Perfume: The Story of a Murderer and Bob Dylan

I recently watched the DVD of "Perfume: The Story of a Murderer."

Users on The Internet Movie Database give it a 7.6 out of 10 rating and I agree that it's a great film. I thought this was truly a story that I hadn't heard before, and movies like that don't come along very often.

The movie was based on the novel Perfume by Patrick Süskind. The book was the source of inspiration for the Nirvana song "Scentless Apprentice." Kurt Cobain claimed to carry the book in his pocket and said he identified with the lead character's alienation.

Here is the movie's plot outline from imdb: Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, born in the stench of eighteenth century Paris, develops a superior olfactory sense, which he uses to create the world's finest perfumes. His work, however, takes a dark turn as he tries to preserve scents in the search for the ultimate perfume.

The film has received mixed reviews by critics. Reuters described the movie as "visually lush, fast-moving story," stating as well that the director "has a sure sense of spectacle, and despite its faults the movie maintains its queasy grip."

Rottentomatoes.com gave it a 56% freshness rating and wrote, "A visual feast with an antihero that's impossible to feel sympathy for." I disagree with this statement - I found it easy to feel compassion for Grenouille despite his actions.

More from Wikipedia: The movie was an incredible success in Europe making over $100 million worldwide. It was deemed unmarketable for American audience and released in very limited number of theaters in North America where it took a modest $2,208,939.

There was a lot of violence and nudity in the film, although I read that the novel was much more graphic. It's rated R for aberrant behavior involving nudity, violence, sexuality, and disturbing images. Rent it today!

Actors appearing in this film include Dustin Hoffman and Alan Rickman (from the Harry Potter movies and many others).

The movie's lead actor is Ben Whishaw, who's appeared in nothing I've seen before. He'll be in the upcoming movie about Bob Dylan called I'm Not There, which I'm really looking forward to.

In that movie six performers play Dylan, including Cate Blanchett, Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, and Richard Gere. "I'm Not There" is the first dramatic portrayal of his life Dylan had ever approved.