Quills (2000)

In a Napoleonic era insane asylum, an inmate, the irrepressible Marquis De Sade, fights a battle of wills against a tyrannically prudish doctor.

Director:

Philip Kaufman

Writers:

Doug Wright (play), Doug Wright (screenplay)

Stars:

Geoffrey Rush, Kate Winslet, Joaquin Phoenix

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 17 wins & 34 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Geoffrey Rush	...	The Marquis de Sade
Kate Winslet	...	Madeleine 'Maddy' LeClerc
Joaquin Phoenix	...	The Abbe du Coulmier
Michael Caine	...	Dr. Royer-Collard
Billie Whitelaw	...	Madame LeClerc
Patrick Malahide	...	Delbené
Amelia Warner	...	Simone
Jane Menelaus	...	Renee Pelagie
Stephen Moyer	...	Prouix, the Architect
Tony Pritchard	...	Valcour
Michael Jenn	...	Cleante
Danny Babington	...	Pitou
George Antoni	...	Dauphin (as George Yiasoumi)
Stephen Marcus	...	Bouchon
Elizabeth Berrington	...	Charlotte

Storyline

The infamous writer, The Marquis de Sade of 18th Century France, is imprisoned for unmentionable activities at Charanton Insane Asylum. He manages to befriend the young Abbe de Coulmier, who runs the asylum, along with a beautiful laundress named Madeline. Things go terribly wrong when the Abbe finds out that the Marquis' books are being secretly published. Emperor Napoleon contemplates sending Dr. Royer-Collard to oversee the asylum, a man famed for his torturous punishments. It could mean the end of Charanton and possibly the Marquis himself.

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Plot Keywords:

asylum | marquis de sade | writer | insane asylum | napoleon | 

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Taglines:

There are no bad words... only bad deeds.

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Genres:

Biography | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong sexual content including dialogue, violence and language

Details

Official Sites:

Fox Searchlight

Country:

USA UK Germany

Language:

English Latin

Release Date:

15 December 2000 (USA)

Also Known As:

Letras prohibidas, la leyenda del Marqués de Sade

Filming Locations:

London, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$13,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£81,130 (UK) (19 January 2001)

Gross:

ESP 65,173,251 (Spain) (29 June 2001)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Fox Searchlight Pictures, Industry Entertainment, Walrus & Associates

Technical Specs

Runtime:

124 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The tune that the Marquis de Sade keeps humming throughout the film is the French children's song "Au Clair de la Lune" by Jean-Baptiste Lully, the second line of which becomes increasingly relevant - roughly translated, it is "lend me your quill so I can write a word".

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Goofs

When Madeleine is putting on her dress after getting her wounds clean, she slips her arm into the sleeve twice.

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Quotes

Marquis de Sade: I didn't create this world of ours. I merely recorded it.

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Connections

Featured in The 73rd Annual Academy Awards (2001)

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Soundtracks

"Au clair de la lune"
(uncredited)
Written by Jean-Baptiste Lully
Hummed often by Geoffrey Rush

User Reviews

Geoffrey Rush in a brave, Oscar-worthy performance, and a story an interesting as most anything this year; one of the year's best. ***1/2 (out of four)

QUILLS / (2000) ***1/2 (out of four)

By Blake French:

"To know virtue we must aquatint ourselves with vice."

Marquis de Sade

Philip Kaufman's "Quills" will leave some audiences cheering and others disappointed and disgusted; there are good logical arguments from both sides. One of the most controversial movie of the year, "Quills, " based on the play by Douglas Wright, doesn't entirely examine the torpid mind of the disreputable 18th century French author, the Marquis de Sade, but instead indicates the impact his sexually and sadistically explicit literary work influenced the public. The biggest argument could be made with the sanity of Marquis de Sade himself, as whether he was a perverted, sex-obsessed psychopath or simply a spirited aristocrat who only stood for artistic expression and freedom of speech. The movie's characters take their own sides; after becoming aware of the authors material, Napoleon wants de Sade (Geoffrey Rush) shot dead at the insane asylum he is being held at, but instead a sadistic torturer named Dr. Royer-Collard (Michael Caine) is assigned to take charge of the patient; the virginal laundress Madeleine (Kate Winslet) , thinks de Sade is a writer, not a madman, and helps to smuggle his erotic stories out of the institution for public publication; the asylum priest, Adde Coulmier (Joaquin Phoenix), first befriends de Sade and grants him special privileges, but once he discovers the extremity of his subversive ideas, he reluctantly changes opinions. De Sade inarguably had some fanatical fantasies, but the film leaves it up to us to realize his lustful imagination captured on paper are transpired due to his inability to experience them in the real world outside of his chambers. The subject is carnal and a bit unsettling, and the movie exploits the eroticism clearly on screen; the film is strictly intended for mature audiences. But director Philip Kaufman ("The Right Stuff") does not portray the likes of de Sade in a disturbing manner, but keeps the story engaging. The atmosphere feels accurate and convincing, and the movie is not without humor and the expected material found within the mental institution, like the patient who thinks he is a bird, a pyromaniac, and the hulking horny guy who has his mind set out on raping any human with two legs with no external organs between them. There are a few scenes that could have captured the audience a bit more exclusively. However the entirely convincing, intense, brave, Oscar worthy performances by Michael Caine and Geoffrey Rush make up for that. The Marquis was an extremely complex individual, and Rush captures that through a character without heart or compassion, but with spirit and zest; even though de Sade went through each day with suffering, he still approached life with insight, ambition and curiosity. He is so determined to fulfill his need to write his perverse ideas, after forbidden and when his quills are taken away he still prevails by using blood, wine, and feces in the place of ink, and his clothes, sheets, and walls as paper. De Sade stands as an example that society is most successfully established when people understand that we are all simply expressions of our own nature, that it is most healthy to declare our motives and passions to ourselves. He is also a prime example of self-control, and that freedom of speech only carries us so far. It would be interesting to see what would happen if Marquis de Sade was to live in present times and if he was to exploit his ideas on screen or in novels. I think he would push the envelope to yet another level and have quite an influence on today's society. I hope people who see the artful "Quills" share their opinions with one another, after all, that is the reason why filmmakers make movies like these.