Name: Scent of a Woman
Genre: Drama
Released: 1992-12-23
Duration: 156 min
Rating: 7.8
Cast: Al Pacino, Chris O'Donnell, James Rebhorn, Gabrielle Anwar, Philip Seymour Hoffman

8 quotes

Scent of a Woman

Empowerment and Opportunity in Higher Education

Mr. Trask One of the few perks of this office is that I am empowered to handle certain matters as I see fit. Do you understand?

Charlie Simms Yes, sir.

Mr. Trask Good. The Dean of Admissions at Harvard and I have an arrangement. Along with the usual sheaf of applicants submitted, of which virtually two-thirds are guaranteed admittance, I add one name. Somebody who's a standout. And yet, underprivileged. A student who cannot afford to pay the board and tuition in Cambridge. Do you know on whose behalf I drafted a memo this year?

Charlie No, sir.

Mr. Trask You. You, Mr. Simms. Now, can you tell me who did it?

Charlie No, sir, I can't.

Mr. Trask You take the weekend to think about it, Mr. Simms. Good afternoon.

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

Scent of a Woman

Discussion on Vacation Plans and Pronunciation

Harry Havemayer We got a deal going, kid- 20% off for my friends; my father set it up. Christmas in Switzerland?

Trent Potter Staad.

Harry Havemayer Gstaad; dropping the G is phony.

Trent But you just said everybody says Staad!

Harry Not if you've been there. Easter in Burmuda? Think a Kentucky Derby week- we could fit you in, kid.

Charlie Simms Uh, how much are these, white-bosomed slopes of Vermont?

Harry Twelve-hundred. Includes a nine-course, champagne Thanksgiving dinner.

Charlie Twelve hundred dollars is a little rich for my blood, Harry.

Harry How short are you?

Charlie Short, Harry? So short it wouldn't be worth the trouble for you and George to measure. But, uh, thanks for asking, all right?

[''Leaves'']

Harry If you change your mind...

George Willis Jr. What'd you do that for? You know he's on aid.

Harry On major holidays, Willis, it's customary for the lord of the manor to offer drippings to the poor.

[smug]

George You're so full of shit.

[laughs]

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

Scent of a Woman

Reflections on Women and Desire

Lieutenant Colonel Frank Slade Women! What could you say? Who made em? God must have been a fuckin genius. The hair... they say the hair is everything, you know. Have you ever buried your nose in a mountain of curls... just wanted to go to sleep forever? Or lips... and when they touched, yours were like... that first swallow of wine... after you just crossed the desert. Tits. Hoo-ah! Big ones, little ones, nipples staring right out at ya, like secret searchlights. Mmm. Legs. I don't care if they're Greek columns... or secondhand Steinways. What's between em... passport to heaven. I need a drink. Yes, Mr Simms, there's only two syllables in this whole wide world worth hearing: pussy. Hah! Are you listenin to me, son? I'm givin ya pearls here.

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

Scent of a Woman

A Moment of Integrity and Conflict

Col. Slade You break my heart, son. All my life I stood up to everyone and everything because it made me feel important. You do it... because you mean it. You got integrity, Charlie. I don't know whether to shoot you, or adopt you.

Charlie Not much of a choice, is it, sir?

Col. Slade Oh, don't get cute, son.

Charlie Colonel, could you please put the gun away?

Col. Slade I asked you a question. Do you want me to adopt you, or don't you?

Charlie Please, I mean... you're just in a slump right now.

Col. Slade Slump? No slump, Charlie. I'm bad. I'm not bad, no; I'm rotten.

Charlie You're not bad. You're just in pain.

Col. Slade What do you know about pain? You little snail dart from the Pacific Northwest? Fuck you know about pain?

Charlie Lemme have the gun, Colonel.

Col. Slade No time to grow a dick, son.

Charlie Just-just gimme the gun, all right, Colonel?

Col. Slade I'm talkin a parade ground. Ten-hut! Soldier, that was a direct order.

[''Charlie moves forward again.'']

Charlie The gun.

Col. Slade You can stay or you can leave.

Charlie I'm staying.

Col. Slade Either way, I'm gonna do this thing. Now why don't you leave, and spare yourself?

Charlie Let me have the gun, Colonel.

Col. Slade I'm gonna give myself a count. You need a count for balance. Five... four... three... two... one... Fuck it. GET OUTTA HERE!

[As Slade raises the M1911 to his temple, Charlie charges him, and the two struggle over the pistol. Slade quickly overpowers Charlie and pins him against a wall.]

Charlie I'm staying right here!

Col. Slade GET OUTTA HERE!

Charlie I'm staying right here!

Col. Slade I'm gonna blow your fuckin head off!

Charlie Then do it! You wanna do it, do it! Let's go!

Col. Slade Get outta here!

Charlie So you fucked up, alright? So what?! Everybody does! Get on with your life, would you?!

Col. Slade WHAT LIFE?! I GOT NO LIFE! I'm in the dark here, understand?! I'M IN THE DARK!

Charlie Then give up. You wanna give up? Give up. Cause I'm givin up, too. You said I'm through; you're right, I am through. We're both through, it's all over. So get on with it. Let's fuckin do it! Let's fuckin'... pull the trigger, you miserable, blind motherfucker!

Col. Slade Here we go, Charlie.

Charlie I'm ready.

Col. Slade You don't wanna die.

Charlie And neither do you.

Col. Slade Give me one reason not to.

Charlie I'll give you two. You can dance the tango and drive a Ferrari better than anyone I've ever seen.

Col. Slade You haven't seen anyone do either.

[lowers the pistol]

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

Scent of a Woman

Humorous exchange about car performance

Officer Gore License and registration. What, are you test driving this baby?

[''Charlie hands over some papers.'']

Col. Slade Don't she purr, though?

Officer Gore At 70 miles an hour?

Col. Slade You should hear it at 125. Ha!

Officer Gore Where's your license?

Col. Slade At the dealer's. They give it back to you when you return the car.

Officer Gore You got ID?

Col. Slade You bet. Indeed.

[Hands over his ID]

Officer Gore Lieutenant Colonel Slade.

[Looking at the card]

Col. Slade And you, soldier?

Officer Gore The name is Police Officer Gore.

Col. Slade You're doin a hell of a job, Gore!

Officer Gore Oh, and so are you, Colonel. Who's the kid?

Col. Slade My boy Charlie. He kept tellin me to "let her out, let her out"; what was I gonna do, disappoint him?

Officer Gore Yes. Tell you what I'm gonna do, Colonel. I'm gonna let you go. On one condition.

[''Pauses'']

Col. Slade What's that?

Officer Gore That you take this rig straight back to the dealer.

Charlie Y-you got it.

Col. Slade Shut up.

Officer Gore You want this?

[''Holds out the papers'']

Col. Slade Sure. Gore, your face and your voice are familiar. You ever in the Officers Club at Danang?

[Reaches out and takes the papers]

Officer Gore No.

Col. Slade Ever in the Army?

Officer Gore No, Coast Guard.

Col. Slade Good Lord. Ha ha!

Officer Gore Your dad's looking good, Charlie. He's got a heavy foot, though. Tell him to take it light, all right?

[frowns, then laughs]

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

Scent of a Woman

Preserving Institutional Values Amid Societal Disrespect

Mr. Trask I called an open meeting of this institution this morning because the incident that occurred this Tuesday last describes an issue that concerns all of us. Not an isolated case of vandalism, what happened is a symptom of a sickness in this society. A sickness which runs counter to the principles this school was founded on. A school among whose graduates, two have sat behind the desk in the Oval Office, in the White House. Baird men have run state departments, investment houses. Founded department stores, coached football teams. Our alumni receive their bulletins in ashrams in India and in palaces in Jordan: we are, in fact, known around the world as the cradle of this country's leadership. A beacon to the nations. But today, we are bleeding from disrespect. Blatant disrespect. Disrespect for our values, and disrespect for our standards. A disrespect for the Baird tradition. And, as the custodians of that tradition, we are here today to protect each other from those who threaten it.

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

Scent of a Woman

Test-Driving Restrictions for Young Drivers

Freddie Bisco Yeah, this is a valid Oregon driver's license. And we let appropriate customers test-drive the Testarossa. But you're seventeen years old and you're riding with a blind companion. That we don't do. This is a $190,000 piece of machinery; I'm not letting it out this door.

Charlie Well, how about this one over here?

Freddie That's a Cabriolet t; the same deal! You think I'm gonna let an unaccompanied kid get behind the wheel of a $110,000 car?

Col. Slade He will not be unaccompanied. I'll be with him. I'm his father.

Freddie Bisco You're his father?

Col. Slade Yeah.

Freddie Bisco I have an idea. Why don't I take your father for a test drive?

Col. Slade What's your quota, Freddie?

Freddie Bisco Don't worry about my quota, I do very well.

Col. Slade How many Ferraris you sold this month?

Freddie Bisco That's not relevant to this discussion.

Col. Slade Freddie, the Eighties are over. You tryin to tell me these things are just walkin outta the store?

Freddie Bisco This is a Ferrari, sir. This is the finest piece of machinery made in the automobile industry.

Col. Slade Well, if you like it so much, why don't you sleep with it? Why are you selling it?

Freddie Bisco I'd love to accommodate you, but-

Col. Slade If this car performs the way I expect it to, you will get a certified check of $101,000 and change when you come in here tomorrow morning.

Freddie Bisco That's $109,000 plus $950, plus tax.

