Taglines: Movies are dreams that you never forget.
The Fabelmans movie storyline. New Jersey, 1952. Entranced by his first visit to a movie theatre and haunted by the powerful imagery of Cecil B. DeMille’s Oscar-winning Harikalar sirki (1952), young Sammy Fabelman returns home seeking to recreate it. And encouraged by Mitzi, his doting mother, Sammy discovers an irresistible passion for making home movies.
As a result, the boy’s creative projects become increasingly ambitious, inspired by John Ford and Kahramanın Sonu (1962). However, when a life-altering family secret hidden in plain sight puts a strain on family ties, influencing his work, Sammy will have to believe in the power of the lens, embrace the slow process of growing up, and pursue his dream to become a storyteller.
Inspired by Steven Spielberg’s own childhood, The Fabelmans is a 2022 American coming-of-age drama film directed by Steven Spielberg, who co-wrote and produced it with Tony Kushner. The film is a semi-autobiographical story loosely based on Spielberg’s adolescence and first years as a filmmaker.
The plot is told through an original story of the fictional Sammy Fabelman, a young aspiring filmmaker who explores how the power of films can help him see the truth about his dysfunctional family and those around him. It stars Gabriel LaBelle as Sammy, alongside Michelle Williams, Paul Dano, Seth Rogen, and Judd Hirsch in supporting roles. The film is dedicated to the memories of Spielberg’s real-life parents, Leah Adler and Arnold Spielberg, who died in 2017 and 2020, respectively.
The Fabelmans Toronto Review
Steven Spielberg’s most personal film yet is based on the master director’s childhood passion for moviemaking, and the family dynamics that found their way into his work.
Steven Spielberg comes to the Festival for the first time with his most personal film yet. The Fabelmans finds the director reflecting on the experiences that made him the filmmaker we know and love, in a story based on his childhood in Arizona.
Gabriel LaBelle gives a breakout performance as the teenage Sammy Fabelman, always desperate for a new piece of gear so he can make ever-bigger movies with his friends. Michelle Williams is the heart of the story as Sammy’s encouraging mother, a skilled pianist. She brings life to their household, a fact Mr. Fabelman (Paul Dano), a computer engineer, finds as enchanting as he does discombobulating. Their family is rounded out by his loveable co-worker Benny (Seth Rogen), who becomes an uncle to Sammy and his sisters, always along for the ride with the Fabelmans. This unique combination of parental figures eventually becomes a source of tension with Sammy at the centre, and that seeps into his creative work.
Instead of chasing sharks or running from giant boulders, Spielberg has Sammy navigating the interpersonal landmines of home and school life, in what may be the most emotionally expansive film of his career. Starting with gunslingers and war stories, the way any Boy Scout in the late 1950s might, Sammy/Spielberg shows us not only what sparked Spielberg’s love for cinema, but also how empathy and human relationships have sneaked their way into the work of this master filmmaker.
The Fabelmans (2022)
Directed by: Steven Spielberg
Starring: Michelle Williams, Seth Rogen, Paul Dano, Gabriel Labelle, Jeannie Berlin, Julia Butters, Robin Bartlett, Keeley Karsten, Alina Brace, Birdie Borria, Judd Hirsch
Screenplay by: Steven Spielberg, Tony Kushner
Production Design by: Rick Carter
Cinematography by: Janusz Kaminski
Film Editing by: Sarah Broshar, Michael Kahn
Costume Design by: Mark Bridges
Set Decoration by: Karen O’Hara
Art Direction by: Andy Broomell, Andrew Max Cahn, Desma Murphy, Lauren E. Polizzi
Music by: John Williams
Distributed by: Universal Pictures
Release Date: September 10, 2022 (TIFF), November 11, 2022 (United States)
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