So what is Megalopolis about? It’s complicated. There are so many plot threads crammed into this 135-minute epic that even a single viewing of Coppola’s film can be almost overwhelming. Here’s a summary of what I found out from my first viewing at Cannes:

Adam Driver plays Caesar, a tormented architectural genius. Lawrence Fishburne, who plays his chauffeur, tells the story with Biblical and Roman-inspired quotes. At its core, “Megalopolis” is a love story between Natalie Emmanuel’s Julia and Driver’s Caesar, the daughter of his political rival (Giancarlo Esposito). Tensions arise with Caesar’s vision of transforming New Rome (basically New York City) into a self-sustaining utopia full of high-tech advances. The mayor wants the status quo and believes the changes Caesar seeks will bring chaos.

Meanwhile, Aubrey Plaza plays a rival of Caesar and, no joke, her character is called Wow Platinum. She’s a promiscuous gold digger who gets very jealous when Julia comes on the scene. Wow decides to plot to take down Caesar with the help of wild playboy Clodio Pulcher (Shia LaBoeuf, in a women’s costume). Jon Voight also shows up as billionaire Hamilton Crassus III, Clodio’s grandfather, who eventually marries Wow – she plans to annul the prenuptial agreement and then, of course, kill him. This doesn’t seem to turn off Hamilton, who eventually shows her his huge erection.

I’m going to see the film again next month at TIFF. They were supposed to have Megalopolis as a midnight screening. It has a cult following and I think that’s the kind of audience the marketing should be targeting.

Of note, the official US poster for Megalopolis has been released, and I don’t think it does Coppola or the film any favors when it comes to drawing audiences into the film.