One Hour Photo (2002)

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

Director:

Mark Romanek

Writer:

Mark Romanek

Stars:

Robin Williams, Connie Nielsen, Michael Vartan

6 wins & 22 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Robin Williams	...	Seymour Parrish
Connie Nielsen	...	Nina Yorkin
Michael Vartan	...	Will Yorkin
Dylan Smith	...	Jakob Yorkin
Erin Daniels	...	Maya Burson
Paul Hansen Kim	...	Yoshi Araki
Lee Garlington	...	Waitress
Gary Cole	...	Bill Owens
Marion Calvert	...	Mrs. Von Unwerth
David Moreland	...	Mr. Siskind
Shaun P. O'Hagan	...	Young Father
Jim Rash	...	Amateur Porn Guy
Nick Searcy	...	Repairman
Dave Engfer	...	Sav-Mart Clerk
Jimmy Shubert	...	Soccer Coach

Storyline

Middle aged Sy Parrish works as a technician at a one hour photo lab located in a SavMart store in a suburban mall. Sy is a lonely man, never having had any friends. He knows much about his customers through the photographs they have developed. But he knows more about the Yorkin family - specifically Nina Yorkin and her adolescent son Jake Yorkin, the two in the family who drop off and pick up the family's photofinishing - the family about whom he is obsessed, than anyone else. Nina's husband, Will Yorkin, is incidental to his obsession since Sy has only seen him in photographs. Sy's obsession includes fantasizing about being their favorite "Uncle Sy". He has even been making an extra set of prints for himself of all of their photographs since Jake was a newborn. After an incident at work and after Sy finds out more about the family through a set of photographs, he decides to right the injustices he sees in the only way he knows how. His actions demonstrate his true mental state.

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Plot Keywords:

photography | photo lab | unfaithfulness | adultery | nude photo shoot | 

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Taglines:

He knows your secrets.

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Genres:

Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for sexual content and language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 September 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

Retratos de una obsesión

Filming Locations:

20770 Madrona Avenue, Torrance, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$12,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$321,515, 25 August 2002, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$31,597,131, 5 January 2003

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$19,500,000, 2 February 2003

Company Credits

Production Co:

Fox Searchlight Pictures, Catch 23 Entertainment, Killer Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby DTS (uncredited)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

'One Hour Photo' has been praised for its unique visual style and futuristic vision of american consumerist materialism.

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Goofs

The characters mispronounce the word "Evangelion" as if it were a soft "G" (As in the word "Angel.") It is in fact supposed to be a hard G sound, like "Galactic."

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Quotes

Bill Owens: [when he sees pictures Sy has taken of his daughter] Motherfucker.

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Alternate Versions

In this early cut a temp score was used featuring Thomas Newman's score to American Beauty and The Shawshank Redemption. Hans Zimmer score for The Thin Red Line was used when Sy follows the Yorkins car (When he slips the photo in). 'Clint Mansell''s Requiem for a Dream score was used during the final chase sequence.

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Connections

Featured in WatchMojo: Top 10 Stalker Movies (2015)

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Soundtracks

Coming Home
Written by William Aura, Craig Dobbin and Alain Eskinasi
Performed by 3rd Force
Courtesy of Higher Octave Music

User Reviews

Strong performances save the day.

Yes, Robin Williams does steal the show. He's an underrated actor, who, given a good script can deliver a mind boggling performance. That's exactly what One hour photo is, a good script with brilliant performances. The whole cast does an excellent job of showing how the events of one deranged man can impact the lives of many. Let's get one thing straight, though, this not a mainstream movie. It is very much an independant film. If you don't like movies with little action or a low budget don't see this movie. This film is good because of its' strong performances and decent script. I must say, though, without Williams as the lead, this movie would not have been as good as it was.