Scent of a Woman (1974) User Reviews

Comedy, tragedy, and a great little film...

[bl00m · 7/10 · 3 July 2005]

Honestly, I'm only writing this to counteract absurd comments by other users. One comment and I'll say no more about it:

-----Start rant----- I HATE substandard, big star, corporate, homogenized movies. I hated the Bird Cage, I hated Point of No Return, I hated City of Angels, I hated Shall We Dance?(US) and every other movie that simply took a decent foreign film and photocopied it with familiar names in starring roles with dumbed-down dialogue because nobody thought that YOU were smart enough to understand the original. The whole world enjoys movies from other countries, enjoys visions of life in other places represented through film except the good 'ol USA that simply puts a veneer of saccharin over anything internationally successful to create unnecessary and boring hybrids. You don't have to be an intellectual to enjoy foreign movies, you simply have to have a brain in your head. -----End rant-----

The film is delicate, and presents a wonderful array of issues related to Italian culture at the time: inadequacy in the face of a changing world, individual impotence when fronted with social and personal injustice, and of course, that strange version of love only the Italians can put on screen.

The film has had a remake, and I found it inferior in just about every way. The original is simply good film-making, not an obvious ripoff that's been pasteurized to cater to a fast-food audience. Gassman is subtle, his manners and style give the film a slow pace, sometimes too slow for my tastes, but it's forgivable if you focus on other facets of the film, like the camera work and the faithful representations of culture through the dialogue. I've never liked Pacino, he's always seemed incredibly boring and stale to me, and his idea of subtlety is whether he should speak a bit more loudly or a lot more loudly. Except for maybe the first Godfather where he was fresh and not yet ruined by the studio life.

If you don't speak Italian, you'll have to read along, but the translation I saw on the DVD was pretty good.

See this film when you've had a bad day at work and you want to see how life could be worse AND better in one fell swoop...

SCENT OF A WOMAN (Dino Risi, 1974) ***1/2

[Bunuel1976 · 8/10 · 1 July 2008]

Given this film’s reputation (which soared even higher in the face of the overblown yet bland 1992 Americanization), it’s surprising that it took me so long to catch up with it. Being perhaps the recently-deceased director’s best-known work (though two more – THE EASY LIFE [1962] and IN THE NAME OF THE Italian PEOPLE [1971] – are, at least, equally as good), I chose it as the film with which to conclude my 7-film tribute to him. Coincidentally, it happened on the very day which marked the eight anniversary from the passing of its leading man – the great Vittorio Gassman!

The film (and its protagonist) deservedly received a number of accolades back in the day; it was also singled out to represent Italy in the Best Foreign-Language Film category at the 1975 Academy Awards ceremony where another nod went to the screenplay penned by Dino Risi and Ruggero Maccari. For the record, I’d watched Al Pacino’s Oscar triumph in the remake when it was new: I recall not being enthused with either the endless film (running 157 minutes against the original’s 100!) or the Method actor’s hammy performance. Anyway, for anyone not familiar with the later film, the plot concerns a young cadet being asked to accompany a blinded (yet proud and fun-loving) war veteran for a week; together, they go on a voyage (with the experienced man-about-town teaching the ropes to the rookie, who at first is displeased with the high-handed manners of his ‘charge’) – leading them to a girl, played by the luscious Agostina Belli, who’s devoted to Gassman. Earlier, the boy had discovered a photo of her among the blind man’s things (as well as a gun, whose purpose is revealed towards the end).

Along the way, the cadet (nicely played by Alessandro Momo) is given the task of organizing the veteran’s entertainment and relaxation – which, given Gassman’s debauched values, takes him to the low-life sectors of the cities they visit (one of the prostitutes who renders service is played by, of all people, famous circus owner/ex-peplum starlet Moira Orfei!). By the time they finally reach Belli and her entourage of willing girls ‘waiting’ on another team of crippled officer and naïve cadet, Gassman has become oddly despondent and rejects the girl’s advances; as it turns out, he and his buddy had intended to commit suicide – with the latter ending up in hospital due to a gun wound, while Gassman eventually loses his nerve and retreats with Belli and Momo to a house in the country-side! I don’t recall the 1992 version well enough but, here, it seems that Momo’s role is relegated to the sidelines once Belli turns up; incidentally, I believe that the remake was far more chaste than this!

