ROANOKE TIMES 
                      Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times

DATE: Saturday, August 17, 1996              TAG: 9608190037
SECTION: EXTRA                    PAGE: 10   EDITION: METRO 
                                             TYPE: MOVIE REVIEW
SOURCE: KATHERINE REED STAFF WRITER 

`THE FAN' STRIKES OUT IT'S NOISY, VIOLENT AND EVEN SLIGHTS BASEBALL

The least we can do is tell you what we thought of a movie, and then let you decide whether we've made what sound like valid points, correct?

Unfortunately, in the case of the new Robert De Niro-Wesley Snipes movie, "The Fan," that won't be possible. And it's all MTV's fault.

It seems increasingly obvious that MTV values have given lazy, insecure filmmakers license to use music to cover up their deficiencies. When a movie comes up short on character, story or overall impact, someone decides that given the movie's intended market, the best remedy is a hard-driving soundtrack with lots of names "the kids" will recognize.

"The Fan" is a case in point. It's an ugly movie about an ugly subject - a San Francisco Giants' fan named Gil (De Niro), whose obsessive love for the game and a hitter named Bobby Rayburn (Snipes) drives him to some terrible acts.

Forget all those lovely baseball movies of the past. This movie isn't about baseball, which explains why technical adviser Cal Ripken Jr. didn't want his name in the credits. It's about how greedy the game has become. There is not a single character representing those stalwarts who still play for love of the game and love of the fans.

Except Gil. And he's a psychopathic killer.

So what we're left with is a very dark, physically unpleasant cinematic spectacle with the most overbearing soundtrack in recent memory. It features LOTS of Nine-Inch Nails, Massive Attack - and for the old folks, plenty of Top 40 Rolling Stones. If the goal was to make it impossible for the audience to THINK about the movie, than director Tony Scott - with the help of composer Hans Zimmer and music supervisor Sharon Boyle - was completely successful.

I could tell you what it looked like. I could tell you what it sounded like. I could tell you that Robert De Niro looks as if he's carrying on an Ugliest Face Contest with himself throughout the movie. And I'm pretty sure a thorough analysis of the story would position it very firmly outside the Baseball Hall of Fame - and somewhere way, way out in left field.

But I couldn't hear myself think.

The Fan

**

A TriStar Pictures release, showing at the Valley View Mall 6 and Salem Valley 8. Rated R for for graphic violence and profanity. 139 minutes.

LENGTH: Short :   50 lines