Comments on: Perfume: the art of scent

By: Troy

Troy — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 04:12:49 +0000

How very odd… one of the movie posters above (the one with Laure lying back against white, with her exceptionally red hair) is almost exact to the cover of a Jessie Matthews album in iTunes. I was nearly sure when I saw it, and then I went and checked- there are VERY few differences. The girl on the album is holding a flower, but other than that, it is the same, the same white background with flowing hair brought to the for. And I am almost 100% certain that the girl on the album is NOT Ms.Matthews. I am able to find no explanation for this… Strange…

By: Parfums Raffy - Online Perfume, cologne, fragrance store

Parfums Raffy - Online Perfume, cologne, fragrance store — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 20:04:42 +0000

I haven’t seen the movie Perfume – Story of a Murder yet but your blog post reminded me of the Original version of the film Shaft! Before you laugh or dismiss this hear me out… Shaft is another movie adaptation of a 1971 novel by Ernest Tidyman. The Director of the film was world famous photographer Gordon Parks. The way he shot the film was spectacular. He shot the film like a photographer and many of the scenes and cut scenes were like watching a photograph come to life.

This prompted speculation about the distinct challenge Süskind’s book presents to a designer: how best to represent the entwined strands of Grenouille’s career as a perfumier and a murderer of young women?

Like this part of your blog post, Parks, as a photographer, was challenged to how best represent the book on flim.

Anyways, I’m rambling.

By: John

John — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 19:37:15 +0000

Hi Richard. Yes I got to see the film finally and fully agree, they did an excellent job of a very difficult task. Great production values throughout with superb photography.

My main quibble concerned the end when Grenouille thinks back to the girl he tries to have sex with, the implication being that if they’d got together he wouldn’t have become a murderer. I went back to the book and couldn’t find any such implication at all, he remains a thorough misanthrope, disgusted with himself and humanity. But that’s a minor point beside the overall success of the rest of the film.

By: Richard Sica

Richard Sica — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 19:00:12 +0000

I have seen both the film and read the book. I think in this rare instance, the transition from book to film has been a happy one. The movie captures pre-Revolutionary France in exquisite detail. It also does the impossible; it conveys scent with a dazzling array of visuals. Grenouille extraordinary gift his humble and harsh life is so expertly portrayed that you would swear the filmmakers had a time machine. The book has several more characters but I think the scriptwriters did a wonderful job distilling the book. Their added touches of irony only add to the narrative
The actor Ben Wislaw portrays Grenouille is so sympathy and subtle manner [he cannot have had more the a few lines of dialog] that you are completely enraptured by him from the beginning. No matter what he does or has to endure, you are rooting for him to succeed. Even his murders of the 13 women in the movie [24 in the book] are more like and artist laying paint out on his palette before creating his masterpiece. The heavenly hypnotic scent he reveals at the end of the movie, results in the largest orgy ever film on screen. I loved it when the old executioner pulls off his hood and declares Grenouille and innocent man

By: Eroom Nala

Eroom Nala — Sun, 11 Feb 2007 21:42:29 +0000

I still have to read the book as our library copy always seems to be out on loan but I’ll definitely see the film especially as I’ve already seen his previous Run Lola Run. Reviews here recommend seeing the film first and then reading the book to understand what the film can’t reproduce from the novel.

I think the last poster is the most interesting.

Next film to see on the big screen. Either Perfurme or Pan’s Labyrinth.

By: Nathalie

Nathalie — Sun, 11 Feb 2007 06:14:42 +0000

I hope you go and see the film, John: the photography and the lighting are beautiful.
.

By: Callum James

Callum James — Sun, 11 Feb 2007 01:48:22 +0000

Hiya,

You must go and see the film. It uses light (which I guess is cinema’s medium) in the same way that the book uses scent. Grenouille is played by one of those ugly-beautiful actors who are utterly compelling to look at. The final scenes are staggering.

I was surprised to read you saying you thought US book cover designs are normally better than UK ones. I always thought it was the other way around. I always feel there’s something too, I don’t know – ‘gold’ – about american graphic design, compared to a ’silver’ feeling with British graphics. Like the difference between the design of say, Fox News and BBC News on the TV.

We can agree about the poster though… that is a truly magnificent piece of work – even if it does feel a little derivative of American Beauty – but then anything now with red petals and female nudes is going to….

By: John

John — Sun, 11 Feb 2007 01:25:22 +0000

Hi Callum,

I feel better about the film after having heard the soundtrack although I felt that Ben Wishaw wasn’t ugly enough for Grenouille. But that’s the problem, isn’t it? No studio would bankroll a film about a thoroughly ugly and repellent central character; all Hollywood villains?including Hannibal Lecter who often seems to owe something to Süskind’s creation?are soft-pedalled in this way.

I know what you mean about American books (and the TV graphics!), especially bestsellers. I was thinking more of literary titles. It’s all terribly subjective but US publishing houses seem to have access to better designers on the whole. There are certainly no “star” cover designers in Britain on a level with Chip Kidd in the US. Afraid I can’t raise many good examples apart from suggesting that the American edition of David Mitchell’s Cloud Atlas:

http://www.amazon.com/Cloud-Atlas-Novel-David-Mitchell/dp/0375507256/

is a better design than the UK version:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Cloud-Atlas-David-Mitchell/dp/0340822783/

even if it does feel a little derivative of American Beauty

Heh, I was going to mention American Beauty since it got there first with the rose petals. The derivative aspect may even be deliberate on the part of the designers, given the intensely commercial area they’re working in.