Why I Admire Megalopolis' Original Draft

[@TheEruditeCritic]

Join our discord: discord.gg/76Nef38FWn I hope you enjoyed my analysis, this video took a while to make but it was worth it in the end. Let me know if you guys agree, and please subscribe, it means a lot!

[@nicholibaldron8171]

This was one of the best video essays I've seen in months! You convinced me to give Megalopolis a chance.

[@TheEruditeCritic]

I am glad you enjoyed my analysis, let me know what you think of the movie!

[@catcollector719]

Fantastic analysis! LOL @ 4:17

[@TheEruditeCritic]

Not just another brick in the wall!

[@oweirwin-4529]

Expectation: Rome Reality: us.

[@brucehu9944]

This is the best movie review I've seen. I felt evolved.

[@TheEruditeCritic]

Thank you! We worked very hard on this. Congrats on the evolution

[@lymphomasurvive]

I just saw the movie and thought the movie had a clear and coherent structure that many critics didn’t seem to understand. It’s a mixture of an Aesop fable with the magical realism of Latin American literature. I didn’t see anything that was unclear. In interviews, Adam Driver said the film leaves you open to interpret it but that’s not the nature of fables, which are moralistic by nature; the movie had a clear message. At the start of the movie, Catalina is probably in the middle of psychosis, and I think some of the things we see, like the moving statues in the drive, can be seen in that manner. I didn’t find the monologues preachy or out of place in the context they were given.

[@TheEruditeCritic]

Hi there! Thank you so much for this perspective, narrative structure is often something that gets lost a lot on the viewers a lot when it’s not the classical structure. I approached this movie more from an angle of analyzing it’s ideas as it relates to my area of interest (Rome) so I never dissected it the way you did. It’s all about seeing what angle a movie takes in relation to cinematic language.

[@lymphomasurvive]

@@TheEruditeCritic I saw most of your review, though not all of it, before seeing the movie yesterday. Your review put a lot of it into perspective.

[@joshfravel9609]

This video changed my mind about megalopolis it is a masterpiece

[@niddlianknight]

But it is better than Megamind

[@virgilwithav]

@@niddlianknightno. Not even close.

[@dohdop]

I haven’t seen a movie, but saw some people on letterbox defending it, so I decided to look for some positive reviews on this movie, and I like your content, editing. I hope you’ll get recognition, cause you are very underrated

[@TheEruditeCritic]

Thank you, this means a lot!

[@BrandonStewartCS]

Fantastic video!

[@TheEruditeCritic]

Thank you, I appreciate it!

[@kurono1999]

Sir, this is a wonderful video. Good job.

[@TheEruditeCritic]

Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it!

[@tristanmryan]

Incredible video! Subscribed! Wow, glad I found this, can't wait to see Megalopolis. I'm obsessed with Rome.

[@TheEruditeCritic]

Thank you! We plan on more Roman history videos to come!

[@ethanrichmond3992]

Hallo i am francs ford coopla thank you for understanding my movie

[@TheEruditeCritic]

It was my duty Mr. Coppola

[@qiaochuhe2848]

Making me can't wait to watch Megalopolis !!!

[@ayou2470]

Interesting. Thank you ❤

[@TheEruditeCritic]

You’re welcome!

[@lunamerci7801]

Thank you for the analysis and history, very informative.

[@TheEruditeCritic]

Thank you for watching!

[@Andrew-of8uq]

If only Coppola had not changed the script from this draft it was such an incredible script

[@TheEruditeCritic]

Having seen the film… he definitely went with the less politically charged ending 😅

[@Andrew-of8uq]

@@TheEruditeCritic tragic

[@SandroMercadoEMERSON]

Great vid! I can't believe that the roman history goes so deep!

[@TheEruditeCritic]

Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed my analysis

[@ninaturovskiy5319]

Great movie review! Im excited to watch the movie!! It's hard to acknowledge that our heroes could be terrible people and that there are more sudes to each story. Its interesting to hear about other perspectives.

[@TheEruditeCritic]

Thank you! Part of making this video is kinda like a patricide of sort since I look up to Cicero so much. It’s part of this general idea in Megalopolis I think of the dangers of idealizing great figures.

[@runningclickbait6667]

Woooo, he uploaded

[@TheEruditeCritic]

Thank you for your continued support!

[@ianhenefield6491]

I thought this flick was okay, I don't get the hate. it's more storytelling-ish/mythic realism inspired, it almost reminds me of 100 years of solitude

[@badenhohapata]

thankyou

[@TheEruditeCritic]

you're welcome (:

[@niddlianknight]

Thoughts on Rome falling?

[@samschiller3813]

Degeneracy in the capital by both the Emperor and Praetorian guard forced the legions to take action, and often they put forth better emperors. The problem came when the generals began seeing their rank as a chance to take the imperial throne. The colossal casualties in these civil wars caused both an irreplaceable loss of institutional knowledge among the centurions and other lower officers and made Legionary service far more of a guarantee of death. The empire was forced to rely on mercenaries from the frontiers, and when Attila forced the entire population of Europe upon Rome's frontiers, the mercenary army couldn't hold the line against their own Germanic kinsmen who just wanted safety. When the Roman Army led by the emperor was proven to be defeatable, the Greater Roman Empire signed its death warrant. Edit: Cleaned up some grammatical and phrasing issues after initial post

[@brucehu9944]

The actual movie is different from the original script mentioned here right? especially the ending

[@TheEruditeCritic]

Yes you are correct! The original ending follows much more closely with the Catiline Conspiracy and is extremely tragic. The screenplay is frankly much better structured and I prefer it. With that in mind, what I do find interesting is that Coppola does instead choose to go for an ending that is hopeful even though it makes much less sense 🤔

[@virgilwithav]

If you’ve seen the movie now what are your thoughts on it?

