It had the same effect as Archie Bunker did, then. People identified more with the character for how he was, than were repulsed by him for what he did/said.
It's rumored that McDonald's adjusted its policy on breakfasts because of this movie.
Identified with a guy who was psychotic and planned to murder his wife and child?
The original OP is right. This movie was a slap in the face to “paranoid” heterosexual white men.