Risi’s treatment of an undeniably original tale is somewhat low-key but nonetheless impressive – earthy yet insightful and thought-provoking, alternately funny and poignant – which is further graced with a simple but haunting melancholy score from Maestro Armando Trovajoli.

Vittorio Gassman was not properly an almost anonymous actor.

[michelelazzerini · 8/10 · 28 July 2006]

I just wanted to outline that Vittorio Gassman has been one of the most famous and skilled and talented Italian actor ever. Dino Risi has made a great direction, but I guess it has been easy with Gassman. Al Pacino is a great actor, but in this case, if we should make comparisons between the two, Gassman in the original and Pacino in the remake...Gassman is much more powerful. All characters in this original version seem to be much more real and strong, and seem to be much more appropriate to fit where this story comes from, the novel of Arpino. The soundtrack then is something no one should miss to notice: Trovaioli has been almost forgotten indeed.

You don't have to speak Italian to love this one!

[stancym-1 · 10/10 · 19 April 2006]

I have seen the remake with Pacino a few times, and I do like it. Even though it is almost too sentimental, I like it. I especially like the tango scene. There is one ludicrous scene where a blind Pacino is driving a Ferrari in Manhattan at high speeds - PLEASE. I'm willing to suspend disbelief for enjoyment of a movie, but this was too much to ask. There would have been an accident! In spite of this and other flaws, it is a moving film.

OK, I just saw - finally - the original Italian version with Vittorio Gassman. It is better, way better. It makes the statement about loneliness, self pity, the handicap of blindness, in a simpler, purer way. It is just as touching, but less heavy-handed. Gassman is a brilliant actor, and frankly, better looking and sexier than Pacino in my humble opinion. (Also a lot taller!) But the main difference in the films: this one is FUNNY. Humor is used to make the point about the tragedy of the Captain. He is impossible in a way that is funny--outrageous-- and you can't help but laugh. The version with Pacino has very little humor.

See this one, read the subtitles, and enjoy a masterpiece.

A great Masterpiece

[Rex, Regis · 10/10 · 29 August 2000]

Only 2 User comments available at the time I decided to write this one and both of them negative. Both of them Typical American reaction to a European movie. A big misunderstanding. Yes, the Remake with Pacino is a good movie and nothing else. The original one, "Profumo di Donna" is a great masterpiece, and it makes a big difference. My piece of advice : do not try to watch "Profumo di Donna" with a Hollywood eye.

Make no mistake, this is the better version

[lazarillo · 20 February 2010]

I don't necessarily want to slam the Hollywood re-make of this, which was a decent film in its own right that finally gave Al Pacino a long-deserved Academy Award, but frankly this is the better film. Vittorio Gassman doesn't necessarily give a better performance than Pacino as the blind, disabled,and sex-obsessed military man, but his is a somewhat more low-key one that involves a little less scenery chewing. Moreover, Gassman's character comes off as more tragic and more realistic since this version really doesn't have misguided "redemptive" courtroom scene that the re-make did.

While largely unknown, the young Italian actor Alessandro Momo is far, far better than the deservedly washed-up Chris O'Donnell, who is the real weak link in the American film. Then there's Agostina Belli. Both Gabrielle Anwar in the re-make and Belli in this are achingly beautiful girls, but whereas Anwar has little more than a cameo in the Hollywood film, Belli has a much meatier role (not to mention some nice nude scenes). Basically where the re-make relies on Pacino's considerable acting talents and dialogue to "tell" about the character's haunting obsession with the "smell" of a female sex that is forever lost to him, this movie does a lot better job because it is not afraid to actually "show" it.

