The Safe House - Expositions

Robin Williams takes a break from being "Mr. Nice Guy" to take on the sinister role of a demented stalker in 'One Hour Photo.' In the psychological thriller, he develops a dangerous obsession with an unsuspecting family.

TITLE: One Hour Photo

OPENING: August 21

STARS: Robin Williams, Connie Nielsen, Michael Vartan, Eriq La Salle, Gary Cole

DIRECTOR: Mark Romanek

WRITER: Mark Romanek

THE PLOT: Seymour "Sy" Parris (Williams) is a lonely technician at the local one-hour photo lab. Through his customers' photographs, he begins to observe the lives of an unsuspecting family, headed by Nina (Nielsen) and Will (Vartan) Yorkin. He enjoys voyeuristic glimpses into the lives of the young suburban family and dreams up a fantasy role for himself as "Uncle Sy."

It's not long before Seymour's watchfulness from afar develops into a dangerous obsession. He starts stalking the Yorkins and discovers secrets that shatter his idyllic picture of the family. He begins to interfere with their lives to force them into the domestic bliss he has envisioned. Detective Van Der Zee (La Salle) is the cop who must track down the stalker and put an end to his harmful intrusions.

THE SKINNY: The film is the third installment in what has become known as Robin Williams' dark trilogy. Earlier this year, the light-hearted actor/comedian played a would-be assassin in 'Death to Smoochy' and a psychotic killer in 'Insomnia.' His romp into the dark side is being interpreted as a backlash to the overly sentimental roles he's played in the past in films like 'Patch Adams.' Instead of churning out another 'Flubber,' Williams is dynamically expanding his range as an actor and taking chances with repertoire by taking another sinister turn.

RANDOM TRIVIA: Robin Williams prepared for the role by training at a photo developing facility in Southern California on an Agfa MSC 101-D machine. And he's not the only one experimenting with a different line of work. Writer/director Mark Romanek is best known for directing music videos for artists like Madonna, Beck and Fiona Apple. This is the first feature film release for the music video auteur since his 1985 comedy 'Static.'

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