Col. Slade Freddie, for you- one-oh-seven, all in. Plus a case of champagne. Go with your leftover turkey. Whaddya say? Don't worry about the boy. He drives so smooth, you can boil an egg on the engine. When we bring the car back, I'll peel the egg for you.

Freddie Bisco Listen, you've made me laugh, but I can't let the car go out.

Col. Slade Want a deposit?

Freddie Bisco This is not an installment item, sir.

Col. Slade Freddie. You're no spring chicken, are you?

[''Takes Bisco aside'']

Freddie Bisco Well, you know what they call me at the home office. "The Gray Ghost." You know why they still keep me around? There's no kid here who can move a Ferrari like I can. I'm known from coast to coast like butter and toast. Ask anybody about Freddie Bisco. When I get a Ferrari- -out the door.

[''Snaps his fingers'']

Col. Slade Ha! You just made me laugh, Freddie. $2,000. Unless you take it you're gonna make me cry. I'm a Gray Ghost, too.

[Holds up a folded set of bills; Bisco hesitates; Slade puts the money in his suit's breast pocket]

Scent of a Woman

Confrontation Over Integrity and Consequences

Trask I'm going to recommend to the Disciplinary Committee... that you be expelled, Mr. Simms. You are a coverup artist and you are a liar.

Col. Slade But not a snitch!

Trask Excuse me?

Col. Slade No, I don't think I will.

Trask Mr. Slade...

Col. Slade This is such a crock of shit!

Trask Please watch your language, Mr. Slade. You are in the Baird School, not a barracks. Mr. Simms, I will give you one final opportunity to speak up-

Col. Slade Mr. Simms doesn't want it. He doesn't need to be labeled, "still worthy of being a Baird Man.'" What the hell is that? What is your motto here? "Boys, inform on your classmates, save your hide. Anything short of that, we're gonna burn you at the stake."? Well, gentlemen! When the shit hits the fan, some guys run and some guys stay. Here's Charlie, facing the fire, and there's George, hiding in Big Daddy's pocket. And what are you doing? You're gonna reward George, and destroy Charlie.

Trask Are you finished, Mr. Slade?

Col. Slade No, I'm just gettin warmed up. I don't know who went to this place, ], ], William Tell, whoever. Their spirit is dead; if they ever had one, it's gone. You're building a rat ship here, a vessel for sea-going snitches. And if you think you're preparing these minnows for manhood, you better think again. Because I say you are killing the very spirit this institution proclaims it instills! What a sham! What kind of show are you guys puttin on here today? I mean, the only class in this act is sittin next to me. And I'm here to tell you, this boy's soul is intact. It's non-negotiable. You know how I know? Someone here—and I'm not gonna say who—offered to buy it. Only Charlie here wasn't selling.

[[William Howard Taft; [William Jennings Bryan]

Mr.Trask Sir, you're out of order!

[Bangs his gavel]

Col. Slade Out of order? I'll show you out of order! You don't know what out of order is, Mr. Trask. I'd show you, but I'm too old, I'm too tired, I'm too fuckin blind. If I were the man I was five years ago, I'd take a flamethrower to this place! Out of order?! Who the hell you think you're talking to?! I've been around, you know? There was a time I could see! And I have seen—boys like these, younger than these, their arms torn out, their legs ripped off! But there is nothin like the sight of an amputated spirit. There is . . . no prosthetic for that. You think you're merely sending this splendid foot-soldier back home to Oregon with his tail between his legs, but I say you are executing his soul! And why? Because he's not a "Baird man". Baird men. You hurt this boy, you're going to be Baird bums, the lot of ya. And Harry, Jimmy, Trent, wherever you are out there—fuck you too!

[stands up; bangs his umbrella on the table]

Mr. Trask Stand down, Mr. Slade!

[Bangs his gavel repeatedly]

Col. Slade I'm not finished! As I came in here, I heard those words, "cradle of leadership". Well, when the bough breaks, the cradle will fall and it has fallen here, it has fallen! Makers of men, creators of leaders—be careful what kind of leaders you're producing here. I don't know if Charlie's silence here today is right or wrong; I'm not a judge or jury. But I can tell you this: he won't sell anybody out to buy his future! And that, my friends, is called integrity! That's called courage! Now that's the stuff leaders should be made of. Now I have come to the crossroads in my life. I always knew what the right path was; without exception, I knew. But I never took it. You know why? It was too . . . damn . . . hard. Now here's Charlie. He's come to the crossroads. He has chosen a path. It's the right path. It's a path made of principle, that leads to character. Let him continue on his journey. You hold this boy's future in your hands, Committee! It's a valuable future. Believe me! Don't destroy it! Protect it. Embrace it. It's gonna make you proud one day, I promise you. How's that for cornball?

[pause; sits down; round of applause from audience]