Best Films Of 2022
Persolaise My top 10 films of 2022, as presented on DariushAlavi.com
Best Films Of 2021
Top 10 best films of 2021, presented on DariushAlavi.com
The 5 Best Chanel No. 5 Ads
The best Chanel No. 5 ads, selected by award-winning perfume critic Persolaise (2021)
Nose Film Review (dir. Clement Beauvais; 2021)
Nose perfume documentary review by award-winning writer Persolaise (2021)
Perfumes Film By Gregory Magne Coming To Curzon Home Cinema
Perfumes film by Gregory Magne coming to Curzon Home Cinema, 2020
Cinema Scent On BBC Radio 4 Film Programme: Double Indemnity (dir. Billy Wilder; 1944)
Here we go again: same voice, same station, same idea. Only this time, something’s different. At first, I couldn’t figure out what it was, but then it hit me. Right…
Cinema Scent On BBC Radio 4 Film Programme: Perfume – The Story Of A Murderer (dir. Tom Tykwer; 2006)
For the latest instalment of my occasional contributions to Francine Stock’s Film Programme on BBC Radio 4, I turned to what is perhaps the most obvious entry in cinema’s olfactory…
Cinema Scent On BBC Radio 4 Film Programme: Black Narcissus (dir. Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger; 1947)
Cinema Scent is back on BBC Radio 4’s Film Programme tomorrow (Thursday 1st Feb) at 4 pm (UK time) and in this episode, the movie I’ve chosen takes us to…
Cinema Scent: Marjorie Prime (dir. Michael Almereyda; 2017)
A part of me wants to say that the makers of Marjorie Prime missed a trick, but I realise that would just be a case of giving into churlishness. Because…
Cinema Scent On BBC Radio 4 Film Programme: The Silence Of The Lambs (dir. Jonathan Demme; 1991)
I’ve long considered The Silence Of The Lambs to be one of the most pungent films I’ve ever seen, which is why I was so excited to discuss it on…
Cinema Scent: Battle Of The Sexes (dir. Jonathan Dayton & Valerie Faris; 2017)
Did someone say Yardley? During a key sequence in Battle Of The Sexes – a well-constructed account not just of Billie Jean King’s match against Bobby Riggs, but also of…
Cinema Scent On BBC Radio 4 Film Programme: The Age Of Innocence (dir. Martin Scorsese; 1993)
Tighten that corset and sweep all that lust under the silk rug. For my latest segment on Francine Stock’s Film Programme on BBC Radio 4, I’m delving into the extravagant…
Cinema Scent On BBC Radio 4 Film Programme: The Graduate (dir. Mike Nichols; 1967)
Regular readers will know that in recent weeks, I’ve started writing about the relatively unexplored space where the worlds of scent and cinema meet. Well, I am thrilled to announce…
Cinema Scent: Trainspotting (dir. Danny Boyle; 1996)
The layer of scent that is forever hovering a few inches above the surface of Danny Boyle’s Trainspotting (still his best work, arguably) is almost unremittingly scatological. Based on the…
Cinema Scent: Detroit (dir. Kathryn Bigelow; 2017)
There had to be at least one mention of it. About two-thirds of the way through Kathryn Bigelow’s gut-punching Detroit – an account of the horrific events which took place…
Cinema Scent: God’s Own Country (dir. Francis Lee; 2017)
It’s been a while since I watched a film quite as pungent as this one: from the moment it begins, Francis Lee’s moving and well-observed God’s Own Country reeks of…
Cinema Scent: Under The Shadow (dir. Babak Anvari; 2016)
Watching Babak Anvari’s superb Under The Shadow reminded me that, more often than not, the way film-makers choose to depict smell is by showing their characters’ reactions to it. Eyes…
Cinema Scent: The Graduate (dir. Mike Nichols; 1967)
What’s the smell of disillusionment? According to Mike Nichols’ The Graduate – currently enjoying a 50th anniversary, big-screen re-release – it’s cigarette smoke and whisky on ice. The film’s most…
Non-Perfume Post: Dariush Alavi On BBC Radio 4 Film Programme
I hope you won’t mind my stepping away from the world of perfume for a moment to bring you some news about another creative field that is dear to my…