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The Fabelmans

 The Fabelmans
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The Fabelmans
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The Fabelmans is a coming-of-age film directed by Steven Spielberg, who co-wrote the screenplay with Tony Kushnernote it is the third time Spielberg has written a film he also directed, after Close Encounters of the Third Kind and A.I.: Artificial Intelligence. The film is inspired by Spielberg's childhood and teenage years in Arizona and California in the 1950s and 1960s, with a focus on the events that led to his parents' divorce.The film stars Gabriel Labelle as Author Avatar Sammy Fabelman, Michelle Williams and Paul Dano as Sammy's parents Mitzi and Burt, Julia Butters as Sammy's sister Reggie, and Seth Rogen as Burt's best friend (and the Fabelman children's surrogate uncle) Bennie Loewy. It follows the Fabelmans' two major cross-country moves as Sammy confronts anti-Semitism at his high school, discovers a talent and love for filmmaking, and struggles to navigate his parents' contrary natures and goals for both him and their marriage.Premiering at the 47th Toronto International Film Festival on September 10, 2022, the film received a limited theatrical release in the United States on November 11, 2022, before opening wide on November 23, by Universal Picturesnote Spielberg's first film to be released by Universal in the United States since Munich.
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 The Fabelmans / int_11187387
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Gentile Jew-Chaser
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Gentile Jew-Chaser: Monica, a devout Christian, is instantly interested in Sammy when she learns from Claudia that he's Jewish (because she loves Jesus, and Jesus was Jewish). The relationship creates not an insubstantial amount of drama.
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The Cameo
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The Cameo: None other than David Lynch pops up in the end as John Ford.
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 The Fabelmans / int_20989d05
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Parents as People
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Parents as People: Besides Sam, Mitzi and Burt Fabelman are the protagonists of the film, and are suitably complex. Burt is an excellent provider and a caring father and husband, but he also doesn't understand Mitzi or Sammy's artistic sides very well, is oblivious to the negative results the family's relocations have on his children, and doesn't have the guts to address his wife's affair. Mitzi is a loving mother but simply isn't emotionally satisfied with Burt and is having an emotional affair with his best friend. She's also prone to emotional outbursts and rash decisions that hurt the rest of the family.
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Anachronism Stew
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Anachronism Stew: In the background of a shot that has vinyl soundtracks, the Deluxe Letterbox Laserdisc release of The Great Escape can be spotted. The format wouldn't be invented for another 13 years.
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 The Fabelmans / int_26ac510e
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Mythology Gag
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Mythology Gag: A scene in which Sam and his Boy Scout buddies, on bicycles, all turn a corner and swing out onto a street, is highly reminiscent of a shot in E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. Sam and his fellow Boy Scouts exploring the desert calls to mind the opening scene of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. The monkey Mitzi buys looks a lot like the Nazi monkey from Raiders of the Lost Ark. Sammy's war film will definitely remind you of Saving Private Ryan.
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 The Fabelmans / int_275d19ee
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Birds of a Feather
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Birds of a Feather: Played for tragedy. Despite being an engineer like Burt, Bennie is a very spontaneous and fun-loving man who likes to entertain others, just like Mitzi. This leads to them carrying out an affair. Mitzi tries her hardest to stick with Burt because he is a kind and hardworking man who she knows doesn't deserve what she's putting him through, but she ultimately realizes that Bennie just offers her more emotionally, leading to Burt and Mitzi getting divorced.
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Bilingual Bonus
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Bilingual Bonus: Just like "Spielberg" has some meanings related to storytelling (it's German for play-mountain, 'spieler' is 'actor' in Yiddish, and a 'spiel' is a speech), "Fabelman" was chosen specifically for featuring the German word for 'fable'.
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 The Fabelmans / int_308ac24f
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Fantasy-Forbidding Father
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Fantasy-Forbidding Father: Downplayed. Burt is fairly supportive of Sam's filmmaking... but as a hobby, not a vocation. Mitzi calls this out:
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 The Fabelmans / int_30fb1442
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'60s Hair
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'60s Hair: The girls are sporting long hair held by ponytails or headbands, short flips, and bouffants, Sammy's date wears her hair in the then-trendy Beehive Hairdo, and Sammy's hair grows into a Beatle cut by the time the movie ends in 1966.
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 The Fabelmans / int_3618ebb9
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TheSixties
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The '60s: Sam's teen years takes place during this period, culminating in him graduating with the class of 1964.
