The Fan

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Allan C Fun, but it’s no baseball KING OF COMEDY The Fan (1996) **1/2 This movie rubbed me wrong somehow when it originally came out, so I never bothered watching it, despite digging most of director Tony Scott's other films up to this point, TRUE ROMANCE, CRIMSON TIDE, THE LAST BOYSCOUT, etc., so I decided it was time to finally watch it. Robert De Niro plays unsuccessful knife salesman Gil Renard, who's an obsessed baseball fan of Wesley Snipes' hotshot home-run hitter Bobby Rayburn. I remember pretty scathing reviews when it was originally released, but it wasn't as terrible as I was expecting. In fact, there were some pretty fantastic moments, primarily the action scenes, which is where Scott excels as a director. It's also just fun to watch Scott's rapid-fire cutting of pedestrian dialogue scenes, with Snipes and his manager driving through San Francisco, or De Niro arguing with his boss about the low-quality knives they're making him sell. De Niro is great as the obsessed fan, which, casting-wise, is a fun callback to his KING OF COMEDY obsessed fan Rupert Pupkin. Unfortunately, the script is incredibly tedious and predictable, even if all the folks behind and in front of the camera are doing their best to breathe life into this half-baked script. The script either needed to provide more depth to De Niro and Snipes' characters, or it needed to be about 40 minutes shorter and focus on just being a thriller. Even though the overall story is weak and at worst ridiculous, De Niro's unhinged performance and Scott's stylish direction were enough to make the film worth watching, at least for me, and enough that I'll probably want to rewatch it at some point again. Still, it's not one I'd recommend for casual viewers.  AI Capsule Review: Tony Scott’s "The Fan" has slick direction and a committed, unhinged turn from Robert De Niro, but the weak, overlong script keeps it from really connecting. Wesley Snipes brings star power, yet the film never decides if it wants to be a character study or a straight thriller. Stylish but shallow, it’s one for Scott or De Niro completists only. Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 09/01/25 Full Review Dante G Inarguably one of the worst movies of all time. The plot devices get more implausibly absurd with every ensuing scene. The finality will make you laugh harder than a Dave Chappelle in his prime stand up for all the wrong reasons. It’s a real head scratcher so many elite actors signed on for this. Rated 0.5/5 Stars •  Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 08/21/25 Full Review thiago s Filme fraco, o roteiro é fraco, as cenas são fracas, a história é fraca, o elenco é fraco, e ninguém ajuda a melhorar o filme, os personagens são fracos, e o filme deveria ter cenas bem melhores e relevantes, para fazer o filme ser bom Rated 0.5/5 Stars •  Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 07/05/25 Full Review Todd B A good movie a true fan, even to the point of an obsession. I loved it. Good casting. This was I think maybe a remake from the 1981 version of the movie of the movie of the same title. A starring role of Michael Biehn, which his character played a stalking fan role, as well. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/25/25 Full Review Sherwin C One of the many best of Robert Fuckin' De Niro watch it a 100x times since the 90s up to now 2024. Still one of my fave movies of all-time. 😎👍👍⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 10/19/24 Full Review Steve D It just keeps getting more ridiculous. Rated 2/5 Stars •  Rated 2 out of 5 stars 09/18/23 Full Review Read all reviews

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