Indeed the name "Robin Williams" connected with this film should not lead one to expect any laughs. This is as tense a film as I've seen in some time. The director, previously best known for rock videos, creates a sensational looking world that includes a megastore that looks very much like a "Super Target" store, a fabulous home for a financially successful young family, and the home of our main character, Sy Parrish, played by the Julliard-trained Mr. Williams.

For almost 30 years I've felt that Williams is the funniest man alive, and that his few dramatic roles have been effective. In this film, however, even though his presence looms large in almost every scene, he has taken it up a notch, totally and believably submerging any hint of humor. We find Sy as an unstable control freak with no real life of his own, his entire world consisting of his TV, his subcompact car, and his job as a photo tech. Consequently he infuses every detail of his pathetic world with a tremendous amount of importance, sweating the small stuff with such vigor that he reeks of the need to psychically rehydrate.

One can see the moment coming when he snaps, and woe to the family in his way.

This is not a violent film, but is phenomenally suspenseful in a Hitchcockian way. There are two or three problems of logic with the plotting, unfortunately; one must believe, for example, that an unfaithful husband would allow his girlfriend to take a full roll of photos of them together kissing various parts of one another's upper anatomy (OK, so maybe he's just an idiot as well as a loser). It's also a one-note film, focused in with tunnelvision on Sy and his unraveling.

In any event, Williams carries off his role so well that ultimately the film works well, is very memorable and effective, and is certainly worth a rental at least. Williams fans, those who love this type of film, and we who are intrigued with abnormal psychology, may well want to own a copy.

The one-hour photo clerk is obsessed with this one family. He fantasizes himself to be a part of their family and more. He has a wall full of their pictures - an unhealthy obsession even were he one of them.
When he discovers that the man of the family cheats on his wife, the clerk goes berserk.
The acting and script are unrealistic and phony. Why would the kid, who hardly ever talks to the clerk, be sad imagining the clerk friendless? Or why would the woman that the clerk has a particular obsession with, think of him as "not deep?" The characters are very poorly developed and their inter-relationships are left as a matter of conjectures to be inferred based on some stereotypes - not a good thing in a movie trying to scare you with some freakish story.
I found my mind wandering as I watched this movie. I'd advice you to stay away too.

As we attempt to capture those special moments of our lives via photographs, one can't help but understand the motivation behind Sy's obsession in ONE HOUR PHOTO. A lonely, compulsively orderly man, Sy has created a family for himself via the photos he processes at the local SavMart---especially those of the Yorkins, a family of three that Sy is so taken with, he imagines himself an "uncle" in the family. Robin Williams gives a wonderfully controlled and chilling performance as Sy, the man whose obsession with the Yorkins leads him to an act of confrontation and near violence. The supporting cast is very good too, particularly Gary Cole as Sy's callous boss Bill; Connie Nielsen as Mrs. Yorkin displays an interesting variety of emotional ups and downs; and little Dylan Smith is quietly effective as the little boy. Despite a prepondency to pedophilia, I don't feel Williams is a real threat to this family. Certainly his behavior is questionable, but I don't think he would ever do anything to harm his "family" and when he loses his job, he loses this "family." His reaction to that loss is not "normal" per se, but not threatening either. I didn't find myself "chilled" by this movie as many other reviewers did. Despite Williams' masterful performance, I couldn't help but feel sorry for him and didn't feel he would really do anything murderous to anyone. Perhaps that is why ONE HOUR PHOTO left me a little disappointed in that I didn't experience the intended chills others did. Still worth seeing for Williams' unconventional performance.

I HIGHLY recommend that if you haven't seen this movie, then go and rent a copy, or get it dead cheap. My mouth was open with disbelief & shock throughout most of the movie, and I was certainly getting shivers up my spine, the creeps, the works basically!!! I suggest if you haven't gone digital yet, go!!! Although, despite me having a digital camera, I get them developed online, so I can put them in a photo album. I just wouldn't go and hand in a film at somewhere local now. Believe me, once you see this movie you won't be either. Digital is great in more than ways than one, and this film will definitely make you rush out and get a digital camera!

