your local community groups, Coppola is nobly trying to help us- he just holding mirrors baby
We all were
But not the way Francis wanted us to
Everything I hear about this says this was meant to be a throwback to the New Hollywood era, only to reenforce the egos and hubris that ended it in the first place.
It's an appeal to nostalgia, but instead of trying to help us pick up those rose-tinted glasses of yesteryear, it is a frustrating and even enraging reminder of every shred of arrogance and ego that brought us to where we are.
This isn't art. This is the buck-ass naked Emperor insisting he's wearing fine silks.
Have yet to see 'Megalopolis', but could not help but think of the movie 'Babylon.' Although 'Babylon' was completely different in terms of subplots and themes, it had some of the same qualities insofar as the lavish surroundings and bizarre plot scenarios. 'Babylon' was that misunderstood classic. 'Megalopolis' does not seem to qualify as such.
the one with margot robbie?
@@hedgeknight_17 Yes, that's the one.😆From 2022. Directed by Damien Chazelle. All three hours of it.
Megalopolis has some of the flaws of Babylon, but none of Babylon’s great parts.
I LOVED Babylon!
@Elephant2024-wi2li im surprised to hear how many people love Babylon. almost all the youtube reviewer i see past as i scroll hated it
I keep hearing some common threads amongst the channels I am subbed to:
1. One called it jaundiced, which had me in stitches💀You called it sickly.
2. Lacking cohesion.
3. Poorly written/narrative.
4. Too many ideas.
5. Contrived.
6. Plot points that go nowhere, have no effect on the outcome/overall plot.
7. Lack of direction: Actors being in different movies.
I think this was the gist. I’m not watching it in theaters. I’ll wait for streaming.
It's worth watching in theaters to laugh along with other people.
@@bigdreams5554 lmao xD I guess unintended comedy. I went to see Killers of the Flower Moon, just because it might be the last Scorsese film. Maybe this is that too.
If it helps, the 'theater' is the best part, IMO. I may never re-watch on a small screen but I am going a second time this week to understand if the whole idea WAS to polarize - 'are you not entertained?" Cheers.
Let’s also think about the technical failures that are utterly infuriating. The building demolition, where everyone coughs and swats away dust that… isn’t near them. There’s literally no dust in the foreground but theyre all fake coughing and gagging.
It's almost painful just getting through the synopsis. Yikes. Thanks for taking one for the team.
5:17 I'd kill for a Matrix spin-off movie featuring Morpheus just driving around the Matrix just for the sheer insanity of the concept itself. 🤣
Too bad. I was hoping it would be great. And I feel bad for Francis Ford Coppola, since he has made great movies in the past that I love. Also, I understand that he sold his vineyard to finance this movie. Sometimes our passions get the better of us. Even film directors.
I need a spinoff that focuses intensely on Aubrey Plaza’s character
A generic femme fatale? There's plenty of movies like that and I feel aubrey will have more opportunities to act in better movies with better developed characters.
Okay, now I absolutely positively have to see this. Let's call it the Coppola Effect.
I saw this movie today. I was slumped in my cinema seat in disbelief half the time. The thing that redeemed the experience was delighting in the confused reactions telling my friends about it. Every ten minutes I remember a wild thing that happened in this movie I had forgotten about because the movie itself glosses over it minutes later. Watching this video made me go “oh yeah there was a Russian satellite that crashed and destroyed part of the city… you’d think the movie would have treated that as a bigger deal”
I honestly had such a good time. As far as I'm concerned FFC has been in some sort of slump. This at least felt like him trying to convey something in multiple ways. It does slow down a bit 2/3rds of the way in, but overall, I wasn't bored and I have a hard time believing that the cast would have done what they did if it wasnt for Coppola. It does have a disparate feel, but it did attempt to tie it all up in the end. Maybe I'm grading on a curve but if it's a mess it's a fun optimistic mess.
You make such a great point about if it was made by any other director like Neill Blomkamp, people would HATE this film. I’m seeing Coppola fans trying to say Megalopolis is being misunderstood but I swear it’s denial. I like his films too but I gave this 1.5/5 stars 😬 I checked my watch 3 times, the first time I thought I made it near the end and I was only a hour in 🤣
I just have to see this one for myself. Its just one of those movies.
Has to be seen to be believed
Felt the same way. Like this reviewer, so wanted to champion it and explain why it's misunderstood. But it's not. It's a truly wretched film.
I'm not watching any old men vanity projects.