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 The Fabelmans / int_385cfd1d
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You Hate What You Are
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You Hate What You Are: When Sammy is ranting about hating Mitzi for her selfishness after his parents announce their divorce, his sister points out that he, of all the siblings, is the most like her by a long shot.
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Actor Allusion
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Actor Allusion: Judd Hirsch's character arrives by, and leaves by, a Taxi.
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Bird-Poop Gag
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Bird-Poop Gag: Sammy's movie of the class trip invokes it, by filming a person laying in the sand, and as the camera is raised to film a flying seagull, dropping ice cream on the face.
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 The Fabelmans / int_3dcc914f
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Took a Level in Kindness
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comment
Took a Level in Kindness: As shown above under Heel Realization, Logan realizes how cruel he has been to Sammy and while he isn't necessarily friends with Sammy by the end, he still reaches an understanding with him and even defends Sammy by punching out Chad when Chad attempts to attack him.
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 The Fabelmans / int_3e24af42
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Musical Gag
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comment
Musical Gag: The song on the soundtrack as we open on ditch day (which Sam has agreed to film) is "Goodbye Cruel World" (I'm off to join the Circus). A callback to Uncle Max's speech.
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 The Fabelmans / int_40cc0c7e
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Bittersweet Ending
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comment
Bittersweet Ending: Burt and Mitzi divorce and split up the family, with Sammy going to live with Burt and Mitzi marrying Bennie. However, Burt finally gives his blessing to Sammy pursuing a filmmaking career and, having secured some work on Hogan's Heroes and getting advice from John Ford, Sammy's future in the field looks very bright.
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 The Fabelmans / int_4674f3b1
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Mischief-Making Monkey
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comment
Mischief-Making Monkey: Sammy's mother buys one at one point, simply because she "needed a laugh." It immediately climbs on his father's head and wrecks the house. While at times played for laughs, it also stands as a symbol of Mitzi's instability, particularly when she names him Bennie.
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 The Fabelmans / int_4781adbb
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Jerk with a Heart of Gold
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comment
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: After giving Sammy some tough love and telling him to get the fuck out of his office, John Ford goes back to his cigar. Sammy drops back in to sincerely thank him, and the old man cracks a genuine smile, saying it was his pleasure.
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Leaning on the Fourth Wall
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comment
Leaning on the Fourth Wall: Sammy and Logan's final conversation is a borderline example of this when Sammy jokingly says no one will never know of their conversation unless he makes it into a movie. The final shot is this with the camera being adjusted the way John Ford had recommended how you should do a camera angle in the previous scene.
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I Never Said It Was Poison
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comment
I Never Said It Was Poison: Sammy tells Claudia that Logan cheated on her with a redheaded girl. Logan punches Sam in the nose and tells him that if he doesn't go back and tell Claudia he was lying, Logan will hurt him worse. Sam duly goes back to Claudia and says he was lying—but Claudia isn't fooled, noting that there was no way Sam could have known Logan's ex-girlfriend Renee has red hair.
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Call to Adventure
 The Fabelmans / int_4c095112
comment
Call to Adventure: After the death of Mitzi's mother, the Fabelmans get a visit from Mitzi's uncle Boris, a former lion-tamer and filmmaker. While staying the night in Sammy's room, he says his dad maybe isn't going to understand his art, but people in his family like himself and his mother are good at it, and he's got to pursue it despite the obstacles.
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 The Fabelmans / int_4c8e8078
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All of the Other Reindeer
 The Fabelmans / int_4c8e8078
comment
All of the Other Reindeer: The Fabelmans are Jewish, and when they move to California, Sam unfortunately faces some anti-Semitic bullying, e.g. calling him Bagelman, demanding he apologize for killing Jesus, and physical assaults. This is in direct contrast to his life in Arizona where he was accepted for who he was and had a close group of friends.
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 The Fabelmans / int_5473668f
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Logo Joke
 The Fabelmans / int_5473668f
comment
Logo Joke: The Amblin Moon passes by Universal's Earth, making for a seamless transition between logos.
