Funnyman Robin Williams steps out of character in this tense, low-key hriller that marked the feature-film directorial debut of music video veteran Mark Romanek. Semour Sy Parrish (Williams) runs the photo processing department at a large discount store; Sy is dedicated to his job, and takes great pride in his work. Sys favorite customers are Nina and Will Yorkin (Connie Nielsen and Michael Vartan), an attractive and cheerful young couple with a nine-year-old boy, Jake (Dylan Smith). Sy dotes on the Yorkins and their son whenever they drop off film to be processed -- something theyve been doing quite often ever since Jake was born -- and Nina and Will are indulgent of Sys attentions, regarding his as a harmless eccentric. What the Yorkins dont know is Sy is a desperately lonely man with no real life of his own, and hes been obsessively making copies of their photos, for years, imagining himself to be Uncle Sy, a member of the family. Sys tenuous hold on reality begins to collapse when he develops a roll of film brought in by a new customer that suggests Will has been unfaithful to Nina; the notion that his ideal family may be falling apart is troubling enough for Sy, and when he loses his job, Sy reaches the breaking point. One Hour Photo was screened in competition at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide