Movie Man Darian Watching All Night Long

The Fabelmans 

This is the best film of 2022! This is Steven Spielberg’s most personal film of his entire career. The Fabelmans crafts a gripping story as Spielberg rips open his chest showing his full heart within every frame of this spectacular picture. The performances from the entire ensemble is perfect from the likes of Seth Rogan, Michelle Williams, Paul Dano, Judd Hirsh and an amazing breakout performance from Gabriel LaBelle giving such a tender and dazzling performance as the young filmmaker. Then the writing is so rich and full of such heavy emotion and you can feel the weight of each word on top of truly emotional themes that Steven Spielberg has never presented onscreen before and he shows it in a very raw and entertaining way that will draw you in but beat your heart to the ground with how greatly he brought his story of his upbringing to the screen. The Fabelmans is Spielberg at his most vulnerable he’s ever been and it is truly one of the best films he has ever made. 

Firstly, I want to discuss the themes that are so brilliantly woven into this narrative. Steven Spielberg has done a ton of dramatic films over the course of his 50 years as a filmmaker. Now Schindlers List is what many people consider his magnum Opus in terms of how perfect the presentation was brought to the screen in a respectful and accurate way. No one thought he could go that personal in terms of film again as that film is flawless and is a different kind of raw emotion but that being said as great as Schindlers List is known for being what he brought to this film the Fabelmans is unlike anything emotionally he’s ever shown filmgoers. Spielberg has shown bits of himself over the course of his films the strained family is shown quite prominently in a ton of his work ranging from Close Encounters, Hook, War Of The Worlds, Catch Me if you Can and especially in E.T which is when you really look about it is how divorce really traumatizes children. So him putting aspects of himself in his work is. Nothing new even with Schindlers List as him being a Jewish filmmaker that was a very emotionally draining task for him. Now as these examples I’m telling you of him putting bits of his life in his films is noticeable yes for him to make a two and a half hour film about his upbringing and tell the audience the raw truth of what inspired him to fall in love with the medium of film and the strained relationship with his family that heavily impacted him presented in such a real way has never been done before by him. It’s a autobiographical look at his life and he shows it warts and all which many people would of glamorized or avoided the dark aspects of their life but no Steven Spielberg wants people to see the struggles the success and the reason why he is the way he is both emotionally  as a person and professionally as a filmmaker. Now as personal as this film is he also presents the film in such a way that anyone who’s ever dreamed of working for the film industry or felt doubted by friends or family because they wanted to do that as a professional career can relate so much to what is shown in the Fabelmans. As what really struck out to me is how he shows in such honesty how if you want to dedicate yourself to your craft once you fall in love with film theirs no going back it is all you’ll want to do and it is all consuming. As he touches upon how it also can make your friends and family feel like you neglect them to some extent because your so hard at work at your craft you forget about socializing and doing other things and the way he brings that across the screen was amazing. Another great addition to the film he adds is how he angles his shots as if you are a film fanatic like myself he’s always been very well known for how he can tell his story though frame movement without even using dialogue at times. He has always had a great gift at knowing where to place the camera and how to evoke great emotion from the audience and in this film it shows that in amazing detail. As we see through his perspective everything he looks at regardless of what his eye is witnessing he always is thinking of how to frame a shot to engage his audience and we get a first hand look at how he made the small home made movies that started with using his family in his projects and then it evolved into renting out equipment and then becoming incredibly creative when making films with his friends. That evolution of his creative mind is shown fantastically for a filmgoer it’ll be so fun to see how the man behind the curtain worked and to the causal viewer it shows how his process stemmed from his young teenage years. He also aside from camera framing also showed the incredible power in his ability in editing and how regardless of what you shot or how much you shot you can make someone look like they can fly just by what you do within an edit it can be restyled and totally reconstructed within the editing process anyone who’s in film knows that but what Steven touches on is how he had such a great eye for editing if it was for home movies or even when getting asked to do it for his graduating class he gives a great lesson in filmmaking in how he does his process in such a engaging way. Then after all the great thematic tones of his filmmaking style he strips that down to him as a person and shows who he is which is just a boy from Arizona that wants to make movies. The whole family dynamic is tho truly the heartbeat of the entire film because the influence of his upbringing had on his film is enormous as his mother encouraged him to follow his passion even when his father had his doubts about what he should be doing career wise. It’s presented in such a heartfelt but emotionally gripping way because it’s when his family was going through such emotional struggles that you see the lasting affect it had on his heart. His relationship with his mother and father was forever changed but he wants to tell the audience how traumatizing divorce was for him and for any kid that goes through it. As he easily could do watered down the hardships his family faced now he delved face deep into it and in the film you will get swept up in it because he’s not dramatizing scenes for the films sake but he’s telling his story as honest as possible. And the last theme he also touches on within the last act of the film was the anti Semitic bullying he faced quiet intensely growing up as he was constantly made fun for being Jewish and it’s hard to watch at times for how cruel the kids make his life a living hell because of it. The heartache you see him suffer from it will have you in tears as he tries to handle the harassment he has given to him just for his religious beliefs. Steven  Spielberg held nothing back with this film as he shows his love for filmmaking but also the ups and downs of his family life that shaped him to be who he is today as a person but also how it shaped and impacted his filmmaking in the process. The sheer depth he brings to this film is incredible. 

