Welcome to The Morning After, where I share with you what I’ve seen over the past week either in film or television. On the film side, if I have written a full length review already, I will post a link to that review. Otherwise, I’ll give a brief snippet of my thoughts on the film with a full review to follow at some point later. For television shows, seasons and what not, I’ll post individual comments here about each of them as I see fit.

So, here is what I watched this past week:

Perfume: The Story of a Murderer

This rather unusual morsel from the audacious Tom Tykwer follows the struggle of a young man with a powerful sense of smell who attempts to capture the scent of a young woman in the streets of Paris. His attempts to contain the lingering smell takes him through the tutelage of a master perfumer and onto a killing spree through the French countryside, hoping to turn his victims into a strange concoction that will bring euphoria in any who smells it.

Explaining the plot is challenging because of its unusual premise even if the screenwriting is straight forward and conventional. Ben Whishaw stars in a smashing debut performance as the murderous sociopath. As repugnant as Whishaw’s actions become, his charming demeanor and persistence drive the narrative forward and earn the audience’s respect and hopes for success. Alan Rickman and Dustin Hoffman deliver superb supporting performances as well.

Tykwer’s twisted adaptation of a popular novel make for a rather idiosyncratic effort. You would never expect this level of depravity to feel so vital and almost acceptable. You’re forced to appreciate the lengths one man will go to capture beauty. The seeds of desire and longing infuse the protagonist’s actions and conjure up questionable moral sentiments in the audience. It’s not a film that will easily satisfy mainstream audiences, but for quirky film enthusiasts it’s an interesting treasure that demands at least one viewing.