“A very very distant second is a Ferrari. Charlie, give me your hand. This is just the start of your education, son.” – Colonel Frank Slade
I can’t explain how this film found a way to my heart. Maybe I was feeling depressed when I saw it for the first time on channel GEM on a hot summer afternoon. If I had to guess, I believe it would be because it’s a glistening look at life. There are times when all we want to do is sky the towel and just call it quits, stay in our room all day and play our cry or rage song (mine is either ‘Nothing Else Matters’, ‘Lonely Day’ or anything by James Blunt). ‘Scent Of A Woman’ was there for me. When I felt like I didn’t matter or came home from taking disrespect, when I needed a friend, ‘Scent Of A Woman’ was there. It’s much more than just a comfort movie for me. It’s the last movie I want to watch before I die.
Charlie Simms is an underprivileged student at Baird School, relying on student aid. He takes a job over Thanksgiving, taking care of a retired veteran, in order to pay for a flight home for the festivities. The night before he starts work, however, he and snobby student George Willis witness George’s friends organising a prank which vandalises Dean Trask’s car. After being offered a free ride to Harvard in exchange for information, Charlie ponders over his morality while a veteran in his care, Lieutenant Colonel Frank Slade, whisks him over New York City on a tour of pleasures, including tangoing with a gorgeous woman, test-driving a Ferrari and dining at expensive restaurants. However, Frank is hiding problems of his own.
No matter how many times I watch it, I never get tired of it. Even now as I write this, during my 7th or 8th watchthrough, I still smile ear-to-ear as we meet Al Pacino’s Colonel Frank Slade, remembering the good times and bad times we’re about to face. My endorphins kick in every time I hear that opening tune by Thomas Newman.
While Newman’s sweeping orchestral pieces sound absolutely majestic, I argue that the diamonds of the album are ‘Por Una Cabeza’ and ‘La Violetera’ by The Tango Project. ‘Por Una Cabeza’ plays during Frank’s dance scene in the restaurant with Donna and the song perfectly complements his emotional resurgence. In a single dance, we see the man he was before the accident and the man he could be right now, if he was willing to keep going. ‘La Violetera’ plays in two scenes, but the most prominent use is in the final. As Charlie watches as Frank walks home, a relieved smile spreads across his face and ‘La Violetera’ amplifies while Charlie slides back into the limo and is slowly driven down the hill, away from view. With ‘La Violetera’, the perfect ending got the perfect song.
Maybe I love this film because I see myself in O’Donnell’s performance. While Frank and Dean Trask take demanding tones, Charlie never quite knows how to answer. He’s very cautious and anxious in his responses, which is something I can deeply relate to. It’s this nervous and tender nature that elevates his later confrontation with Frank to a tear-dripping extreme.
The reason is more likely to be because of Pacino’s performance, however, and why wouldn’t it?
It’s astounding to see Pacino pull off such an incredible display of illusion as he convinces us he’s a blind veteran. He trained tirelessly, studying with the visually impaired and keeping in character off-screen, moving with his cane and never giving any eye contact. But even taking the “blind” acting out of the picture, his voice pulls off sweetness and gruffness effortlessly. With his natural New York accent, he could charm you into a tender rest, you can’t help but imagine your dream woman as he near whispers:
“Have you ever buried your nose in a mountain of curls and just wanted to go to sleep forever, or lips, that when they touched yours were like that first swallow of wine after you just crossed the desert?”
But he could also stun you into anxiety like when you hear your parent’s footsteps approaching your door in the middle of the night.
“You’ll give me 40, then you’re gonna give me 40 more, then you’re gonna pull KP, the grease pit! I’ll rub your nose in enlisted men’s crud till you don’t know which end is up!”
Since his first Oscar nomination in 1973 for ‘The Godfather’, he lost at every ceremony he was in the running for. ‘Serpico’, ‘The Godfather Part II’, ‘Dog Day Afternoon’, ‘…And Justice For All’, ‘Glengarry Glen Ross’. Each of these films are considered masterpieces of Pacino’s career, but it wasn’t until 1993, 20 years after his first nomination for the film that made him a celebrity, that he would finally win the Best Actor Oscar for ‘Scent Of A Woman’.
“You broke my streak” – Al Pacino, 1993 Oscars Acceptance Speech
‘Scent Of A Woman’ is an incredible, touching film about how we see and treat ourselves. We’re human, we do bad things; I understand it could feel more comfortable just to sit in the dark, convinced that it’s morally right to suffer more.
“I’m bad, I’m not bad, no, I’m rotten.”
But you can’t and you shouldn’t sit there forever, at some point you need to stand up and remedy the problem.
“You’re not bad, you’re just in pain.”
You have to get up and acknowledge that you’re better than this, that you can’t let one mistake take you over to the point where you fixate all day, to the point where all you can hear is that voice.
“Where do I go from here, Charlie?”
“If you’re tangled up, just tango on.”
“Are you asking me to dance, Charlie?
Mason’s Top 3 Reasons to Watch ‘Scent Of A Woman’
- An absolutely astounding soundtrack by Thomas Newman
- A heartbreaking look at mental illness
- An glorious celebration of life’s pleasures, whether it’s tangoing with a stunner, test-driving a Ferrari or simply enjoying a delicious dinner at a high-class restaurant
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