Francis Ford Copolla’s Urban Planning Swan Song

Legendary director Francis Ford Coppola’s likely final major film, Megalopolis, celebrates design and urban planning. It is a dazzling mishmash of architectural, cinematic, and literary history.

1 minute read

October 29, 2024, 5:00 AM PDT

By Josh Stephens @jrstephens310


Black and white still set photograph from Fritz Lang's Metropolis film.

Set photograph from Fritz Lang’s 1927 sweeping cinematic masterpiece Metropolis. | Horst von Harbou, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons / Wikimedia Commons

“Without Fritz Lang’s 1927 Metropolis, this film probably would not exist at all. From the Christopher Nolan Batman series, we get heroic shots of architect Cesar Catilina (Adam Driver), the protagonist, peering down at New York City—which has the unsubtle allegorical name of New Rome, and where Catilina is head of the Design Authority—from on high. There’s a bit of Tim Burton’s wacky darkness, too. At the same time, the film’s campiness occasionally veers into John Waters territory.”

It was nearly four decades in the making—in other words, about as much time as a major urban infill development in California. Although the end product is not worthy of such sustained effort, Megalopolis is one of those rare films that explicitly celebrates architecture and urbanism, and it deserves to be memorialized, if only for that reason.

“Essentially, Catilina proposes for New Rome an updated version of mid-20th century urban renewal—although it’s not clear whether Coppola actually supports slum clearance or is simply daydreaming. Not coincidentally, he would have lived through the era of the great bulldozings and surely remembers it well. At best, Catilina’s plan is a metaphor for human creativity and unattainable benevolence. His other quirk is that he can stop time, which is a metaphor for the fact that humans cannot, in fact, stop time.”

Wednesday, October 2, 2024 in CommonEdge Collaborative

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Get top-rated, practical training

High-rise apartment buildings in Waikiki, Hawaii with steep green mountains in background.

Study: Maui’s Plan to Convert Vacation Rentals to Long-Term Housing Could Cause Nearly $1 Billion Economic Loss

The plan would reduce visitor accommodation by 25,% resulting in 1,900 jobs lost.

April 6, 2025 - Honolulu Civil Beat

People sitting and walking in plaza in front of historic Benton County Courthouse in Bentonville, Arkansas.

Placekeeping: Setting a New Precedent for City Planners

How a preservation-based approach to redevelopment and urban design can prevent displacement and honor legacy communities.

March 28, 2025 - Emily McCoy

Rusty abandoned oil well and equipment with prickly pear cactus next to it in West Texas.

Using Old Oil and Gas Wells for Green Energy Storage

Penn State researchers have found that repurposing abandoned oil and gas wells for geothermal-assisted compressed-air energy storage can boost efficiency, reduce environmental risks, and support clean energy and job transitions.

March 31, 2025 - Pennsylvania State University

Two people on bikes riding down paved Burke-Gilman bike trail in King County, Washington on a sunny day.

Washington State Plans Ambitious ‘Cycle Highway’ Network

The state is directing funding to close gaps in its existing bike network and make long-distance trips more accessible.

April 8 - Momentum Magazine

Small green ADU cottage in lush backyard in San Jose, California.

Homeowners Blame PG&E for Delays in ADU Permits

The utility says it has dramatically reduced its backlog, but applicants say they still face months-long delays for approvals for new electrical work.

April 8 - San Francisco Chronicle

Large oak tree in meadow with sun filtering from behind it in Angeles National Forest.

Rethinking Wildfire Defense: How a Landscape Approach Can Protect Neighborhoods

Post-fire analysis of the Eaton Fire reveals that a landscape approach — including fire-resistant vegetation, home hardening, and strategic planning — can help reduce wildfire risk, challenging assumptions that trees and plants are primary fire hazards.

April 8 - ASLA The Dirt