Al Pacino, widely regarded as an acting legend, has had an interesting career trajectory in Hollywood. His breakout role was in 1971’s ‘The Godfather.’ In the gangster epic, he played Michael Corleone with an intensity that showed his corruption quietly yet evoked immense fear. The executives at Paramount didn’t understand why he underplayed the bravado of a mafia leader, so much so that they were ready to fire him. Years later, Pacino transformed into a loud, blustering persona on screen. This came through in 1992’s ‘Scent Of A Woman’ which fetched him an Oscar for Best Actor. However, his melodramatic, madman monologues were widely ridiculed.
The film has a controversial legacy. While some revere it, others mock Pacino’s performance as a blind veteran Lt. Col. Frank Slade taking a young boy Charlie Simms, played by Chris O’Donnell, on a jarring joyride over a Thanksgiving weekend. But, does ‘Scent Of A Woman’ deserve the rain of backlash for its “cringe” factor? Maybe we should afford Pacino the courtesy preached by the film: take a chance, no matter the circumstances.
Al Pacino Shed His Subtlety To Embody A Raging Army Veteran In ‘Scent Of A Woman’
The genius of Al Pacino lies in inducing depth into every character he plays. It works sometimes; other times, it fails. When ‘Scent of a Woman’ came around, Pacino was in his comeback phase. The previous decade had been lacklustre for him. Whether he played small roles, such as the one in ‘Revolution,’ or a larger-than-life criminal in ‘Scarface,’ Pacino was rejected critically and commercially. While he felt his portrayal of Tony Montana deserved an Oscar nomination, the Academy wasn’t impressed.
Then, in ‘Scent of a Woman,’ Pacino became a tour de force, giving a disturbing yet crucial insight into the dark mind of an army veteran. Sure, he was merciless in his retorts and screamed “hoo-ah!” at every given opportunity, but there’s much credit to be given for this unexpectedly powerful film. The criticism of the movie had to do with its runtime, but after Pacino snatched the Oscar, resentment grew over Denzel Washington losing to him despite his historic performance in ‘Malcolm X.’
As for the movie’s plot, it wasn’t too complicated. Colonel Slade knows his existence is a nuisance, more so to himself as a disabled man. So, once his niece leaves him with a young aide, Charlie, he takes him to New York City for “a tour of pleasures.” Unbeknownst to the lad, who is having a hard time keeping up with the colonel’s admonishments and wild, drunk ideas, the old man desires to end the trip by shooting himself in the Waldorf-Astoria.
We know the colonel’s personality is hard to swallow. He is offensive and racist at times, but he is also deeply nostalgic about the life he lived and didn’t get to live. On one hand, he states things like, “There’s only two syllables in this whole world worth hearing – pus-sy”, and on the other, he opines, “Have you ever buried your nose in a mountain of curls, and wanted to go to sleep forever?”
Pacino’s comedic sway is also on point. When he and his sidekick con a Ferrari salesman into taking a test drive on their own, he quips, “My boy drives so smooth, you could boil an egg on the engine. When we bring the car back, I’ll peel the egg for you.” It’s all just amusing, even if it’s savage.
For the role, Pacino spent time learning how to gaze into a distant void by visiting institutions for the blind. He trained himself to unfocus his eyes as the sightless. The actor was undeterred even after incurring a genuine eye injury while filming ‘The Scent Of A Woman.’ Now, that’s some other level of surrender to a role. Some naysayers called it Oscar bait, given how being blind somewhat absolved Slade of his abrasiveness. But that’s not true. He was too tired and too broken, and what’s worse than loathing yourself to the point that you can’t stand yourself, make no more connections, and hold no one dear? So, you hide behind a garb of flamboyant behavior. Isn’t that misery?
‘Scent Of A Woman’ Is An Unconventional, Bombastic Ball Of Fire
Maybe the movie was tailor-made for awards – sentimental to its core, but a maximalism that bothered those who wanted Al Pacino’s sly performances. But just like Slade, Pacino’s destiny spoke, and it spoke loud. ‘Scent Of A Woman’ had an emotional depth that eluded his previous acts.
In a world which expects its military men to leave the pain of fury of the battlefield behind once they return home, Pacino’s colonel swerves between keeping to himself slumping in an armchair nursing whisky and cigarillos and barking threats and grabbing people’s necks at family dinners.
All Colonel Slade wants is a last hurrah. So, he dances a tango, drives a Ferrari, flirts to his might, throws around poetic eroticism, assembles his pistol, and in the end, delivers an unforgettable speech about how “out of order” everything is at Charlie’s school. The boy is facing expulsion for not ratting out his vandal classmates.
Slade makes a bargain for Charlie’s intact soul, admitting how he himself had taken the easy way out in his lifetime: “Now I have come to the crossroads in my life. I always knew what the right path was. Without exception, I knew. But I never took it. You know why? It was too damn hard.” So, for integrity’s sake, he yells, “If I were the man I was five years ago, I’d take a flame-thrower to this place.”
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Pacino truly gave the character his all, embracing risks and seizing all the opportunities that were afforded to him in a Hollywood that was changing too fast in the ’90s. ‘Scent Of A Woman’ gives a clear message of taking a chance, and that’s something we should give the beloved Italian-American actor. He did what he does best: “If you get all tangled up, just tango on.” That’s been his career ever since.
Whatever your feelings about the movie, don’t mourn the loss of Pacino’s brooding naturalistic acting, celebrate him for his infernal era in a business that seldom accepts change of its screen heroes.
