LOS ANGELES — “Megalopolis” has been a film decades in the making for director Francis Ford Coppola.
For Coppola, it’s his Roman epic — or, at least, a Roman fable of an imaginary America. In the city of New Rome, change must happen in order for society to thrive, but conflict arises between Cesar Catilina (Adam Driver), a genius artist seeking to leap into a utopian future, and Mayor Franklyn Cicero (Giancarlo Espositio), who remains committed to a regressive status quo and partisan warfare. Caught in the middle of Cesar and Mayor Cicero is Julia Cicero, the mayor’s daughter (Nathalie Emmanuel), whose love for Cesar has divided her loyalties and forcing her to discover what she truly believes humanity deserves.
And what does humanity deserve? Or is the society we live in the only one available to us? True to form, Coppola leaves this question for the viewer.
For Emmanuel, the answer is “absolutely not.”
“I think it is clear there is so much that can change and so much positivity that can be poured into society,” she told Spectrum News. “There are a lot of people who have power and could use it differently. It’s been said many times in the movie, and by Francis, how brilliant human beings really are and how we are a miracle. We have the potential to solve these problems and solve these issues.”
A big believer of thought, Emmanuel says everyone has a point of view and while we might not always agree with each other, but we can respectfully let everyone have their say.
“Maybe there is something that can push us all forward in a way that helps everybody,” she said.
How does our society push forward to help everybody? Change. But what about those who fear change and who have a hard time embracing it, like in “Megalopolis” with Mayor Cicero?
Esposito believes it’s about being mindful and taking one’s own temperature to where one is at today.
“For me, I have four daughters. It has taken me a bit to get in step with the new age and new thinking of young people,” he told Spectrum News. “When we hold on too tightly, we are actually hurting ourselves because we are not welcoming new ideas.”
Coppola's message, seeking to embrace new ideas, drives Esposito's admiration for the iconic director.
“I realized I’ve held my own rigid beliefs, but your own rigid beliefs don’t always have to be yours. They can be coming to you from the generational beliefs of your family, which have been imparted on you," Esposito said. "It’s to breathe. It’s to be mindful. You have to be affected by another person. If you are in your own bubble of your own brain, you’re not really being mindful.”
For Esposito, it’s when we listen to each other, and realize that another person may not feel the way we do, surrender happens.
Driver hopes viewers understand how deeply Coppola respects his audience. This movie is totally singular, Driver said, which he believes is hard to accomplish.
“He [Coppola] respects his audience so much. He’s a big proponent of showing, not telling, which is something people don’t have a lot of faith in doing. Audiences will make connections and maybe they’ll have to see it again to make those connections,” he said.
For Driver, working with Coppola was one of the best shooting experiences he’s ever had.
“He’s still very much a theater director, which is how he started, and his sets feel like that,” said Driver. “A lot of improv, a lot of not getting stuck in the right answer, a lot freedom to the actors so they have this ownership. They kind of feel like they have stock in the film, so of course they are more invested in it. It was great. I loved it. I would do it again in a second.”
“Megalopolis” hits theaters and IMAX this weekend. You can find the Spectrum News’ conversation with director Francis Ford Coppola here.
Click the link above to watch the full interview with the cast.