The Fableman's

The Fableman’s was one of my most anticipated films of 2022, I think that the Covid lockdown did something to filmmakers and the industry as whole. We were all inside for a year and that caused an outpouring of art from authors and musicians but filmmakers were stuck. So after we were all released and allowed back into the world there was all this pent up creative energy from filmmakers and that gave us a wave of films about art and film and love. That wave gave us movies like Armageddon Time, Babylon and yes, The Fableman’s.

I mean if we are going to talk about a movie about making movies I feel like the very obvious first thing we need to talk about is the cinematography. It was very obviously a Spielberg film, which means that there were beautiful, brilliant shots. Truly, absolutely stunning. Specifically the scene where Michelle Williams was dancing in the headlights, obviously the final shot, all of the scenes where Sammy is filming and really the ones where he is standing next to the projector screening one of his films. The sense of wonder and love and enormity that Spielberg managed to capture was incredible and breathtaking.

The heart of the story was really creativity vs practicality, a struggle that many of us have had with ourselves or with our families at one point or another. Watching Sammy have to deal with his father being supportive by buying him equipment and helping on his movies while also reducing his passion to a “hobby” was something that most definitely resonated with me and many people. There is a difference between financial support and emotional support and that is a difference the practical people don’t ever seem to see, but I saw it and Sammy did too.

Then of course we have the writing itself. The whole story was made for people in the audience that ever felt like their love for anything creative, and felt like that love was belittled by people who seem to think that we should be doing something more productive with our passion. The story is unapologetic, Sammy is determined and brilliant and he makes what he wants to do come to life. It was easy to see the autobiographical elements in the story, and that's what made it hit so hard emotionally.

The relationships between the kids, Sammy and his mom, Sammy and his dad, the parents and Benny and Mitz were all very well written and more importantly very well balanced.

There are several markers I use to determine whether a film is good or not, one of them is am I analyzing while I am watching it? If all that's running through my mind while I watch a film is script notes then the film might be good, but it lacks some level of heart that makes me shut off my mind…or I’ve seen it enough times to get into analytical mode. That said this was my first time seeing the film and I felt my way through it. There was no note taking in my mind while I watched it, it pulled my heart all the way through.

Overall I give The Fableman’s 9.5/10, again because I am very stingy with my rankings but the movie will most certainly go down as one of Steven Speilberg’s best works. It will no doubt get multiple Oscar nominations, and rightfully so. I strongly encourage everyone everywhere to watch this movie and take from it hope and inspiration. If you are a creative, use whatever you love about this film to go create something, regardless of what anyone says about you or your love for the abstract. Just create.