Finally, there is director Dino Risi, who American director Martin Ritt is frankly not fit to pull focus for. Risi is one of those unfortunate Italian directors (like Salvatore Samperi, Pasquale Festa, Massimo Dallamano, and Alberto Lattuada) who was not QUITE in the class of Fellini, Pasolini, or the Antonioni, and has therefore been undeservedly condemned to obscurity. Risi made at least two other very good films I've seen, both also with Gassman--the 60's film "Il Sorpasso" and the later genre film "Anima Perse"--but this is generally considered his masterpiece.

Even when they have someone as talented as Pacino on board, American re-makes sometimes equal but rarely improve on an original film like this because its originality is inevitably lost in the rush to "Americanize" it. I'd actually recommend EITHER of these movies to anybody, but make no mistake, this is the better one.

The Original

[gavin6942 · 7/10 · 14 July 2016]

An army cadet accompanies an irascible, blind captain on a week-long trip from Turin to Naples. The captain, Fausto, who wants no pity, brooks no disagreement, and charges into every situation, nicknames the youth Ciccio ("Babyfat"), and spends the next few days ordering him about and generally behaving badly in public.

Where this film excels is in its originality. I saw the Al Pacino version many years ago and loved it, never realizing it was a remake. Now, one could argue that it was the better film. Maybe, maybe not. But it definitely gave Pacino one of his career performances.

And yet, there is something to be said about the original. The actors aren't as big, and it may not be as accessible to Americans, but it has all the great things that Pacino had, and did them so much sooner.

A milestone in Vittorio Gassman's career

[michelerealini · 10/10 · 12 October 2005]

Dino Risi is one of the most important directors in Italian cinema, from the Fifties to the Seventies. Generally he's recognized as one of the fathers of Italian comedy ("commedia all'italiana") -the expression doesn't mean that the movies make you laugh all the time, it means that stories are a mix of happiness and bitterness, as life is. And not always there's a happy ending.

Dino Risi worked with the "who's who" of Italian cinema, but he became famous also for casting frequently actors like Gassman, Ugo Tognazzi, Nino Manfredi and Alberto Sordi -they were ideal for characterizing Italian defects and virtues, above all defects...! "Profumo di donna" is taken from a book by Giovanni Arpino. In this 1974 movie Vittorio Gassman is a blind ex military officer who makes a trip from Genova to Naples. A young boy accompanies him. Fausto -Gassman's character- has to deal with the tragedy of being blind, he wants to commit suicide...

Fausto is a man who lost everything; he can feel the presence of a woman (which explains the title "Profumo di donna", in English "Scent of a woman") but doesn't want to be loved for pity.

It's difficult to describe a film which has a lot of themes -friendship, aging, the drama of being different from the others. But everything is treated in a delicate and moving way, although it's not a film for making you cry.

Vittorio Gassman performance is simply superb -he won a prize in Cannes in 1975. The picture got that same year an Academy Award nomination.

In 1992 Al Pacino starred in an American remake -"Scent of a woman", as I said the title is the exact translation from the Italian one. The actor won an Oscar but the film is not as good as the original. Apart from the extraordinary Pacino performance, everything is treated in a typical Hollywood way, with a more schematic story (for example the fact that the blind officer later helps his young companion is absent in the original film).

I suggest the people who only saw the Al Pacino version to see the Vittorio Gassman film -it's softer and more complex at the same time.

Wonderful Italian drama about being alienanted from your desires

[max4movie · 7/10 · 22 January 2018]

Profumo di Donna might seem like a cheesy Italian romance and it does have its overly melodramatic moments, but due to the subtle acting of Gassman and the great chemistry between Gassman and Momo the movie has a well-balanced narration. It cannot simply be reduced to sex jokes and lewdness, although Fausto's jokes sometimes are rather crude. The writing is spot on and the message of a broken old army captain is fantastically presented against the backdrop of some of Italy's most beautiful cities.

