|
Perfume: The Story of a Murderer
Directed by: Tom Tykwer Starring: Ben Whishaw Genre: Action/Drama/Thriller Run Time: 147 min. Release Date: January 2007 On The Web: Official Site Teaser: Movie Trailer Reviewed by Byron Merritt |
German born director Tom Tykwer slows things down quite a bit in PERFUME: THE STORY OF A MURDERER. Those in the know are probably aware of Tykwer’s ultra-fast paced RUN LOLA RUN (1998) in which the action never stopped. But here in Perfume we get to see a completely different Tykwer, one with an eye for beautiful camera shots, incredible vistas, and stunning cinematography. Problems with the film became apparent, however, before the film ever got green-lit. Several directors considered the project before opting out. Among them were such notables as Ridley Scott, Tim Burton, Martin Scorsese, Milos Forman, and even Stanley Kubrick (may he rest in peace). But fate – or karma or whatever you might believe in – intervened and plopped it in the lap of Mr. Tykwer, who quickly decided to make this feature event a spectacle beyond most imaginations. With an incredible budget of over $65 million (the largest ever from a German production company), the film was shot with an eye for artistic quality along with a flowing script. And it worked. It worked very well. The dark sets of 18th century France come alive (and frighteningly so) thanks to the shadowy sets and creepy main character of Jean-Baptiste Grenuille (Ben Whishaw, LAYER CAKE), a man with a gift for smells. Born to a careless and soon-to-be-dead mother, Jean-Baptiste’s life is put under the microscope for the entire audience to see. Since being born on the streets of France (literally), Jean-Baptiste smells all of its greatness and stench. Being shuffled first to an orphanage where he fights for his infant life, to his life as a tanner, to his eventual acceptance into the business of a down-on-his-luck perfumer named Giuseppi Baldini (Dustin Hoffman, KUNG FU PANDA), Jean-Baptiste demands more and more from his marvelous sense of smell. In fact, he wants to be able to bottle the smell of glass and other intangibles. Maybe even capture the scent of ...life? Beauty? Oh yes, even that. During a visit to the streets of France, Jean-Baptiste encounters his first truly magnificent smell, that of a lovely redhead. But her fear of him leads to her death and Jean-Baptiste worries he may never get that scent back. His fears are side-stepped, however, when he learns how to capture the smell of beautiful women, but only after killing them. Dread grips the countryside as women of all socio-economic classes are found murdered. A man with an acute sense of danger named Richis (Alan Rickman, SWEENEY TODD) realizes the danger his only daughter Laura (Rachel Hurd-Wood) is in and decides to flee with her across the country. But can distance save her when a human bloodhound is on your trail? Jean-Baptiste needs Laura in order to finish his scent de excellence and nothing appears to be able to stop him ...except for himself. His life has been a pursuit that no other person can share, and this has made him a truly lonely figure ...if not a non-entity in terms of humanity itself. This film came very close to being one of my top ten favorites, but fell a tad short thanks to what many call "the orgy scene." Although it was a nice twist from what I thought was going to happen, it really, really, REALLY stretched the imagination beyond any possibility of realism. Even so, it was filmed exceptionally well. Most surprising to me was that I hadn’t realized how long this sucker was. At nearly two-and-a-half hours, it whizzed by; that’s how engrossing much of the production was, including the acting, the (amazing) sets and costumes, and the sumptuous cinematography (pay particular attention to the red hair, especially when Laura is fleeing on horseback with her father). I intend to buy this film and keep it in my DVD library.
|
Image from Perfume
DVD cost: $12.86 Purchase: Tower.com Film Review Stew Favorite? No. Stew Poo-Poo? No. Newsworthy: The orgy scene was filmed in Barcelona, in the Poble Espanol, and took over a week to complete. According to the official website, there were a total of 750 extras in the scene, with 40 makeup artists and 35 wardrobe assistants constantly on hand at any given time. Movie Quote: "Very well, but remember this... I'll be looking at you when you're laid on the cross and the twelve blows are crashing down on your limbs. When the crowd is finally tired of your screams and wandered home, I will climb up through your blood and sit beside you. I will look deep into your eyes... and drop by drop I will trickle my disgust into them like burning acid until... finally... you perish."
Other Actors/Actresses from Perfume
|
|
Images from Perfume
|
