Quills

Starring: Geoffrey Rush, Kate Winslet, Joaquin Phoenix, Michael Caine
Directed by: Philip Kaufman
Rating: R
Genre: Drama
2000

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: The Marquis de Sade (Geoffrey Rush) is imprisoned in a French prison, where a laundress (Kate Winslet) helps him smuggle his lewd writings outside, so he continues to publish material that shocks and offends a priest (Joaquin Phoenix) and a man (Michael Caine) sent to put a final stop to de Sade's writings.

Review:

Tim: This is a film that assembled an absolutely fabulous cast and then gave them a weak script and asked them to convince the audience that this a great movie. Despite their good performances, this is an impossible task. The cast's talent is wasted on a movie that takes itself far too seriously, which only makes it appear all the more silly.

Despite the plot, the cast all give good performances. Geoffrey Rush is a bit over the top, but just crazy enough to be quite humorous and fun. Kate Winslet is decent, and has a few good moments. Joaquin Phoenix has one of the most complex and difficult roles, yet shows a range in his acting abilities. He gives a very good supporting performance. Michael Caine is nasty, calculating, and overall, a very bad man. This is most apparent in the dealings with his "wife." He is actually a very complicated and interesting character. The most fun to be found in this film is in the interaction between these four actors.

The film does have some bright moments. It is quite entertaining to see Rush and Winslet's scheming and lewd writings and Phoenix and Caine's appalled and shocked reactions. This is the dynamic that pushes the story along and ultimately sets up the "resolution" in the tragic third act.

The problem with the movie is that everything feels a bit melodramatic and absurd. It is understandable how Rush's raunchy writings would cause such a stir, but the film needed to do a better job of conveying why this was such a big deal, in this time period. The film never really makes this point and we're left wondering why some cheesy books end up causing so much damage and destruction. Still, it shows the battle between religion and sexuality in the late 18th century, and that is not a bad thing to make a movie about.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend:
Gladiator, The Libertine, Holy Smoke