‘The things we fear the most have already happened to us...’
Robin Williams is one of the most beloved comedic actors of all time. He has enchanted millions with films like Mrs Doubtfire and Jumanji and also made a career out of playing inspirational characters in movies such as Good Will Hunting and Dead Poets Society. What he isn’t known for is playing murderous psychopaths. I’ll be honest, it’s pretty jarring…
Seymour Parrish (Williams) is a lonely photo developer who begins a dangerous obsession with one of his customers (Connie Nielson) and her young son Jakob (Dylan Smith). Meanwhile, Jakob’s dad Will (Michael Vartan) struggles to keep the family together.
While Williams is playing against type here, there is no denying that it’s a powerful performance. Seymour Parrish is a hideous cinematic creation. He creeps and stalks his prey like a snake and Williams plays him as a blank slate. Dead behind the eyes. Staring into space. Often sat perfectly still. It’s an unnerving performance and writer-director Mark Romanek (Never Let Me Go) plays against Williams’ established nice guy persona to create a character who is truly loathsome. Even his look is creepy. The receding hairline. The blond tint.
Drawing from Hitchcock’s tension-building, De Palma’s obsession with voyeurism and the sexual perversions of all those ’90s erotic thrillers, One Hour Photo is a short and nasty film that builds to an increasingly terrifying crescendo. It may not be the film that Robin Williams will be remembered for but it is one of his finest performances.