"Fan" a compelling look at dark side of team spirit

PARK CITY, Utah (Hollywood Reporter) - Some sports fans live and die by their team. "Big Fan," which screened at the Sundance Film Festival, centers on a diehard New York Giants football fan whose life revolves around the team's fortunes.

It's an unsettling, "Taxi Driver"-like character study that shows the underside to hero worship and the primal world of professional football. Don't expect Mike, Tony and Jaws to invite filmmaker Robert Siegel into the booth for "MNF" because "Big Fan" sacks the media image of sports as a game of champions who are admired by honorable supporters. Nonetheless, it's evident from the football particulars and story line in this well-executed entertainment that Siegel is a knowledgeable football fan.

Paul (Patton Oswalt) lives vicariously through the fortunes of the Giants and worships their star linebacker. Essentially, his entire identity revolves around the fortunes of the team. He's a 36-year-old schlub, toiling as a parking lot attendant, living with his mother and calling sports talk radio with rah-rah rants for his team. A loser in every social sense, Paul is admired by his dull-witted sidekick, Sal (Kevin Corrigan), for his talk-radio scrambling and Giants loyalty.

The duo happen upon Paul's football hero: They follow him and his posse to a strip club, where the agitated linebacker beats Paul to a pulp. It's a savage reaction, and completely credible.

How far will Paul go to sacrifice for his "team?" That's the nightmarish game plan for this dark and chilling film. Siegel has crafted a mesmerizing peek into the dark side of sports fans. He etches the "fanatic" to full and pathetic dimension. Befitting his stint as a former editor for the Onion, Siegel deftly mixes his bleak story line with telling humor.

Oswalt is readily identifiable as the type of guy who avoids real life. As his supportive buddy, Corrigan also evinces the sorry state of the sports-bar loser. As a Philadelphia Eagles superfan, Michael Rapaport erupts with the pent-up rage that reflects a certain type of fan.

Technical contributions are all touchdowns, with special praise to production designer Sharoz Makarechi for the blue-collar, sports-world look.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter