Some time ago I saw "Scent of a woman" (1992, Martin Brest) for the second time. I discovered that it was a remake of an Italian film by Dino Risi. I got to know the work of Risi a year ago when I saw his "Il sorpasso" (1962), so I became interested in the original of "Scent of a woman (1992) from 1974.
The basic storyline (a boy is hired to accompany a blind ex captian in the army) is of course the same, but otherwise there are a few differences that are not unimportant.
In "Profumo di donna" there isn't a second storyline about the boy. The coming of age of the boy is integrated in the main storyline. He falls in love with a girl for the first time.
"Profumo di donna" is more explicit about sex. In "Scent of a woman" (1992) the prostitute visit of the captain (to be more precise in 1992 his rank is Lieutenant Colonel) is kept out of sight. In the 1992 film this was the correct choice, but in "Profumo di donna" a little more "naked skin" felt somehow right. Maybe this is because the coming of age of the boy is a sexual awakening in the 1974 version while in the 1992 version it has more to do with sticking to your principles under pressure. Another possible explanation is that the 1974 version is a road (more precise: rail) movie going from Turin to Naples and thus has a more Mediterranean atmosphere then the 1992 version situated in New York.
The last difference is the ending. The 1992 version has a happy ending. The ending of the 1974 version is hard to classify, neither happy nor only sad. It almost reflects real life.
In my review of "Scent of a woman" (1992) I wrote that the brilliant acting of Al Pacino made a major contribution to the value of the movie. What about the lead actor of "Profumo di donna" Vittorio Gassman? How does he compare with Al Pacino? Difficult to say. Al Pacino received an Oscar for his performance, Vittorio Gassman was awarded as best actor at the Cannes Film Festival. The way both actors shape their character with their body language is impressive in both films. In my opinion Al Pacino has the sharper and better dialogue.
All in all I prefer Al Pacino in "Scent of a woman" (1992) but I do prefer the ending of "Profumo di donna".
The basic storyline (a boy is hired to accompany a blind ex captian in the army) is of course the same, but otherwise there are a few differences that are not unimportant.
In "Profumo di donna" there isn't a second storyline about the boy. The coming of age of the boy is integrated in the main storyline. He falls in love with a girl for the first time.
"Profumo di donna" is more explicit about sex. In "Scent of a woman" (1992) the prostitute visit of the captain (to be more precise in 1992 his rank is Lieutenant Colonel) is kept out of sight. In the 1992 film this was the correct choice, but in "Profumo di donna" a little more "naked skin" felt somehow right. Maybe this is because the coming of age of the boy is a sexual awakening in the 1974 version while in the 1992 version it has more to do with sticking to your principles under pressure. Another possible explanation is that the 1974 version is a road (more precise: rail) movie going from Turin to Naples and thus has a more Mediterranean atmosphere then the 1992 version situated in New York.
The last difference is the ending. The 1992 version has a happy ending. The ending of the 1974 version is hard to classify, neither happy nor only sad. It almost reflects real life.
In my review of "Scent of a woman" (1992) I wrote that the brilliant acting of Al Pacino made a major contribution to the value of the movie. What about the lead actor of "Profumo di donna" Vittorio Gassman? How does he compare with Al Pacino? Difficult to say. Al Pacino received an Oscar for his performance, Vittorio Gassman was awarded as best actor at the Cannes Film Festival. The way both actors shape their character with their body language is impressive in both films. In my opinion Al Pacino has the sharper and better dialogue.
All in all I prefer Al Pacino in "Scent of a woman" (1992) but I do prefer the ending of "Profumo di donna".