Who cares about what you watch.
@@janemzen3694 You cared enough to reply.
literally, this movie is criticizing vanity projects. and how rich people will destroy our world.
A friend of mine said to me recently that many filmmakers’ passion projects, like Michael Mann’s Ferrari for example, get to the point where they don’t know what story they want to tell and how to communicate it properly. That’s what it sounds like when it comes to this.
Besides, I honestly can’t recall the last time Francis Ford Coppola made a damn good movie. I think the movie Jack starring Robin Williams kinda soured his reputation. Like, how do you go from directing some of the greatest films ever made like The Godfather 1&2 and Apocalypse Now to a shitty family comedy that you wouldn’t expect someone like him to direct? It’s like if Quentin Tarantino directed something like… I don’t know, name me a bad family comedy movie from the 2000s where it relied on gross out humor and whatnot.
Coppola had a lot of things going against him. Shitting on other movies and, how he could do "so much better", becoming more and more the meme of "Old man yells at clouds" and of course...Victor Salva.
So his return is less a triumphant revival of a legend, and more like seeing an old rock star sagging and absolutely wasted.
Yeah, I think his last decent film was Bram Stoker's Dracula. 32 freaking years ago.
And perhaps this is why Tarantino only wants to direct 10 films and call it a day and why he has said that directors don’t get better as they get older.
@@nickoftimeproductions8719 Exactly.
I could honestly see him doing a movie that his kids can watch like how Martin Scorsese made Hugo so his daughter, who was a child when the film came out, could watch a film that he directed that wasn’t something like GoodFellas, Taxi Driver or Raging Bull. But I doubt that’ll ever happen.
Marianna, that was the nicest, most fair, most hopeful savaging of a new release I've ever heard from you. By all accounts it sounds like it couldn't have happened to a better film.
Adam Driver's delivery of the "go back to the club" line got a laugh out of me.
Dustin Hoffman simply says: ummmff mfggrr...afffnnn...rooooom...empire...ghhh...fall...
Yea that's pretty much what I got from him as well
Imo the film should have been told from the perspective of Aubrey Plaza's character.
Remove Nathalie Emmanuel's character and the 'love triangle' completely. Same for a lot of the unnecessary subplots.
The main focus should be the ideological 'battle' between Driver and Esposito, with Jon Voight and Shia LeBeouf lurking in the shadows.
Told from the perspective of Aubrey Plaza's character? Now that's a version of this movie I can get behind.
This movie was really atrocious such a total waste of time haha
Megalopolis is a lot to digest, and I want to have a second viewing before I make a decision whether I think it's good or bad. For right now, I'm going with it being a poetic, surrealistic film in which the director is ticking off a lot of ideas for a purposeful chaos, and (I think) wants the viewer's mind to assemble the images into order out of the chaos. I think everybody should take a crack at it, it's an extraordinary experience that pushes the view to not be so passive and have to think abt the ideas more than an average movie which pretty much hands the viewer a point of view and what to think abt it. Megalopolis is getting a big release exactly because of who the director is and is getting an art film to a much larger audience than if this were a lesser-known director.
No way I’m watching this movie again
The studied artificiality reminded me of "One from the Heart" . But that film piled on the Baroque touches on a very straightforward story. This thing...
Megalopolis? I saw that movie, i thought it was bullshit. -Christopher Moltesanti
I'm watching Megalopolis reviews and it's just people describing Southland Tales.
Yeah
Always great reviews. I’m gonna see this mess eventually. Its not like we are going to get much more from Francis. I hope we do, though. All these old directors I grew up with in the ‘70’s and 80’s are now in their 70’s and 80’s. If they still have something to say, mess or not, I’ll watch it. At least this.
I agree that the film is a mess but my final assessment is nevertheless more positive than yours. It is at least a film that is different from yet another "just a movie" and it's the kind of film that sticks with you for a few days after you've seen it. While I think it is far from perfect, and I do wish it had a more apparent narrative structure, there are a lot of interesting things to ponder and talk about: ideas, philosophies, visuals, performances.
It is, at worst, an "interesting failure," but I think it probably succeeds on too many levels to deserve even that appendage.
I really hope the film does not stick with me a few days. What a misguided disaster.
There are more films produced RIGHT NOW TODAY than at any previous time in human history.
If you aren't happy with the movies you personally pick to watch, try harder because that's a you problem.