Secondly, The performances in this film are truly incredible! Michelle Williams delivers one of the best performances of her entire career with her role as Steven Spielberg’s mother. She brings a tenderness and childlike view on the world that will warm your heart. Then you have Paul Dano that plays the accepting but also strict father that is very reserved as Steven’s father. He seems very nervous for this filmmaking thing to see if it’ll work as something that could keep a roof over his head but once he comes to terms of how his questioning and judged support hurts him he learns to just support his son in what he does and it’s a fantastic supporting turn from Paul Dano who truly gives a tremendous performance. Then their is Seth Rogen who gives another truly amazing dramatic performance in this film. He plays the fun and charismatic Benny who on the surface seems very relaxed and always having fun but Rogen brings so much depth and truly gripping emotion to the role that will amaze you. Then their is Judd Hirsch who is in the film for 9-10 minutes but within that small screen time he explodes on the screen with such a powerful monologue that will leave a lasting impression on you long after he is off the screen. Then the actor who had the biggest challenge to bring to screen Gabriel LaBelle who takes on the task of having to inhabit who is regarded as one of the greatest directors of all time in his youth. He knocked it out of the park with what he brought to the screen he plays a young Steven Spielberg with such harrowing emotion and tenderness that blew me away as he never got caught up in the fact he is playing this famous filmmaker and it never felt like a impression but he embodied who he is as a human in a very loving and respectful way. Everyone in this film gave top notch performances each actor will dazzle you with their amazing work they contribute to the screen. 

Lastly, The Fabelmans is one of the best pictures Steven Spielberg has ever done! He delves into the heartbreaking depth of his family and how his upbringing with his loved ones really impacted his filmmaking style. It is also a fantastic lesson in filmmaking he gives as he teaches the viewers about shot composition and editing which I had never seen in any film about the movies like how the Fabelmans tackles it. On top of its incredibly layered themes that are genuinely explored by the master Steven Spielberg the performances are incredible from everyone involved including a tour de force performance by Michelle Williams. The Fabelmans is Spielberg showing the world his heart and why he loves movies so passionately in an entertaining, emotional  film that will have you wanting to see it again the moment it is finished. This is a very Special film from Spielberg The Fabelmans is phenomenal. 

This film centres around a young Steve Spielberg and how he fell in love with filmmaking and all of the ups and downs of his family life that happened along the way.

Rated PG - 13 : Some Strong Language|Drug Use|Brief Violence|Thematic Elements

Michelle Williams : Williams delivers one of her best performances as Steven Spielberg’s mother in the Fabelmans! Now I have been constantly saying for many years how Williams is one of the most talented actresses working in Hollywood who dose not get nearly the recognition she deserves. She gave one of the greatest onscreen performances in Blue Valentine which I would say is one of the best acted films ever and then her work in other films like My Week With Marilyn, Manchester By The Sea, Shutter Island to name a few. She always gives her 100 percent into everything she does and constantly takes on challenging roles to show new sides of herself. Now what she brings to her work in the this film is extraordinary. She takes on the task of having to play Steven Spielberg’s mother and she does it so gracefully and respectfully all while drawing you in with a truly engaging performance. She seemed like a very complex person and so what Michelle Williams did so well was show all the different layers of who she was as a mother and a wife. We see that tenderness she has when she is around her kids and has this Peter Pan like quality outlook on things that is both inspiring and loving. As Steven’s father was the very disciplinary parent the mother constantly argues with her partner on letting their kids express themselves creatively and not to limit themselves and Michelle Williams is able to tap into that nurturing and warm quality so well and you can see the happiness swell up in her heart in those moments. Then when she is with her husband she is very much different in how she acts because she is more guarded around her husband as of course she loves him but you can see that distance the two of them have between them emotionally. As when his friend comes around she lights up in a way she never does around her partner and Williams is able to bring the complexity and complicated nature of who she was to the surface in a very honest way. She hides a lot of who she is and you can see through her eyes the sheer embarrassment she has in her heart because she knows their are thing she should be telling her family but dose not and her parenting skills can come off eccentric or abnormal but she wanted the best for her kids even though she knew she wasn’t a perfect parent. Williams breaks your heart in the second act of this film giving some of the most emotionally gutting and intense acting she has ever brought to the screen. She is a very multi layered person and Michele Williams captured Steven’s mother so beautifully she shows the warm and tender sides but also the sad aspects of her life that show heart shattering moments that when she has too knocks it out of the park with her incredible dedication to the person she is showing us onscreen. Michelle Williams once again delivers another incredible performance that will emotionally gut you as she makes every word and every look hit you in the heart she packs such a powerful performance that is one of the best of her career. 

