I loved this movie. If it is playing anywhere near you, make the trip to go see it! This is the screenwriter of The Wrestler's directorial debut, and man am I excited at his (Robert Siegel) potential. This is an excellent second offering after writing one of my favorite films ever made. Big Fan is another character study of a die-hard, verging on obsessive, NY Giants fan named Paul Aufiero played by Patton Oswalt. Oswalt packs in a powerful performance that reflects his depth and dynamism as an actor, whose as good at that as he is a great comedian.
In many ways Big Fan is a look at an alienated, poor, isolated individual with an obsession and the dangerous consequences those circumstances and personality traits produce. However, I believe that the film is largely more redemptive and sympathetic to Paul and his friend Sal (played by the equally great Kevin Corrigan). Paul and Sal's fandom is their only sense of purpose and connection in a pretty cold and alienating world. Paul in particular, writes pretty clever and insightful sports analysis and delivers this well on sports talk radio almost every night. Maybe if he had had the opportunities of a jounalism major at a nice college he could easily be a sports writer or TV/radio pundit. Either way, he still has something that he puts his heart, mind, and soul into and gets heard and respect on the radio for it.
Which leads into some of the other aspects of the film. The realism of this film is tremendous. Characters are complicated and criticized, the urban decay and poor working-class world of the Rugged Shaolin that Paul inhabits is depicted wonderfully. This world is also often juxtaposed, during scenes and moments of conflict, in contrast with the world of the wealthy. Whether it be the rich/party/night-club manhattan lifestyle of Paul and Sal's favorite Giants player or the lavish, suburban family life of his rich, sleazy, trial lawyer brother. It is also portrayed at Paul's work in a parking garage, where his rich customers in their nice cars constantly look down on him and treat him like dirt.
Paul has nothing but contempt for this world in a way, but he is still mostly concerned about Giants football. However, it obviously affects him. He is bored with his lame brother-in-law who is in management for price club and that's all he talks about. He has no illusions about his rich brother's greed and the hollow life he fashioned for himself with his stupid, mistress, overly tanned, boob and nose-jobbed, trophy wife. Yet, since he can not afford a nice house or fancy things, and chooses to not want to meet and marry gold-digging ladies, he gets criticized and condescended upon by everyone in his life. At least he has something to look forward to every day. He works, goes out and eats with his friend. It's not like he's some unemployed mooch of the family. His only flaw is that he's poor and different.
Anyways, that's where I believe Big Fan is a complicated character study that paints a dark and dangerous picture of the potential consequences of the effects Paul's surroundings, as well as his fandom, but is also sympathetic to Paul (and Sal) and critical of the values and world they inhabit. That's the brilliance of this movie, Siegel's writing/directing, and Oswalt's performance. It's sweet, sad, smart, funny, realistic and dark. I can't say enough good things about this movie, go see it if you have the chance.
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