[@lymphomasurvive]

Check out my post. I was going to give it here but decided to make it a separate one.

[@crhrsog21]

Great analysis, but you're giving Cicero fans a panic!

[@TheEruditeCritic]

I'm on the same boat brother as a Cicero fanatic... but glad you enjoyed the video!

[@Yanamo1]

I like this analysis a lot, but seeing this after watching the movie I feel like a lot of changes were made to the film from the script quoted in this video.

[@TheEruditeCritic]

Hi there, glad you enjoyed the analysis! You are absolutely right, I started engaging with the movie when only the script was out, but I was always much more interested in Coppola's overall historical commentary tbh. Especially since the Late Roman Republic is my favorite period to study.

[@clownpendotfart]

Your video doesn't seem to be about Megalopolis, the movie that actually exists, but instead a different script that never got filmed.

[@TheEruditeCritic]

Haha yeah you are correct! I read the old script about 4 months ago and I knew I wanted to talk about the historical ideas present in Megalopolis. I didn't expect that I'd make such a long video (finished it like a week ago!), but I also accepted that it would not fully align with the theatrical release since the broad strokes of what Coppola's political/historical commentary remains the same. I hope you enjoyed my analysis nonetheless!

[@anonymous_a]

I understand that he wanted to tell a story of Rome in a modern setting. What I don't understand is the way he executed the project. The moving statues, the awkward gestures and lines, the documentary like transitions. And what's up with time freezing and the megalon material? Are they really necessary for the story? There are too many plot devices to juggle around. It just doesn't add up for a well established director. I'm guessing that he probably had some excess money to burn. Dirty money perhaps. And dumped that money into over-production.

[@TheEruditeCritic]

Hey there, thanks for commenting! When I made this video, I was analyzing the older version of Coppola's script when he wanted to make it around the early 2000s. The original is a lot more tragic (and makes more sense), closely mirroring the events of the bitter rivalry between Catilina and Cicero. The actual plot he went with makes the movie a lot more optimistic, but also ridiculous at the same time. On his execution... I'm a personally a fan ngl, I loved just how absurd it is and I had such a blast watching it in the theater. It is an enjoyable trip if you let it be one but maybe that's just me

[@shawnjackson3764]

I watched it, but didn't like it. I didn't hate it either, it just didn't resonate really. I feel like the movie could have been made for half of the price and the scale; and still feel the "same"-ish.

[@TheEruditeCritic]

Haha, fair enough!

[@Abmotsad]

Get it?! See, most of the characters have Roman-sounding names, and a lot of the movie looks - like - really Roman and stuff. And also, the city, which is clearly New York, is called New Rome. Get it?! It's another nod to Rome! But it's really subtle, because he took the "York" part of "New York" and changed it to "Rome" so now it's "New Rome"! Sneaky! And you know it's like really deep because they quote philosophers and stuff. Also Shakespeare! Because if you quote philosophers and Shakespeare, the movie is AUTO-MATIC-ALLY deep! And it's not just the movie; the MESSAGE is so deep. See, it's a story about the dangers of corruption among the wealthy, and in the end, one of corrupt uber-wealthy saves the city by making a neighborhood with no flat walls to hang a picture on that also has moving sidewalks! Healthcare? Voter access? Affordable housing? Fair labor practices? Absurd wealth inequality? The rule of law? Never mentioned. But you know it's a Utopia because moving sidewalks and gold everywhere. Elon Musk to the rescue!

[@Frank_42]

Biggus Dickus

[@ericfwisconston5989]

Lol WTF 16:50 🤣

[@TheEruditeCritic]

Shhhhh 🤫

[@ryany1535]

Megalonpolis

[@TheEruditeCritic]

!?!?!?

[@niddlianknight]

Bars

[@wadokuonegai]

That was the first review that made me realize this movie is something more than just a mess.

[@TheEruditeCritic]

Thank you! Even its worse critics should be able to recognize that it has its strong moments

[@gamezswinger]

“Megalopolis” was a disappointment. Let’s be honest: the director behind classics like The Godfather and Apocalypse Now created a film that falls flat. By the end, viewers have lost all interest in the main character, Caesar Catalina. Coppola’s focus on decadence and debauchery overshadows the visionary architect we were promised, making the film not only unsatisfying but also potentially harmful as a cultural influence.

[@Lispjihadist7545]

People are going to call me pretentious for this but screw it. To like this film you would have had to cultivate yourself in other mediums prior to watching it. Literature and History specifically. A good litmus test to see if you should take a review seriously is if the reviewer cultivates themselves outside of cinema or just watches cinema. Orson welles said himself you shouldn't watch too many movies.

[@TheEruditeCritic]

Hi there! Completely agree with the intertextuality; it adds a level of depth to your ability to critically engage with art. I am pursuing both film and philosophy because I think it's very important to let your interest co-nurture one another. I hope you stick around, and thank you so much for your words! (:

[@AMbradfordfilms]

Movies a mess bro

[@lymphomasurvive]

Not really.

[@RonCecchetti]

😂