demelza3000

I did learn things watching "St. Elmo's Fire". They were: (1) Georgetown students smoke like chimneys; (2) Ally Sheedy must have ticked off the hair stylist because while the other stars had trendy 80's hair, Ms. Sheedy was forced to don a really bad 70's cut; and (3) apparently prior to the Rebecca Shaeffer murder, you could have a lovable stalker character named "Kirby" in a movie.

Besides educational, this movie is a good way to waste a couple of hours. Just a great guilty pleasure, soapy, sudsy mess of hyped up 80's. While Hollywood thought these actors were the best and brightest of the decade, the real stars were going their own path on the small screen (think Tom Hanks, Denzel Washington, Johnny Depp). As usual, Hollywood was wrong...but the brat pack sure was pretty to look at.

I saw this movie tonight for probably the tenth time. Like many, I am a fan of the tango scene. Whenever I pass this movie flipping channels, and I haven't missed this scene, I will watch for it. It is one of the most perfect scenes in a movie ever. When "Michael" arrives, the young ladies' date, you can feel the energy sucked out of the room. A real testament to the great acting in "Scent of a Woman".

Unlike some, I am not a fan of the final prep school scene. Seems too melodramatic and Hollywood. For me, the movie ends in the final dramatic scene in the hotel room. As I watched this movie tonight and the Colonel said the words "it's dark in here", it finally occurred to me he was not talking about his blindness. He was talking about his soul. It touched something raw and unspoken. How blind are we to the darkness in our own soul?

There is such realism in this movie. I hate that the ending veers too much into a formula to be really satisfying. I love Al Pacino's performance and I'm glad this is the movie he won the Oscar for. This is a movie you have to see over and over again to truly appreciate the nuances of his performance. While not a perfect film, it is highly recommended.