Why the original 1974 Scent of a Woman is a masterpiece of Italian cinema
In short: Before the famous American remake, Dino Risi directed a poignant Italian classic titled Profumo di donna. It follows a blind, disfigured captain on a journey from Turin to Naples, ostensibly to visit a comrade but secretly to end his life. It is a profound exploration of pride, beauty, and redemption.
Directed by Dino Risi and based on the story Il buio e il miele by Giovanni Arpino, the 1974 film Profumo di donna stands as a cornerstone of the commedia all'italiana genre. The narrative centers on Fausto Consolo, a blind Italian captain who has been disfigured in a military accident. Accompanied by his young army-assigned aide, Ciccio, the captain embarks on a trip across Italy. While the ostensible goal is to reunite with an old comrade, the captain harbors a darker intention: to fulfill a suicide pact with his friend.
The film’s emotional core lies in the captain's complex relationship with his own identity. Despite his blindness, he insists on identifying beautiful women through his sense of smell, rejecting the inadequate descriptions provided by his young aide. This sensory fixation masks a deeper insecurity; he carries a photograph of his beloved, Sara, yet refuses to see her because he views himself as irrevocably broken and helpless. The journey serves as a crucible for both men, as the captain’s rigid worldview is challenged by the eventual intervention of Sara, which ultimately thwarts his fatal plan and forces Ciccio to undergo a significant personal maturation.
The film received significant critical acclaim, cementing the reputations of both its director and its lead actor, Vittorio Gassman. In 1975, Gassman won the Best Actor award at both the Cannes Film Festival and the David di Donatello awards, while Risi took home the David di Donatello for Best Director. The film’s international impact was further solidified in 1976 when it earned two Academy Award nominations: one for Best Foreign Film and another for Best Writing, Screenplay Adapted From Other Material. These accolades highlight the enduring power of the original story, which was later adapted into a well-known American film in 1992.
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- Summary by Intellect · source: Scent of a Woman (1974 film)
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