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 The Fabelmans / int_56515a39
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Artistic License – History
 The Fabelmans / int_56515a39
comment
Artistic License – History: While Sammy Fabelman's story is based on Steven Spielberg's own life, there are a few differences between them: While going to school in California, Sammy briefly dates a Christian girl named Monica, before ultimately breaking up with her near the end of the last day of school. Steven Spielberg himself never had a girlfriend during his teenage years. Logan continues to be a Jerkass after watching how the Senior Skip Day film glorified him, and angrily asks why Sammy would make him look that good. In real life, according to Spielberg's biographer Joseph McBridge, the bully actually approached him "a changed person". He found the film Actually Pretty Funny and wished he'd gotten to know him better. After meeting with John Ford, Sammy is shown being grateful for the man's tough love attitude and the advice he gives him, happily walking into the sunrise to start his own film career. In real life, Spielberg admitted that he was actually traumatized by the meeting at the time, as he believed that he'd made a fool of himself in front of Ford due to misunderstanding him, not helped by him telling Spielberg to "get the fuck out" of his office shortly after. It wouldn't be until years later that Spielberg realized what Ford's advice meant.
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 The Fabelmans / int_56d95b5b
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High School
 The Fabelmans / int_56d95b5b
comment
High School: The latter portion of the film has Sam at a new high school in Saratoga, CA, after the family has moved. He has a miserable experience there, being bullied by anti-Semitic jocks.note In Real Life, Steven Spielberg has spoken more than once of how terrible his time at Saratoga High School was, and 20 years after his student film was shown at prom he sent a rep to the school to take it back.
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Boyish Short Hair
 The Fabelmans / int_5c0902e7
comment
Boyish Short Hair: Mitzi has the late Leah Adler's (Spielberg's mother) Peter Pan-style haircut, which was cutting-edge for women of her generation.
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 The Fabelmans / int_5ce7dbb9
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Central Theme
 The Fabelmans / int_5ce7dbb9
comment
Central Theme: Art versus Technology. Sammy's mother is creative and emotional but also rather flighty, while his father is brilliant and responsible but sometimes rather detached. Many the Fabelmans' conflicts are a result of it. Becoming a filmmaker is how Sammy combines the two. Masculinity. The role of the male in 20th century society is examined, from positive aspects to toxic. Sammy has a number of key masculine role models in his life.
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 The Fabelmans / int_5f4f15ba
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Two-Timing with the Bestie
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comment
Two-Timing with the Bestie: Mitzi is having an emotional affair with her husband's best friend and subordinate Bennie.
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 The Fabelmans / int_646407bd
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We Named the Monkey "Jack"
 The Fabelmans / int_646407bd
comment
We Named the Monkey "Jack": Mitzi buys a pet monkey after the family moves from Phoenix to Saratoga. Naming the monkey "Bennie" causes some tension in the already-stressed household, and she offers to change its name as a placating gesture.
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 The Fabelmans / int_66755d29
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Author Avatar
 The Fabelmans / int_66755d29
comment
Author Avatar: Sammy Fabelman is one for Steven Spielberg.
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Jerkass Has a Point
 The Fabelmans / int_6b05b601
comment
Jerkass Has a Point: A humorous example. Despite coming off as grouchy, John Ford gives Sammy good advice on frame making. The last frame's Meta approach shows Ford was right. Burt's mom is standoffish towards Mitzi and Bennie. Considering that the two are later revealed to be having a affair, she is right to not like or trust either of them.
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 The Fabelmans / int_6bda9a30
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Meaningful Name
 The Fabelmans / int_6bda9a30
comment
Meaningful Name: A kid called Fabelman wants to become a storyteller. The name is also a hidden pun, as Kushner revealed in interviews.
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Why Did You Make Me Hit You?
 The Fabelmans / int_77e45bb5
comment
Why Did You Make Me Hit You?: Mitzi slaps Sammy on the back after their argument, and looks horrified. The film doesn't side with her, but she is shown sympathetically.
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Shell-Shocked Veteran
 The Fabelmans / int_7a143509
comment
Shell-Shocked Veteran: Downplayed. When Sam starts talking to Burt about the World War II movie he's making, referring to WWII as "your war", Burt quickly changes the subject, and later when somebody asks Sam if it was inspired by his father's stories, Sam says Burt doesn't talk about his service much.
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 The Fabelmans / int_7febc23b
type
Establishing Character Moment
 The Fabelmans / int_7febc23b
comment
Establishing Character Moment: In the first scene, both Burt and Mitzi's personalities are demonstrated by how they try to reassure Sammy that there's nothing to be afraid of at the movies, Burt by scientifically explaining how a projector works and Mitzi by comparing movies to dreams.
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 The Fabelmans / int_856a425a
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TheFifties
 The Fabelmans / int_856a425a
comment
The '50s: Sammy's childhood takes place during this period, starting when his parents take him to see the 1952 film The Greatest Show on Earth.
