The Fabelmans (A- or 3.5/4 stars)
One of my favorite filmmakers of all-time, 75 yr. old Steven Spielberg, directs & co-writes with longtime collaborator Tony Kushner on 'The Fabelmans', his very personal childhood memoir on the birth of his love of movie-making, his school time struggles, & his floundering family life. This passion project/love letter to cinema begins in 1952 where, at the age of 6, Sammy Fabelman {Spielberg, really} watches his very 1st movie, Cecile B. DeMille's The Greatest Show on Earth. Young Sammy (Mateo Zoryan) sits in the darkened theater as his loving, outgoing mother, Mitzi (Michelle Williams), & his similarly loving, yet somewhat buttoned-up father, Burt (Paul Dano), look on at their son's wide mesmerized eyes. He's hooked.
Shortly thereafter, Sammy starts using his dad's 8mm camera to make short films, which eventually involve the entire family including Sammy's 3 younger sisters. Sammy's mom Mitzi had been a classically trained pianist who stifled her aspirations to put her husband's computer pioneer success on a pedestal. The other member of the Fabelman household is Burt's best pal, Bennie (Seth Rogen), affectionately referred to as 'Uncle' Bennie -- perhaps too affectionately by Mitzi. As a teen, Sammy (now Gabriel LaBelle) deals with a host of issues when his father uproots the family to Phoenix - a place where the clan was very happy - then to Northern Cali, where Sammy has his 1st of several terrible encounters with anti-Semitism at high school.
Monica (Chloe East, so funny), a popular girl, becomes enamored with Sammy & his religion. Obsessed with Jesus, Monica tries to 'save' Sammy, which she does in a different way -- offering Sammy her father's 16mm camera to film their senior class 'ditch day'. Sammy's filming on that day is a hit; convincing him that he should follow his love of filmmaking. As he contends with all of this + his parents' rocky marriage, Sammy realizes the power of movie-making, and how he can emotionally affect - even manipulate - to create art. And after a chance meeting with the famed director, John Ford (David Lynch), Sammy's destiny as a future director is sealed.
The making of 'The Fabelmans' was an intensely emotional journey for Spielberg. Everything, from the actors that were chosen to the production designs, costumes & music by legendary John Williams - his 20th + film with Spielberg - all coalesced to replicate Spielberg's childhood happenings. Gabriel LaBelle is excellent as Sammy/'teen Spielberg'. He perfectly captures what it is like to be a dislocated teen with immense talent trying to navigate the ups & downs of school bullies & the decay of his parents' marriage. And he inflects enough miniscule Spielberg-isms to let you know that, yes, 'I'm playing teen Steven'. Loved a scene where he comes to a crushing family revelation while editing one particular home video. Spielberg magic; that scene.
As Mitzi, Michelle Williams is wonderful depicting a conflicted wife & devoted mom with an eccentric free spirit who finds it hard to balance it all. Mitzi is, at once, joyful, then heartbreaking, & back again. She loves Burt & her family, but sometimes that just isn't enough. Paul Dano is great as the loveable nerdy dad who is so caught up in his computer engineer work that he doesn't see - or perhaps, doesn't care to see - what is happening in front of him. Seth Rogen impresses. Chloe East is a hoot as Sammy's Jesus-lovin' girlfriend. And in one 5 minute scene, Judd Hirsch's Uncle Boris lends sage wisdom about the importance of 'art' with great gusto.
I wouldn't put 'The Fabelmans' in the top tier echelon of Spielberg "Greats". But it still a very good film about his burgeoning talents as a youth, what he went through, and it is told with humor, panache & heart. He even imparts vulnerability by revealing his fears, quirks & short-comings. I enjoyed the film as a nostalgia-filled plunge back into the 1950/60s; thanks cinematographer, Janusz Kaminski. And while this film isn't one of his "greats", its theme of growth from generation to generation {both family-wise, and in the movie industry}, as well as Spielberg's unique upbringing, gives the movie that something 'special' enough to warrant high praise & admiration.
Shortly thereafter, Sammy starts using his dad's 8mm camera to make short films, which eventually involve the entire family including Sammy's 3 younger sisters. Sammy's mom Mitzi had been a classically trained pianist who stifled her aspirations to put her husband's computer pioneer success on a pedestal. The other member of the Fabelman household is Burt's best pal, Bennie (Seth Rogen), affectionately referred to as 'Uncle' Bennie -- perhaps too affectionately by Mitzi. As a teen, Sammy (now Gabriel LaBelle) deals with a host of issues when his father uproots the family to Phoenix - a place where the clan was very happy - then to Northern Cali, where Sammy has his 1st of several terrible encounters with anti-Semitism at high school.
Monica (Chloe East, so funny), a popular girl, becomes enamored with Sammy & his religion. Obsessed with Jesus, Monica tries to 'save' Sammy, which she does in a different way -- offering Sammy her father's 16mm camera to film their senior class 'ditch day'. Sammy's filming on that day is a hit; convincing him that he should follow his love of filmmaking. As he contends with all of this + his parents' rocky marriage, Sammy realizes the power of movie-making, and how he can emotionally affect - even manipulate - to create art. And after a chance meeting with the famed director, John Ford (David Lynch), Sammy's destiny as a future director is sealed.
The making of 'The Fabelmans' was an intensely emotional journey for Spielberg. Everything, from the actors that were chosen to the production designs, costumes & music by legendary John Williams - his 20th + film with Spielberg - all coalesced to replicate Spielberg's childhood happenings. Gabriel LaBelle is excellent as Sammy/'teen Spielberg'. He perfectly captures what it is like to be a dislocated teen with immense talent trying to navigate the ups & downs of school bullies & the decay of his parents' marriage. And he inflects enough miniscule Spielberg-isms to let you know that, yes, 'I'm playing teen Steven'. Loved a scene where he comes to a crushing family revelation while editing one particular home video. Spielberg magic; that scene.
As Mitzi, Michelle Williams is wonderful depicting a conflicted wife & devoted mom with an eccentric free spirit who finds it hard to balance it all. Mitzi is, at once, joyful, then heartbreaking, & back again. She loves Burt & her family, but sometimes that just isn't enough. Paul Dano is great as the loveable nerdy dad who is so caught up in his computer engineer work that he doesn't see - or perhaps, doesn't care to see - what is happening in front of him. Seth Rogen impresses. Chloe East is a hoot as Sammy's Jesus-lovin' girlfriend. And in one 5 minute scene, Judd Hirsch's Uncle Boris lends sage wisdom about the importance of 'art' with great gusto.
I wouldn't put 'The Fabelmans' in the top tier echelon of Spielberg "Greats". But it still a very good film about his burgeoning talents as a youth, what he went through, and it is told with humor, panache & heart. He even imparts vulnerability by revealing his fears, quirks & short-comings. I enjoyed the film as a nostalgia-filled plunge back into the 1950/60s; thanks cinematographer, Janusz Kaminski. And while this film isn't one of his "greats", its theme of growth from generation to generation {both family-wise, and in the movie industry}, as well as Spielberg's unique upbringing, gives the movie that something 'special' enough to warrant high praise & admiration.