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Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (2006)

R  |   |  Crime, Drama, Fantasy  |  5 January 2007 (USA)
7.5
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Ratings: 7.5/10 from 178,808 users   Metascore: 56/100
Reviews: 475 user | 223 critic | 30 from Metacritic.com

Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, born with a superior olfactory sense, creates the world's finest perfume. His work, however, takes a dark turn as he searches for the ultimate scent.

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(screenplay), (screenplay), 2 more credits »
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Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
...
Francesc Albiol ...
Court Official
Gonzalo Cunill ...
Guard 1 Dungeon
Roger Salvany ...
Guard 2 Dungeon
Andrés Herrera ...
Door Guard
...
...
...
Birgit Minichmayr ...
...
Customer Fishmarket
Catherine Boisgontier ...
Woman Fishmarket
Núria Casas ...
Woman 2 Fishmarket
Carlos Gramaje ...
Police Lieutenant Fishmarket
Sian Thomas ...
...
Porter
Edit

Storyline

Jean-Baptiste Grenouille came into the world unwanted, expected to die, yet born with an unnerving sense of smell that created alienation as well as talent. Of all the smells around him, Grenouille is beckoned to the scent of a woman's soul, and spends the rest of his life attempting to smell her essence again by becoming a perfumer, and creating the essence of an innocence lost.

Plot Summary | Plot Synopsis

Plot Keywords:

breasts | smell | scent | perfume | stench | See All (238) »

Taglines:

Enter an intoxicating world of passion, obsession and murder See more »

Genres:

Crime | Drama | Fantasy

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for aberrant behavior involving nudity, violence, sexuality, and disturbing images | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

 »
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Details

Country:

| |

Language:

Release Date:

5 January 2007 (USA)  »

Also Known As:

El perfume  »

Filming Locations:

 »

Box Office

Budget:

€50,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£485,200 (UK) (29 December 2006)

Gross:

$2,208,939 (USA) (23 February 2007)
 »

Company Credits

Show detailed on  »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

| |

Color:

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1
See  »
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Did You Know?

Trivia

The actual liquid of the "ultimate" perfume at the end is a mixture of cola thinned with a bit of water. See more »

Goofs

When Grenouille meets the perfumer, at his house/laboratory, he knows where all the substances are, although he has never been there before. He is able to do this due to his heightened sense of smell, he is able to work out where specific substances are by the scent they give off. See more »

Quotes

[first lines]
Court Official: Quick. We can't hold them back much longer. Hurry. Come on!
See more »

Connections

Referenced in 90210: Nerdy Little Secrets (2011) See more »

Soundtracks

Tarentelle
(Traditional)
Performed by Saboï and its Members
Asta Coulomb, Christian Coulomb, Sebastien Coulomb, François Hecquet, Bertrand Mercier, Nicolas Pillard,
Edo Pols, Jocelyn Raulet, Simon Staelens, Remi Tran-No
By arrangement: Christian Coulomb
See more »

Frequently Asked Questions

See more (Spoiler Alert!) »

User Reviews

 
Better than I expected
31 August 2006 | by (Basel, Switzerland) – See all my reviews

I'd only heard bad things about this movie in advance and I hadn't been too impressed with the trailer - I thought the actor playing Grenouille was too pretty, giving his behavior an almost sensual feel, which it definitely shouldn't have. However, when I had the chance to see a press showing of it, I knew I had to see it because Süskind's book was one of the highlights of my school career. I was pleasantly surprised - the movie is well done, beautifully filmed (I especially enjoyed the period details that always felt very down-to-earth and alive), and the main character was never attractive and actually quite creepy (although in my mind, Grenouille will probably always more resemble a Gollum-like creature).

Putting scent into images, however, is even more difficult than putting them into words, in my opinion, and this is where the movie lacked. It just did not grip me the way the book had, did not pull me into this world of smells, and after 2 hours I started getting impatient for the story to finally move on and wrap up. All in all I think the movie could have been better, but it was definitely better than I'd feared and is well worth a look.


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