One Hour Photo (2002) Movie Review

One Hour Photo Film Review: Creepy & Unsettling Storyline

ABC Film Challenge – Favourites – O

Director: Mark Romanek (Never Let Me Go)

Writer: Mark Romanek (Screenplay)

Cast

• Robin Williams (Mrs Doubtfire, August Rush and Hook)
• Connie Nielsen (Sea Fever, The Runner and Gladiator)
• Michael Vartan (Rogue, Within and Nina)
• Dylan Smith (Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl)
• Erin Daniels (Animal Among Us, House of 1000 Corpses and Chill Factor)
• Gary Cole (Dodgeball, Office Space and Blockers)

Plot: A mentally unstable photo developer targets an upper middle-class family after his obsession with them becomes more sick and disturbing than any of them could imagine.

Runtime: 1 Hour 36 Minutes

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

Story: One Hour Photo starts when a lonely photo developer Seymour Parrish (Williams) starts putting himself into the lives of the Yorkin family. Nina (Nielsen), Will (Vartan) and Jakob (Smith) have a happy life and Seymour sees himself as part of the family. However, his fantasy life with the family starts taking over his life.

When his obsession starts taking over, he looks to fix a problem he discovers about Will. All leading him to take a dramatically disturbing turn to make sure he knows how lucky he is.

Verdict on One Hour Photo

One Hour Photo is a drama thriller following a lonely photo developer who has put himself into a family’s life. He has been developing their photos for years and feels like he is an extended family. However, when he gets pushed to the limit, he takes drastic steps to make a point to anyone who he believes has wronged him.

This is one of the more disturbing thrillers, without stepping over the line. It shows how easily somebody can believe they are part of somebody else’s life. All while keeping a pleasant pleasing persona. The lonely persona created shows how people suffer from different problems in life. All while giving us a thriller that does everything to pile the pressure on Seymour. Away from Seymour, we see the distant world created, covered in secrets, reflected through the world of photos getting developed.

Performances

Robin Williams gives us one of his greatest underappreciated performances in this movie. The way he removes every ounce of comedy from his performances shows us just how incredible this role becomes. Many times, we talk about horror thrillers getting more acknowledgement during award season, and this is one of those performances that deserved the awards it never achieved. The supporting cast is strong but is completely overshadowed by Robin Williams’ stunning performance.

Where to Watch

Final Thoughts – One Hour Photo is one of the most disturbing effective and shocking movies you will ever see.