4K Ultra HD/Blu-ray Review: THE FABELMANS

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Feb 15, 2023 Posted by Kyle Nolan in DVD/Blu-ray, Reviews | Comments

It’s January 10, 1952 and 5-year-old Sammy Fabelman (Mateo Zoryon Francis-DeFord) is seeing a film in the theater for the first time, The Greatest Show on Earth. It is an eye-opening experience unlike anything Sammy has experienced before. At first it’s a bit scary, and difficult for him to separate movie magic from reality. However, Sammy’s father Burt (Paul Dano) is a brilliant, analytical computer engineer, and explains to his son the technical aspects of filmmaking. At the same time, Sammy’s mother Mitzi (Michelle Williams), who’s a concert pianist, homemaker and a bit of a dreamer, saw the way her son’s eye lit up in the theater, and emphasizes to her son the more dramatic and fantastical side of movies. It was this day that Sammy’s love of filmmaking started, and it isn’t long before he’s using his father’s video camera to make his own films starring his younger sisters, and serving as videographer for the family’s vacations. While Burt assumes this is just a hobby for his son, Mitzi can see the passion in Sammy’s work. She and Burt’s best friend, “uncle” Bennie (Seth Rogen), quickly become Sammy’s top supporters and fans.

As Sammy (Gabriel LaBelle) gets older, his love of filmmaking continues to develop and grow. He integrates special effects as he creates even more elaborate films with his scout troop. Everything seems to be going great, but his world is about to come crashing down when the lens he has trusted for so long betrays him, catching a potentially shattering family secret that makes him re-evaluate what he thought he knew and loved. The camera was once this powerful tool that brought him joy and wonder, but now it brings a different feeling. Sammy’s world has been upended, and new struggles, challenges and priorities take shape. Can Sammy find his way back to his passion and dreams of filmmaking, or is is life on a different course?

The Fabelmans is a semi-autobiographical film based on director Steven Spielberg’s own life, family and experiences, though the character names have been changed in order to give the film more of a universal feeling, rather than that of a documentary. When I first saw this movie in the theater, I enjoyed it, but didn’t find it as remarkable as its numerous award nominations made it out to be. However, while watching it again for the second time on this 4K disc, I found a greater appreciation for the writing. Early on in the film, younger Sammy crashes his new model train, and Burt tells his son “You can’t just love something, you also have to take care of it,” and I didn’t realize the importance and foreshadowing of this line until now. There several other instances of this deeper or double meaning throughout the film that came out during my second viewing. Another one that stands out is when Sammy is filming the final scene of his WWII film, and he is giving direction to his peer/actor about the character’s motivation, but in reality, Sammy’s deeply-emotional words are actually describing his own thoughts, feelings and situation. Upon my second viewing, I definitely understood more of why this film has been receiving so many accolades, though I still have a few minor gripes, but more on that later.

While the film does have its dramatic moments, the tone is more often than not one of wonder and humor. The Fabelmans feel like a real family (maybe because they are based on one), and you really get the sense of the love and the joy they feel for one another, even when there are heartaches. Their stories and interactions often leads to lots of laughs. While the film does have a general narrative that flows all the way through, at times it feels more like several short movies or vignettes concatenated one after another. First we follow a young Sammy’s eye-opening introduction to the world of film, then an older Sammy as he learns and hones his craft, then it’s more of a coming of age story of a teenager learning his parents are just people and dealing with first love and school bullies, and finally we follow Sammy trying to break into the film business. And while all of this is happening, there’s a lot of other family drama involving the secret Sammy learns, and how that affects both his relationships with his family and with his love of filmmaking. With the film trying to be a lot of things all at once, this results in a movie that feels at least 30+ minutes longer than it needs to be. While I probably enjoyed these scenes the most, there is a lot of time spent showing Sammy making his movies, re-creating some of Spielberg’s own amateur films, or showing these movies to an audience. There are also several other scenes that felt more like they were just there as showcases for guest actors, such as a lengthy sequence where Uncle Boris (Judd Hirsch) shows up to tell Sammy he’s a tortured artist who’s going to have to choose between family and his art, or a long scene at the end of the film paying tribute to another director. While some of these could have been eliminated in my opinion, I guess Spielberg knows better as Judd Hirsch got the film another Oscar nomination for these 10 minutes he appears in the movie.

The two actors playing Sammy both do a remarkable job. You really get a sense of the wonder and fascination of movie making with the younger Sammy (Mateo Zoryon Francis-DeFord), and this is carried over in the portrayal by the older actor, Gabriel LaBelle. The performance really showcases the brilliance and love of filmmaking Spielberg had in his formative years. LaBelle also delivers on the more dramatic side of the role as Sammy feels the pressure of what he’s discovered, or as he faces anti-Semitic bullies at his new school. But he also does an excellent job with the more humorous aspects of the role, such as the scenes involving Jewish Sammy and his Jesus-loving girlfriend. Paul Dano is an actor I’m always impressed with, particularly the way he completely transforms himself into his roles. He does an excellent job becoming this very analytical father who loves his son, but also wants him to focus on a more academic career. Burt loves his family, but sometimes has blinders on when it comes to their needs and wants, focusing a little more on his work. The only performance I was mixed on was Michelle Williams as the mother. Mitzi is a concert pianist who misses playing her music, and finds herself dealing with loss and other emotions. Williams has great chemistry with Dano and both of the actors playing Sammy, and she delivers some strong comedic and dramatic scenes. However, in some other scenes instead of Mitzi seeming emotional or depressed, she comes off more insane and bipolar, when there is no indication in the story that the character is supposed to be mentally unstable. So I found this performance a bit off and jarring at times. However, I still quite enjoyed the film overall.

