Once again Steven Spielberg, director and co-writer, knocks it out of the park with this movie. This movie is a love letter to cinema and all of those who love this art form. This is best shown with the story for this movie but specifically on the surface level. On the surface level, this movie is about a young boy who has a dream but some of his family members consider it a hobby. Lots of people will see themselves in Sammy and relate to him due to this aspiration he has. How so many people want to work in the movie industry but there are those who say it's not a stable career option or that it's just a hobby. That's what makes this movie so incredible to watch is how relatable it is. You connect with the characters in this movie and want to keep watching to see what's going to happen next. This especially connects well when you look at the movie in a deeper way. When you look past everything on the surface level this story is about a family wanting to be there for each other and how film can capture that. Some of the earliest movies people make are family home videos and that's exactly what this movie feels like. You follow this family through different experiences and moments in their lives and how it changes and affects them. You feel like a fly on the wall throughout the entire movie. This brings me to what I loved the most about this movie which is the emotion it has in it. The movie brings you on a wild roller coaster and from beginning to end you're hooked. One second you're laughing and the next you're starting to tear up which I actually did while watching. But again, that just shows how powerful film is and what this whole movie is about is how it can move and affect you.

To tie this all together with what I originally said, this movie's story is really for those who love this art form but even for those who don't. The story does an excellent job of explaining certain things for those who might not be as well educated in the way of film but more specifically the behind-the-scenes aspects of it. I really enjoyed the scenes where we got to see the making of process for Sammy's movies as it shows what are some aspects of what directors do on sets and what it was like to edit movies back in the old days. I especially liked getting to see how exactly they edited movies back then and seeing how tough it was. This movie's story really makes you reflect back to the moment you first fell in love with film and how it's impacted you. Despite how long this movie is, it honestly flashes before your eyes. I didn't notice how long I had been sitting there due to how memorized and hooked I was with this movie's story. This movie is paced super well and knows how long each moment should be in order for the audience to get the full effect of it. But the true reason this story is so engaging to watch is the performances in this movie. All of the acting in this movie was incredibly well done and makes you feel like this is a real family. Everybody works off of each other in order to help the audience fully understand both their character and their dynamic in the household. This is best explored with Michelle Williams's, who plays Mitzi Fabelman, performance as the mother and past dreamer. Michelle Williams's character is the one who is most similar to Sammy so it's understandable why she would be encouraging him to pursue his dreams. She's been where he was and it almost seems like she regrets her decision to not properly pursue her dream. It's also great to see one of the parents fully support Sammy's dreams from the very beginning and continually encourage him along the way. But, it's not just, for this reason, she was captivating to watch but also because of her character's mental health issues. Her character's mental health issues are so interesting to watch especially as they spiral downwards.

After a reveal in the movie, you see Michelle Williams completely change the way you see her portray her character. She's still this loving mother who cares for her children but she's also very depressed and doing her best to try and understand why. To counteract Michelle Williams's performance we have Paul Dano, who plays Burt Fabelman, as the doting father. Paul Dano plays this by the book's character who doesn't fully believe his son could make a career by making movies. But no matter what his thoughts are he still cares for his family, especially his son, and wants what's best for them. He's always looking for ways to cheer up his wife and care for her. Paul Dano plays this so well that you can't help but like his character. I just wanted to quickly shout out Mateo Zoryan, who plays younger Sammy, as he perfectly portrayed the childhood wonders a lot of people got from watching movies at a young age. The scene stealer in this movie was hands down Gabriel LaBelle. Just like with Mateo Zoryan, Gabriel is able to show how movies can impact and shape us. Those who want to work in the film industry will be able to relate to him. He shows how much hard work goes into making movies and how directors look at all of the different reactions to their movies. Gabriel Labelle also demonstrates so well how passionate directors can be when it comes to making movies and especially when directing their actors. During the scene where he's making the WW2 movie, you see this. He always knows what exactly he wants to be done and how to get it executed that way. But what really makes his performance stand out amongst the others is how down-to-earth his performance is. He plays Sammy in such a way that during the moments he isn't directing movies you can still relate to him. When it comes to him learning the truth he reacts the same way any teenager would learning this kind of truth. It's thanks to Gabriel LaBelle's performance in this movie that we the audience are taken on a rollercoaster ride of emotion.

But none of this could've been done without the help of an incredible director and Steven Spielberg proves he's still got it with this movie. I think what really helped him with directing this movie is how this movie is semi-autobiographical about his early years. So he has a deeper connection to this story but either way Steven Spielberg continues showing why he's one of the best directors of all time here. He knew how to direct his actors to make sure he got the correct reaction out of them that was needed for whatever scene it was. I especially loved the scenes where we only saw the reaction shots before we got the reveal of what they were looking at. He knows how to keep the audience wondering what's going on and what's going to happen next. In the end, The Fabelmans is a must-see movie for those who love the cinema or just want to watch a really good drama movie. This movie is for all those with a dream to keep pursuing it no matter what.