The Fabelmans: semi-biographical biopic about the teenage years of director Steven Spielberg, directed by Spielberg himself
Plot and background
With an unprecedented career that began with the television film “Duel” in 1971, director Steven Spielberg wrote film history several times. Films such as “Jaws” (1975), “E.T.” (1982), “Jurassic Park” (1993) and “Schindler’s List” (1993) filled cinema halls and are among the director’s favourite works for many people.
With “The Fabelmans”, Steven Spielberg, at the age of 75, ventures into what is probably his most personal story to date. He has been toying with the idea of making a film about his own youth since 1999, looking back with a critical eye on the upbringing of his parents Leah and Arnold Spielberg and family life in Phoenix, Arizona. The family lived there in the years between 1957 and 1964.
In the trailer, Spielberg’s life story is retold:
“The Fabelmans” – plot
Even in his teens, Sammy Fabelman (Gabriel LaBelle) is determined that he will make a career as a director. His parents (Michelle Williams and Paul Dano) only want the best for him, but teach him the strict rules of Orthodox Judaism.
While Sammy often clashes with his classmates at high school, his favourite uncle (Seth Rogen) has his back. On Saturdays, his path leads him straight to the cinema, where the great films of the time like “Laurence of Arabia” run up and down – and the love of film becomes more and more tangible for Sammy.
“The Fabelmans” – background, cast, cinema release
Since 1999, Steven Spielberg has been toying with the idea of making a biopic about his youthful years entitled “I’ll be Home”. The script was to be written by his sister Anne. After first his mother Leah passed away in 2017 at the age of 93 and his father Arnold passed away at the stately age of 103 in August 2020, Spielberg announced in spring 2021 that he would semi-biographically approach his own life in “The Fabelmans”.
It stars Michelle Williams (“Manchester By The Sea”), Paul Dano (“There Will Be Blood”), Seth Rogen (“The Disaster Artist”) and Gabrielle LaBelle (“Predator Upgrade”). For the first time since “A.I. – Artificial Intelligence” (2001), Spielberg is again writing a script for “The Fabelmans” with the help of Tony Kushner (“West Side Story”).
In the USA, the biopic will be released on Thanksgiving weekend 2022, while the German theatrical release of “The Fable Men” will not be until 9 March 2023. After winning the coveted Audience Award at the 2022 Toronto Film Festival and the 2023 Golden Globes Awards, where “The Fable Men” was named “Best Film – Drama” and Spielberg received a Golden Globe Award for “Best Director” for his deeply personal work, the drama is also considered one of the hot candidates for the 2023 Oscar. “The Fabelmans” is in the running for the Oscar at the 95th Academy Awards in the categories “Best Film”, “Best Director”, “Best Original Screenplay”, “Best Score” and “Best Production Design”. In addition, Michelle Williams as “Best Actress in a Leading Role” and Judd Hirsch as “Best Supporting Actor” can hope for one of the coveted trophies.
