After studying cinema and cinematography at Ithaca College, Mark Romanek got his first job working with filmmaker Brian De Palma. He worked as second assistant director on De Palma’s 1980 film, Home Movies, where he met actor Keith Gordon. The two worked together on what would be Romanek’s first film, 1985’s Static, leading to a music video directing career. Some notable artists he worked with included Red Hot Chili Peppers, Nine Inch Nails, Madonna, and Taylor Swift. His most critically acclaimed music video was for Johnny Cash’s cover of “Hurt”, described as his most personal and moving. Around the same time in 2002, Romanek decided to return to feature films nearly two decades after his debut. Inspired by ‘lonely man’ films like 1976’s Taxi Driver, he decided to create a stalker thriller involving photography. The result was 2002’s One Hour Photo starring the late Robin Williams at his most atypical.
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Synopsis
Sy Parrish (Williams) is a loner and perfectionist who’s been working at a one-hour photo kiosk for twenty years. He takes a particular interest in the Yorkin family, going so far as to plaster their pictures on his wall. He manages to develop a friendship between Nina (Connie Nielsen) and her son Jake (Dylan Smith) through subtle manipulation. However, things start going wrong for Sy when his boss Bill (Gary Cole) fires him for several offenses. Also, his idyllic view of the Yorkins is crushed upon learning that husband Will (Michael Vartan) is having an affair. As retaliation, he sends the pictures of Will and his mistress Maya (Erin Daniels) to Nina and photographing Bill’s daughter. Eventually, Sy goes so far as to confront Will and Maya in their hotel room and threatens physical violence. The police are on his trail, but will they be able to stop Sy?
Review
One Hour Photo mostly succeeds as a psychological thriller largely thanks to Robin Williams’ haunting performance as Sy Parrish. Perfectly treading the line between sympathetic and creepy, you can’t help but feel sorry for him despite what he does. At the same time, the film acknowledges that what he’s doing is wrong, but also makes you understand his reasoning. His performance alone makes the film worth watching, but that’s not to say the rest of the cast is lacking. Nielsen, Vartan, and Smith have great chemistry with each other and come off as a genuinely loving family. Cole also stands out as the manager who’s stern and slightly cold but is just being practical as an employer. Romanek’s writing and directing are solid, the music video style editing and cinematography help give off an unsettling feel. For not directing a feature in so long, Romanek’s work is impressive.
However, for all of its strengths, One Hour Photo also has plenty of faults that do hamper its overall quality. For one, as unsettling as the film comes off, it also doesn’t quite go far enough with its premise. I’m not saying this film should’ve gone into Saw or Hostel territory, but it feels like a soft R-rated film. Also, we never learn why Sy specifically targets this family and are only given the slimmest of backstories. Granted, such details aren’t entirely necessary, especially when most obsessive behaviors have no rhyme or reason behind them. With all that said, this is still a fantastic psychological thriller with themes of wanting to belong and find happiness. If nothing else, the film shows how dynamic Robin Williams was as an actor, able to tackle more than comedy. Overall, One Hour Photo is a mostly effective thriller about a sympathetic stalker.
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