There was not much opposition from Cicero. Catilini could do anything he wanted to do. He recovered from all the things done to him. He also had Megalon to solve anything. No problem, no conflict, no story. Just a messy visual spectacle.
I actually enjoyed the vibe... It's such a statement about history, unhinged ambition, dreams, futility, and more. It might be "all over the place," but so are we, civilization after civilization. I cried at the end.
This film will be a cult classic in 10 years. Guaranteed 😅
It deals with our present and ends with the great collapse of our society, the point at which we will demand a dialogue about our future, we will leave this shitty society of poverty behind us! The last 10 minutes are magical, especially when the attack on the World Trade Center is shown in the fictional New Rome and Cesar starts the revolution of Megalopolis!
Yeah…..naaaah.
People are going to watching this drunk or high very soon.
Like Southland Tales. 😎
It's already a cult classic, lol.
His backing of victor salva means coppolla should be banished to history.he is done !
Barely any cinemas here are showing it, so I wouldn't have any option to watch it, even if I wanted to. 😅
I saw it yesterday and thought it was pretty intriguing. Today I had a friend watch this review so I wouldn’t have to. It’s a visually stunning, wildly ambitious, very abstract & expressionist film that some love and some hate. I think most people even interested will never get an informed opinion until they see it, I would recommend people keep it in their consideration set. It was not what I expected based on the thrashing its gotten from certain circles. But this film will be watched and discussed for a long time, probably a cult classic in the making, and from this director, if you reject it out of hand it’s probably not for you. But the curious should see it. And many may need to see it twice.
Aubrey Plaza is just fantastic
She is.
She is, but shoehorned into this?
This film is abstract art and when you view it as such it is beautiful.
I liked this movie and will watch it again. It doesn't deserve the amount of flack it seems to be getting. Everyone is raving about The Substance right now but to me that was just as much of a mess that breaks its own logic constantly, and almost all scenes were derivative of better films. This is original and even toward the end gets the brain working. I do think it will get re-analysed and appreciated more after the mainstream media have finished with it. Coppola knows all of this of course. This is the swansong he wanted to make before he shuffles off and wont give an F what the initial response is or what the box office take is.
It's a shame, I was hoping this one might be a highlight for 2024.
It's so original, uplifting and gorgeous looking that I'm baffled by the low ratings. My favorite IMAX experience of the year so far! What other utopian scifi movies do we have to enjoy besides this one? Oh that's right... only one: Tomorrowland. That's crazy!
It felt like a movie based on an obscure sci-fi novel from the 60s, that the studio insisted had to be a normal length. But it's not, so it has no excuse
"So maybe Adam Driver does actually stop time in this one, I don;t know!" 🙏🙏😂🤣 It was obvious BEFORE he made it that this was going to be failure.
It seems that as much as people can criticize producers for wanting too much control in a movie production, being an artist that to various degrees had to work in that very system might create someone too willing to self-indulgence when free from it, not even to mention the questionable casting of several people with actual terrible and documented behavior and of course the director very ongoing news in the production
unevidenced innuendo
True. As much as we do-understandably-rail against the ceaseless meddling from producers and executives, sometimes artists really are more "Mad" than "Genius." In this case though, Coppola funded this crap with his own money so, no one really had much of a ground to tell him otherwise.
@@randomcenturion7264 I have seen it and I didn't think it was crap. It was 6/10 meh. _The Flash_ was 2/10 atrocious.
Thank you.
I think I'm going to wait for the streaming version and watch it like a 5 part mini series. Perhaps given time to reflect each part is needed.
That's how I watched Atlas Shrugged
It was terrible movie. Entertaining in a train wreck sort of way. Very much seems like Coppola was trying to leave his message for the future. Too bad his message is really dumb and some bizzare Wilsonian appeal to your betters.
Wilsonian? Yikes that's bad XD
"think about the future... For your kids" doesn't seem dumb to me, unless you some childless cat person I guess
@@bigdreams5554 it's not dumb, it's just utterly banal
@bigdreams5554 it's not, just really basic. Miyazaki did it better though.
I enjoyed it. It's mad as a box of frogs. It took about 20 minutes for my brain to tune into its insane wavelength, but once there I didn't find it boring or slow, and I didn't find the plot confusing. It's actually a pretty simple plot. Plaza, LaBeouf and Voight are all tremendous fun. See it for yourself and make up your own mind.
My exact sentiments. You really nailed it. I too hoped I'd come out saying it is a ''misunderstood masterpiece''. What a colossal mess.
