| Product: |
Perfume - The Story Of A Murderer (DVD) |
| Date: |
08/06/07 (100 review reads) |
| Rating: |
 |
Advantages: Engages all five senses; scent extracted from the screen; wonderfully realised period piece
Disadvantages: Never lingers on story or characters; somewhat vacant; scent is the primary concern; acquired taste
Any film can be embelished with style, but in essence, this is all very superficial. However, it's a rarity for a film to engage every one of our senses, becoming so vivid that one can almost feel and smell it. Perfume: The Story of a Murderer is such a film, and indeed, for the film to work it must have such a quality, given the nature of its source material. Patrick Suskind's original 1985 novel notoriously has been dubbed "unfilmable" by Stanley Kubrick, and the project of producing it continually turned down by many major directors. But Tom Tykwer has brought this "unfilmable" novel to the screen to produce a picture that is very rare, very sensual and despite the reputation of the novel, somehow unique and in a league of its own.
The scentless Jean-Baptiste Grenouille (Ben Whishaw) is born into the putrid stench of mid-18th century Paris, a city where the streets are packed to the brim with the bustle of foul scented people, from the commoners to the very upper echelons of society. From the very first take, Tykwer acquaints us with Grenouille's one and only virtue; an almost superhuman sense of smell. As he matures, he gathers every scent known to the French peoples, picking them up in mass, like flowers in a field. Language for Grenouille is an inadequate medium into describing the wonders of the olfactory, and under the reluctant mentoring of Italian perfumer Baldini (Dustin Hoffman), he refines his skill and soon becomes obsessed with the preservation of human scent. But Greonuille's passion soon develops into something morbid and twisted as he tries to concoct the "best perfume in the world", though in order to do this he needs one vital ingredient that he will strive to possess at whatever the cost. Whilst the book rather followed the exploits of Grenouille's life in general, rather than specifically following the tighter plot that develops later in the story, the film does away with the additional, somewhat unnecessary material to focus on what is already a leisurely paced and simple but powerful story.
The reason that the book was considered such an impossible project to transfer to the screen was for a number of reasons. Firstly, Suskind vividly illustrates the feeling of the scent, paradoxically through the inadequate medium of language. The novel is scant with dialogue, as its protagonist is such a silent character who has no care for speech. Not only this, but whilst a scent may be described, it cannot be seen, and this is even more limited by the fact that it is a film. However, Tykwer overcomes both these two major obstacles and adds the necessary dialogue (though never a huge amount) and truly brings the scent practically out of the screen. With choppy, split-second editing at moments where scents are apparent, close-up shots, lighting where appropriate, he develops an aura that oozes a feeling of smell, whether it be the damp, rotting Parisian streets; the rich fragrances of the perfumeries; or the subtle, sweet scent of innocent skin. Whilst Tykwer does not quite excel quite as much as Suskind does in his amazing use of language in the novel, he still makes a worthy effort, and either way, Perfume does become a film that engages all of the viewer's senses. The cruel, vivid imagery of the era is brought to screen as authentically as possible, though in order for the viewer to really smell it, Tykwer accentuates it at times, although never overdoes it. In spite of this, it is notable that the story is one that forever treads a fine line between plausibility and the surreal, so "suspension of disbelief" is an ingredient needed for enjoyment of Perfume. Moreover, the story is often secondary, and the long periods where dialogue lacks are substantiated by an omniscient narrator (John Hurt), which takes away some of the ambiguity, but is entirely necessary.
Throughout Perfume the viewer is always at the centre with Grenouille, and whilst he is not a likeable character, one does come into being with him. The many bizarre and trancy moments are shared with him, so that the viewer is caught in the same euphoria as he is. The imagery and the atmosphere all add to this, and as he experiments and fumbles with perfumes and ventures across the cities and countryside, one cannot help but feel as much detached from society as he is. But there is something thoroughly dislikeable about Perfume; very little sympathy is in any of its characters. Grenouille is a non-descript, featureless, silent character who is obsessive and vacant, so no one can never hugely relate to him. The supporting characters are equally lacking in the pathos needed; they are merely victims for whom one can feel little affection. Although this may be the point of both the film and the book, it doesn't make it a particularly entertaining experience. It is merely beautiful, somehow superficial, and it often lacks emotion. Tykwer may succeed in realising the world in which Grenouille lives, but one can never really feel anything more than distaste for the characters, so ultimately there is little care for the fate of them, especially Grenouille. For a story that is neither story driven nor character driven, Perfume feels somewhat vacant, focusing purely on scent through the medium of Grenouille. That said, Perfume is still interesting viewing (and reading) became the technique both director and author employ is so sophisticated. Both narrative and film-making is brilliant, and it is extremely rare that an artist is able to bring to life a world with such sensual vivacity.
But the featureless and dislikeable Grenouille anchors the film, and whilst Ben Whishaw brings every quality of Grenoulle from the book to the screen (despite attracting a lot of criticism for being too good-looking for the role), Grenouille is a character difficult to really get to grips with. He is only a medium into scent, so Whishaw's emotional input is obviously limited. The supporting performances, coming mainly from Dustin Hoffman, Alan Rickman and Rachel Hurd-Wood, give some weight and charisma to the film, most notably Hoffman's pedantic, self-important and motor-mouthed perfumer. Hurd-Wood is also wonderfully realised as an angelic, virginal girl, Tykwer's step-by-step revelation of her (especially her scent) masterful and entirely enchanting. However, neither Suskind or Tykwer linger long enough over these characters, so they can never fully develop beyond their fundamental features. With a weak character anchoring the film, a character always on the move, Perfume never allows the viewer to connect very much to the more interesting characters. On the other hand, this was never the point of Perfume. The story is there to illustrate how the outcast Grenouille's only entry into society is via scent, so everything else is rendered superficial.
Perfume, both film and book, are an experience more than a drama. As a result, it is a very odd film, balancing uncertainly on a line dividing drama and Lynchian sensuality. Tykwer's effort is an excellent one, and he brings scent almost as much to life on the screen does at Suskind does on paper, but it is mainly the book's flaws of vacance that the film is hampered by. It is rather more rushed than the book, but the problem is that really, one cannot see the film without having read the book. Often it can be pointless to compare a book to a film, but the two mediums into the story of Grenouille are interlinked. Beautiful, sensual, but lacking in real drama and emotion so it becomes technical and superficial.
Summary: Tom Tykwer's unrelenting adapation of the "unfilmable" novel onto screen
|
|