Overall 7/10 Full review on movie-discourse.blogspot.de

Original Hard to Beat

[bobbygmt · 9/10 · 2 May 2005]

It is some time since I have seen both versions of the film, but Dino Risi's original left an indelible mark, unlike the lightweight Hollywood incarnation. The dark, atmospheric "Profumo di Donna" showcases a powerful performance by Vitorrio Gassman - "non sono un leone" reverberates with the tragic realisation of a strong man defeated. Hollywood is so adept at picking a good story well told and churning it out in the familiar mould - big budget, big name lead - but, hey - horses for courses! Most English speaking viewers can't be discomfited to read subtitles and, unless a film is dubbed, would gladly deny its virtue.

I'm a real bastard ..... A unique and immense bastard ..... I am an eleven of spades

[PimpinAinttEasy · 6/10 · 10 March 2016]

Dear Vittorio Gassman,

I am a huge fan of yours. I admired your wiry and menacing demeanor in Bitter Rice and some of your more comedic roles like in Il Sorpaso, The Great War and Big Deal in Madonna Street. Your performance in Scent of a Woman was very respectable. Though the beard sported by you took away some of the mischievousness of your face. The dubbing was also awful.

The politically incorrect views of Captain Fausto were quite entertaining like comparing some Italian cities to Turkey. Fausto insulting the square passenger with the jasmine perfume on was also quite hilarious. "A man is either born as a poet or a porter" - very wise words indeed, Captain Fausto. His relentless picking on the uptight and the unsuspecting were very amusing. Fausto's attitudes are not too different from some of the characters in other Dino Risi movies. I'm a real bastard ..... A unique and immense bastard ..... I am an eleven of spades - these are some of Fausto's utterances about himself.

Agostina Belli makes a rather late appearance in the film. She has a very beautiful face comparable to the likes of Lee Remick. But the film becomes quite tedious after she makes an entry because Fausto turns into a real grouch. The background score was quite memorable though I might not buy it or anything. The same is the case with the movie. There are many good bits. But I might not watch it again.

Best Regards, Pimpin.

(6/10)

Masterpiece of the Italian cinema

[whfan · 10/10 · 20 September 2005]

"Profumo di donna" is a great movie, it makes you laugh and cry, and touches your heart very deeply, and it makes you think. It was made in 1974 by Dino Risi, a great Italian director. It is probably one of his best movies. All the actors are excellent and very talented. Everything is good in the movie : beautiful music, great screenplay, cinematography, it was shot on location on nice Italian cities, etc... Plot summary : Vittorio Gassman (Fausto) plays a man who was a top military officer before an accident left him blind. The movie tells the story of the trip he does from Turino to Napoli via Genova and Rome, with a young boy (Alessandro Momo) who helps him on the trip (helping Fausto is a job the boy has to do as part of his military service). In the movie, we also see what happens when they arrive in Napoli, and what was the goal of the trip, and we see the beautiful girl (Agostina Belli) who loves Fausto. "Profumo di donna" won numerous awards in several countries and was nominated at the Academy Awards for "Best Foreign Picture". If you don't know this movie, you definitely should rent it or even buy it on DVD.

Slight but charming and much better than the American remake.

[MOscarbradley · 7/10 · 11 June 2023]

Most people are probably familiar with the American remake if only because Al Pacino finally won his Oscar for it but how many people have seen this superior Italian original? "Profumo di Donna" or "Scent of a Woman" was directed by Dino Risi in 1974 with Vittorio Gassman in the role of the blind former soldier being guided around Italy by a young private, (Alessandro Momo, tragically killed in a motorcycle accident shortly after the film was completed).

Whereas Pacino cut the ham fairly thickly in an Oscar-bait performance, Gassman plays the part in a much lower key, (he won the Best Actor prize at Cannes), making his character largely sympathetic and likeable from the get-go. Momo, too, is excellent as the poor lad who would seemingly be rather doing anything else than chaperoning Gassman. It's a slight film with a rather improbable plot, and one that's very different from the American version, but it has a lot of charm and none of the sentimentality you associate with American movies of this ilk.