Universal’s 4K release looks and sounds great. The video is pristine, with a clean and clear picture that provides an excellent level of detail in textures and faces. There is some grain in Sammy’s amateur films, but this is a purposeful aesthetic for his 8mm footage. The Dolby Vision not only showcases the film’s color palette which transports the viewer back to this era, but also enhances other scenes, such as the glow of the film screen in the darkened theater, or the pastel colors of the prom. Overall, this is very beautiful-looking film, and 4K presentation does an excellent job at capturing that. The audio track provides clear dialogue throughout and makes nice use of the surround channel to provide an immersive ambiance. There’s always some sound filling the room, whether it’s the action of the films-within-the-film, the heavy winds as Mitzi goes storm chasing with the kids, John Williams’ delightful score, or Mitzi’s classical piano playing which often becomes the score for other scenes.

The 4K and Blu-ray discs comes packed in either side of a standard 4K keepcase, along with an embossed carboard slipcover, and an insert containing a code to redeem an HD MA digital copy of the film. The discs also contain nearly 50 minutes of behind-the-scenes featurettes with the cast and crew. While the featurettes are interesting, I would have loved it if Spielberg had provided a commentary for such a personal film, sharing just how true to life some of the wacky things portrayed in the film actually were.

What’s Included:

Film: (2:30:45)

2160p / Widescreen 1.85:1
Dolby Vision / HDR10
Audio: English Dolby TrueHD 7.1, Spanish Dolby Digital Plus 7.1, French Dolby Digital 5.1
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, French

Blu-ray:

1080p / Widescreen 1.85:1
Audio: English Dolby TrueHD 7.1, English DVS (Descriptive Video Service), Spanish Dolby Digital Plus 7.1, French Dolby Digital 5.1
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, French

Digital (code may not be valid after 3/31/2024):

4K Digital Copy (Movies Anywhere compatible)
Universal All-Access Rewards Code (Offer may not be valid after 9/30/2023)
Code can be redeemed for points towards a free digital movie via the Universal All-Access Rewards program. The selection of a dozen free digital titles usually changes around the first of the month.

Extras:
Play All, or select from:

The Fabelmans: A Personal Journey (11:00)
The filmmakers discuss how the film came about, making a movie that didn’t feel like a strict autobiography, Spielberg’s parents, basing the film on real memories, making a relatable story, the tone of the movie, the names of the characters, the humor, and more. Includes behind-the-scenes footage, and interviews with co-writer/producer Tony Kushner, director/co-writer/producer Steven Spielberg, and producer Kristie Macosko Krieger.
Family Dynamics (15:28)
Spielberg talks about casting the movie, while the actors discuss researching and playing these real-life characters, and working with the director. Includes behind-the-scenes footage, and interviews with director/co-writer/producer Steven Spielberg, producer Kristie Macosko Krieger, and stars Michelle Williams (“Mitzi Fabelman”), Seth Rogen (“Bennie Loewy”), Paul Dano (“Burt Fabelman”), Gabriel LaBelle (“Sammy Fabelman”), Mateo Zoryan Francis-DeFord (“Younger Sammy Fabelman”), Sam Rechner (“Logan Hall”), Oakes Fegley (“Chad Thomas”), Chloe East (“Monica Sherwood”) & Judd Hirsch (“Uncle Boris”).
Crafting the World of The Fabelmans (22:04)
The cast and filmmakers discuss recreating Spielberg’s childhood home, the costumes, recreating Spielberg’s amateur 8mm films, using the actual cameras Spielberg used, filming the camping scenes, shooting the tornado scene with LED screens, filming Ditch Day on the beach, working with John Williams for 50 years, and more. Includes behind-the-scenes footage, and interviews with director/co-writer/producer Steven Spielberg, production designer Rick Carter, co-writer/producer Tony Kushner, costume designer Mark Bridges, director of photography Janusz Kaminski, property master Andrew M. Siegel, editor Sarah Broshar, editor Michael Kahn, composer John Williams, and stars Michelle Williams, Gabriel LaBelle, Seth Rogen, Paul Dano, Chloe East, Sam Rechner & Oakes Fegley.

Final Thoughts:

My Rating

Film:

Video:

Audio:

Extras:

Recommended

With The Fabelmans, co-writer/director Steven Spielberg gives viewers a fun, personal and emotional look into his own life. He explores how his love of filmmaking came about and was fostered by his mother, the coming-of-age drama he faced both at home and in school, and how family played a large part in his life. Overall, I quite enjoyed the movie, even if it felt a little too long at times. Universal’s 4K presentation looks and sounds amazing, and the release also includes about 50 minutes of interesting behind-the-scenes bonus material. This is an easy recommendation, especially for those with a passion for films, filmmaking, or Spielberg in general.