Synopsis: Paul Aufiero (Patton Oswalt), a hardcore New York Giants football fan who lives at home with his mother and whose life revolves around call-in sports talk shows, struggles to deal with the consequences when he is beaten up by his favorite player in a bar during a misunderstanding.This seems like it would be a comedy, especially given the lead actor Patton Oswalt's reputation, but it's most definitely a drama with some comedy worked in. It's actually an insightful commentary on the holy status we afford to our sports "heroes," and just how far some fanatics will go in supporting their favorite teams or players. I love sports myself, but when my favorites teams lose it's just sort of done and I go on. It sucks for a minute, but then I say big deal and go back to living. Some people literally live and die with their teams and I've always found it pathetic and stupid. The call-in radio shows just feed these types of people so they can have their 24-hour-a-day sports fix. All of this is portrayed in this film as bleak, but sadly feels honest and real.
The acting is surprisingly good, with Oswalt turning in a great performance. I thought the dialogue was believably real. A few times the movie drags a little and can be a bit tedious and boring, even for the short run time. If you're not a sports fan you may find this true even a little more so.
One thing that I'd like to have seen was Paul using the Internet as most of these pathetic, obsessed fans of this nature do. Especially while living in their mama's homes. It would have been perfect to see him freaking out over some meaningless forum post about the Giants while listening to his sports talk radio show.
Overall this is a nice little film that has an excellent and memorable story with some good acting. It may seem a little unbelievable to some people at times but believe me, this is very realistic. Sadly, sports is almost life support for some people.
I especially love the end scene.
7.5/10