Not worth your time!

[laurel21000 · 1/10 · 16 February 2008]

I came to this film expecting to see something transcendent. After all, the remake of Scent of a Woman with Al Pacino had been so wonderful. And I had never yet seen a Hollywood remake that even approached the original in quality. They are usually shattering disappointments.

So I fully anticipated that Vittorio Gassman's version would far surpass Pacino's.

But Surprise, Surprise. Finally. Who would have thought it. A Hollywood Remake that Ruled!!! Yay! It was not even a close contest, in my opinion. This film with Vittorio Gassman was for me flawed beyond redemption. I'm bewildered to read that it was even nominated for an Academy Award and has received other very prestigious awards.

True, Gassman got the blind part of his role down. He had obviously done a lot of research and put in long rehearsals. And he had the potential to be great.

The trouble was with the script. Gassman's character was a pig. An entertaining pig at times, an interesting pig at other times but never more than a full-fledged PIG.

So while the film could engage you in the spectacle sense, it was really difficult to care about what happened to the characters or to root for them. The script just put them in a series of scenes, the common denominator being coarseness and then more coarseness.

What was most offensive about this film were the scenes near the end in the Nepalese restaurant. Apparently Gassman had been friends with this family for many years -- since their daughters were children. So he was like a uncle figure.

Then when this film catches up with them, the girls have grown into young ladies. And the Gassman character is shown treating them very disrespectfully (to put it mildly), exploiting them and preying on them.

Except for the one he apparently loves. But why was it OK for him to exploit the other young girls? This predatory aspect of the film was so beyond offensive that it ruined the entire film and made it irredeemable and indefensible.

Go see Al Pacino's Scent of a Woman instead. Pacino is brilliant. And the remake has heart and soul -- both of which are sorely absent from the original. The original has noisy drama but it is a hollow soulless drama.

excellent movie

[jarquin · 9/10 · 1 December 2004]

Hollywood remakes are usually worse. just saw the film and yes the Hollywood remake is nowhere close to this great masterpiece. small intricacies, dialogues and excellent characterization along with brilliant use of humor make it excellent and beyond comparison. this is a landmark masterpiece. no one can match Vittoria Gassman. you know what he thinks and what kind of person he is and how he would react in a particular situation. great direction. whats amazing is the way a blind man is made so intertingly funny that you do not want to blink, you may miss somethin. a must see

Gassman at his best: this film is the pride of Europe culture.

[Philippe-le-Bel · 3 September 2000]

"Profumo di dona"is not only an italian film with exuberant delight of life, it's the pride of Europe and european 7th Art. Why? Because of good playing, good production and of course good scenario. I don't know why American had to do a remake? Or perhaps european sensibility doesn't mean anything in USA? That film give us the opportunity to be happy as human being, to be happy to live. That's why cinema is so magic!

a trip across Italy

[lee_eisenberg · 10/10 · 2 July 2020]

To us in the United States, the recognizable "Scent of a Woman" is Martin Brest's 1992 movie starring Al Pacino as a blind colonel and Chris O'Donnell as a student who accompanies him on a trip.* What we in the US might not know is that it was a remake of a 1974 Italian movie. "Profumo di donna" stars Vittorio Gassman as the captain and Alessandro Momo (who died in a motorcycle accident right after filming ended) as the young cadet accompanying him on a trip. There are some amazing things awaiting both men on this vacation.

The remake added a secondary story about a prank at the student's school. In the original, it's all about the freewheeling adventure that the cadet and captain have. Who wouldn't want to have the experiences that these two guys have? It's too bad that Momo died so young. I bet that he could've gone on to have a great career. In the meantime, check this one out. Some great stuff here.

*Also appearing were Philip Seymour Hoffman, James Rebhorn and Frances Conroy (Ruth on "Six Feet Under").

Funny Italian Original

[billcr12 · 7/10 · 14 May 2012]

Al Pacino made famous the American remake, and the original Italian film has the same basic outline. A blind army captain is assigned a young assistant as a guide. Vittorio Gassman is the captain in the first version, which is much less flamboyant than the Pacino portrayal.

