(detailed information about this entry from Wikipedia)
Perfume: The Story of a Murderer is a 2006 film directed by Tom Tykwer based on the novel by Patrick Süskind.
[edit] Synopsis
- See: Perfume (book)
The film moves through the same essential plot as the book, with minor deviations and modifications necessary for screen adaptation that excise or abbreviate certain nuances and subsidiary elements of the book. Some readers have commented that the on-screen character of Grenouille is far more attractive than Suskind originally depicted him.
The story revolves around a strange young man born in 18th Century Paris, Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, whose prodigious gift of an incomparable sense of smell and inexplicable lack of personal scent isolates him from society. Obsessed with the rich sensory world he alone inhabits, his single objective in life becomes the preservation of the perfect scent: the skin of young, beautiful virgins.
Grenouille is an orphan growing up in Paris. He becomes entranced by the scent of a young woman and follows her. When she turns to find him standing close and inhaling her scent, she becomes scared and tries to scream, but Grenouille muffles her screams, inadvertantly killing her. He is subseqently disappointed that the smell he found so arresting quickly fades from the woman's corpse. He gets a job at a perfume shop because he is very good at making perfumes. At Grenouille's request his boss teaches him how to conserve scent. For further education on this he travels on foot to Grasse. After learning more he kills 13 young women, each time successfully conserving their scent. The result is a small bottle of liquid with the mixed scent.
The authorities are puzzled by the fact that although the bodies are disposed of nakedly, they show no signs of rape. Finally Grenouille gets caught and sentenced to death.
When guards come and start escorting him rudely to the town square where he is about to be executed in public, he applies just a few drops of the scent to his body and a handkerchief. As a result he smells so superbly that the guards allow him to dress nicely, and to arrive at the town square in a carriage. He walks to the executioner, and due to the smell everybody, notably the executioner, the authorities and the public, abandon the idea that he should be punished. They are so entranced that they take off their clothes on the town square, and start making love. Later they wake up from their trance and are very embarrassed. The event is removed from the collective memory, and an innocent man is accused of the murders, sentenced to death and executed.
In the meantime Grenouille leaves Grasse to return to Paris. He realizes that even the scent does not help him to love and be loved. In Paris, in the presence of a group of homeless people, he pours all the remaining scent over his head. The group of people gets entranced and piles up on top of him. He is devoured by them, leaving only his clothes and the empty bottle on the street.
Ben Whishaw as Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, the young man without a scent of his own but a strong sense of smell. He is anti-social and obsessive.
Dustin Hoffman as Giuseppe Baldini, the man who employs Grenouille at his shop of perfume. He teaches Grenouille how to capture smells and create perfume.
Alan Rickman as Antoine Richis, the father of Laura. He fears for his daughter's safety but finds it hard to protect her.
Rachel Hurd-Wood as Laura Richis, the daughter of the powerful Richis and the subject of Grenouille's attention. Her scent, he feels, will complete his collection
[edit] Reception
As of October 2006, the film had received mostly positive reviews by critics. Reuters described the movie as "visually lush, fast-moving story," stating as well that the director "has a sure sense of spectacle, and despite its faults the movie maintains its queasy grip."
A blogger on blogcritic.com described the film by saying that "it is the story of love and its crushingly overwhelming power." The music, acting, set design and cinematography have been praised in many reviews.
[edit] Trivia
- Stanley Kubrick once said that the book was unfilmable.
- Ridley Scott was attached to the project years before production finally began. Tim Burton was also considered as director.
- Martin Scorsese considered the project, but came to the same conclusion as Kubrick - it was unadaptable.
- Bernd Eichinger wanted to make this movie for years but Patrick Süskind refused to sell the movie rights. Only in 2001 did he do so and received approximately ten million euros.
- Most expensive German movie ever made (as of 2006).
- Héloïse Adam auditioned for the part of Madame Arnulfi.
- Because the music was begun at the same time as the writing of the screenplay, initial versions of the music were available quite early in production, allowing the nearly unprecedented ability of playing the soundtrack on-set during filming of the movie. This enabled Whishaw to draw from the music to create a more highly-nuanced performance.
- The Plaça Major of the open-air museum Poble Espanyol in Barcelona represented the Grass town square where the execution was planned and the orgy took place.
- The main character's last name is the French word for frog.
[edit] External links
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Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (2006) 
Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (2006)
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