GOING TO THE MOVIES: Inner demon drives ‘Big Fan’

For the News & Messenger

“Big Fan” — It’s not hard, particularly this time of year, to find folks that will remind you of Paul Aufiero, the title character of this darkly comic tale from writer/director Robert D. Siegel (“The Wrestler”).
Patton Oswalt (“King of Queens”) plays Paul, a 36-year-old parking garage attendant living with his mother on Long Island who lives and breathes New York Giants football. His fandom defines him — and
may also be his undoing.

When he’s not working at his mind-numbingly dead-end job, Paul is following every move made by his favorite team and calling in to a nightly talk show on a local sports radio station. He regularly
engages in verbal battles with an equally passionate Philadelphia Eagle fan (Michael Rapaport) on the radio show. Meanwhile, his mother and other family members think Paul’s wasting his life and urge
him to expand his interests.

Paul finds himself inches away from a dream come true when he and his best friend and fellow Giant fan Sal (Kevin Corrigan) spot the team’s star linebacker Quantrell Bishop (Jonathan Hamm) at a gas
station. Starstruck, they follow his limo at a distance and end up in the back of the crowd at a strip club where Bishop is trying to relax.

When Paul steps forward to introduce himself to his favorite player, an innocent misunderstanding transforms the dream meeting into a nightmare, as Bishops brutally beats Paul into unconsciousness.

Waking in the hospital, Paul discovers that the NFL has suspended Bishop, pending the results of a police investigation. Suddenly at the center of a whirlwind of unwanted attention from the media and
his fellow fans, as well as pressure from a skeptical detective and concerned family members, Paul is pushed into a corner where he must choose between his best interests and the team that defines his
identity.

Siegel’s script often strikes notes and tones of realism as raw as the headlines about players like Michael Vick and Plaxico Burris. At the same time, it captures the feel of a modern version of the Billy
Wilder classic, “The Fortune Cookie.”

Though Siegel’s screenplay can’t quite match that film’s brilliant mix of cynicism and humanity, it gets things right more often than not. Best known as a stand up comedian and as the voice of Remy, the
rat in Ratatouille, Oswalt displays strong acting skills in the seemingly simple, but complex role of Paul.

Oswalt finds subtle ways to reveal the inner demons that drive Paul’s passion for the Giants and his inability to separate himself from the “celebrity” status he creates for himself as a dedicated fan. The
script and Oswalt’s performance present a character who, by the final fade-out, has become a classically tragic figure.

Newcomer Jonathan Hamm does a good job of portraying the athletic arrogance that makes Bishop a star on the field and threatens to undo him off it. Solid supporting performances are turned in by
Corrigan, Rapaport and Marcia Jean Kurtz as Paul’s mother.

Edgy and thought provoking, “Big Fan” reminds us that “fan” is short for “fanatic” and that, without perspective, even our most innocent passions have the power to damage and diminish us.

Like “The Wrestler,” it stays with you long after you left the theater.

Well-made films do that and this is a well-made film.  MPAA Rating: R for profanity, violence and sexual content.

Joe’s Rating: Three (***) Stars.

Also opening this weekend

“Whiteout”— Kate Beckinsale is bold and beautiful as a determined U.S. Marshal tracking a serial killer in the rugged climes of Antarctica as six months of winter darkness is about to begin. Though the
plot’s “twist” is fairly visible, Beckinsale is a terrific heroine worth rooting for. Take an overcoat with you — the atmospherics will have you rubbing your hands and stomping your feet by the end of the
second reel.

Not a perfect thriller, but “Whiteout” is worth the ticket price. MPAA Rating: R for violence, disturbing images, profanity and some nudity.

Joe’s Rating: Two and One Half (** ½) Stars.

Joe Barber’s entertainment reviews and reports can be heard Fridays through Sundays on the WTOP-FM Radio Network (103.5, 103.9, 107.7 & Wtop.com.) He can be seen regularly on WETA-TV’s Around Town and Fridays on Comcast Sports Net’s Washington Post Live!