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 The Fabelmans / int_85cefc44
type
Sympathetic Adulterer
 The Fabelmans / int_85cefc44
comment
Sympathetic Adulterer: A variation in that the adultery is a serious flaw with terrible consequences but the characters involved with it are sympathetic. Neither Bennie nor Mitzi are bad people despite them carrying out an emotional affair behind Burt's back. Bennie legitimately loves Mitzi's children, and Mitzi has repeatedly attempted to come clean about it to Burt only for him to engage in Oblivious Guilt Slinging every time. Bennie doesn't even hold it against Sammy when Sammy starts giving him the cold shoulder upon finding out, continuing to encourage him to follow his dream of becoming a filmmaker.
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 The Fabelmans / int_863fac26
type
Jerk Jock
 The Fabelmans / int_863fac26
comment
Jerk Jock: At Saratoga High, Sam is relentlessly bullied by a gang of jocks led by Logan and Chad, who hurl anti-Semitic insults. On one occasion Logan punches Sammy in the nose.
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 The Fabelmans / int_8792383c
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Censorship by Spelling
 The Fabelmans / int_8792383c
comment
Censorship by Spelling: As the Fabelmans drive home from the movie and Burt and Mitzi discuss if it was too much for the young Sammy:
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type
Quitting to Get Married
 The Fabelmans / int_89dcfbdb
comment
Quitting to Get Married: Mitzi quit performing piano professionally to marry Burt. She still does it occasionally, but her doomed dream is one of Sammy's motivators not to end up like her.
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The Fabelmans / int_89dcfbdb
 The Fabelmans / int_953a8ee8
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Age Cut
 The Fabelmans / int_953a8ee8
comment
Age Cut: 7-year-old Sammy is filming the family car pulling into their Phoenix house for the first time. He directs his father into the driveway, says "Aaaaaaaand—", and the film cuts to 14-year-old Sammy saying "—stop!", as he films his Boy Scout friends.
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The Fabelmans / int_953a8ee8
 The Fabelmans / int_9591377d
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Heel Realization
 The Fabelmans / int_9591377d
comment
Heel Realization: Logan has this after watching Sammy's Senior Ditch Day and realize how mean he has been to Sammy. Averted with Chad, who doesn't take the film well and seeks out Sammy to physically retaliate.
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The Fabelmans / int_9591377d
 The Fabelmans / int_9d12bbc1
type
Foreshadowing
 The Fabelmans / int_9d12bbc1
comment
Foreshadowing: It's not hard to realize Bennie and Mitzi are in love with each other, even before Sammy does. Mitzi being distressed upon moving to Phoenix without him and fighting Burt about it is the first big sign. Likewise, in the scene where she dances in front of the headlights, you can see Bennie watching her with the same adoration that Burt does.
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The Fabelmans / int_9d12bbc1
 The Fabelmans / int_a63f45d5
type
Cool Uncle
 The Fabelmans / int_a63f45d5
comment
Cool Uncle: Sammy's great-uncle Boris is a former lion tamer who has lived an exciting life and even has experience with filmmaking. He also shows support for Sammy's dream.
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The Fabelmans / int_a63f45d5
 The Fabelmans / int_a681bfc6
type
Amicable Exes
 The Fabelmans / int_a681bfc6
comment
Amicable Exes: Burt and Mitzi, despite the rocky reasons of the split, seem amicable enough to each other.
 The Fabelmans / int_a681bfc6
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The Fabelmans / int_a681bfc6
 The Fabelmans / int_a7ba94de
type
Inferiority Superiority Complex
 The Fabelmans / int_a7ba94de
comment
Inferiority Superiority Complex: It's implied that Logan has some self-esteem issues, as he takes issue with the borderline-heroic portrayal of himself in Sammy's Ditch Day film, feeling that he can never live up to that in reality.
 The Fabelmans / int_a7ba94de
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The Fabelmans / int_a7ba94de
 The Fabelmans / int_a90fff3
type
Based on a True Story
 The Fabelmans / int_a90fff3
comment
Based on a True Story: The movie is a riff on Spielberg's real-life childhood, with particular attention paid to his parents' divorce, his childhood film work, and his early career path, with the details of the people involved roughly accurate. However, there are a number of notable changes made in order to both make it a better story and capture the emotional takeaways a little better.
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The Fabelmans / int_a90fff3
 The Fabelmans / int_aef5c283
type
Off-into-the-Distance Ending
 The Fabelmans / int_aef5c283
comment
Off-into-the-Distance Ending: Sam skipping away down what appears to be the Universal lot, having started his new career in show business.
 The Fabelmans / int_aef5c283
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The Fabelmans / int_aef5c283
 The Fabelmans / int_bc00493f
type
Precision F-Strike
 The Fabelmans / int_bc00493f
comment
Precision F-Strike: John Ford tells Sammy to "Get the fuck" out of his office.
 The Fabelmans / int_bc00493f
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The Fabelmans / int_bc00493f
 The Fabelmans / int_be81113b
type
Lost in Character
 The Fabelmans / int_be81113b
comment
Lost in Character: Played for Laughs. While making Sammy's World War II film, his friend Angelo gets so deep into character as he walks off into the distance that he doesn't hear Sammy and the others yelling to him that they've finished the shot and he can come back.
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The Fabelmans / int_be81113b
 The Fabelmans / int_c75df49a
type
Shout-Out
 The Fabelmans / int_c75df49a
comment
Shout-Out: Bennie puts what looks like a spider under one of the children's plates, which they freak out about, until Bennie puts the "spider" in his mouth and says, "Licorice. If there's anything I'm a sucker for, it's licorice." Sam and his friends in Arizona go see The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance at one point.
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The Fabelmans / int_c75df49a
 The Fabelmans / int_df7137e7
type
Barbaric Bully
 The Fabelmans / int_df7137e7
comment
Barbaric Bully: Chad is very casual with his threats of violence towards Sammy, so much so that even Logan has to reign him in periodically. Unlike Logan, Chad doesn't reevaluate himself after seeing Sammy's Senior Ditch Day and attempts to physically assault Sammy.
 The Fabelmans / int_df7137e7
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The Fabelmans / int_df7137e7
 The Fabelmans / int_ea480f92
type
Simple, yet Awesome
 The Fabelmans / int_ea480f92
comment
Simple, yet Awesome: When watching Sammy's western film for his Boy Scout merit badge, everyone is impressed that Sammy managed to make the actor's toy pistols flash as they fired like real firearms. Sammy explains to his dad that he accomplished this by simply using a pin to poke holes in the film strip so the projector's light would shine through.
 The Fabelmans / int_ea480f92
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The Fabelmans / int_ea480f92
 The Fabelmans / int_eb8ec7c8
type
Jerkass
 The Fabelmans / int_eb8ec7c8
comment
Logan continues to be a Jerkass after watching how the Senior Skip Day film glorified him, and angrily asks why Sammy would make him look that good. In real life, according to Spielberg's biographer Joseph McBridge, the bully actually approached him "a changed person". He found the film Actually Pretty Funny and wished he'd gotten to know him better.
 The Fabelmans / int_eb8ec7c8
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The Fabelmans / int_eb8ec7c8
 The Fabelmans / int_eba4e300
type
Honorary Uncle
 The Fabelmans / int_eba4e300
comment
Honorary Uncle: Bennie is referred to as "Uncle Bennie" despite not being related to either of Sammy's parents. He eventually does become Sammy's stepfather.
 The Fabelmans / int_eba4e300
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The Fabelmans / int_eba4e300
 The Fabelmans / int_edeafb2e
type
Malicious Misnaming
 The Fabelmans / int_edeafb2e
comment
Malicious Misnaming: The anti-Semitic bully Chad repeatedly calls Sammy "Bagelman."
 The Fabelmans / int_edeafb2e
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The Fabelmans / int_edeafb2e
 The Fabelmans / int_f0fc8518
type
High-School Dance
 The Fabelmans / int_f0fc8518
comment
High-School Dance: Sam shows his "Ditch Day" film to the students at the Saratoga High senior prom—right after Monica broke up with him after Sam proposed marriage.
 The Fabelmans / int_f0fc8518
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The Fabelmans / int_f0fc8518
 The Fabelmans / int_fd16495f
type
Answer Cut
 The Fabelmans / int_fd16495f
comment
Answer Cut: While Sammy and his friends in Arizona are watching The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, one of them asks Sammy, "So, what kind of movie are we going to make?" Cut to another one of his friends dressed up as an outlaw in the western Sammy is making.
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The Fabelmans

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 The Fabelmans
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Acclaimed Flop / int_ab741450
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Bird-Poop Gag / int_ab741450
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Gentile Jew-Chaser / int_ab741450
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Two-Timing with the Bestie / int_ab741450