'The Fabelmans' Review: Spielberg Takes A Victory Lap

One of the best movies of the year is a deeply personal project from one of our all-time best filmmakers.

For all the personal experiences Steven Spielberg relives in "The Fabelmans," seeing the movie for the first time felt very much like making a memory of my own that I'd keep forever. I'm still savoring the moments I spent sitting in the theater at the Toronto International Film Festival world premiere with a stupid grin on my face, knowing what I was watching was something much more special than I could have ever expected.  

To be clear, "The Fabelmans" is a film by Spielberg, about Spielberg, which reminds us that the director is arguably the best to ever yell, "Action!" What a legend. Perhaps we forget that because he hasn't helmed a film firmly at the center of mainstream culture in recent memory, but the way we consume content is much different than when the director was becoming a household name. Spielberg is one of the few remaining American filmmakers diligently working to remind us of the importance of the communal cinematic experience. Enter: "The Fabelmans." 

This is Spielberg's version of a memoir, and therefore more personal than anything he's done. It's a love letter to both filmmaking and his own family, relishing a lifetime learning the art of cinema to tell his story. The movie shows us the director's upbringing, first exposure to movies and his subsequent obsession with making them himself. It's notable, however, that Spielberg here goes by Sammy Fabelman, indicating what we're seeing is semi-autobiographical, with some creative liberties. This is not a work of nonfiction, and the director is not asking us to take it completely at face value.