CommentaryVideo

The Fablemans is Steven Spielberg’s valentine to himself

Kenneth Brannagh's better, and so are Cuaron's and Boorman's

The Fablemans official poster


Credit: Universal Pictures/YouTube

Any filmmaker of influence is probably bound to make a movie about his own childhood.  Such a film would most likely reference the movies he grew up with, especially those that inspired him to get into filmmaking.

In Steven Spielberg’s case, the movie he mentions is Cecil B. De Mille’s The Greatest Show on Earth.  It’s prominently featured in The Fablemans, his semi-autobiographical film now showing at Ayala cinemas. The title is the name of a Jewish family.  Sam Fableman is the oldest child and the only son. The character is based on Spielberg himself.

Sam was five when he watched a movie in a theater for the first time. It was the De Mille epic and it left a profound effect on him. He got so obsessed with the film’s spectacular train crash, he recreated it  using his miniature train set and the camera of his dad (Paul Dano).The seed is planted and we later see the teenaged Sam  (now played by Gabriel LaBelle) making short films starring his  siblings, parents, and his fellow boy scouts.

The Fablemans is more of a family drama.  Because of his father’s career, the family moves from New Jersey to Arizona, and later to northern California. Being uprooted so often has its repercussions. It puts a strain on the marriage of his parents.  In California, he is ridiculed and bullied in high school because he is Jewish.

The movie is also Spielberg’s belated olive branch to his late mother (Michelle Williams). He had reason to be so bitter with her. Still her passion for music and the arts is lovingly filmed and given a considerable amount of footage.

As Spielberg tells his story, we realize his childhood isn’t as terrible as one might expect.  The family is fairly well off and his road to becoming a movie director is hardly marred by obstacles. Although he has his share of heartbreaks and pathos, we know the brilliant nerd would have his revenge. Thus our reaction to his suffering is that of indifference.

The Fablemans isn’t a typical Spielberg movie. Attention-seeking techniques are minimal and there’s no cuteness overload. John Williams’ lush score sets the tone of a scene without being obtrusive. Viewers will actually hear less of his music. More dominant are period songs and lovely classical pieces performed on the piano by Mrs. Fableman.

Also atypical is the surprisingly lack of attention to detail. The story begins in 1952 yet the Fablemans are seen in a 1955 Plymouth. Call me a nitpicker but for viewers who know a thing about vintage cars, it’s scandalous because so much is lost in terms of authenticity.

The Fablemans ultimately plays like a two-hour version of The Wonder Years. This isn’t a bad thing as viewers of a certain age will feel nostalgic. The bonus is we get to see a carefully chosen cast act their roles splendidly.   As the teenaged Sam, Gabriel LaBelle is competent and is  the spitting image of Spielberg. One wonders  then if the young actor was cloned from the DNA of his director.

The short films of young Sam are also a hoot, and more fun than this lengthy movie of old Steven.

Kenneth Brannagh’s story is better

As a little boy growing up in Northern Ireland in the late 1960s, Kenneth Brannagh could only wish he had the kind of life Spielberg had as a child. Brannagh grew up in a Belfast neighborhood where violent riots were the norm. This was the time of “The Troubles” or the conflict between the Irish nationalists and unionists. The former wanted  their country to separate from the UK; the latter opposed it.

Belfast official poster


Credit: Focus Features/YouTube

Brannagh recounts his traumatic younger years in his own personal movie titled Belfast. Released in 2021, Belfast was nominated for Best Picture at last year’s Academy Awards (it lost to CODA)

Young Buddy (Jude Hill) is Brannagh’s screen version of himself. His Pa (Jamie Dornan) wants to move to safer territory (London) after a nationalist tries to coerce him into actively participating in The Troubles. Buddy’s Ma (Caitriona Balfe) is reluctant to leave.

Buddy is often seen eavesdropping on his parents’ arguments. Tensions are forgotten when this lower middle class family goes to the movies. Like Spielberg, Brannagh has a list of films that left a great impression. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is one. The sight of Buddy’s jaw-drop as he sees the magical car take flight is priceless. And there’s One Million Years B.C. with its gallery of dinosaurs. It also showcaseds statuesque Raquel Welch in her iconic doe-skin bikini. “It’s no wonder you took us to see this movie,” scoffs indignant Ma to drooling Pa.

Their reality, however, is a far cry from the epics they see on the big screen.  The uncertainties are cushioned somewhat by Buddy’s grandparents, played by the scene stealing Judy Dench and Ciaran Hinds. The older couple provides the film’s most charming moments.

In contrast, the street riots scenes are gripping and suspenseful.  The surprise is Brannagh, for once, reigns in his usual bombastic way of storytelling. His film isn’t  overwrought, nor is it over sentimental.  It does end on a poignant and hopeful note.

