One Hour Photo (Widescreen Edition)

It's rare to see a family in a photograph that is full of sorrow and despair. Most of the time, it's a requirement to have smiling faces in a family picture. Nobody wants to see any sort of sad expression on a face, because that's not what people would want to remember when it's revisited. It's the exact opposite of the news: we want FOND memories of life. And sometimes when we look at a smiling family in a Kodak picture, we wish we had that sort of happiness in the past (and in the present). It may seem odd to some people, but never to the main character of "One Hour Photo": Sy Parrish.In the film, Sy (played by Robin Williams) is one of those people that we never really notice everyday. He works at a clinic in a department store, and he seems to be nothing but air. Very few people care about him (mainly his customers). He's neither a celebrity nor a messiah. People would pass him by and would always be oblivious of his presence, and it's only because they've got other things in mind. As a matter of fact, he would actually blend in the white and gray walls due to the dull colors of his clothing. Sy doesn't look like he acknowledges his mediocre existence, but it's clear that he cares about his work. He is fully dedicated to creating photos, but it's unfortunate that his line of work offers him nothing in return. He is not married, and he has very little friends (probably none). Whenever he heads home from work, all he does is feed his pet hamster and watch television. His life is devastatingly empty, and he just wants the world to see that he existed. Something does give him happiness, though. There is a customer named Nina Yorkin (played by Connie Nielsen) who brings in family photos, and Sy happily process them. She is his favorite customer, and therefore, her photos are the ones that he admires the most. In fact, he loves them so much that they have actually become a part of his life. The smiles and the various colorful images on these photos make him happy, because this looks like the one thing that was missing his entire life: a perfect family. He has the desire to become a part of the "supposed" picture-perfect family that's embedded on hand-sized pieces of paper, and he'll do anything to make sure that it this happiness stays within, even if it results in severe consequences.Director Mark Romanek has done a splendid job with "One Hour Photo." He and Jeff Cronenweth, the cinematographer, have made the correct look of the film: the contrasts of light and color between Sy's apartment, the department store, and the Yorkins' home are very well-done. Romanek has also formed the appropriate pacing for this movie: nothing is ever too slow or too rushed. Credit should also go to Reinhold Heil & Johnny Klimek for the chilling yet beautiful music score. Actually, credit should go to everyone who was involved with this film.Robin Williams is mostly known for his comedic work. I don't admire a majority of the films that he appeared in, but I admire him for his abstract comic timings and improvisations. His dramatic work, however, has surprised millions of people because this is the exact opposite of what he has been associated with. I'm not particularly shocked by this change of pace, but I was deeply fascinated by not only his character, but also his performance in the film. Robin has that quiet, awkward personality down perfectly for his character, and his complete absorption of Sy Parrish's mannerisms and dialogue is really a mesmerizing sight to see. The supporting cast does a very good job as well. Nielsen, Michael Vartan, and Dylan Smith were very appropriate as the Yorkins, while Gary Cole plays Bill Owens, the store manager, with very few flaws."One Hour Photo" is not a feel-good film, nor is it trying to be one. It succeeds at being a psychological thriller/drama that delves into solemn real-world issues. It's depressing, but it's also powerful. It's not exactly perfect, but it's still an effective film, and it remains on my list of all-time favorites.Grade: 9.5/10

Loved Robin just as much in darker roles. This one flies a bit under the radar but still a pretty good movie. Got it for a great price too.

Underrated Robin Williams performance.

Pay no attention to that 6.8 rating at IMDb; this is a psychological drama which demands more than one viewing. It's hard to even imagine anyone other than Robin Williams being considered for the lead role of Sy Parrish, the guy who prints your photos while you shop at the gargantuan SavMart. That he is the most developed -- pun intended, I guess -- character in the movie is a frustration, but not a fatal flaw. The store, his apartment, his car and his uniform may be blindingly white, but Sy's is a dark, obsessive soul. Nina Yorkin (Connie Nielsen) and her young son, Jake (Dylan Smith) are regulars at the photo counter, and it doesn't take too long to realize that Sy knows far more about them than he should. There are a couple of very effective voiceovers in the movie, and in one of them Sy explains why we take pictures: "Someone looking through our photo album would conclude that we had led a joyous, leisurely existence free of tragedy. No one ever takes a photograph of something they want to forget." It sounds pat and trite, but as Sy says about operating his photo processing machine, there's more to it than meets the eye.The life the Yorkins seem to lead, with all of its colors and smiles, is the one they capture on film, naturally. Sy wants to believe their entire lives are like this, and that he is actually a member of the family. He carries around the copies he has made for himself of the latest photos of the Yorkins as if they depict his own family. In his mind they do. The depth of his obsession is almost revealed in the trailer. Thankfully it isn't, for it shows that if Sy hasn't been unhinged before, he's getting there fast.Jake Yorkin is only nine, but senses that Sy is sad and lonely behind the wan smile. Very perceptive kid. Several sequences unfold that make it clear Sy is not just lonely and overly friendly, but is becoming manipulative, vindictive and malicious. None of this felt manipulative to me as a viewer, nor did it feel forced, until the finale. This was Mark Romanek's first feature film as a director, and he worked from his own script. His story is well-paced, and he builds the suspense in an almost Hitchcockian fashion. He throws a number of curves, and most of them are fair, not cheats. In a movie that is effective at almost every technical level, the spare, eerie score by Reinhold Heil and Johnny Klimek is a standout.Because Sy has studied the Yorkins for years, he knows when there is trouble in paradise, and he soon has photographic evidence of his suspicions. What he does with this information initially is hurtful, but Sy isn't through with his manipulations yet. When they come, they are in the form of a violent confrontation, which is, unfortunately, awkward, uncomfortable and forced. "One Hour Photo" ends as it began, with Sy dressed in white, in a bright white police interrogation room. He has been arrested with two rolls of film, one of which indicates that he is capable of the rage that is the end product of seething. Sy has mastered the art of concealing that anger, but it had to find an outlet eventually. Sy is far more interested in the only set of photos the police will let him see, those depicting the mundane, the ordinary, the everyday -- qualities Sy wants others to believe he embodies. Evidently, Francis Ford Coppola recommended to director Romanek that the movie open with the first part of the interrogation, but I think that choice robs the story of some suspense. Romanek's original cut may one day be made available. It is allegedly quite different than the theatrical version, but with the movie's growing cult status, there is certainly an audience for it."One Hour Photo" provides Robin Williams with a tailor-made role, and it's one of his best dramatic performances. Williams rarely acted as though he were seeking the audience's approval in dramatic roles, but that did happen in his comedic and unscripted appearances. The more restrained the character, the more honest his acting became. He sank himself into serious roles, yet you're always aware you're watching Robin Williams. The chance to do that again for the first time is lost, but at least "One Hour Photo," his many other good movies, stand-up performances, and a thousand YouTube clips are here to enjoy over and over. They're all we have and will have to do.