ONE HOUR PHOTO - *** / **** A Film Review by John Ulmer http://www.wiredonmovies.com
REVIEW BY JOHN ULMER
"One Hour Photo" is exactly what I expected. A very well made, entertaining chiller-thriller that is memorable and notable, but not altogether one of the best thrillers ever. It's one of those that people will be talking about for about a year, but will then vanish, much like the other thrillers about psychopathic psychos.
Robin Williams is the psycho in this film, named Sy Parrish, a.k.a. Sy the Photo Guy, as he is called by the son of a family he develops photos for at SavMart, which the director described as a kind of "Target meets K-Mart." Though the obvious similarity is Wal-Mart.
Sy takes his job at SavMart personally--very personally. He's the one hour photo technician. And, as he narrates to us in the beginning, most people do not realize that photo developers actually look at the pictures you have taken when they develop them. What if one of these onlookers was a complete oddball? Weirdo? Psycho? What if? Let's say the guy makes an extra copy of your photos, just for him to take home and study.
Soon that guy starts to think he is actually part of your family. That's when things really start to go haywire. He comes into your life, doing bizarre things.
This technique has been used before, but what makes "One Hour Photo" so much better is its main character, Sy. He has feelings, emotions, and thoughts. Most slasher-flicks are about little crazy guys that we can't relate to, but you feel for Sy, and, as he does a few things, you start to believe what he is doing--though odd--is kind of good.
Robin Williams is getting critical acclaim for giving a "terrifying performance." For a moment, I'm going to pretend I know what that means. To me, Williams does not give a terrifying performance. He gives an excellent, scary, but deep performance; as I mentioned above, he's more than some shallow slasher with a knife going after everyone. He has emotions, feelings, thoughts, and we can see them on the surface.
I thoroughly enjoyed "One Hour Photo." The directing is classic, the acting talent is superb, and I guess I'm probably the only one who thought Williams' character is actually kind of the good guy. He reminds me of Michael Douglas in "Falling Down": His bubble has burst, and he's serving up his own justice. What Williams' character, Sy, does at the end of the film, is actually kind of justified.
And that's what makes this movie so different from all the other "psychological thrillers" out there.
- John Ulmer Webmaster of The Movie Portal http://www.wiredonmovies.com/
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