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Peter Bart: Coppola’s Utopian Epic Stirs Debate At Cannes While Former Partner George Lucas Quietly Sets His Own Pricey, Futuristic Surprise
Francis Ford Coppola launched 'Megalopolis' in Canne while his longtime collaborator George Lucas has a self-funded, billion-dollar project due next year.
The auteur was trailed all week by fans and family, many having survived the melodramatic ordeals of One from the Heart, the operatic intrigues of Apocalypse Now and finally the utopian fever dream titled Megalopolis, which he financed by putting$120 million of his own money on the line. While Coppola hustled ambitious schemes to interest diverse funding sources, Lucas quietly was nurturing modestly budgeted movies like American Graffiti and THX 1138 and helping his partner navigate The Conversation through complex re-edits. Graffiti initially was rejected by Universal and other distributors, but, after test screenings before young audiences, Hollywood realized that the movie had perfectly captured its ‘60s moment – the cars, the kids, the music.
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