The captain is traveling from Turin to Naples to meet an army buddy who was injured in the same accident. The aide doesn't realize that the captain is planning a suicide with his friend. He asks his companion to describe the women they meet on their trip but the captain claims that he can see what a woman looks like by her scent. He is ashamed of his handicap and carries a picture of Sara, the girl he is in love with. The journey is an eventful one and Gassman is excellent as the captain. Pacino brings a more over the top attitude to the part, but both are good.

An Italian classic!!!

[Vikingbyheart · 9/10 · 15 July 2016]

Every time someone talks about the film Scent of a Woman (1992) comes in memory the modern classic starring Al Pacino, which finally received the Oscar award for Best Actor. What few people know is that this movie is a remake of an Italian film Profumo di Donna (Scent of a Woman - 1974), adapted from the literary novel Il Buio and Il Miele - 1969, by Giovanni Arpino, and directed by Dino Risi.

Profumo di Donna tells the story of Captain Fausto Consolo (Vittorio Gassman), a retired soldier who lives alone with an old aunt in the city of Turin and decides to hold a 7-day train trip to Genoa, Rome and Naples. Having been blinded in an accident in a military operation, the army appointed a young soldier to accompany him on the tour, Giovanni Bertazzi (Alessandro Momo), to whom Fausto nicknames Ciccio. Ruled by women and alcoholic beverages their adventures seem innocent and fun, but as the journey unfolds, an obscure purpose is revealed.

Gassman's interpretation is one of the highlights of the movie and he even received the award for Best Actor in Cannes. The actor manages to impeccably convey all the internal conflict of the main character: Faust is a blind man and maimed left hand, melancholic, cynical, exhausted from his life's routine, behaving in a cruel and arrogant way, despite having acquired notable ease of movement and precise notion of the objects location. Ironic and uninhibited, he acts in a natural way, as if he could see, and takes advantage of his privileged condition (blindness) to make fun of dissimulation and pretense of society, with disdain by the conventions of compassion which he is also hostage. This ambiguous feeling of admiration and disgust for a character who has a grandeur that sometimes makes us even forget his physical limitation, but who is also unpleasant, bitter and sarcastic, reflects his conflictive personality, but at the same time also charismatic. Womanizer and drinker, blindness accentuated his other senses, especially the sense of smell. Even from a distance the presence of attractive women is perceived by scent, which leaves him ecstatic, making a perfect analogy to the title of the film: Profumo di Donna (Scent of a Woman).

The film shows the efforts that a person can do to hide their feelings and feed a false appearance of strength and security. The internal tension which Faust suffers guides his behavior and relationships with the people around him. In rejecting compassion and pity he ends up also rejecting affection and love. So the journey of the main character symbolizes a journey in search of himself, self-acceptance and the consent of other's people affection.

With a parallel plot, the film highlights the contrast between the captain and the young soldier. While Giovanni is a mixture of inexperience, naivety and insecurity, Faust stands for his experience, invulnerability and security that he appears to have. Rather than being a victim of a misfortune, the captain shows himself as the true guide in the story, reversing the roles between the blind man and his companion. As the trip goes by the young soldier learns life lessons, such as how to distinguish between appearance and reality, love and fraud, words and actions. The interpretation of Alessandro Momo is quite convincing, making him another standout in the movie. It was a shame his career being interrupted so early. The actor died in a motorcycle accident a few days after the film was completed. Sara (Agostina Belli) completes the trio of main characters. She is a young woman in love with Faust and does not conform to his sickness, being the only one who knows all his facets. Here we must highlight the work of the director Dino Risi, who manages to capture the best of each actor, interweaving good comedic moments with great dramatic situations.

The soundtrack is beautiful, managing to convey different feelings interpreted by the actors in the scenes, aside from involving the viewer in the narrative. The script builds up fine characters, developing brilliant dialogues. Gassman's gesticulation, Momo's self-restraint and Agostina's sensuality are noteworthy. The movie won two seats among the Oscar nominees: Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Foreign Film.

