SNMR 2.27: "The Scent of a Woman"

Tonight's SNMR feature is "Scent of a Woman" (1992, R, 157 minutes), starring Al Pacino, Chris O'Donnell, James Rebhorn, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Gabrielle Anwar. The film was directed by Martin Brest. Al Pacino won the Academy Award for Best Actor in 1993 for his role in this film.

The first time I watched this film was just after it came out on video and I've seen it several times since. I thought it was good, but it never became one of my all-time favorites.
From the DVD's dust case:

Al Pacino won his first "Best Actor" Oscar for his brilliant portrayal of an overbearing, blind retired Lieutenant Colonel who hires a young guardian (Chris O'Donnell), to assist him. It's a heart-wrenching and heartwarming tale of opposites attracting when they embark on a wild weekend trip that will change the lives of both men forever.

From Martin & Porter's DVD & Video Guide 2007, p. 988:

Al Pacino's over-the-top performance in this coming-of-age movie will delight some viewers and put off others. Pacino plays a foulmouthed ex-serviceman who takes high school-age companion Chris O'Donnell on a last hurrah in New York City, where the older man intends to wine, dine and have sex before committing suicide.

From the All Movie Guide

Driven by an extravagant, tour-de-force performance by Al Pacino, Scent of a Woman is the story of Frank Slade (Pacino), a blind, retired army colonel who hires Charlie Simms (Chris O'Donnell), a poor college student on the verge of expulsion, to take care of him over Thanksgiving weekend. At the beginning of the weekend, Frank takes Charlie to New York, where he reveals to the student that he intends to visit his family, have a few terrific meals, sleep with a beautiful woman and, finally, commit suicide. The film follows the mis-matched pair over the course of the weekend, as they learn about life through their series of adventures. Though the story is a little contrived and predictable, it pulls all the right strings, thanks to O'Donnell's sympathetic supporting role and Pacino's powerful lead performance, for which he won his first Academy Award. Scent of a Woman is based on the 1975 Italian film Profumo Di Donna.

Whenever an actor can effectively portray having a disability on-screen that they don't suffer from in real life is a tribute to the talent of the actor. If you had been seeing Al Pacino for the first time in this film, you would actually think he was blind. His performance here is reminiscent of Dustin Hoffman's in Rainman, in that Hoffman is not autistic, yet brings a realism to the disability. I thought the story was good and the script was excellently written, though I think you could have put any young actor in the O'Donnell role and he would have done just fine. There are some funny moments in the film which are balanced nicely by the solemn ones. James Rebhorn is a wonderful character actor in this and many other films. This is a good film to rent if you haven't seen it in a few years and a must own if you are an Al Pacino fan. I'll give this film four out of five stars.