No. 104 (2022) THE FABLEMANS Dec. 17th.

 

Film No. 104 (2022)  December  17th.  11.00 AM   Cinema 1.  LUNA,  Leederville.

 

"Family, Art, Life! It will tear you in two". (Uncle Boris discusses, with emotion, the hurdles Sammy needs to work through as he enacts his dreams). 

Winner : Movie of the Year (Steven Spielberg); AFI Awards USA 2022.

In THE FABLEMANS, Spielberg has made a tribute film to his family. He's done it in true Spielberg fashion. There could be few film-makers other than Steven S with the gravitas to pull off this feat with the aplomb he does here. THE FABLEMANS is a terrific film.

Spielberg obviously feels blessed that he had the upbringing gifted to him by his parents. The Fablemans are the Spielbergs' and the naming of each character is superfluous to the tribute Spielberg is extending here. He maintains his commitment to making this fictional family, based on his imagination, mixed with memories, the central ingredient of a good story. And quite simply, because Spielberg's reputation as a cinematic storyteller precedes him, who's not interested? 

The focus throughout is unsurprisingly told through the eyes of the very sensitive, vulnerable Sammy (Sam) Fableman (Mateo Zoryan (younger), Gabriel LeBelle) but via  every move (excluding a trailer attached to a station-wagon) his folks Mitzi (Michelle Williams) and Bert (Paul Dano) make. The combination of his love for his parents and his susceptibility to collapsing under the pressures of life mean he is nearly de-railed from chasing his dreams. Michelle Williams is like a magic fairy, sprinkling her veracious personality over the clan that is the Fablemans. I imagine Spielberg to be "fully chuffed" that Williams "nailed" the special relationship he and his mother nurtured. It's a mesmerising depiction.

Let me spare a paragraph in order to mention the roles played by Judd Hirsch as Uncle Boris and David Lynch, (yes David Lynch), in cameos worth the price of a ticket. Lynch is a surprise addition and a gem nestled in the brilliance of THE FABLEMANS. Hirsch presents a messiah-like quality in Boris. He insists that Sammy follow his heart. The scene where Uncle Boris shares Sammy's bedroom for a night is a show-stopper.      

This man (Spielberg) is the world's most loved, living director. It may seem self indulgent that he has created a tell-all project like this. To see THE FABLEMANS is to dismiss any thoughts of this nature. Sure Spielberg has a bottomless pit of film-maker money  ... it is never the less a major risk to lay his heart so bare. His family story is a warts and all adventure and there are multiple risks he has taken here. If he is anything like the sensitive young boy and adolescent Fableman we see on screen, then I admire his bravery.

If you're able, try to see it on a big screen. Hey, it's Spielberg, he had us all flocking to the cinema well before streaming existed. It's the least you could do.  11GUMS.