With brief notes, the photograph depicts a casuistry time of Italian society, full of meanings. On the streets, on trains, in hotels, terraces, at parties and in their own language, slowly arises a profile of a society. The Italians are cheerful and receptive, talkative, using a lot the hands to gesticulate, speaking loudly and not sparing swear-words in their conversations. They are religious, romantic and spontaneous, but as all patriarchal society, they have very strong male and female stereotypes. Faust is an authoritarian man, who has to be seen as strong, an imposing figure. Sara reflects the situation of women, in which they dream to feel indispensable to the life of the men they love. All these aspects clearly translate the Mediterranean spirit.

Finally, as it should be, a brief comparison between the American version (1992) and the original movie (1974) is inevitable. The remake of Scent of a Woman is completely different from the Italian film. Relying on Hollywood aspects, such as the need to have an episode of trial, the American version lengthen the story too much, spending too much time with the student, bad acted by Chris O'Donnell. The scenes of tango and Ferrari are some of its strengths, but by opting for melodramatic twists, it ends up falling in some clichés. Its great success and prominence is the exceptional performance of Al Pacino. The two main actors in each version (Al Pacino and Vittorio Gassman) are impeccable, but the original movie has a special charm, being in many ways, more humane, sensitive, stripped-down and engaging. It's a pity that the American remake completely lost the Italian culture, both of everyday life in Italy and the Italian way of doing cinema of the 70s.

Originally posted in: https://vikingbyheart.blogspot.com.br

It appears as if Italian director Dino Risi has enabled blind people to find their 'real hero' in Italian actor Vittorio Gassman.

[FilmCriticLalitRao · 10/10 · 30 June 2015]

Discrimination against handicapped people is a reprehensible practice which must end. It is caused partly due to the negative attitudes which societies propagate towards people with disabilities. Blind people are the worst hit as more than anybody's pity, they are in dire need of compassion. Italian director Dino Risi's acclaimed film "Profumo Di Donna" deals with a blind person who has never been humiliated in his life despite his infirmity. Although no blind person deserves anybody's pity, compassion is what every visually challenged person is seeking. It comes to Fausto in the form of a journey with a young man called Ciccio. This journey is important for both as it changes their perceptions about life and its importance. Living the life to the fullest seems to be the mantra of an ordinary Italian. In this Dino Risi film, this sentiment is vividly echoed in the portrayal of misanthrope Fausto by veteran Italian actor Vittorio Gassman. Watching him act as a blind man with absolute nonchalance, audiences are prepared to believe that even a strong willed blind man from army can crack up in the end.

Disability in any form is a curse.

[vekkali · 10/10 · 4 May 2021]

It was surprise to know this 1974 movie was available.

With No advent of Internet at the time(1992) National Television(Dhoordharshan) was only form of way to know 1992 version of movie.

We sat entire night to watch Academy Awards ceremony and get to know this movie 'scent of a women' starring Al Pacino. Al Pacino was honored with Academy Award for Best Actor. It was not even in theater in my city.

Now, accidentally happen to watch 1974 movie. I was searching movies for Dino Risi and Vittorio Gassman. Watched How sex can be fun and based on the same, was searching movies by Dino Risi. Also, watched several movies of Vittorio Gassman which are mostly comedy/tragedy.

But this one have deeply affected my balance.

Dialogues like ' I am not existent and 11 of spades' was making a impact on me. Those sequence were truly unexpected.

Disability in any form is a curse.

Nice movie.

Better than the remake

[proman-3 · 4 November 2000]

Al Pacino is a great actor, no doubt about that, but it's not enough for a director to have him to make a good movie. You should watch what Dino Risi is capable of with a handful of actors that are almost anonymous. It's true that European movies are often hard to understand from the point of view of a Hollywood movie, but be sure not to miss this one.

A masterpiece.

