I was scanning the shelves of my video tapes when I saw one that I had really liked, the movie Scent of a Woman, starring Al Pacino and Chris O'Donnell. I decided to watch it again, and realized that it is one of my very favorite movies. I watched it with rapt attention with my heart filling up from the emotions coming from the screen. And near the end of the movie, I realized that I truly loved the music, which powerfully resonated with me. Unlike yesterday's offering, The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, I could not just watch the ending over and over again to satisfy my yearnings, I'd have to continue watching the whole movie over and over again and that certainly wasn't practical. I wondered if there was a soundtrack of it, and sure enough, yes there is, so I ordered it and now can listen to the music whenever I wanted to feel those emotions again.
3. Song Title: Scent of a Woman: Main Title
Composer: Thomas Newman
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfjKZBJjfDo
One day, some boys do an RF on the disliked Headmaster's new Jaguar and a faculty member knew that there were two boys who saw who did it, a boy whose father was a huge donor to the school, and Charlie, who was there on scholarship. Neither boy would rat out the perpetrators, so the Headmaster leaned solely on the more vunlerable Charlie, whose career the Headmaster held in his hands. The Thanksgiving break was coming up, so the Headmaster said that once everybody was back, he would hold a campus-wide hearing in the auditorium during which Charlie would be tried by the school councel and if he continued to fail to cooperate, he would likely be expelled.
Most of the students were going skiing during the Thanksgiving break, but Charley was looking for a job during the breask so that he could earn money to fly back home to Oregon for Christmas. He answered an ad that had been posted on the school's bulletin board, a position during the break for a home sitter/caretaker for a blind man.
Charlie went to the house and it was the man's sister who had placed the ad, she and her husband and two children wanted to go out of town during the break, but somebody had to take care of Lieutenant Colonel Frank Slade (played by Al Pachino). She took Charlie over to a separate dwelling on the property to meet the Colonel. He was a loud, angry, irascible man and it looked like the posting would be the job from hell. He tested Charlie like, "How is your skin, son, I like my men presentable". Charlie reasonably felt that Cononel didn't like him, and felt that he should back out, but the sister begged him, to take the job, nobody else had applied, so Charlie relented and agreed to take the job.
It ends up that the Colonel had plans of his own regarding the Thanksgiving break. As soon as the family had packed their car and were gone, the Colonel got Charley to him pack, they were going to fly to New York!
Here they will go on an adventure that will be life changing for both of them. I hear that sence of power and grown in the music. I have no idea what the title means, but I am guessing that "Ginch" is a fall guy and that the doers of the deed against the Headmaster's car are willing for Charley, whom they assume lives on the wrong side of the tracks and therefor are not "one of them" would be a good one to carry the Headmaster's wrath instead of them. The fact that Charley is operating from a stance of morals does not enter their minds.
4. Song Title: Scent of a Woman: Track House Ginch
Composer: Thomas Newman
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7nHfmFdYNA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbK8Xpz0Xe4
During the Tango scene, Charley is coming to admire the Colonel and could see that he was really quite able despite his blindness. However, the next day, things take a dark turn when the Colonel takes Charley to Thanksgiving dinner at the house of his brother and numerous other family members, who clearly wished that the Colonel had not come; the blood among them was very bad. During the strained dinner, one of the relatives asked Charley if he wanted to know HOW the Colonel had been blnded. They wanted to let Charley know that the Colonel was drunk and showing off, jugling explosives or someting and had foolishly caused his blindless himself. This was meant to show to Charley that if he had any shred of admiration for the Colonel, he shouldn't have, since it was the Colonel himself to have caused his own career destroying malady, which they seem to see as fitting justice for his other bad characeristics.
But I say that if a person's foolishness or mistake is what caused their own handicap, doesn't that make the emtions for them even worse? They have nobody to blame but themselves, but all that does is to increase your own burden of grief.
Finally they got out of there and the Colonel had one more pleasure on his agenda, this time the most important one at all. He had asked his limosine driver (who would know) to set him up with the finest woman in New York offering favors.
The Colonel put on his best clothes and the limosine driver took the them to woman's street, parked, and the Colonel went into the apartment. Both the driver and Charley sat there quietly and relaxed, waiting while the Colonel was having sex with the finest woman in New York. The atmosphere seemed sacred.
6. Song Title: Scent of a Woman: Tour of Pleasures
Composer: Thomas Newman
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AI38laIfnQE
When it was over, the Colonel came down like he was floating on a cloud. He settled back in the seat and said, "What a beautiful woman." Then the driver started the car and they drove down the streets of New York back to the hotel. But the Colonel sensed something sad about Charlie and Charlie explained that as the trip to New York was close being over, he would have to face that assembly back at school. He and the Colonel had discussed it earlier, but now that it loomed closely, it became a more urgent. The Colonel said, "Oh Charley, why are you all alone on this? What is your Dad doing to help you? Charley explained that his Dad had abandoned the family when he was little, but now he had a step father and they didn't see eye to eye. Basically, he was alone with this issue.
The next day, the mutual mood turned even darker. The Colonel did not want to get out of bed and it became clear that now that he had experienced all his favorite pleasures he now had planned to kill himself. This led to a read intense drama in which the young man took on the role of being the mentor for the older man. The Colonel said that he had ruined his life and he no longer had any reason to live. Charley said that he wasn't a failure, he was just in pain. That he had much to live for. They faught powerfully over the gun, which Charley finally got ahold of.
How do you make a person want to live? The following song brings back the various themes, the Charlie theme of learning and appreciation and the hopes of youth, the great adventure of the Colonel theme enjoying and showing Charlie some of the good features of life, and the scent of a woman theme that is spread throught all of it. Then near the end of the song, it comes like a sunrise, opening up the answer. How do you make a peson want to live? Love. You love them. And life will follow.
7. Song Title: Scent of a Woman: 45 to 25
Composer: Thomas Newman
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbE8Wyi1ipE
There is more than I wrote about, this was meant to be about the power of the music, not to reveal every aspect of the movie (you might want to watch it!). But the pair missed the airplane flight back to New Hampshire from New York (because the Colonel had expected he would be dead), so the Colonel decided to take them both back home in the limousine all the way from New York to New Hampshire, because Charley had to be on campus in time for the hearing in the auditorium. The Colonel established with the limosine driver that next time the two of them went to New York, they would go there via that driver and his limousine. The driver said, "It would be an honor, and I will give you a rate!" I love the idea of the two of them going back to New York together, taking the big car the whole way.
They got there just in time for Charley to take a shower and then go to the auditorium. What all goes on after that will be worth watching the movie for, but if Charlie saved the life of the Colonel, the Colonel also payed back Charley in a glorious climax to the film. After the triumps for both, there was more "scent of a woman" to entice the Colonel and it is clear that a solid mutual friendship had been generated between the mutual "mentors".
It was very sad for me when the movie came to an end. I wanted to keep seeing the two them. I am glad I have the music.
In the End Title, I love the touch of the military drums. The Colonel can be genuinely proud.
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