Cruel Intentions
by By Kilian

The oud and castoreum blend to create something very unique and, in my opinion, drop dead sexy. Not cute/lovingly sexy, but aggressive and borderline cruel sexy, yet there is a sense of refined sophistication bordering the entire fragrance. It is fantastic for the first few minutes, but then it does a virtual disappearing act. Sillage and longevity are freakishly minimal, but if you're looking for a very sexy (dominatrix style?) skin scent, something only to be smelled up-close and intimately, this could be almost narcotic in that aspect. Thumbs up, despite the virtual absence of any sillage.

Sampling Cruel Intentions, I mostly only got aoud, vetiver, a bit of bergamot and castoreum (leathery, animalic musk). I actually found Cruel Intentions to be quite unpleasant at first, as it's very "dirty" smelling. I enjoy aoud on its own and castoreum as a supporting note in other fragrances, but the combination of the two wasn't so great on me. To an unsuspecting nose, the notes of aoud and castoreum together can be rather strange and off-putting.

Although I didn't quite "enjoy" Cruel Intentions, I still respect it. When I first tried CI, it made me re-define my perception of what perfume could be. It might not be conventionally "good" and doesn't fit the mainstream idea of sexy, but it does fit into some strange compelling niche with its dark animalic vibe. I picture Cruel Intentions on a mature man, with a strong ego, who's defining qualities are power and reputation instead of romance. It definitely provides the wearer with an aire of "je ne sais quoi."

6.75/10

Edit: A year later after my original review, I've worn this multiple times and have grown to like it a lot - I just wasn't ready for it. It's slightly sweet, dirty and unique. I'm changing this from a neutral to a thumbs up.

New Rating: 8/10

Sweet & dirty (ew!) lacking longevity with little to no sillage. Not appealing.

There does appear to be a several interesting things meant to happen in Cruel Intentions – I have a suspicion of that – but those intentions, regardless of how cruel they are or aren’t, are not carried out completely that I can tell. The hint of rose absolute that I catch, although sweet and lovely, primarily accomplishes only making me want a fuller, richer version of it – it’s a tease and I want MORE. The gaiacwood floats around delicately, ethereally for a while and then exits way too soon. The castoreum is there, but I can’t figure out how it fits in with the other notes. The vetiver and the papyrus are the elements that seem to be doing their proper jobs, and they provide a refined and elegant textured foundation to… What? I haven’t found the sandalwood yet. What I end up with is an excellent, full-spectrum miscellaneous wood scent with something of the sparkle... the gracenotes... missing. It is a desirable and well-put together fragrance, but I am missing the florals that were intended to complement those woods. It’s likely that my skin has swallowed up all the florals (as often happens). I like very much the idea and intent of the fragrance, but in actuality it just doesn’t work very well for me. It is not a substantial sillage producer, but it does stay for hours as an excellent close-to-the-skin scent. …Beautiful scent though – my trials of it on paper have shown it absolutely lovely: My problem with it resides with my skin’s uncooperativeness, not with the fragrance itself.

Although the opening was promising, Cruel Intentions is nothing but a boring variation on the vetiver theme with disappointing longevity.

I knew it! There was vetiver in this. A floral vetiver with an oriental powdery base. Nice but not worth the money due to its lack of longevity.