Directed by Steven Spielberg
Starring Gabriel LaBelle, Michelle Williams, Paul Dano, Seth Rogen and Mateo Zoryan

Movies these days are long. Longer than long, they’ve started to lessen the impact of the term ‘titanic-length’ after routinely pushing the two-and-a-half-hour mark for better or worse. But when it’s the semi-autobiographical origin story of arguably the best director to ever grace the screen, maybe it’s worth the demanding length.

Through a whole childhood, split among many time leaps, Spielberg recasts himself as Sam Fableman, a plucky young kid who sure does love filmin’ stuff. And when he does film stuff, it’s routinely good. Nice lighting, amazing cinematography, great imagery. It’s almost like there’s a legend at the helm and when he lets himself indulge in the meta, he can really frame the act of filming an amateur movie very well for a big screen blockbuster.

So technically speaking, the film’s a hit. Gorgeous visuals, crisp audio, a soundtrack by John Williams… What more could you ask for? Well, a consistent story might be something to chuck on the wish list – to the dismay of every movie-buff who staked their lives on this release. The sad truth is, there’s just a bit much going on most of the time, and it’s usually not Sam filming stuff.

Side plots build and develop, characters become established, and we get invested, but time and time again the payoff just doesn’t really feel like it develops any theme to a satisfying, though provoking conclusion. Or perhaps it’s the repetitive nature of flashback scenes, typically told through Fableman re-watching what he’s filmed, which is something that we’ve already watched him film previously in the film, and we’re about to watch him chop up, condense, before presenting to his friends and family…

Don’t get me wrong, it’s touching through and through, but at no point did I personally feel myself falling invested in the plight of the overly friendly relationship between mum and Uncle Bennie, or the bold bullying from his high school days. On the way out of the cinema I wondered if I were a troll, intent on causing misery in the world, when I asked my buddy if perhaps Ready Player One hadn’t been a more enjoyable movie with a monstrous runtime…

After my fair thrashing at the suggestion that Spielberg’s biopic swan song may have been eclipsed by his IP opus, we debated the merits of entertainment against perfection. In all fairness, The Fablemans gave me a lot to think about, but I’m just not exactly sure if it’s exactly what the director had in mind when putting together what is nothing less than the juiciest Oscar-bait of all time.

The Fabelmans is showing in cinemas across Australia from January 5th.

Moviedoc thanks Studiocanal and Annette Smith: Ned & Co for the invitation to the screening of this film.

Reviewed by Zak Wheeler for Moviedoc

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