Patrick Süskind's 1985 book Perfume: The Story of a Murderer, about a malevolent perfumer in 18th-century France, is said to be the best-selling novel in Germany since World War II, and Süskind resisted allowing it to be optioned for film adaptation for two decades until finally giving in to director
Tom Tykwer (Run Lola Run).
Tykwer, in addition to co-writing the film with Süskind and producer Bernd Eichinger, also co-composed the score with
Reinhold Heil and
Johnny Klimek. The three have aimed at music that evokes the period and gotten it played by
the Berlin Philharmonic under the baton of
Sir Simon Rattle, along with
the State Choir Latvia and various soloists. (The composers are credited with "electronics" as well.) The result is a moody musical soundscape for the most part, presenting a becalmed but threatening ambience that occasionally breaks out into, as a cue title referring to the main character puts it, "Grasse in Panic." Strings sustain, and soprano voices waft into the rafters as a sense of foreboding goes on and on. Clearly, this is music for a gothic tale of suspense and horror. ~ William Ruhlmann