The trailer for “Megalopolis” seems to invent quotes from film critics

When Lionsgate released the second trailer for Francis Ford Coppola's epic film “Megalopolis” on Wednesday morning, it began with a litany of panning his previous work from several notable critics.

In quotes from their reviews of The Godfather, the trailer cites Pauline Kael of the New Yorker, who calls the film “detracted from its artistry,” and Andrew Sarris of the Village Voice, who criticizes the “sloppy, self-indulgent film.” Other quotes from critics such as Roger Ebert, John Simon, Stanley Kauffman, Vincent Canby and Rex Reed similarly flash across the screen, leveling harsh criticism at Coppola's work on masterpieces such as Apocalypse Now. The idea is that these films have stood the test of time – their initial reactions less so. Megalopolis, which premiered at Cannes, was dismissed by many critics as complacent and muddled. The new trailer aims to position Coppola's latest film as a work of art that will age well, just like the famed director's predecessors.

That's an interesting point, but there's a pretty big gap in the trailer's argument. The problem, and it's a pretty big one, is that these quotes don't appear in any of the cited reviews. As Vulture pointed out and confirmed by diversitynone of the sentences are found in the versions of the stories available online. It is currently unclear where the quotes come from. Ebert's quote calling “Dracula” a “triumph of style over substance” actually comes from his 1989 review of “Batman.”

diversityOwen Gleiberman himself is falsely quoted as calling the 1992 film Bram Stoker's Dracula “a beautiful mess” and highlighting its “absurdity” when reviewing the film for Entertainment Weekly, where he worked at the time of its release.

“Even if you're the kind of person who doesn't like critics, we hardly deserve to have words put in our mouths. On the other hand, the trivial scandal of the whole thing is that the entire trailer for 'Megalopolis' is built on a false narrative,” Gleiberman says of the quotes in the trailer. “The critics loved 'The Godfather.' And even though 'Apocalypse Now' was controversial, it received a lot of critical support. As for my statement that 'Bram Stoker's Dracula' was 'a beautiful mess,' I only wish I'd said that! It sounds nice in relation to this film now.”

Some of the critics quoted in the trailer actually hated Coppola's early works. Reed, for example, called “Apocalypse Now” a “circle of pretentious babble.”

As for “Megalopolis,” it might actually be worthy of a critical reassessment. In his review diversityPeter Debruge of the Los Angeles Times reacted negatively to the film, writing that the “legendary director constructs a deeply personal but sloppy allegory about his relationship with art,” adding, “It turns out that world-building – that invaluable tool of 21st-century Hollywood franchises – may not be his thing.”

“Megalopolis” will be released in US theaters on September 27. Lionsgate did not immediately respond to diversityfor comment. Reed, who still writes for the Observer, also did not respond to a request for comment. Kael, Simon, Ebert, Canby, Kauffman and Sarris are dead, making it difficult to know their reaction.