Alfonso Cuaron’s personal film is Roma

Roma official poster


Credit: Netflix/YouTube

Acclaimed  director Alfonso Cuaron also recalled his childhood in his film Roma.  Released in 2018, it was warmly received by critics and got Oscar nominations for Best Picture and Best International Film (it lost the former to The Green Book, and won the latter). Shot in black-and-white, the Spanish language movie was filmed in the very same  Mexico City neighborhood Cuaron grew up in. The name of this upscale place is Colonia Roma.

Cuaron was an adolescent in 1970, the year the movie is set. His father was a prominent medical physician, so he had a carefree and privileged childhood and was sheltered  from  the unstable political climate in Mexico. Yet his own family lost its stability when the father  left them for his mistress.

Roma, however, isn’t really about Cuaron. It’s his valentine to his beloved indigenous nanny, Cleo (Yalitza Aparicio). His father may have left them, but Cleo would risk her own life to keep her wards safe.  To witness  the mutual  loyalty between family and servant is a  transcendental experience.   Cuaron gives us  such stunning poetry on film. What  the poetry  imparts is men will always leave, but the women who nurture you will always be there for you.

Some viewers could feel bored watching Roma.  Initially it seems that Cuaron merely recounts  the family’s daily routine. They talk like us, and the conversations sound ordinary. The film isn’t about  show-stopping  confrontations, but it’s both  funny and harrowing. It’s gets disturbing when Cleo becomes witness to a bloody confrontation between student protestors and the paramilitary police.

So just sit back and focus on the film because a lot of Filipinos should relate to Cuaron’s story. I identified with his childhood  because of  a few  amusing similarities. His dad drove a  1970 Ford Galaxy. It’s a huge car but he could expertly park it in their narrow driveway. My dad drove a similarly  sized Chevrolet Impala and it also took some piloting skill to get it into the  tiny garage of our apartment. Yet like their Galaxy, the Impala was a dream to ride in and a source of wonderful memories.

Also, Cleo is deserted by the boyfriend when she gets pregnant. Our housekeeper also met the same fate. The culprit was the driver of my playmate who lived across the street.

Happily, both my parents and the parents of my playmate, Rod Nepomuceno, made arrangements for their wedding.  I don’t think that story would make an interesting movie though. Palm Village isn’t a photogenic place.

John Boorman’s personal film is his best film

Hell in the Pacific official poster


Credit: MovieTrailerFan 1980/YouTube

Spielberg, Brannagh, and Cuaron made their respective personal films in recent years. John Boorman did  his way back in 1987. Boorman’s notable credits include such macho-themed films as Hell in the Pacific and Deliverance. His sunny semi-biographical movie, Hope and Glory, is a welcome change.  It was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture (it lost to The Last Emperor).I have to admit that Hope and Glory is on  my list of top five favorite movies.

Deliverance official poster


Credit: HD Film Tributes/YouTube

Boorman’s fictional version of his little boy self is Billy (played by the engaging Sebastian Rice-Evans).  Billy loves going to Saturday matinees to see the serialized cowboy movies. Then England declares war on Germany, which not long after begins to bomb London.

As seen through the little boy’s eyes, the war isn’t that tragic. The destroyed houses  become his playground .  The Blitz, as they called the bombings, is glorious  fireworks to his eyes. Billy also becomes privy to his older sister’s (Sammi Davis) carnal relationship with her Canadian soldier boyfriend (Jean-Marc Barr). He also pretends to be napping while his mom (played wonderfully by Sarah Miles) has a “what if” conversation with a male family friend. The friend, it turns out, was the one that got away.

When their own home is razed—not by bombs but by his older sister’s carelessness—they move to grumpy old grandpa’s (Ian Bannen) picturesque cottage in the country. The house sits by the banks of the Thames, which is sheer heaven for Billy.

The final scene is a riot.  Billy is feeling miserable on the first day of school. Much to his amazement, the school has been hit by a bomb. As the school burns, an ecstatic boy shouts, “Thank you, Adolf!”

Hope and Glory official poster


Credit: Rotten Tomatoes Classic Trailers/YouTube

Boorman presents us with so many beautiful scenes of his childhood. Much of them are hilarious, so viewers do get a different perspective of the war. The talented cast makes it work, especially Sarah Miles, who gets to have her role of a lifetime.  The movie is so accurate when it comes to various scenes involving Boorman’s sister and mother. Reportedly, following the premiere of Hope and Glory, Boorman’s actual older sister approached him  at the theater lobby and slapped him!

About author

Articles

He is a freelance writer of lifestyle and entertainment, after having worked in Philippine broadsheets and magazines.

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