Megalopolis
Megalon & Manifestation: Megalopolis as Creative Prayer
As we approach New Year’s Eve, I find myself embracing a resolution unlike any I’ve made before. It isn’t to shed a bad habit or chase a subscribed improvement routine. It’s to rethink the way I live: to constantly confront the possibility of living another, better way. Not reflection, not critique, but practice— present appreciative acceptance combined with joyful, deliberate improvement. In outlook, demeanor, and action. I’ve had too much modern Scrooge in me - overly self-interested and judgmental, while limitedly open-minded. It’s time for a thankful heart to lead me.
I must first give myself grace and importance. From there, I will extend my outlook: first to my family, then humankind, and ultimately all living things. This resolution isn’t an easy one, and it might even seem idealistic. But Megalopolis, Francis Ford Coppola’s bold, audacious film, has shown me that it’s not only possible but necessary to transform into our best selves.
Megalopolis isn’t an easy artwork to take in, especially on first viewing. It defies traditional narrative forms - blending theater, history, and mass culture into something that feels as alienating to many as it is inspiring to me. Coppola’s film is far removed from what we consider popular film (repackaged narrative tropes produced market-generated to itch our algorithm-tracked brains) — it’s a new fable (or mythology), a prayer for humans to fulfill their potential.
This divergence from the familiar has led to the film being memed and dismissed by a cynical mass audience. It’s bold in its themes and execution, asking us to confront ourselves and our systems, which is no small task in a time where mockery & reductive opinion seem to always win over understanding.
At its heart, Megalopolis imagines each of us having divine potential: beings made in God’s image, capable of embodying both the Creator and the Muse, along with (or same as) Father and Mother. If we allow ourselves to create from a place of love, we can build our dream city - whether it’s a home, family, an artwork, a business, anything, even a dream city itself.
The film concludes with a revised Pledge of Allegiance:
“I pledge allegiance to our human family, and to all the species that we protect: one Earth, indivisible, with long life, education, and justice for all.”
This isn’t just an idealistic sentiment—it’s the culmination of the characters’ struggles (and battles) with Cesar’s inventing for a better future. The pledge encapsulates the film’s boldest idea: that allegiance to humanity and the Earth must come before the systems we currently serve.
Megalopolis critiques those systems—media that amplifies division, politics that reward stagnation, and wealth hoarding that prioritizes a few at the expense of the many. The city’s elite resist change even as the world crumbles around them, a pointed critique of how our own leaders often cling to outdated power structures instead of embracing progress.
Shia LaBeouf’s character and his cronies embody the forces of destruction, reveling in mockery and sabotage rather than building something new. They mirror the broader cynicism in our world—the refusal to engage with new ideas only to be angry about what isn’t working, the impulse to tear down rather than create.
I’m not writing this from a place of dissatisfaction or even judgement. I love life, and I’m proud of who I am. But Megalopolis has reminded me of the limitless potential I have as a person. It also reminded me that many systems—political, economic, and cultural—are designed to tether us to the status quo, but that I can’t force change through opinion, only through creative action.
To live differently, I must constantly confront whether I could live MY life in another, better way.
If I falter, I’ll return to that pledge—not just for myself, but for the family, the species, and the planet that need us to dream bigger.
If Megalopolis is a prayer, then let this be my modest response: I’m listening and I’m inspired. All my living is to dream and create.
Megalopolis
Written and Directed by Francis Ford Coppola
2024
138 minutes
English
Recommended way to watch (at time of publication): Digital Rental
Also (indirectly) referenced: TheMuppet Christmas Carol (1992)
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