[zutterjp48 · 8/10 · 5 October 2019]

Profumo di donna is really a masterpiece of the Italian cinema.A very good story of a blind officer,Fausto,strong as a lion,ready for every fight, arrogant, who will travel from Turin to Napoli with the little help for young soldier Giovanni.Then we follow his tribulations and the last stay in Napoli where a young woman (Sara) tries to take part in the life of Fausto. The performance of Vittorio Gassman is superb (at the same time strong, arrogant but also weak and lost): Alesandro Momo is also a good actor and Agostina Belli ,that I saw in "L'ultima neve di primavera" is a very good actress. When I was looking this film I remember "Scent of a Woman" directed by Martin West with Al Pacino !! In both films the main character is a blind officer, with a sharp sense of sense, aggressive, sometimes arrogant but also with depressive moments who make a travel with a young person (soldier or student).The ends of the films are very different. It's quite difficult to compare the Italian cinema of seventies with the cinema of United States of the nineties. Nevertheless I prefer "Profumo di donna" because this film is more powerful, more stronger and more human than "Scent of a woman".

The forgotten original of "Scent of a woman" (1992)

[frankde-jong · 8/10 · 15 April 2023]

Some time ago I saw "Scent of a woman" (1992, Martin Brest) for the second time. I discovered that it was a remake of an Italian film by Dino Risi. I got to know the work of Risi a year ago when I saw his "Il sorpasso" (1962), so I became interested in the original of "Scent of a woman (1992) from 1974.

The basic storyline (a boy is hired to accompany a blind ex captian in the army) is of course the same, but otherwise there are a few differences that are not unimportant.

In "Profumo di donna" there isn't a second storyline about the boy. The coming of age of the boy is integrated in the main storyline. He falls in love with a girl for the first time.

"Profumo di donna" is more explicit about sex. In "Scent of a woman" (1992) the prostitute visit of the captain (to be more precise in 1992 his rank is Lieutenant Colonel) is kept out of sight. In the 1992 film this was the correct choice, but in "Profumo di donna" a little more "naked skin" felt somehow right. Maybe this is because the coming of age of the boy is a sexual awakening in the 1974 version while in the 1992 version it has more to do with sticking to your principles under pressure. Another possible explanation is that the 1974 version is a road (more precise: rail) movie going from Turin to Naples and thus has a more Mediterranean atmosphere then the 1992 version situated in New York.

The last difference is the ending. The 1992 version has a happy ending. The ending of the 1974 version is hard to classify, neither happy nor only sad. It almost reflects real life.

In my review of "Scent of a woman" (1992) I wrote that the brilliant acting of Al Pacino made a major contribution to the value of the movie. What about the lead actor of "Profumo di donna" Vittorio Gassman? How does he compare with Al Pacino? Difficult to say. Al Pacino received an Oscar for his performance, Vittorio Gassman was awarded as best actor at the Cannes Film Festival. The way both actors shape their character with their body language is impressive in both films. In my opinion Al Pacino has the sharper and better dialogue.

All in all I prefer Al Pacino in "Scent of a woman" (1992) but I do prefer the ending of "Profumo di donna".

Completely superseded

[Varlaam · 27 May 2000]

Like many other people I'm sure, I first became aware of this Oscar nominee when I read the closing credits of its Al Pacino remake. That was in 1992 and I have been trying to locate a copy of the Italian original ever since. According to the critical opinion I've encountered in the interim, the Gassman original was said to be superior, with the Pacino version incorporating its extraneous subplot about Chris O'Donnell's troubles at his private school.

Well... I have finally managed to see the illustrious original. It certainly seems far inferior to me. Its potential is all latent and unrealized; the American version takes the unusual blind officer character and does colourful and then dramatic things with him. The Italian original just walks the character through some conventional sex farce situations.

The result seems so trivial, and the film is as cheap and ugly to look at as any Italian film of the 1970s. Some credit naturally goes to Vittorio Gassman for originating the character for the screen, but that's about it.