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Mjeteconer Just perfect...

Erica Derrick By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Isbel A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

john32935 I count myself as a big fan of Big Fan. If you watch it, you may too.The story revolves around the title character's (Patton Oswalt in a very good star turn) rather depressing, boring life and his reasons for living, the NY Giants football team and his opportunity for notoriety via his "witty" banter on a sports radio call-in show. When he randomly spots, follows and approaches one of the team's stars, he unknowingly triggers a violent response. Rather than use this experience to change his view of his team, he denies any wrong-doing in an attempt to not cause HIS team any disruption on their march to the playoffs.This character study is detailed and very realistic, with some interesting twists. Each of the minor characters also ring true, and one could easily picture this story as a slice of life for any number of anonymous sports fans. There is enough comedy (light and dark) and emotional sincerity that this movie will appeal to more than the sports fan.

wandereramor Most of the talk around this film has been about Patton Oswalt's surprisingly tragic turn as its central character, an obsessive sports fan whose idolization of his heroes is called into question. Most comedic actors try something "serious" eventually, but usually once they're much more established as stars than Oswalt is. And it's a good performance. It suits the film, too, something that we can laugh at but also recognize the inherent sadness of it. If you've ever been obsessed with something -- and who hasn't? -- you'll recognize yourself here, and how seemingly trivial things can become life or death.Big Fan does feel a little slight, more like a stretched-out sitcom episode than an actual film. Most unfortunately, there's not enough plot, and the film has a tendency to paint in broad strokes. But if it's never really a transcendent movie, it's always an entertaining ones, equal parts pleasant and uncomfortable. A decent way to while away an afternoon and alienate the sports fans in your life.

dunmore_ego I'm no fan of Patton Oswalt as a comedian. But what a remarkable dramatic actor! Oswalt plays Paul Aufiero, the eponymous BIG FAN of the New York Giants, whose favorite player, Quantrell Bishop (Jonathan Hamm) nearly fatally bashes Paul one night for seemingly stalking him.(If someone really hates you, that is presumably "reason" enough they might do you harm; ironically, if someone really really really loves you, that is ALSO reason enough.) Rather than bring a lawsuit against Bishop, which would mean Bishop's suspension and therefore the crippling of Paul's favorite team, Paul drops all charges and pretends amnesia to a nosy detective.Written and directed by the writer of THE WRESTLER (Robert D. Siegel), BIG FAN is a hard closeup of the pathology and pathos of being so deep into a fantasy that the real world cannot compete let alone offer any solace.Like director Darren Aronofsky simply followed The Wrestler through his mundane workday, Siegel reveals Paul's tics and quirks simply by training his camera on him: Paul sits in his toll booth composing screeds to deliver on sports radio call-in shows; when he does call in, his delivery actually sounds scripted (testament to Oswalt's talent), yet his best friend listening in, Sal (Kevin Corrigan) believes him to be a prophet; Paul and Sal regularly catch Giants games - from a portable TV in the Giants Stadium car park, cheering as wildly as if they're in the bleachers; Paul lives with his nagging mother (Marcia Jean Kurtz), holed up in a small bedroom which offers no privacy. The tragicomedy is cringeworthy.Gino Cafarelli plays Paul's lawyer brother, who complicates matters when he brings charges against Bishop without Paul's consent; Serafina Fiore brings her outsize breasts to the role of Paul's sister-in-law (I still cannot understand why women with outsized fakes believe anyone would take their "acting" seriously when faced with their elective surgery orbs of distraction); Matt Servito ("the lovely Agent Harris" from THE SOPRANOS) is the nosy detective who cannot understand why Paul is protecting Bishop.Tension and black humor drives the last act, with some twists that nicely augment Paul's dementia, as he seeks revenge not on Bishop, but on a rival team's fan (Michael Rappaport). And Patton Oswalt delivers with a surprising conviction that makes me wonder why he chose comedy as his career when drama is so clearly his forte.Where Patton Oswalt Actor is concerned - I'm a BIG FAN... Now where's my gun?...

napierslogs "Big Fan" is about Paul (Patton Oswalt) who is a really big fan of the New York Giants. It's a simple premise and one that you think you see on a regular basis. But this movie is different because we really meet Paul, on a very personal level. We see everything in his life that makes him who he is. Even though Paul takes the word "fanatic" to a very serious level, he's accessible and it seems very real.It's really slow moving because we basically just follow Paul around as he lives his very lowly life, everything revolving around the Giants, and listens to sports talk radio. I was completely riveted. This is a character study at the highest level. It doesn't use sex or drugs or big-budget action to get us interested, only Paul himself. And a little bit of football talk.This is a darkly comic, but also very real, introspection of a sports fan. Every aspect of Paul had thought put into including interactions with and characteristics of all his family members and friend(s). "Big Fan" is the best mix of character study and sports, written at a very high level.The director and screenwriter, Robert Siegel, also wrote "The Wrestler" which I was not a big fan of. Although it was critically acclaimed, I feel that "Big Fan" actually accomplishes what "The Wrestler" was supposed to - a soul-fulfilling examination of what sports can do to some people. The humour echos the realness and intelligence found in the The Onion - Siegel was an editor in chief. That should just reinforce the recommendation to see this movie.