Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		4.0

Scent of a Woman Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov November 7, 2010

Winner of Oscar Award for Best Actor, Martin Brest's "Scent of a Woman" (1992) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Universal Studios-UK. Unfortunately, there are no supplemental features to be found on this Blu-ray disc. In English, with optional English SDH, Japanese, French, German, Catalan, Brazilian Portuguese, Latin Spanish, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Greek, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Swedish, Thai, Turkish, and Traditional Chinese subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

Let's Tango!

It is almost Thanksgiving and everyone at the elite Baird School is getting ready to go home - everyone but Charlie Simms (Chris O'Donnell, Vertical Limit), a less than fortunate student from Oregon, who is looking for a job to make enough so that he could get back home for Christmas. Fortunately for Charlie, there is a job he could have - looking after Frank Slade (Al Pacino, Carlito's Way), a blind and cranky retired Lieutenant Colonel, who has been good friends with Mr. Jack Daniels for years.

Charlie takes the job. Shortly after, Frank tells him that they are going to 'Freakshow Central' a.k.a New York City. Charlie does not know how to react because the job description did not mention an out of state trip. But Frank does not care. He is going, and if Charlie wants to get paid, he better follow him.

Immediately after arriving at the Waldorf-Astoria, Frank phones the Oak Room at the Plaza Hotel to reserve a table for two. Later on, while having dinner, he reveals his plan to Charlie - stay in a first class hotel, have a terrific meal, visit his brother’s family, make love to a beautiful woman, and then blow his brains out. Charlie is confused, because he is unsure if Frank is serious or playing with him.

Frank is very serious. His life has been a disaster and he can’t take it anymore. But before he calls it quits, Frank wants to experience one last time some of the things he enjoyed before he lost his sight.

Based on Giovanni Aprino's novel, Martin Brest’s Scent of a Woman was the film that earned Al Pacino his one and only Oscar. It is a well deserved Oscar, but the Academy should have recognized Pacino long before this film was made.

There is a lot to like about Scent of a Woman. It is a film in which two very different people basically discuss the world they live in. Frank, the older and more experienced one, is a disillusioned alcoholic who understands well that the world is run by people without morals, ethics and integrity. He admits to Charlie that years ago he joined their ranks because he never had the courage to follow the right path. But he never made it big because a part of him did not stop believing that he could be a different man. Frank did not blend well.

Charlie is a naive, hardworking young man, who believes in most everything Frank does not. He is an idealist who has chosen to follow the right path. Frank warns him that he would fail because Charlie holds in high regard values that are meaningless - at least amongst people who lack them. In the beginning Charlie disagrees with him, but a dramatic event at the Baird School proves that Frank was right.

Frank also teaches Charlie a lot about women - how to approach them, how to talk to them, how to impress them. Frank is so good that sometimes he could even guess their names just by sniffing the perfume they wear. In what is arguably the greatest scene in the film, Frank approaches a beautiful young woman (Gabrielle Anwar, Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead) waiting for her boyfriend in the ballroom of an expensive hotel. Much to Charlie’s dismay, he talks her into doing the tango with him.

Note: Italian director Dino Risi’s Profumo di donna a.k.a Scent of Woman (1974), which inspired Martin Brest to shoot his film, is available in the U.S. on SDVD via Hen’s Tooth Video.

Scent of a Woman Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with VC-1 and granted a 1080p transfer, Martin Brest's Scent of a Woman arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Universal Studios-UK.

This is a strong high-definition transfer. As it is the case with the rest of the recent Universal Studios-UK Blu-ray releases, however, it has been struck from a dated source. As a result, there are certain minor issues with it.

Generally speaking, fine object detail is very good. For example, many of the close-ups convey fine texture and strong detail. A few of the panoramic outdoor scenes from the first half of the film also look very good. The color-scheme does not disappoint either - the variety of greens, blues, yellows, reds, browns, grays, and blacks look well saturated and natural. This being said, very mild edge-enhancement occasionally pops up here and there. There are a few scenes where contrast levels are also not terribly convincing. I did notice some minor background shimmering as well. Additionally, some minor noise corrections have been applied, but the film's grain structure is very much intact. Again, because the high-definition transfer has been struck from a dated source, the grain isn't always healthy and consistent, but for the most part the film qualities we look for are retained. Lastly, I noticed a few minor flecks popping up here and there, but did not see any large cuts, marks, warps, or stains to report in this review. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your PS3 or SA regardless of your geographical location. For the record, there is no problematic PAL or 1080/50i content preceding the disc's main menu. Please note that the main menu can be set in one of the following languages: English, Japanese, French, German, Catalan, Brazilian Portuguese, Latin Spanish, Russian, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Greek, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Swedish, Thai, Turkish, or Traditional Chinese).

Scent of a Woman Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are eight audio tracks on this Blu-ray disc: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, Japanese DTS 5.1, French DTS 2.0, German DTS 2.0, Catalan DTS 2.0, Portuguese DTS 2.0, Spanish DTS 2.0, and Russian DTS 2.0. For the record, Universal Studios-UK have provided optional English SDH, Japanese, French, German, Catalan, Brazilian Portuguese, Latin Spanish, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Greek, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Swedish, Thai, Turkish, and Traditional Chinese subtitles for the main feature.

The English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track is strong. The bass is rich and punchy, the rear channels not overly active but effective, and the high-frequencies not overdone. There is a good range of nuanced dynamics as well. The dialog is crisp, clean, stable, and very easy to follow. There are no balance issues with Thomas Newman's music score either. Finally, I did not detect any annoying pops, cracks, hissings, or audio dropouts to report in this review.

Scent of a Woman Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Most unfortunately, there are absolutely no supplemental features to be found on this Blu-ray disc whatsoever.

Scent of a Woman Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

At the moment there is no preliminary release date for Martin Brest's Scent of a Woman in the U.S., but expect to see it on this side of the Atlantic in 2011. It would be great if Universal Studios also released some of Al Pacino's early films on Blu-ray, and in particular Brian De Palma's Scarface and Harold Becker's Sea of Love. The time, I think, is right. RECOMMENDED.