THE FABELMANS
2022 | Dir. Steven Spielberg | 151 Minutes
"Family. Art. It'll tear you in two."
After viewing his first film at a young age, Sammy Fabelman aspires to become a filmmaker. Weathering family strife, gross anti-Semitic discrimination, and other challenges, Sammy's dedication to his chosen medium of artistic expression is continually tested.
Steven Spielberg's semi-autobiographical picture ruminating on family, the nature of art, and the power of filmmaking is a respectable crowd-pleaser in line with much of the celebrated director's body of work. It is an affecting film that is elevated by the respective performances of its talented cast but suffers a bit from the narrative's lack of subtlety, delivering engaging text without a shred of subtext. The story of Spielberg stand-in Sammy as presented feels oddly by-the-numbers, offering few surprises, tracking his coming-of-age from his first theatrical experience as a child watching Cecil B. DeMille's The Greatest Show on Earth with his parents to his burgeoning talent as a filmmaker making movies as a boy scout in Arizona to his disillusionment and eventual rekindling with the craft as a bullied high school student. Through it all is a subplot surrounding the dissolution of Sammy's parents' marriage that informs Sammy's relationship with film on a somewhat simplistic Freudian level.
By far, the weakest aspect of The Fabelmans is the screenplay by Tony Kushner, lacking in subtlety, painting the narrative in broad strokes. This is most noticeable during the second half of the film that features a cartoonishly flighty devout Christian high school girlfriend and over-the-top bullies that behave more like caricatures than believable characters. However, the technical expertise exhibited by Spielberg greatly elevates the material. Showcasing Spielberg's seasoned talent as a filmmaker, the feature is at its best when it demonstrates Sammy's natural talent as a director and editor. Spielberg's expert technique is best exemplified in quiet moments with big emotional payoffs such as Sammy amusingly giving a young boy scout just the right motivation to unintentionally transform him into a full-fledged method actor and the discovery of his mother's affair with his father's best friend while reviewing footage from a family camping trip, though presentation of the high school beach movie that tops off the picture's finale that leads to a confrontation with, and redemption of, one of Sammy's tormentors plays out a bit too neatly.
Gabriel LaBelle makes for an captivating analog for a teenage Spielberg, giving a measured, controlled performance that could have easily gone off the rails considering the big, emotional outbursts required in countless scenes. As Sammy's radiant but troubled mother, Michelle Williams dazzles, delivering her best performance to date that almost makes up for what the role lacks in nuance as it is written. Paul Dano turns in fine work as Sammy's soft-spoken no-nonsense tech whiz father, most convincing in moments of quiet suffering. Knocking out of the park his most understated and, arguably, best dramatic role yet, Seth Rogen is both charismatic and slightly detestable as the jovial family friend revealed to be a crucial factor in the destabilization of Sammy's family. The broadest piece of acting in the film belongs to Judd Hirsch in a brief incredibly though affecting appearance as Sammy's granduncle Boris imparting the gruffest grunkle life advice.
Funny, heartbreaking, and consistently entertaining throughout, The Fabelmans falls just short of excellent due in part to its distractingly broad screenplay. Despite the melodrama of some of its writing, the feature is a competently-made, highly accessible biopic about the power of filmmaking and the sometimes high cost of pursuing one's dreams. While the film is inspired by the childhood of Steven Spielberg, it doesn't offer too much insight into the acclaimed director's life, but its story is definitely made better by moments that are clearly sourced specifically from his upbringing.
FRAGMENTS
- Seeing Paul Dano play a stern dad makes me feel my age
- David Lynch's cameo as legendary director John Ford during the epilogue is one of my favorite movie moments of 2022
- The final shot with the camera correcting its horizon line is the perfect punctuation to the John Ford epilogue
