Although blind, the lead male character in the movie "Scent of a Woman", seems to take in and understand more than the rest of us do with all of our senses intact. Retired Lieutenant Colonel Frank Slade, played by Al Pacino, is mired in self-pity until his spirit is renewed because of his contact with a teenager who shows him integrity, courage and compassion. This is a movie about the meanings of "blindness" and how people can truly see beyond what they see with their eyes. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the progression of Slade's character through the plot developments of the movie that lead to this spiritual life renewal.
Charley Sims, a prep-school boy, who comes from a poor family takes on a job taking care of Slade to earn money to afford his flight home for Christmas. He serves as his eyes for "one last tour of the battlefield", which he does not know that Slade has planned as his last hurrah before planned suicide. Besides dealing with Slade, Sims is also conflicted about his own problem of dealing with classmates. Fellow students have played a prank on the school principal, and he is threatened with expulsion if he does not 'tell' on them.
Over Thanksgiving weekend, Slade has plans to drag his unwilling human guide dog to the Waldorf, dine at the Oak Room, demonstrate his tango technique, hire the best call girl in town รป all in preparation for his intended suicide. The two represent a classic odd couple: the jaded and bitter older man paired with the idealistic and fresh young man. As we watch the movies and see the characters play off each other from separate and distinct point of view, we can see that they both are going to end up teaching each other life lessons by the end of the story. Slade has Sims take him around The Big Apple for some planned activities. Slade visits his relatives, where Sims and the audience find out how Slade became blind. By the end of the movie, Sims'
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