Paul Dano : Dano delivers one of his most emotionally sincere and captivating performances of his entire career with his work in the Fabelmans! Dano is an actor I have been following since his amazing breakout performance in Their Will Be Blood back in 2007. He constantly gives amazing performances and here he gives truly outstanding work as Steven Spielberg’s dad. He is very reserved in terms of showing his emotions in this film as the Steven’s father wasn’t as emotionally expressive as his mother was. What Paul Dano brings to this performance is fantastic as he yes plays the stern father who wants his son to be realistic in terms of his career but their is so much more to that. He is very much into science and technology and the facts that are behind it and young Steven isn’t into a lot of what interests his dad and theirs a lot of conflict that comes out of that. As he yes supports his son when he is younger and likes the home movies he would really get into but as he turned into a teenager that same love for film never shifted and his thoughts on that  was the whole love for filmmaking was just a hobby and he would find something more ‘realistic’ and when he was small he would help out of course and watch his son’s films but the way he questions his career path created a lot of strain on their relationship. The Way Paul Dano is Able to be that authority figure while also being a loving dad and partner is amazingly well shown. As you can see he loves his son but he has a tough time expressing that to him and Dano brings such a loving but stern emotionally expressive performance that will amaze you. Besides his relationship with his kid he also has a very tough relationship with his wife who expresses her love for someone else that is not him. You can see that he knows that she has a liking towards his friend but he dose not want to acknowledge it as he is in denial and does not want to accept that fact so he pretends that everything is ok. Then as the film progresses we see him become more and more filled with anger but he delivers it in a calm and passive nature. as he dose not want to make a scene in front of the kids but their comes a point when the mother will constantly pick a fight with him very publicly if its in front of the kids or company and he will have no choice but to eventually irrupt cracks of anger which is greatly brought to the surface by Dano. It is a very quiet but emotionally heartbreaking performance as he has a strained relationship with the young Steven and then with his wife all the while trying to keep himself together and he explores the depths of the character in such a terrific way that will have you captivated from what he is delivering onscreen. It is one of Paul Dano’s best performances of his career and truly a moving performance that will bring you to tears. 

Gabriel LaBelle : Gabriel LaBelle delivers a truly breathtaking breakout performance as the young Filmmaker in this film! Now this actor has not done much work in terms of acting and film is his big break into film and for him to get his first big break playing one of the greatest directors of all time is not an easy feat. As their are so many angles he could of taken with the performance of playing young Steven Spielberg he could of done an impression and copied his voice and do what most actors do and undergo prosthetic makeup and have a movement coach and all of that but he didn’t. He copied his mannerisms and movements sure but everything else he made his own as he knows he does not sound like Steven Spielberg but he stripped away all of the fame and dazzle of who Steven Spielberg is and explored who he is as a man and as a son. Which to me made for a truly gripping performance as he gets to explore who he was as a teenager to young adulthood and all of the emotional hardships he went through in between to making his dreams a reailty. As We see the pressure he faces from his father of pursuing a other path in terms of his career because he knows that working in film is not easy to get into and the scrutiny he faces by picking film as his career choice because at that time in the world it was looked at as a financially unstable profession to go into. But he does not let others peoples opinions steer him away from what he loves and Gabriel LaBelle delivers that emotional struggle in such a real and raw way as you can see the sheer ideas and excitement he has in his soul when he is in front of the camera and it just brings a big grin to your face as he shows how Spielberg struggled to have people understand his love for film as he had his dad telling him that it is a hobby and he should do something else and then he also tries to also at the same time show people that he is passionate enough and can do an amazing job with a camera. He shows the storyteller and his incredible eye for cinema but what makes the performance really grab my attention was how he delves into the heart of this genus filmmaker and presents the anxiety and truly heart wrenching hardships he faced not just for his career but in his life and the whole aspect that is explored with his family and the emotional stress at times it took on him is brought to life with such passion by Gabriel as you can see the stress at home eating at his brain but the love of film Is constantly vibrating in his heart and the way he delivers his lines with such amazing emotion and also wit at times is brilliant. It is a performance that really captured Steven Spielberg beautifully showing the passionate filmmaker but also the son who also had such an intense emotional weight on him from his family at times that affected him deeply and made a lasting impact on him and it is felt amazingly well through Gabriel LaBelle’s work in this film a truly amazing performance that will move you and amaze you. 

