The Fan (1996 film)
| The Fan | |
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 The Fan movie poster |
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| Directed by | Tony Scott |
| Produced by | Wendy Finerman |
| Written by | Novel: Peter Abrahams Screenplay: Phoef Sutton |
| Starring | Robert De Niro Wesley Snipes Benicio del Toro John Leguizamo Patti D'Arbanville Ellen Barkin |
| Music by | Hans Zimmer |
| Editing by | Claire Simpson Christian Wagner |
| Distributed by | TriStar Pictures (US) Mandalay Entertainment (Global) |
| Release date(s) | August 16, 1996 (USA) |
| Running time | 116 min. |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $55,000,000 (estimated) |
| Box office | $18,626,419 |
The Fan is a 1996 American thriller film starring Robert De Niro and Wesley Snipes. It was directed by Tony Scott and based on the novel of the same name by Peter Abrahams. The Fan is a psychological thriller that revolves around the sport of baseball, exploring the overt dedication displayed by some of its fanatics.
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[edit] Plot
Gil Renard (Robert De Niro), a struggling knife salesman, is a temperamental divorcé who has been neglecting his responsibilities, namely his young son and his job which he is on the verge of losing due to poor sales. Gil has a fervent loyalty to his favorite sport, baseball and his favorite team, the San Francisco Giants. Gil is obsessed with the Giants' newest player, Bobby Rayburn (Wesley Snipes), recently acquired from the Atlanta Braves. He risks his job by attending the opening game of the season while he should be meeting a client. In an attempt to bond with his son, Gil takes him to the game, but leaves him there to attend his sales meeting.
The extensively hyped Rayburn suffers a chest injury, causing his performance to decline. Fans criticize his inability to live up to their expectations. The frustrated Gil, jobless now, begins to aggressively show his support. He shows his anger to fans who boo Rayburn. Gil's ex-wife, Ellen (Patti D'Arbanville), is disgusted by his irresponsibility. She tries to stop him from seeing their son. Gil is issued a restraining order. With his job and family lost, Gil again turns to his fanatical love for baseball. He even teaches his boss a lesson by stabbing his car several times for firing Gil, as well as leaving a knife in the hood.
He considers a teammate of Rayburn's, Juan Primo (Benicio del Toro), to blame for his favorite player's slump. Gil confronts Primo in a sauna at a hotel. Rayburn took over Primo's position in center field, but was not permitted to use his lucky number of 11 on his jersey. Primo rudely brushes off Gil, whereuopon Gil murders him with one of his knives. While San Francisco grieves, Rayburn begins feeling guilty for his teammate's death. But he starts playing well again, ending his slump. Gil, convinced that what he did was a service to Rayburn and the Giants, becomes even more personal with his fanaticism. He goes to Rayburn's beach house and unexpectedly helps save the player's son from drowning.
After pretending to have only a passing interest in the sport, Gil persuades Rayburn to play a friendly game of catch on the beach. Rayburn says he stopped caring about the game after the death of Primo because there were more important things in life. He makes the mistake of telling Gil that he lost respect for the fans, remarking on their fickle nature. Gil's temper rises. He speaks his mind on the matter, slightly disturbing Rayburn, especially when Gil takes off his jacket to reveal underneath Rayburn's #11 Atlanta Braves jersey and wonders if Rayburn is happy that Primo's not around.
Rayburn discovers to his horror that Gil has kidnapped his son and has fled in his car, as well as finding a piece of his teammate's branded shoulder with a number 11 on it in his freezer. Disillusioned with Rayburn's disrespect towards the fans, Gil spirals further into insanity. He acts as though Rayburn's son is his own. He drives to see an old friend, Coop (Charles Hallahan), a catcher that Gil spoke often of playing baseball with in his past. Coop is killed by Gil, who tried to help Sean escape, but not before he reveals that the only time the two ever played together was in Little League.
Gil takes Rayburn's son to a baseball field and hides him there. He contacts Rayburn to make one demand: hit a home run in the upcoming game, dedicating it to Gil, "a true fan", or he will kill Rayburn's son. With the Police on high alert, Gil enters the Giants' stadium in the midst of an on-and-off thunderstorm. Rayburn struggles with his emotions while at bat. After several pitches, he finally hits the ball deep into the outfield but not over the fence. Rayburn attempts to score an inside-the-park home run. He is called out, even though he is obviously safe. Rayburn begins to argue with the umpire, who turns out to be Gil in disguise.
Rayburn knocks Gil to the ground. Dozens of Police Officers swarm onto the field, pointing their firearms at the maniacal Gil Renard. Before they arrive, Gil stabs another baseball player, Lanz (John Kruk), who tries to tackle him. Despite warnings from the Police, Gil goes into an exaggerated pitching motion with a knife in hand. He asks Rayburn if he cares about baseball, but realizes he cares "just a little bit". He is shot dead as he is about to throw the knife. Police discover Rayburn's son at the Little League baseball field where Gil played as a child. They uncover his obsession with Rayburn, as hundreds of newspaper clippings adorn the deranged fan's hideout. A picture on the wall shows Gil in his past glory, playing Little League Baseball.
[edit] Cast
- Robert DeNiro as Gil Renard - A struggling knife salesman and a obsessed San Francisco Giants baseball fan. While struggling with his sales, and later getting fired, Gil devotes his time to watch his favorite baseball player, Bobby Rayburn.
- Wesley Snipes as Bobby Rayburn
- Benicio del Toro as Juan Primo
- John Leguizamo as Manny
- Patti D'Arbanville as Ellen Renard
- Ellen Barkin as Jewel Stern
- Charles Hallahan as Coop
- Andrew J. Ferchland as Richie Renard
- Chris Mulkey as Tim (Richie's stepfather)
- Brandon Hammond as Sean Rayburn
- Dan Butler as Garrity (Gil's boss)
- Kurt Fuller as Bernie (Gil's co-worker)
- Stanley DeSantis as Stoney (pervert store owner)
- Michael Jace as a ticket scalper
- M.C. Gainey as an irate Giants fan
- Aaron Neville as Himself (opening game singer)
- Jack Black as a radio broadcast technician
[edit] Box office
The film brought in $18,626,419 in the United States and Canada.[1]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- The Fan at the Internet Movie Database
- The Fan at Yahoo! Movies
- The Fan (1996 film) at Rotten Tomatoes
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