September 13, 2002

Diabolical Development

Williams is at his best as a likable psychotic

by Mark Burger

Having tested the waters of weirdness with his recent performances in Death to Smoochy and Insomnia, Robin Williams goes full-tilt in One Hour Photo, which he made before those other films.

Williams, who has rarely been this good - in comedies or dramas - portrays Seymour "Sy" Parrish, the self-conscious, mild-mannered photo clerk at the friendly neighborhood Sav-Mart. Sy makes sure that your photos are developed the best they can be (he calibrated the processing equipment himself) and on time. Sometimes, if he really likes you, he'll have your photos ready before you leave the store. He's there to serve.

Sav-Mart is one of those nondescript, colorless, flavorless department stores that we all know and shop at - and the perfect, unassuming environment for what follows.

Quite simply, Sy decides that he really, really likes the Yorkin family and wants to become a part of it. Connie Nielsen plays Nina Yorkin, the attractive (and oblivious) suburban mom to whom Sy takes a shine. Dylan Smith is young Jakob, who thinks Sy is nice but a little bit - weird. Michael Vartan is Will, the handsome, all- American dad who works a bit too much and doesn't spend enough time with his family.

As it transpires, the Yorkins are not the picture-perfect family that Sy perceives them to be - although their smiling and happy photographs are enough to convince him that they are the family for him.

It it never entirely clear how Sy intends to insinuate himself further into the Yorkins' lives, but writer/director Mark Romanek allows much of the story to unfold through Sy's eyes. Thus, the audience is placed in a (relatively) sympathetic position with a character who is clearly disturbed. (It worked for Martin Scorsese in Taxi Driver.)

There's a method and a skewed morality to Sy's madness, conveyed beautifully in Williams' performance, which is alternately menacing and sympathetic - and sometimes both at once. Like Anthony Perkins' classic performance as Norman Bates in Psycho (1960), you're afraid of Sy - but you also kind of like him and can't help but feel a little bit sorry for him, too. But Williams also plays the role close to the vest; you're never quite sure what Sy is capable of, or what will set him off. Only at the fadeout does the audience realize the extent of Sy's obsession - and it's probably not what one would expect, although that doesn't diminish the creepiness of it.

Williams is clearly the centerpiece of One Hour Photo, but that's not to downplay the contributions of Romanek, composers Reinhold Heil and Johnny Klimek, and a fine supporting cast. Vartan, Smith and particularly Nielsen embody beautiful people whose lives aren't as beautiful as they seem. If nothing else, Sy is injecting a little excitement into their lives - although considerably more than they bargained for.

One Hour Photo
3-1/2 stars

Stars: Robin Williams, Connie Nielsen, Michael Vartan, Dylan Smith
Director: Mark Romanek
Rating: R, sexual situations and language
Burger's Opinion: Creepy and unsettling psycho-drama with Williams (in top form) as a mild-mannered photo clerk with a very loose grip on sanity.

© Winston-Salem Journal

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