The Fabelmans

Steven Spielberg has been directing films for so many decades that it's actually a little surprising that the semi-autobiographical The Fabelmans (2022) took this long to materialize. Because of his years of success as a filmmaker, I already knew some details of Spielberg's rise to the successful director that he is today. Granted, I'm not sure how much of the family drama in The Fabelmans is a direct influence on Spielberg's life or if he manufactured it for the movie itself. Still, it is interesting to see the early budding talent presented in this movie and be able to extrapolate to movies like Jaws (1975), Saving Private Ryan (1998), and Schindler's List (1993).

Perhaps my one qualm with this movie is that it's a bit too long. I understand the desire to show the entire life of Sammy Fabelman (Gabriel LaBelle) to understand the context of the origins of his filmmaking passion, but there could have been much shorter ways to show these moments instead of dedicating almost the entire first act to something that was much less exciting than the rest of the film. Even if it started in the second act, The Fabelmans easily captures that struggle between family and living the life of a dedicated creative.

I really appreciated the conversation about how pursuing a creative passion can really be a challenge for an individual's personal life. Similar to how the leads in La La Land (2016) had to choose between themselves and their dreams, The Fabelmans shows how having an additional way to communicate (in this case, via filmmaking) can sometimes break through barriers and expose hard truths. The unblinking eye of the camera often sees more than we want, whether the bipolar disorder and affair of a mother or how a bully sees themselves as the hero.

A thoughtful if not slightly long autobiography of Steven Spielberg, I give The Fabelmans 4.0 stars out of 5.

It's watching Steven Spielberg grow up from a child terrified by the train crash in THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH, to an adolescent film maker. He's pretty up front about the family issues and his parents' break up. I suspect he has realized that being an adult is a tough thing and is willing to forgive.

At 150 minutes, it should feel self indulgent, but it never does, thanks to terrific performances by Michelle Williams as the mother and Paul Dano as the father. No one seems to be acting, which is half the Spielberg magic. There are also great cameos by Judd Hirsch as the profane uncle who was a lion tamer, and David Lynch as John Ford.

Some of the characters seem sketchily drawn, particularly the sisters, but that serves to emphasize Miss Williams, Dano, and Gabriel LaBelle as the Steven Spielberg character. Spielberg and his frequent collaborator Tony Kushner, have drawn a fine portrait of a Jewish post-war family, when things were supposed to be so very bland... but really, people were living their own odd lives.

This semi-autobiographical film centres around Sammy Fabelman who is transfixed by the first movie he sees at age 6 and develops a passion for film making. Other themes explored with variable depth and success include the fracturing marriage of his parents, bullying and anti-semitism at high school, young love and coming of age, and selfishness in general.

The movie is way too long and felt a little boring in the first 45minutes. It's nicely shot and well directed as you would expect, but the script is patchy and while the acting is generally excellent, the performances of Paul Dano and in particular Michelle Williams as Sammy's parents felt too affected and a little contrived - at times I felt I was watching filming on the set of a TV sitcom. I wonder still if this was deliberately instructed by Spielberg, but for me it doesn't work.

Gabriel Labelle is the best as the teenage Sammy and Judd Hirsch is superb in a cameo as Uncle Boris. John Williams as always provides a perfect score and the visuals are superb.

Overall it's worth seeing for a little insight into Spielberg's childhood but there is an unsatisfactory feel to the film as a whole. I think it could have been so much better.

Steven Spielberg made some of the best movies ever made. Now he made one about his early life, his way of becoming a filmmaker. And this is not his best film and not his most important one, but his most personal one.

The story is fascinating, especially the way filmmaking is portrayed here is extraordinary. This is a love letter to cinema and you will be moved watching it, if you are a cineast like me.

Everybody who's dreaming about becoming a filmmaker some day has to watch this picture. It was made for you, by Mr. Spielberg with love and the hope of inspiring the next generation as he was inspired by directors from his time.

Lynch's last role, that's why I wanted to see it. For some reason, the film didn't get carried away at the release. I like to make mistakes and discover such amazing paintings after a while.

A movie about cinema and love for it.

Throughout the life of the main character, the movie goes along with him to one degree or another. At first, it amazes him as a viewer, but very soon he starts filming it himself. If in childhood it could be called a hobby, then it develops further to the vocation of a lifetime.

He makes short films, then full-fledged films, which, although they are shot for his own money and shown only to the participants in the filming, still touch the audience.

In fact, each film shot inside the film reflects the gradual development of the hero as a director and personality.

He is going through a drama in his family, relationships with peers and a girlfriend, but only cinema and the craving for it as the meaning of life helps to overcome all this and eventually succeed.

Also, the film is beautifully shot in terms of technical components, and every acting job pleases the eye and you, as a viewer, empathize with all the characters. They are prescribed and you believe in their problems.