What also gave me the creeps was Robin Williams's excellently portrayed character, Sy, in this. Moving away from his "family-friendly" characters he's played in the past, this will have you longing for Hook or Mrs Doubtfire. Strangely enough, he plays a creepy character really, REALLY well!!! I wouldn't have expected it before seeing this. What he wears also adds to the character. And then there his hair, which is really cropped, and dyed a sandy colour. Horrible but suits the character. Because of his extremely hairy body (ugh) Robin had to shave most of his arms, upper chest and hands for this movie.

The film focuses on a lonely photo-developing guy called "Sy, the Photo Guy". He quickly becomes obsessed with this young family, the Yorkins. Connie Nielsen plays Nina, the mum, Will is played by Michael Vartan and their kid Jake (Dylan Smith). His obsessions include practically memorising their address, buying the same book Nina is reading, visiting their house (and something even creepier happens here, which will have you wondering exactly what happened), and keeping an extra set of prints of their photos for himself. The film snowballs from here, keeping you in shock most of the movie, and almost feeling like you need to have a good, long, hard scrub in the shower afterwards.

This movie is well written, and well shot, I can't find fault with it at all. The plot is well laid out - even the money shot of all the pictures on the wall is played out while we're distracted by a joke from the Simpsons on TV. (The episode is Cape Fear, the second episode of season 5.) Robin Williams quite literally becomes Sy Parish, and you'll go through different feelings towards his character, but by the end, although a little confusing (and most people will NOT get it, judging by some of the reviews), will return Sy Parish to the Robin Williams we know & love. The ending is left hanging, after a nail biting finale, and it's kind of like Lost In Translation, you're not quite sure what happens. The final moments will kinda ruin things, with Sy giving a reason why he did what he did. There was no need to give a reason. Everyone feels protective of people, and that's exactly what Sy was trying to do. It wasn't so much a mistake as unnecessary to have Sy tell the police (but mainly the audience) about his childhood, "explaining" his subsequent behaviour by letting us know he was abused as a child, all too neatly adding that his father used to take photos of him doing degrading things. This was just added in for no reason, and most people will question it.

I bet the cast & crew had great fun with this movie, with all the photos prominently displayed in the scenes. I bet they were sick of being in front of the camera after this! I also loved the little segment, which actually showed you how Sy went about developing the photos. Although probably not all true, for me, it brought back some bad memories of being locked in a tiny dark room at college, trying to break open the canister to get the negatives out, which promptly turned purple when I tried to get them developed. It looks an interesting - although could be boring after a while - job, and in preparation for his role, Robin trained for two and a half days at a photo developing training facility in Southern California on an Agfa MSC 101-D photo developing machine.

I strongly recommend everybody sees this movie, although sit on your hands if you're a nail biter, and don't look into the ending too much - it'll just ruin the movie for you.

ONE HOUR PHOTO is a deeply disturbing film about a man named Sy who works at the one-hour photo counter at a Sav-Mart department store. Robin Williams plays the role of Sy to perfection, maintaining a personality of thinly veiled quiet despair in which even his smiles and laughs feel more like heartache and tears. The suspense begins when it becomes clear that Sy's whole life revolves around one of the families who has been developing film with him for the past nine or ten years. Sy has seen years of pictures of all the best times in this family's life: birthdays, holidays, vacations, and all the happiest moments. Lacking any close family or friends of his own, Sy begins to fantasize himself as part of that family... envisioning himself as "uncle Sy" who is part of all those happy times. When Sy loses his job at the photo counter and witnesses something he feels is wrong, he snaps like a coiled spring.

ONE HOUR PHOTO is a masterpiece of suspense, as it's not completely clear what's really going on until the very end of the film. I was extremely impressed with Robin Williams' performance, as his acting was riveting, convincing, and the character he portrayed was creepy in the extreme.