Geoffrey Rush and Kate Winslet are the two actors that drive Quills forward. His Marquis de Sade writes, her Madeleine LeClerc delivers his manuscripts and France goes into a frenzy from the publication of his dirty words. They won't allow the asylum's rules of censorship stop them.
The main focus may be on the Marquis de Sade (where the term "sadism" is derived from), but the perverse mind in this movie is from Michael Caine's Dr. Roger-Collard. He's a silent sadist, so to speak. He doesn't show any signs of pleasure when seeing someone in mental or physical pain, but you can tell he enjoys it.
Rush got the awards attention, but my attention went to Joaquin Phoenix. His Abbe du Coulmier is supposed to be a man of the cloth, but he falls victim to a crippling sin: lust. And we see that sin consume him. Phoenix was nominated that year for Gladiator, but he should have been nominated for Quills.
Quills is an excellent movie. It toys with the concept of sex throughout the movie while at the same time garnering top notch performances from the four principal actors. One to avoid? No way.
My Rating: *****
Never even heard of this movie! Your praise makes it intriguing. I'm adding it to my list!
ReplyDeleteI thought this was a really good film. I loved the message of no matter how much they tried to suppress de Sade he still found a way to write.
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