That One Summer: One Hour Photo

It has now been exactly one year since Robin Williams died.  One year in which I and may others keep wondering what has changed since then.  One year that we have been asking ourselves if we were able to see the warning signs of a sad and troubled soul who had a gift for making people better in thoughts and laughter when needed.  When I heard that Robin Williams had committed suicide, I kept thinking to 12 years before, when I and many others saw an excellent movie Mr. Williams was in that I think would have been the game changer in how many saw him.  That movie was One Hour Photo; one of the few times I walked out of the theater feeling disturbed. 

One Hour Photo is quite possibly one of the better movies of 2002, and certainly amongst the creepiest films to have been produced.  It was one of those movies that needed repeated viewing and a thorough analysis to what was just seen.  Like many of the great horror films, it would leave audiences wondering what they had just seen, and unsure of the ending being presented.  In some ways, I think this was due to this movie being written and directed by Mark Romanek; an innovative filmmaker of music videos.  Amazingly, One Hour Photo was only his second film outside of the video music genre.  Yet as opposed to the usual jump cuts and flash photography involved in some of Mr. Romanek's videos (Scream, 99 Problems, Closer, The Perfect Drug, Speed Of Sound), One Hour Photo was sparse in its visual outlook.

Most importantly, what mattered was the story being told and seeing Robin Williams at his most creepiest up to that point.  In short, Mr. Williams played a 50-plus year old loner, Sy Parrish, who spends his days as the photo developer at a CVS knockoff.  Over time, Sy becomes concerned about the dealings of a young family, the Yorkins.  What sends Sy over his limits is a drop off that Will Yorkin (Michael Vartan) delivers containing photos of Will and his mistress Maya (Erin Daniels).  And yet, the troubles and disintegration of the Yorkins, including that of Nina (Connie Nielsen), is secondary compared with Sy's inner turmoil and demons becoming more and more public. 

Now, since this movie was completed in 2002, I trust many of you have seen One Hour Photo.  With that in mind, some important matters relating to plot and storytelling are needed to be clarified. 

Did the kid know his father was cheating?
I think so.  One of the discussions on the IMDB and AICN message boards at the time noticed how Romanek showed the young man playing Jake seem a bit embarrassed at Connie Nielsen's character looking at the photos of Will and Maya at the beach.  In fact, there is no shock coming out of Jake.  I think, and so did others at the time, Jake took those photos of his father and his mistress; likely attending the same vacation at the same beach.  This may also explain how Jake seems to become more deadpan and apathetic during the course of the movie.  I found it to be a rather brilliant move for a film of this caliber.  Any sort of overacting and emphasis on the kid, and this movie fails. 

Why the obsession over a family who is not all what they seem?
Mr. Williams does not at any one moment in this movie give us reason to necessarily hate Sy.  I suppose this is because we in real life have noticed, or perhaps have ourselves been, lonely people without much to look forward to except our version of a hyper reality.  We may look at the photos, videos, stories and ideals of a family or group of people and choose to see only what we want to believe.  If for instance you see a family doing something wonderful while you are not; it is little surprise that any of us would feel even at the least jealous and envious.  Certainly, Sy getting fired and then discovering the photos of Vartan and Daniels kissing ends that form of obsession and unqualified need for acceptance into the Yorkin family, as it were.  This leads to an interesting debate that continues to infest message boards when discussing this movie.

Was Robin Williams' character, Sy Parrish, sexually molested as a child by his father?
The answer is yes.  A movie that is intelligent and disturbing as what One Hour Photo is does not need to explicitly tell you everything.  Mark Romanek has not ever in his fictional movies tried to hammer us with plot points and explicit revelations that are the bane of every cookie cutter horror movie.  What Mr. Williams says to Eriq La Salle at the end effectively reveals both Sy's past and I am certain what has happened to Jake. 

Did Sy take the pornographic pictures at the hotel?
You do not see them as evidence, yet I think those photos were taken and kept by Sy as an insurance policy or blackmail against Will.  The last shot of the movie of Mr. Williams integrated with the Yorkins can be taken as different interpretations as to whether it is real or imagined.  It could very well be real, and that the Vartan and Nielsen's characters will need to acquiesce to Sy whenever he sees fit.  Once again, a rather clever move of storytelling format. 

One Hour Photo remains a great movie to this day.  I had hoped that Robin Williams would have at least garnered a Best Actor nomination at the Oscars; though sadly it was not to be.  Perhaps this was not mentioned or even thought about at the time; yet I think if One Hour Photo had gotten a following similar to many of the horror franchises of the last 10 years, or perhaps even the word of mouth momentum the new Joel Edgerton film The Gift has received, certain career trajectories would have been altered.  I will believe till I am blue in the face that with both Insomnia and One Hour Photo, along with a sharp return to stand-up, Robin Williams was re inventing himself in a way that I think would have provided a newer fan base.  As I said, these movies were quite successful, and a lot of media attention  was made. Yet, and here is the kicker, not getting a Best Actor nomination  may have given Mr. Williams doubts about showing his darker side.  Or perhaps not; his Oscar in Good Will Hunting was quite edgy itself.  And of course, Robin Williams never stopped being funny. 

We may never truly know how he felt.  Unless there is a biography of considerable regard on his life published, Robin Williams' inner feelings may well be considered foreign to us.  Sure, many of us get depressed; a number even think of ending it all.  And quite a few of us do suffer from illness.  Perhaps one day we will know.  None the less, we did have a renaissance in the life of Robin Williams in 2002, a rather interesting life we all looked up to That One Summer.

So was a great life in a weary world,

Robert

PS.  I will have more to say about The Gift coming shortly.  It is though a must see movie.  And I am still working the cogs at getting to upload videos, including my own.