Category Archives: perfumes in movies

Death on the Nile (1978)

deathonthenile_bornunicorn.pngLinnet Ridgeway’s bedroom/boudoir is lavishly furnished in white and decorated with colorful glass, mirrors and marble. Several French perfumes are sitting on her vanity, a natural extension of her flawless style.

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lanvinmysin_bornunicornThe first bottle that has caught my attention is the Lanvin boule on the left. It’s unclear what perfume it contained, because the French maison used the same bottle for two different perfumes, Arpege (created by Andre Fraysse in 1927) and My Sin (called Mon Péché in French, created by the mysterious Madame Zed in 1924). The film is set in the 1930s, so it’s plausible for both to sit on that vanity.

lanvinarpegetalc_bornunicornThe same thing can be said for the black bottle on the right, containing Lanvin talcum powder. It could be Arpege or My Sin.

shalimarvintagead_bornunicornThe Guerlain chauve souris bottle unmistakably contained Shalimar, created by Jacques Guerlain in 1925.

guerlainliu_bornunicornGuerlain Liu black flacon tabatiere with gold accents is in tune with the Art Deco vibe in Linnet’s bedroom. The perfume was created by Jacques Guerlain in 1929.

Thanks to Karen Hatch for the id.

Death on the Nile (1978)

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guerlainflaconmontre_bornunicornI wonder if Monsieur Poirot (Peter Ustinov) noticed the massive Guerlain flacon montre sitting on a shelf in Linnet Ridgeway’s bathroom, while inspecting the heiress’ cabin on the Karnak steamer. Too bad the front sticker was scratched out: we will never know what cologne she used.

Using a flacon montre here is not 100% accurate: if we assume the novel is set before 1937 (year in which it was published), the choice is not accurate because this bottle was introduced on the same year. In any case, this is another example of “partial inconsistency:” this bottle was not available at the time in which the story was set, but it was at the time in which the film was shot.

Boogie Nights (1997)

There are three bottles of Oscar de la Renta Esprit de Parfum on Amber’s dressing table. This is likely to be a historically accurate choice: Oscar, the first Oscar de la Renta fragrance, was created by Jean-Louis Sieuzac and launched in 1977.

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The Esprit de Parfum was launched in the 1980s, so it’s possible it was on the market in 1984, year in which the last scenes of the film are set.

Greed (2009)

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vezzoli_greed1_bornunicornIn 2009 Roman Polanski directed the (fake) commercial for a (fake) perfume: Greed by Francesco Vezzoli. Michelle Williams and Natalie Portman are the stars of the short movie as two women literally fighting for Greed.

vezzoli_greedbottle_bornunicornThe centre of the art installation held at the Gagosian Gallery in Rome was the “perfume that doesn’t exist”, whose bottle has a peculiar story. Vezzoli took inspiration from Belle Haleine: Eau de Voilette, the fake perfume created by Marcel Duchamp in 1921 using a Rigaud perfume bottle. Duchamp appeared on the perfume bottle label as Rrose Sélavy, photographed by Man Ray and Vezzoli did the same, photographed by Francesco Scavullo.

Screenshot_20171005-213259.jpgThe advertising campaign featured portraits of famous female artists made of inkjet, wool, cotton, metallic embroidery and custom jewelry on brocade. Among them, Eva Hesse, Lee Miller, Frida Kahlo, Niki de Saint Phalle, Tamara de Lempicka and Georgia O’Keeffe.

Source.

Étoile (1989)

ninaricci_lairdutemps_bornunicornninaricci_fleurdefleurs_bornunicornThere are two Nina Ricci perfumes on a dressing table: L’Air du Temps and Fleur de Fleurs. The first, launched in 1948, was created by Francis Fabron; the second, launched in 1982, was created by Betty Busse.

guerlain_chamade_bornunicornNext to them, on the left, there’s a bottle of Guerlain Chamade, a 1969 creation by Jean-Paul Guerlain.

Screencap source.

20th Century Women (2016)

20thcenturywomen_bornunicorn (5)ysl_opiumsecretdeparfum_bornunicornThere’s a suprising object on Dorothea’s writing desk – a bottle of Yves Saint Laurent Opium, the Secret de Parfum version. This is not the original 1977 perfume, created by  Jean Amic and Jean-Louis Sieuzac, but a later version, created by  Jean-Louis Sieuzac and launched in 1992. From a strictly historical point of view, this is an inaccurate choice, because the film is set in the late 1970s.

Picture source.

 

Stardust Memories (1980)

stardustmemories_bornunicorn (1)stardustmemories_bornunicorn (2)stardustmemories_bornunicorn (3)stardustmemories_bornunicorn (4)Dorrie (Charlotte Rampling) appreciates Sandy’s aftershave. Like a madeleine, that scent brings back memories from her childhood. Sandy (Woody Allen) gets the reference to À la recherche du temps perdu by Marcel Proust and jokingly comments he’s wearing Proustian Rush by Chanel. The reason why the French maison has never produced a perfume with such an evocative name is beyond me.

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b661fcaed644e3ad4bf1c96667b7c068A real Chanel perfume appears later in the film, when Sandy visits his sister (Anne De Salvo). Chanel no. 5 refillable atomisers (one small, one big) can be seen on a plastic tray on her dresser.