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Quills

Actor(s): Geoffrey Rush, Kate Winslet, Joaquin Phoenix, Michael Caine, Billie Whitelaw
Director(s): Philip Kaufman
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Movie Details

MPAA Rating: R
Content Advisory: Nudity, Strong Sexual Content, Rape & Sexual Abuse, Profanity
Movie Release: 2000
DVD Release: 05/08/2001
Format: DVD - Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV
Audio Tracks: English
Subtitles: English, Spanish
SwapaDVD Credits: 1
Number of Discs: 1
Run Time: 2 hrs 4 mins
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Total Copies: 1
Genres: Drama, Period Film, Erotic Drama, Biopic [feature]

DVD Synopsis

The Marquis de Sade was a man who liked to stir up trouble, at a time when his native France was in a state of tremendous political turmoil, and this historical drama examines how much controversy he could cause even under repressive circumstances. In the aftermath of the French Revolution, the Marquis de Sade (Geoffrey Rush) manages to narrowly escape execution during the Reign of Terror, and instead is sentenced to the Charenton Asylum for the Insane. Coulmier (Joaquin Phoenix), the priest who heads the asylum, is sympathetic to the political machinations that have put the Marquis in his care, and allows him not only to write what he pleases, but to stage theater pieces using the other patients as actors. Royer-Collard (Michael Caine), a tyrannical doctor overseeing the mental institutions of Napoleonic France, is as outraged as the emperor when he reads Justine, a scabrous volume the Marquis penned while an inmate at Charenton, and he demands that de Sade be stopped. But Royer-Collard soon learns that stopping the Marquis from writing is not so simple; when de Sade's quills and ink are taken from him, he uses wine and even his own blood to write his stories. When these options are no longer available, he dictates his work with the help of Madeline (Kate Winslet), a laundry girl working at the asylum, who is fascinated by the notorious de Sade, though she declines his frequent requests to satisfy his notorious sexual appetites. Based on the play by Doug Wright (who also penned the screenplay), Quills was directed by Philip Kaufman, who previously documented the line between eroticism and literature in Henry and June and The Unbearable Lightness of Being. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Actors

Geoffrey Rush - Marquis de Sade
Kate Winslet - Madeleine
Joaquin Phoenix - Coulmier
Michael Caine - Royer-Collard
Billie Whitelaw - Madame LeClerc

Editorial Review of DVD

Presented in its cinematic 1.85:1 aspect ratio and Dolby Digital 5.1, Philip Kaufman's Quills is a sumptuous treat on DVD. The only thing missing is compelling supplemental material, though it's not that the DVD doesn't try in that area. The first thing one notices, after the stylish menus, is that the movie is true eye candy in this digital presentation. Cinematographer Rogier Stoffers' photography captures the colors and textures of Jacqueline West's exquisite costumes and the movie's bold sets with flair, and the DVD does great justice to all of the visuals. Stephen Warbeck's musical score flitters deftly over and around the dialogue, as the sound consistently impresses. The problem with the supplemental material is that it concentrates too much on the costumes and production rather than the history behind the characters. "Marquis on the Marquee," "Creating Charenton," and "Dressing the Part" all use interviews and film clips to briefly highlight the script, the production design, and the costumes, respectively. Screenwriter Doug Wright's commentary track is insightful, but ultimately rather lifeless, and the "Music Promo Spot" is basically just an advertisement. The "Still Gallery of Production Artifacts," one of the more interesting supplements, displays props from the movie as still frames. "Fact & Film" alternates factoids about the movie's characters and stars, comparing historical facts with the fantasy of the movie; something more in-depth in this department would have been most welcome. Standard trailers and scene selections round out this lackluster package. ~ Tim DiGravina, All Movie Guide

Member Movie Reviews

Lesley P. from RENO, NV wrote on 3/15/2009...

Quills is a dramatic version of the life of Marquis de Sade, a famous Frenchmen who was the reason why the word "Sadist" was created. Marquis de Sade had certain sexual appetites that weren't the norm. The poor man had a fantastic ability to write, and became obsessed with writing his perverse stories, one after the other (even producing plays at one point in time, using fellow patients from the Mental Hospital they were in as his Actors and Actresses), and they sold like hot-cakes. The pious people of France wanted every copy burned, and Marquis was basically considered an enemy of his own country, simply due to his writings. Some speculate that he did indeed indulge in some acts of the torture that he described in his books, and that he did it with local prostitutes, and not only that, but willingly, right under the very nose of his recent Wife that he married because he'd gone bankrupt, she was the money holder along with her mother-in-law, now that is the very real back history to this incredibly interesting man...In real life he was actually quite obese, but in both this film and another about him, made in the 80's simply titled, "The Marquis de Sade" (another favorite of my hubby's and mine btw...lol), anyways, in both of these films, he was portrayed by tge actors who played him as much slimmer than he really was in real life. But it is how large you live your life, and one thing I'll say for Marquis, he lived life to the fullest, reveling in his talents and who he was, he was proud to be different and willing to risk everything to be who he really felt he was inside, and he expressed this all through a quill pen. Watch this fascinating story of the Marquis de Sade and be drawn into a world of both pain and love. (Note: NOT a spoiler, but I will mention the young girl in this movie was real, and she was having an affair with the Marquis, although she did not die, when he passed, he left all of his fortune to this young laundry maid, only 13 when they'd met.) Enjoy! ;-)

--Review Written by Lesley P. aka Magick abounds 3-14-09--

Suzanne B. wrote on 7/17/2008...

1 of 1 member(s) found this review helpful.

This is an utterly fantastic film with amazing performances by all and what a story!!!!! I love Kate Winslet more than ever and that Geoffrey Rush is a genius. Michael Caine -- what a S.O.B. in this film and Joaquin Phoenix is brilliant. I cannot believe the film did not receive more buzz back in 2000 -- it is a masterpiece.

Tarra S. (thesaintmom) from PIEDMONT, SC wrote on 2/10/2008...

Wonderful movie! Very out of the ordinary.