When it comes to great directors getting a pass by critics - movies that would have received far more criticism if anyone else had directed them - I can think of a long list, including The Wolverine by James Mangold (71% on RT), Land of the Dead by George A. Romero (74% on RT), Alien: Covenant by Ridley Scott (65% on RT), and quite a few others. This movie has a 46% which is not exactly kind...even Mother of Tears by Dario Argento, one of the worst movies I've ever seen, has a higher RT score at 49%.
If anything, I would almost argue that many critics are even more disappointed by this movie because the attached director got their hopes way too high. I didn't think it was great, but it was refreshing to see something that was not a remake, reboot, sequel, prequel, or other franchise installment.
I don't think our opinion on a film has ever diverged so much before, we have similar taste in movies and I'm almost guaranteed to like anything you recommend
I saw megalopolis a couple of days ago, and i consider it one of the best films of the year. i guess that's the beauty of artistic interpretation.
Hey. I randomly stumbled upon this video and didn't like to click on it, but here I am. I would like to make this thing worth seeing, so the only reason this video is worth clicking is the movie itself, which was so over this woman's head that I tried to balance it out with a comment under her video, which I don't regret seeing because of this comment made about the film.
Great review. I admit I'd like to the see the glorious disaster on the big screen, but I doubt I'll get the chance due to some travel. I'll definitely be there for its streaming debut tho. I'm excited for the spectacle of it all, good, bad, ugly, beautiful, over the top, unintentional humorous, whatever. I actually really enjoyed the over the top spectacle of Babylon so bring the Meg on!
It's a 1960s avant-gard movie, released to a 2024 audience. I pretty much followed it to the end, and thought it was pretty good. And consistent, as a commentary on how decadent, factious, hedonistic, and unjust our society has become. How we stifle genius, and how we "fight like Hell" against all possible solutions to our problems. Cesar Catalina could see this, and the evil in his own heart. Julia could see it. If the viewer sees this "New Rome" as a decadent version of modern American society, told in part through symbolism, it can work. But, most younger viewers were not raised to view movies through that lens.
I think I'm still going to watch it for the "Bizarre sh*t all around" and Aubrey Plaza.
Literally was hoping the whole time they'd realize they were Dark City and the aliens would come out and say "sleep" and we'd know wtf was going on.
I was literally thinking that! I need to go watch dark City to cleanse my palate.
Having sat through Jake Gyllenall’s “Enemy” and Colin Farrell’s “The Banshees of Inisheeran” as the 2 worst movies I’d ever seen (at the end of “Enemy”, it was nothing but dead silence when a patron said out loud “WTF did I just watch”?…
I can tell by the trailer and the comments….I’ll be passing on this one.
Great review, the only one so far I actually feel I got some valid insights from.
Like “ valley of the dolls” except this movie doesn’t have all the characters , dolls , subject after , dialogue, music but despite this the movie is just like Valley of the Dolls .
Wow, you actually convinced me to want to see it now
... The most animated to a movie you did not care for I have seen you :)
This was one crazy play that they shot on film and released in theaters without adapting for the medium except in post production.
This movie is Coppola's answer to the questions: What is your Roman Empire, I guess.
Megaflopolis is yet another example of why millions of dollars don't matter. Instead, support independent projects which actually comprehend STORYTELLING BASICS.
🐲✨🐲✨🐲✨
"Before I start, I must see my end. Destination known, my mind's journey now begins. Upon my chariot, heart and soul's fate revealed. In time, all points converge; hope's strength, resteeled. But to earn final peace at the universe's endless refrain, we must see all in nothingness... before we start again."
🐲✨🐲✨🐲✨
--Diamond Dragons (series)
When Coppola started unneccessarily tinkering with his older and far superior films, I knew something was going wrong upstairs. This movie is the culmination of that fear.
It seems like a movie like this is best done as a limited series. Where you can do 10 hour long episodes as opposed to cramming everything in 2 1/2 hours. I saw Jeremy Jahns' review, and after watching this, it sounded like the second act was just rushed.
To quote Peter Griffin about Copolla movies: *"It insists upon itself."*
I wonder what pharmacology would be most appropriate for watching this motion picture??
Sorry for not answering your question, just wanted to remind you that it's a good time of the year to go find some delicious mushrooms.
@@thisusedtobemyrealname7876 I believe a good mushroom tea might just be in order!
Strong edibles, or booze so you’re primed to just accept unbelievably unacceptable circumstances.
