Film review: Perfume: The Story of a Murderer

Perfume: The Story of a Murderer is the fragrance movie to end all fragrance movies. A period thriller exploring one man’s fascination with scent and the frightening lengths he’ll go to, to capture it.

In his filmic retelling of Patrick Süskind's 1985 hit novel, Perfume, director Tom Tykwer transports viewers to a world scarcely seen in cinema.” To the “fleeting realm of scent”, as felt through the nose of protagonist Jean-Baptiste Grenouille.

Grenouille has what every fragrance enthusiast most desires – a remarkable nose – which he uses to deadly effect in his pursuit of the “perfect scent”. Armed with a dozen or so vials and a yearning for female flesh, he embarks on a killing spree, killing women and preserving their scents in the process. A mission that culminates in him being arrested and sentenced to death.

As a frag flick, Perfume is both educational and extraordinary. A fanciful tale set in a real-life perfumery capital, at a time when fragrance production was really coming in to its own.

In explaining away Grenouille’s methods, Tykwer introduces us to not only traditional forms of perfume extraction but also the original home of perfume itself – Grasse – a town responsible for producing more than two-thirds of France’s natural aromas.

Whether for its historical references or imaginative storytelling, Perfume is essential frag-head watching. Catch the full film on Netflix now.