There's something about the western high-end touch that somehow makes our city look a lot nicer than it really is. Earlier this month saw the official launch of Bleu de Chanel Parfum, the French fashion house's latest men's fragrance, as well as its campaign film.
Reprising his role for the third time, Gaspard Ulliel returns in this instalment as a fully matured man more at peace with himself, having ditched his previous shenanigans of chasing women and leaving star-studded parties. Best-known for portraying the serial killer Hannibal Lecter in Hannibal Rising, this French talent continues his story of an actor trying to balance love, stardom and a private life.
Bangkok blues serves as the setting this time as he walks around and broods on life serenely at Chong Nonsi's Skywalk Bridge and down an alley packed with street food. The city is looking stylishly tranquil, as the film's palette is completely washed in a sophisticated blue to imply a sense of calm of a man who finally knows what he wants. Stepping behind the camera of Steve McQueen for this film, our hero is now at the peak of his acting career and is no longer subject to the nightmares of fading lovers and suffocating paparazzi.
When the first fragrance in the line, Bleu de Chanel Eau de Toilette, was released eight years ago, the fresh and citrusy mixture was a sophisticated go-to for the contemporary and frisky man. An enhanced version, Eau de Parfum, came about in 2014. Like the films and the actor, this latest edition is a timely reflection of a grown man and has evolved to become a more broody, yet still heady, scent.
As the most intense from the whole line, this Parfum is not merely an amped up concentration as it gets rounded into a more velvety and woody version. There are notes of cedar, Mediterranean herbs and lavender, but the true heart is what the brand considers liquid gold: sandalwood from New Caledonia. Unlike its predecessors, this latest edition can be distinguished from the previous versions thanks to its resplendent gold lettering. Available now at all Chanel counters. Priced at 4,000 baht for 50ml, 5,700 baht for 100ml.