Seth Rogen : Rogen delivers a truly outstanding supporting turn in this film! Now I said back in 2015 that his work in the Steve Jobs film was incredible and I still stand by that. I also said that I would love to see him do more dramatic roles because from the tiny role he had in that film he had a great impact on the film with his tremendous performance. Now when I heard he was going to be in The Fabelamns I was so excited but also nervous because I didn’t know if this was going to be him as a comic relief character or if it was dramatic either way I was excited to see what he was going to bring to this film. After seeing the film I can tell you he delivers a truly outstanding performance that is dramatic and charismatic as hell that will have you wrapped up in every frame he is in. He plays Benny the husbands best friend and yes he isn’t in the film for a ton of the movie but he is definitely a supporting player in the film as his character makes a huge impact on the story when he is on the screen and when he no longer is the importance the character he plays is huge. He at first glance seems like this energetic and fun loving guy who is the life of the party which he is to a extent and that is how he presents himself but he also is very sensitive and has a soft spot for Steven Spielberg but especially his mother and he has a moment with young Steven when he feels like quitting his passion for film and that scene he is part of blew me away as you can see how much he cares for him but also he sees the great potential in him and knows he can do great things and that twinkle in his eye but also heavy emotion delivered from his lips is amazing. He knows he isn’t Steven’s father but he can see how his father may be dismissing his passion and he encourages him to keep going and Seth gives a very loving and witty performance wrapped in emotion that will knock you flat out. It is one of his strongest performances he has given and I hope he keeps taking roles like this because his work in the Fabelmans is truly electric. 

Judd Hirsch : Judd Hirsch is jaw dropping  amazing in this film! Now he is only in the film for nine maybe ten minutes and within the time he is onscreen he makes the most of it by delivering a powerful monologue that will have your jaw on the floor. The moment he shows up he chews the scenery with his great onscreen presence and fantastic wit but then when he goes to talk to young Steven About his love for filmmaking that is where he tells him how emotionally enriching that career is but how emotionally draining it can be too. He sees in him that fire and that passion he has for film even if he won’t admit it he can see it in his heart and the way he expresses his point of how he can see that cinema has grabbed such a hold of him is very powerfully presented by Judd Hirsch and its yes a small performance but damn is he good in these nine to ten minutes as you cannot take your eyes off of him and that speech will stay with you long after the film is gone he delivers a truly outstanding performance as you can feel the sheer charismatic energy in his voice and sheer raw emotion it is so captivating to watch Judd Hirsch is amazing. 

Steven Spielberg : Spielberg has crafted a beautiful film that shows his heart and soul in a truly moving way! I have been watching Steven Spielberg’s films since I was 8 or 9 years old my first film of his I watched was Raiders Of The Lost Ark and since then have been a fan of his amazing work. Now as spoken earlier the way he gets personal in this film is unlike anything he has ever done over his 50 year career in filmmaking. He has shown some very raw and emotionally gutting films that have been amazingly well brought to the screen but he delves into the hardest topic he had yet to tackle himself. Having a film that is two and a half hours long about his family and the hardships he went through be told totally unfiltered and raw you don’t see much in biopics. As people want to be looked at in a cool way or water down the darker elements of their story but no Steven showed everything of course we get to see the art form of cinema that grabs a hold of him at an early age. We also though see how the emotional stress he was under in his youth also impacted him hugely as person and how it bled into films. Now for him to show his heart the way he does in the Fabelmans is truly something special and you can see how much passion and love he put into each frame of this picture as he wants to show people his process of filmmaking but also to have a better understanding of him as a person. Now Steven Spielberg perfectly cast this film Also with a top notch cast all of whom deliver outstanding performances across the board. The film is very emotional to watch for anyone who’s dreamed to work in the film industry or for anyone who’s been a child of divorce or even for just being a life long fan of his work this film is a love letter to filmmaking and also it is a love letter to his family. This is the closest we will ever get to a memoir of the man as he wouldn’t do a book he does his life story the only way he knows how with a camera and it is beautifully done. He has given us so many amazing films over the course of his career and the Fabelmans is something truly special he is sharing with his fans and the world and to be invited into seeing how this amazing filmmaker fell in love with cinema but also the family struggles he had will have you in tears as it is truly captivating, moving and masterful. Spielberg delivers another incredible film and his mother and father would be so proud Spielberg gives phenomenal directing and writing on this film.