Perfume the story of a murderer
(DVD) 

From the novel by Patrick Süskind.

Special features: The story of "Perfume" [featurette] (14 min.); Previews (8 min.).

Director of photography, Frank Griebe ; production designer, Uli Hanisch ; editor, Alexander Berner ; costume designer, Pierre-Yves Gayraud ; makeup & hair design, Waldemar Pokromski ; music, Tom Tykwer, Johnny Klimek, Reinhold Heil ; performed by Berliner Philharmoniker, conductor, Sir Simon Rattle.

Ben Whishaw (Jean-Baptiste Grenouille), Alan Rickman (Richis), Rachel Hurd-Wood (Laura), Dustin Hoffman (Giuseppe Baldini), John Hurt (narrator), Karoline Herfurth (the plum girl), David Calder (Bishop of Grasse), Simon Chandler (Mayor of Grasse), Sian Thomas (Madame Gaillard), Jessica Schwarz (Natalie), Corinna Harfouch (Madame Arnulfi), Paul Berrondo (Druot), Timothy Davies (Chenier), Sam Douglas (Grimal), Harris Gordon (Marquis de Montesquieu), Sara Forestier (Jeanne), Joanna Griffiths (Marianne), Birgit Minichmayr (Grenouille's mother), Alvaro Roque (Grenouille, age 5), Franck Lefeuvre (Grenouille, age 13), Michael Smiley (porter), Richard Felix (Chief Magistrate).

Originally produced as a German/French/Spanish motion picture in 2006.

In 1738 in Paris, a baby is born under a fishmonger's bloody table in a marketplace and abandoned. Orphaned, passed over to the monks as a charity case, already there is something about the tiny infant that is unsettling. No one will look after him; he is somehow too demanding and, even more disturbing, something is missing: he doesn't smell the way a baby should; indeed, he has no scent at all. Yet Jean-Baptiste Grenouille clings stubbornly to life, because he possesses an absolute sense of smell, and with it, he can read the world, discovering truths that elude ordinary men. As he leaves childhood behind and comes to understand his terrible uniqueness, his obsession becomes the quest to identify, and then to isolate, the perfect scent--that of life itself. Grenouille embarks on a monstrous quest, until the frenzy of his final triumph explodes in all its horrifying consequences.

MPAA rating: Rated R for aberrant behavior involving nudity, violence, sexuality, and disturbing images; Canadian Home Video Rating: 18A for sexual content, nudity, and violence.

DVD; Region 1, NTSC; Dolby Digital 5.1 surround, Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo surround; widescreen presentation, enhanced for 16:9 televisions.

In English with optional subtitles in English, Spanish, or French; closed-captioned.

Winner, 2007 German Film Awards, Film Award in Gold, Beste Kamera/Bildgestaltung (Best Cinematography)--Frank Griebe; Bestes Kostümbild (Best Costume Design)--Pierre-Yves Gayraud; Bester Schnitt (Best Editing)--Alexander Berner; Bestes Szenenbild (Best Production Design)--Uli Hanisch; Beste Tongestaltung (Best Sound)--Stefan Busch, Dirk Jacob, Michael Kranz, Frank Kruse, Matthias Lempert, Hanse Warns, Roland Winke; Film Award in Silver, Programmfüllende Spielfilme (Outstanding Feature Film)--Bernd Eichinger; 2007 European Film Awards for Best Cinematographer--Frank Griebe; Prix d'Excellence--Uli Hanisch (Production design); 2007 Bavarian Film Awards for Regiepreis (Best Director)--Tom Tykwer; Beste Ausstattung (Best Production Design)--Uli Hanisch.