Scent of a Woman
R
Dec 23, 1992
Drama · At 156 minutes, it's deliberately paced but Pacino's magnetic performance keeps you invested.
Solid crowd-pleaser
8.0/10
IMDb
82%
Fresh
57
57/100
Metacritic
🎬
7.8/10
TMDB
The brief
This is Pacino at his most Pacino, bellowing and scenery-chewing as a blind, bitter ex-colonel who takes a prep school kid on a wild weekend in New York. At nearly three hours, it definitely feels its length, but Pacino's manic energy and surprising vulnerability make the bloated runtime worth it. Chris O'Donnell holds his own as the wide-eyed student caught between doing right and fitting in, while the film builds to Pacino's legendary courtroom speech that somehow earned him his only Oscar. Perfect for anyone who loves big, theatrical performances and doesn't mind when actors swing for the fences, even if they occasionally miss.
theatrical mentorship
emotional vulnerability
moral awakening
big performances
coming-of-age drama
character study
The verdict
If you love big, theatrical performances and don't mind when great actors chew every piece of scenery in sight, this is peak Pacino delivering the manic energy and surprising vulnerability that earned him his only Oscar. If you prefer subtlety over bombast or get restless during lengthy character studies, the nearly three-hour runtime and relentlessly over-the-top acting will test your patience.
Watch with
- 👨👩👧👦 Perfect for father-son movie nights
- 👤 Great solo watch for character appreciation
- ⚠️ May feel slow for action movie fans
Heads up
- Suicidal ideation and planning (moderate)
- Mature themes about depression (moderate)
- Brief sexual content (brief)
Credits
- Director
- Martin Brest
- Cast
- Al Pacino, Chris O'Donnell, James Rebhorn, Gabrielle Anwar, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Richard Venture, Bradley Whitford
Official synopsis
Charlie Simms is a student at a private preparatory school who comes from a poor family. To earn the money
