Scent of a Woman is a 1992 American drama film produced and directed by Martin Brest that tells the story of a preparatory school student who takes a short-term job near Thanksgiving as a companion and assistant to a retired Army lieutenant colonel who is blind, depressed and irritable.
Charlie Simms is a scholarship student at fictional Baird, an exclusive New Englandpreparatory school. A woman hires him to watch her uncle, retired Army Lieutenant Colonel Frank Slade, during Thanksgiving weekend. Charlie accepts so that he can buy a plane ticket home to Gresham, Oregon, for Christmas. He meets Frank, a highly decorated, blind Vietnam War veteran who has become an alcoholic.
Charlie and student George Willis Jr. witness three classmates set up a prank to humiliate the headmaster, Mr. Trask. Afterward, Trask learns of the two witnesses and unsuccessfully presses them to name the perpetrators. He privately threatens Charlie with withdrawing the recommendation that he has already made that Charlie be accepted by Harvard University. Trask schedules a meeting of the school disciplinary committee to take place on the Monday after the Thanksgiving weekend.
Frank Slade unexpectedly takes Charlie on a trip to New York City and arranges their stay at the Waldorf-Astoria hotel. During dinner in the Oak Room at the Plaza Hotel, Frank reveals that the goals of his trip are to stay at a luxurious hotel, enjoy good food and wine, visit his older brother, and have sex with a "terrific" woman. Afterward, he intends to die by suicide.
On Thanksgiving Day, they visit Frank's brother at his home in White Plains. Frank provokes everyone at dinner, which ends up in a confrontation with his nephew Randy, who reveals that Frank was not blinded heroically in combat, but rather by grandstanding by juggling live grenades for a group of younger officers.
As the pair returns to New York City, Charlie mentions his problem at school. Frank advises Charlie to turn informant and take advantage to go to Harvard. He warns that George will probably submit to Trask's pressure, so Charlie should act first and get the benefit. While at a restaurant, Frank notices the scent of a young woman waiting for her date. He introduces himself and offers to teach her the tango. The evening ends with Frank having sex with a high-class escort, completing the stated objectives of his trip.
Despondent the next morning, Frank is uninterested in any suggestions for that day until Charlie suggests going for a ride. A former Ferrari owner, Frank talks the salesman into letting them take a convertible for a test ride. When on the road, Frank becomes depressed again until Charlie allows him to drive. Guided by Charlie's eyes and commands, Frank is elated until he is pulled over by a policeman. Frank convinces the officer to let them go without revealing that he is blind.
After returning the car, Frank again becomes despondent. He jaywalks into rushing traffic on Park Avenue and narrowly escapes being struck by multiple cars. When they return to the hotel, Frank sends Charlie to buy cigars. Charlie leaves but becomes suspicious and returns to find Frank donning his dress uniform, preparing to end his life with his service pistol. Frank backs down after Charlie convinces him that he has much to live for and should courageously face his circumstances.
On Monday morning, Charlie and George are subjected to a formal inquiry by the Baird disciplinary committee in front of the student body. Frank unexpectedly arrives and sits with Charlie. George's father counsels George to dissemble yet identify the perpetrators. George Jr. provides tentative identifications but claims that he was not wearing his contact lenses, and shifts confirming them to Charlie.
Charlie refuses to do so, resulting in Trask recommending his expulsion. Frank gives a speech defending Charlie, and obliquely mentions a bribe attempt. He denounces Baird for not living up to its own standards and urges the committee to value Charlie's integrity. The disciplinary committee places the instigators on probation, denies George credit for naming them, and excuses Charlie from the proceedings.
As Charlie escorts Frank to his limousine, political science professor Christine Downes, a member of the disciplinary committee, commends Frank for his speech. Frank flirts with Christine, and impresses her by knowing the name of her perfume. Charlie accompanies Frank home, where Frank happily greets his niece's children.
The rights to remake Dino Risi's Profumo di donna were purchased by Ovidio G. Assonitis and first slated for presale by Ronald DeNeef's Rainbow International at MIFED in October 1988, alongside Assonitis's Beyond the Door III and Midnight Ride (then called Nowhere to Run).[4] When Assonitis became Chairman of Cannon Pictures Inc. in 1989, he announced that his films currently in development and production, including the remake of Scent of a Woman, would be made and released under the Cannon banner.[5]
By May 1990, Cannon Pictures had entered into an agreement with Universal Pictures to produce the film.[6] in 1991, Bo Goldman was hired to write the screenplay. He later said, "If there is a moral to the film, it is that if we leave ourselves open and available to the surprising contradictions in life, we will find the strength to go on."[7]
Martin Brest was approached to direct the film in April 1991, and chose this film over another potential remake with which he was presented, a remake of Death Takes a Holiday (which was made and released by Universal as Meet Joe Black starring Brad Pitt, Claire Forlani and Anthony Hopkins).[8] By early August, Brest had officially signed, and Al Pacino was being sought for the lead.[9] Pacino officially signed on the following month.[10]
Pacino painstakingly researched his part in Scent of a Woman. To understand what it feels like to be blind, he met clients of New York's Associated Blind, being particularly interested in accounts by those who had lost their sight due to trauma. Clients traced the entire progression for him—from the moment when they knew that they would never see again to the depression and through to acceptance and adjustment. The Lighthouse, an advocacy group for the blind also in New York, schooled him in techniques that a vision impaired person might use to find a chair and seat themselves, pour liquid from a bottle, and light a cigar.[7]
Filming
Production on Scent of a Woman began on December 3, 1991, in New York City,[16] and ran until April 1992.[17] It was filmed in the following US locations.[18]
The film opened at number 20 at the US Box Office.[19] It would go on to earn $63,095,253 in the US and Canada and over $71 million internationally (excluding Italy), totaling $134,095,253 worldwide.[20][21][22][23]
Critical response
Some criticized the film for its length.[24]Variety's Todd McCarthy said it "goes on nearly an hour too long".[25]Newsweek's David Ansen writes that the "two-character conceit doesn't warrant a two-and-a-half-hour running time".[26]
As of 2020, the film holds an 85% approval rating on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes from 48 reviews. The site's consensus states: "It might soar on Al Pacino's performance more than the drama itself, but what a performance it is – big, bold, occasionally over-the-top, and finally giving the Academy pause to award the star his first Oscar."[27] The film holds a score of 59 out of 100 on Metacritic, based on 14 critic reviews, indicating "mixed reviews".[28]