I regret having watched it sober 😂 huge mistake
I always recommend, Ecstasy. But Molly will likely have to suffice.
While I haven't see this one yet, Marianna, I'm not surprise to hear what a mess this film is. It seems to me that Francis had a bunch of ideas in his mind and thought he could put them all together as a film and this is the end result.
I can't explain it, but aesthetically this looks like Coppola watched the Hunger Games trilogy (especially Songbirds and Snakes) and saw the Capitol's design and went "hm .. that."
Some of the negative reviews compared this to Babylon. If that’s the case, that’s a plus in my book because I LOVED Babylon.
No way! I loved “Babylon”!
I can assure you that this movie is nothing like Babylon which is one of my favorite movies
I walked out of Babylon after 40mins, Not a fan ..
Excellent review! Am actually still planning on seeing it as I’m just so curious about it. If anything, it sounds like everyone agrees that at least Aubrey Plaza is great.
Great review! I’m still gonna watch it even though I don’t have any high expectations 😅 on another note, will you be seeing Joker Folie à Deux???
Probably
I gots to be honest, I just got off of RUclips channel which was clearly trying to brainwash his audience into thinking that Megalopolis was the single hottest thing in cinema ever since the dawn of time, despite not having a clear,cohesive clue what the hell was going on.
Thank you, for seeing this movie as the hot Glorious mess that it is and not being afraid to call it out as such.
The depths of my emersonian mind can't take this 😢
12mins is realtively short but this movie review I peered down my watch twice and only 2mins had elapsed in between.
Adam Driver is the Timothy Dalton of the 90s and Gabriel Byrne of the 2000s. Dull and colorless. All can flattened KFC biscuit in 1 second just by touching. NO CLUE what Hoffman is saying or Esposito.
I love you Coppola. Hope you make a movie people want to see and you love telling
Your last line made your review worth watching!😅
I wanted to give this a chance, but every thing I see takes me further and further away from this movie. At this point the only one holding what's left of my interest is Aubrey Plaza. 😅
Plaza is nuts in this, and I would recommend watching a compilation of her scenes when available on RUclips.
I haven’t even seen this movie, nor do I want to. I just like seeing the audience reactions to it 😂
Such clarity to explain such clutter. Subbed.
In spite of the criticism Megapolis received, the movie features a formidable cast starting with Adam Driver, who I'm a fan of since he starred on the serie "Girls". Frankly, he's the new Al Pacino of these times, you should watch him in House of Gucci, on the other hand I dunno if I see this Ford Coppola's new film after watching Joker: Folie á Deux "a sequel nobody wanted".
I had no idea what was going on in the trailer, and still have barely an idea what this movie is about after your review. Skipping this like a jump rope.
I say this genuinely, not trying to be smarmy. Instead of getting your opinions from hack reviewers on youtube, you should see the movie for yourself before forming an opinion. And if you just have to know what it is about before you see it...just look up a plot summary. I promise you, in years to come, this will be viewed as a masterpiece. See it while it's fresh.
@@colellioleh3504 No. Also, if you think Marianna is a hack (she isn't), why are you here? Because a movie you love got a negative review? Are you that insecure?
@@colellioleh3504 I honestly had that thought myself while watching it. In 10 years people will be making videos about how they loved it from the very beginning.
That said, I don't think it was that good of a movie. I didn't hate it as much as all these people did though.
Makes me wonder how people felt about Brazil when it came out.
This sort of reminded me of a Gilliam film.
People talk about Boyhood taking 12 years to make. Coppola spent 40+ years trying to stop time.
The New York Times is reporting that Megalopolis is playing to nearly empty theatres. 🎭
By curiosity, what is your favorite Coppola movies?
I haven't saw this one yet, I will save my money for other movies and will watch it later. I'm curious to see by myself the mess it is. It should have been a TV show or a movie in several parts.
It seems like a movie best seen with the sound turned off.
Preferably while high
No you definitely want to hear Aubrey Plaza's Wow Platinum and Shia's characters
I agree about the stage play comment
I thought that as I was watching it “I wish this was a NYC play with all of these actors”
Aubrey Plaza clearly had a lot of fun playing a very different character than those roles she has been cast in before. Even though I’m aware of her medical history, I still wish her eyebrows moved a bit more.
Boy! I wanted this to be a great movie. Francis Ford Coppola's Godfather is the greatest movie. For this to be his last is so sad.