This is the first Philip Kaufman film I have seen, and I was impressed. Although it isn't the most pleasant to watch, its great. A dark look at an insane erotic storywriter named Marquis De Sade (Rush) and his stay an asylum run by religious priest Abbe Du Coulmier (Phoenix). While there he befriends a laundrette named Madeleine (Winslet). The film has great performances, a brilliantly written script and great direction, although running a little over an hour the story is so rich and characters developed well enough for one to really enjoy it. Like I said it wasn't the most pleasant, however it is a bit exaggerated and satirical account. My favorite performance came from Joaquin Phoenix, who was great, however Geoffrey Rush was better than I have ever seen him, fully worthy of his Oscar nod. Michael Caine was decent in his role although i didn't feel his performance as much as i usually like him (hes a fine actor). Kate Winslet was great in her role, this is my favorite acting from her besides Eternal Sunshine. The script is very good in this film, which is what makes it work, because a lot of these films about medieval, napoleonic, etc.. times in europe are a bit boring, but this one is quite entertaining. Although I didn't think the ending was perfect (a bit flawed), i still enjoyed this film a lot. 9/10 #123 on my list of all time favorite films
Review of Quills
