This movie is a bit perplexing. Even the details behind it getting made are befuddling. It's based on a novel and I've read the novel. It's decent. Not bad, held my attention, entertaining enough, but not by any means innovative, original, profound, nor (for that matter) memorable. As far as I know, it wasn't a best-seller, either. None of that in itself is unusual, but what is unusual is there seemed to be a lot of weight behind getting it made. Apparently, all kinds of actors were fighting to play the title role. Brad Pitt, Al Pacino, Jack Nicholson, and even Wesley Snipes all were reportedly vying for it. None other than Robert DeNiro won the role. Not surprising, given his clout (not to mention his extended resume of playing intimidating psychopaths). I'm curious what it was about the script (or novel) that drew him to the project. As I said, he'd played plenty of psychopaths before, so this role wasn't neither new for him, nor was it challenging. And the source material wasn't by any means a built-in money-maker, but nonetheless, enough Hollywood heavies wanted it to get made and so it did.
In any case, DeNiro's attachment to the project was what brought Tony Scott to it. Scott always wanted to work with DeNiro and this was his chance. He even turned down the opportunity to direct “The Rock” to do “The Fan,” which is funny because I've always considered Michael Bay (who ended up directing “The Rock”) a Tony Scott wannabe. Ironically, “The Rock” turned out to be a much more satisfying flick (at least by the standards that Tony Scott's usually measured by). That's probably because Tony Scott's interest in the project seemed to extend only as far as DeNiro's involvement.
Scott didn't have much interest in baseball in general, in many cases ignoring the input of technical adviser Cal Ripken while making the film. Nevertheless, the baseball stuff comes across as convincingly authentic. The psychotic stuff, not as much. That's neither Scott's fault nor DeNiro's, it's partly the script's and partly the editor's. The movie opens with an odd poem recited by the star, which is unnecessary and kinda awkward. After that, the first half of the film actually has a good rhythm with DeNiro's character's life gradually falling apart alongside Snipes' character's career falling apart. But some parts are confusing because they're neither explained nor developed. For instance, there are many lines of dialogue that are ambiguous because we're not sure if DeNiro is lying, telling the truth, or just plain crazy.
It's a shame, because there are many elements of the film that work perfectly. The notion of parents overreacting at little league games escalating to domestic scuffles has been done before, but I don't believe I've ever seen it as unsettling and disturbing as in this movie. The villain's first murder is grisly, but in an effectively understated way. Hans Zimmer's score blends perfectly with remixes of Nine Inch Nails, creating a volatile atmosphere even in scenes where little is happening. Generally speaking, the film maintains okay until DeNiro kidnaps Snipes' son. Ironically, that's when it should get more intense, but it oddly boils down to Snipes literally having to hit a home run to save his son. Many baseball movies climax with our hero having to hit a home run, but not many psychological thrillers do. Probably the worst oversight, though, is there are lots of opportunities to explore the perils of fame, wealth, sportsmanship, family, and personal passions further, but they only merely touch on them.
Criticisms aside, this film does still hold a special place in my heart. One main takeaway for me is that Wesley Snipes is a much better actor than most people give him credit for. Watch how he plays the scene when his character first starts to realize DeNiro may actually be a threat instead of a fan. Another is my own realization that any Tony Scott movie is worth watching. There's an insightful line by Snipes about sports fans where he observes, “They don't understand that you're the same person when you're hitting or not.” This movie shows that even when Tony Scott's not at his best, he's still pretty good.
