BLU-RAY REVIEW

One Hour Photo

Featured In Issue 180, October 2013

Picture4
Sound4
WSR Score4
Basic Information on new release titles is posted as soon as titles are announced. Once reviewed, additional data is added to the database.
(Studio/Distributor):
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
(Catalog Number):
2281189
(MPAA Rating):
R
(Rating Reason):
Sexual content and language
(Retail Price):
$19.99
(Disc Type):
Single Side, Dual Layer (BD-50)
(Widescreen Edition):
Yes
(Full Screen Edition):
No
(Running Time In Minutes):
96
(Color Type):
Color
(Chaptered/Scene Access):
Yes
(Closed Captioned):
Yes
(Regional Coding):
A
(Theatrical Year):
2002
(Theatrical Release):
Yes
(Direct-To-Video Release):
No
(Disc Release Date):
05/07/13
(THX® Digitally Mastered):
No
(Director):
Mark Romanek
(Screenplay/Written By):
(Story):
(Music):
(Director Of Photography):
(Production Designer):
(Visual Effects):
(Costume Designer):
(Editor):
(Supervising Sound Editors):
(Re-Recording Mixers):
(Executive Producers):
(Co-Producers):
(Producers):
(Academy Awards):
(Principal Photography):
(Theatrical Aspect Ratio):
(Measured Disc Aspect Ratio):
(Disc Soundtrack):
Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS HD Lossless 5.1
(Theatrical Sound):
(Theatrical Re-Issue Soundtrack):
(DTS Bit Rate):
(Dolby Digital Bit Rate):
(Additional Languages):
(French Language):
(Spanish Language):
(Chinese Language):
(Subtitles):
(Cantonese Language):
(Mandarin Language):
(Japanese Language):
(Italian Language):
(German Language):
(Portuguese Language):

Sy Parrish (Williams) is a lonely clerk working in the One Hour Photo department at the SavMart and living vicariously through the photos of the seemingly picture-perfect Yorkin family. But when he discovers that their lives are not perfect—through a set of photos that involve Will Yorkin (Vartan), which he developed for another woman—Sy's world begins to crumble and he sets out to exact vengeance. (Suzanne Hodges)

Special features include commentary by Mark Romanek and Robin Williams and a three-part featurette on pre-production, production, and post-production.

Previously reviewed as an anamorphically enhanced 1.85:1 DVD in Issue 71, the picture offered sharp and detailed images, with generally satisfying contrast and shadow delineation. The 1.85:1 1080p AVC rendering is faithful to the stylization, with colors that appear more vibrant and rich. Saturation varies, perhaps to depict the variable results in photo developing. At times, colors can touch over-saturation, with vibrant blues, greens, and reds, while other scenes can have a sort of milky or desaturated appearance by comparison. Contrast is well balanced with deep blacks and revealing shadow delineation. Fleshtones appear healthy and warmly hued. Resolution is excellent, revealing fine detail, especially during closeups of facial features (and makeup), hair, clothing, and object texture. Some slight edge enhancement still remains, suggesting that this is not a remastered transfer master. Still, this is a vibrantly warm picture with pleasing resolution and a new reference for this classic thriller. (Gary Reber)

The remastered DTS-HD Master Audio™ 5.1-channel soundtrack offers a better sense of holosonic™ spaciousness through the music and some atmospheric effects. There's often a sense of eeriness projected throughout the listening space. Fidelity overall is very good, and voices sound abundantly natural and nicely placed with the visuals. Deep bass in the LFE channel plays an active role throughout, to intensify the sense of tension. Dialogue is effectively integrated and intelligible. The music score builds with intensity and exhibits good fidelity. While released in 2002, this is a well-executed soundtrack that perfectly complements the storytelling. (Gary Reber)