There had been these persistent rumours that Steven Spielberg’s “The Fablemans” would go to the New York Film Festival for around a month now. I brushed them off, waiting for more credible sources to chime in.
“The Fablemans” has to be New York-bound, right? It does make perfect sense. The release date was recently moved from November 27th to November 11th — a closing night slot on October 16th, a mere three weeks before release, would fit perfectly. Spielberg had also used the fest as a launching pad for “Lincoln,” and “Bridge of Spies.”
From what I’ve been hearing, “The Fablemans” is almost ready, and Spielberg rushing up a print of it for New York wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibilities. In 2012, “Lincoln” was a last-minute addition to NYFF, with a cut that was said to be a “working print” of the film.
“The Fablemans” will have Spielberg recounting his childhood in Arizona, including his sneaking into studio lots to meet his idols (the rumor is that David Lynch will be playing an eye-patched John Ford). Michelle Williams and Paul Dano will be playing Spielberg’s parents. Seth Rogan will play the Uncle.
Funnily enough, a festival director had shrugged off the idea of “The Fablemans” being any good in a recent conversation I had with them — they wrote, “Between us, I just don’t see how this would be that intriguing to the Fall festivals outside of TIFF, but maybe that’s just me. I love Michelle Williams but this feels big and commercial and Spielbergian…not that there’s anything wrong with that.”
I disagreed. “The Fablemans,” I said, has major potential.