Perfume 2006 reviewed by JJ

Perfume Film: Perfume - The Story of a Murderer

Directed by: Tom Tykwer

Country: Germany

Language: English (who knew they spoke English in France in the 1700s?)

Starring: Ben Whishaw, Dustin Hoffman, Alan Rickman, Rachel Hurd-Wood, Jessica Schwarz, Karoline Herfurth

Reviewed by: JJ

Americans have no taste when it comes to film. That's why mediocre directors like Steven Spielberg and George Lucas are bazillionaires while this wonderful movie barely made $2 million in this country. Of course, it grossed over $100 million worldwide. Goes to show, we have shitty taste.

Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, played by Ben Whishaw, is an amoral orphan with the world's best sense of smell. From the very beginning, the movie hits your senses hard, showing 1700s France the way it really was - dirty, smelly, and full of people covered in grime, sweat, and with bad teeth and gums. Most movies show the past in an unrealistic, utopian way while Perfume shows you how it really was.

Jean-Baptiste goes through life with only one focus - to do something with his God-given talent. You'd think how harmfull could a person be with an olfactory sense superior to anyone else in the world? Well, any time you have someone entirely amoral, you'll see.

I have rarely seen a movie with a protagonist that is this amoral, yet captivating. Most of the times, you have a director or writer angry at the world because for one reason or another, usually because he's a pussy and he's mad at the world. In this case, no. Our protagonist is a true artist, but a sociopath.

Wonderful storyline. Wonderful direction. Good acting. And wonderful buildup. It will surprise you. This may be my favorite movie of 2006.