Perfume: The Story of a Murderer
Perfume: The Story of a Murderer ★★ 2006 (R)
Patrick Susskind's “unfilmable” 1985 novel offered a unique challenge to director Tykwer: how do you visualize the sense of smell? Jean-Baptiste Grenouille (Whishaw), orphaned in filthy, smelly 18th-century Paris, has two unique characteristics: he has no natural body odor and he possesses an unparalleled sense of smell that leads to an apprenticeship with perfumer Baldini (Hoffman). Grenouille soon becomes obsessed with the natural scent of young women and turns to serial killing in order to preserve that smell and turn it into the perfect perfume. Ironically, the flick may be too faithful to the book and could have used some judicious editing; it also appeals more to the intellect than to the heart or any of the other senses. 145m/C DVD . SP FR GE Ben Whishaw, Dustin Hoffman, Alan Rickman, Rachel Hurd-Wood, Corinna Harfouch; D: Tom Tykwer; W: Tom Tykwer, Andrew Birkin, Bernd Eichinger; C: Frank Griebe; M: Tom Tykwer, Johnny Klimek, Reinhold Heil; Nar: John Hurt.