Review of Scent of a Woman (1992) by Tabitha M — 26 Sep 2009
We begin this film with two equally unlikable characters - the naive, spineless college student, Charles (Chris O'Donnell), and the blind, overbearing and unpleasant retired Col. Frank Slade (Al Pacino).
The performances were fine, Pacino notable as usual. O'Donnell seems to constantly choose spineless twit roles, so it's hard to tell whether he's truly acting or not.
As the plot unfurls itself, Slade becomes more likable for his faults. Charming, witty, no nonsense - simply no bull shit.
There is also the subplot of the happenings at Charles' school. Charles witnessed a prank involving a headmasters car - this seemed to be a fairly non issue event, but somehow it escalates into a full scale investigation/hearing in front of the entire school.
For me at least, this ridiculous prank that caused so much ado that lead to the climactic scene of the movie really didn't do much for me. While I enjoyed Pacino's speech, the actual reason why he was making it was almost tongue in cheek and hard to take seriously.
The most powerful scene, for me at least, was the final New York scene between Pacino and O'Donnell. It made up for the other problems in the subplot.
This review of Scent of a Woman (1992) was written by Tabitha M on 26 Sep 2009.
Scent of a Woman has generally received very positive reviews.
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