Scent of a Woman (1992)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Director:

Martin Brest

Writers (WGA):

Giovanni Arpino (novel)
Bo Goldman (screenplay)

Release Date:

23 December 1992 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Col. Frank Slade has a very special plan for the weekend. It involves travel, women, good food, fine wine, the tango, chauffeured limousines and a loaded forty-five. And he's bringing Charlie along for the ride.

Plot:

A prep school student needing money agrees to "babysit" a blind man, but the job is not at all what he anticipated.

Plot Keywords:

Blind | Colonel | New York City | Ex Military | Prep School

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 5 wins & 8 nominations

Cast

Al Pacino	...	Lieutenant Colonel Frank Slade
Chris O'Donnell	...	Charlie Simms
James Rebhorn	...	Mr. Trask
Gabrielle Anwar	...	Donna
Philip Seymour Hoffman	...	George Willis, Jr. (as Philip S. Hoffman)
Richard Venture	...	W.R. Slade
Bradley Whitford	...	Randy
Rochelle Oliver	...	Gretchen
Margaret Eginton	...	Gail
Tom Riis Farrell	...	Garry
Nicholas Sadler	...	Harry Havemeyer
Todd Louiso	...	Trent Potter
Matt Smith	...	Jimmy Jameson
Gene Canfield	...	Manny
Frances Conroy	...	Christine Downes

MPAA:

Rated R for language.

Runtime:

157 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Certification:

Australia:M | Canada:18 (Ontario - 2006) | Iceland:L | Canada:G (Quebec) | Brazil:Livre | USA:R (certificate #32138) | Singapore:NC-16 (re-rating) | Singapore:PG (cut) | Finland:K-3 | New Zealand:PG | Argentina:13 | Chile:14 | Germany:12 | Peru:14 | South Korea:15 (video rating) (cut) | South Korea:18 (DVD rating) | Spain:T | Sweden:11 | UK:15 | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:PG (Manitoba)

Filming Locations:

Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

City Light Films

Trivia:

Two choreographers, Jerry Mitchell and Paul Pellicoro, guided the dance scene between Donna and Col. Slade.

Goofs:

Plot holes: While Slade is test driving the Ferrari with Charlie, he makes several successful high-speed turns in downtown New York City. In reality, such maneuvers would be impossible for a blind man to perform without crashing, even with someone like Charlie coaching him.

Quotes:

Lt. Col. Frank Slade: You're in no position disagree with me, boy. I got a loaded .45 here. You got pimples.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Saturday Night Live: Cameron Diaz/Jimmy Eat World (#27.16)" (2002)

Soundtrack:

Por una cabeza

Modern classic

One of the most overall pleasing movies I've seen, Scent of a Woman wins on all levels--emotional and intellectual. Of course the primary reason it succeeds is Al Pacino, whose Oscar was well-deserved, needless to say. Chris O'Donnell doesn't overplay his part, and in doing so is realistic and natural. The tango scene, the Ferrari scene, the pseudo-courtroom scene are excellent. Pacino is wholly believable, and although at first he seems overly gruff and nasty, we grow to sympathize with him--especially when that twerp Randy insults him cutthroat-style at Thanksgiving. It's obvious that while Slade acts like he doesn't care, his repetitious "hoo-ha" response makes it obvious he does. My favorite line comes during the Ferrari scene (I was laughing so hard when the cop left, failing to realize Slade is blind.) As Slade careens down the street at 70 mph, Charlie yells, "You're going to get us killed!" Slade answers, "Can you blame me? I'm blind!" On that note, Pacino succeeds marvellously in portraying a blind man. We never doubt for a second that he does, in fact, live in total darkness. Yet others, like the cop, probably the spectators in the restaurant in the tango scene, don't realize it. Ironically enough, Slade acts as though he doesn't want to be treated as the proverbial blind man who needs a cane and a guiding arm. However, in the final scene, he emerges with a never-before-seen pair of dark glasses (after which follows the charismatic speech.) I wonder, was this to throw them off guard??

This movie is a modern classic. Some find it too long, but I enjoyed every minute and didn't acutely notice the 2 1/2 hrs gone by. A wonderful film that I recommend to all.