“In order to know virtue, we must acquaint ourselves with vice.”

The Scoop: 2000 R, Directed by Phillip Kaufman and starring Geoffrey Rush, Kate Winslet, Joaquin Phoenix and Michael Caine

Tagline: There are no bad words…only bad deeds

Summary Capsule: The inmates run the asylum in the tale of the Marquis de Sade

Lissa’s rating: Don’t watch this and read Ayn Rand in the same day.

Lissa’s review: My second favorite book ever is The Fountainhead, by Ayn Rand. It’s a story of heroism and a salute to the best within ourselves, and the quest that we must all follow to find our self-respect. Many people don’t agree with her philosophies or her manner of expressing them, but the only book that means more to me than The Fountainhead is Atlas Shrugged. Those two books embody most of my own ideals.

“Do you know how I define idealism?” Michael Caine’s character asks in Quills. “Youth’s final luxury.”

I’ve been re-reading The Fountainhead for the first time in several years. I’m deeply immersed in a story of those who search for pride, for honor, self-responsibility, and heroism. I’m not sure why I chose to watch Quills tonight. But the two are odd antitheses to each other, and yet… they’re not.

I own Quills, incidentally. And although it’s technically in our collection, I’m pretty sure Duckie’s never watched it. I put it there, and it’s my movie. And I’m glad I own it. But I can’t say I like it.

No. That’s not true. I do like it. I kind of wish I didn’t. Maybe.

Don’t you love it when reviewers have a concrete opinion?

Quills is a fictionalized account of the Marquis de Sade (played by Geoffrey Rush) and his time in an insane asylum. While he’s an inmate there, he befriends a young laundress named Madeline (Kate Winslet), who is enraptured by his stories. If you know anything about the Marquis, you know what these stories are like. Sex and violence, all the way though. As the Abbe (Joquin Phoenix) of the asylum complains, the characters in Sade’s stories are wooden, the dialogue is inane, and the plots are weak — the volumes serve as merely an encyclopedia of perversion. The Abbe allows these stories to be written as therapy: if the Marquis purges his thoughts on paper, he’ll excise his demons and can be cured. What the Abbe doesn’t know is that the Marquis is publishing.

The publication of the Marquis’ works leads to the appointment of Dr. Royer-Collard (Michael Caine). Dr. Royer-Collard’s methods are nothing like those of the Abbe; the doctor attempts to purge demons through torture and physical training, not through constructive therapy. But the doctor himself practices much of what he preaches against, and his influence over the idealistic Abbey is far from constructive.

I’ve seen this movie several times, and yet I still struggle with what it leaves me thinking. What I do know, however, is that it makes me think of two major quotes. One is from The Fountainhead. As Gail Wynand is explaining the birth of his tabloid, he states, “Make them indulge themselves, it shames them. Make them perform a noble duty and it bores them. Combine the two, and you’ve got them.” That’s Quills, summed up right there. But the other quote comes from the movie itself, when Madeline says “If I wasn’t such a bad woman on the page, how could I be such a good woman in life?”

Is it best to admit to the weaknesses and darkness within us, and find constructive and harmless outlets for them, such writing tales of rape and corruption? Or do we fight it with everything good inside us? Do I watch this movie and quietly enjoy it? Or do I burn my copy? Do I go eat the Healthy Choice ice cream sandwich, or go for the Godiva vanilla caramel pecan full-fat stuff? Sorry, but this is getting too deep. (Incidentally, I went for the full fat. And my copy still sits on the shelf. Burning plastics is bad for the environment anyway.)

Artistically, Quills is brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. Phenomenal acting, the right amount of thought-provoking dialogue and witticisms, no long and flowery speeches that require a thesaurus or Sue’s vocabulary to comprehend. The sets are beautiful, the costumes are perfect, and the pace and mood of the movie are spot on.

I told Justin I wanted to review Quills, and he laughed and said he basically dared me and would be really interested to see what I wrote. I can see why he laughed. The job of the reviewer is to answer the question “is this movie worth watching?” Um… I don’t know. I really don’t.

I alternately love and hate this movie. It’s a dark, gritty movie that has a wonderful veneer of beauty. If you have a strong stomach for some pretty nasty things, it’s worth seeing and deciding for yourself. Since I’ve been quoting like crazy in this review, I’ll end it on one more, and one that I think expresses what leaves me uncomfortable about loving this movie:

“But we also fall in love, we build cities, we compose symphonies, and we endure. Why not put that in your books as well?” Guess it’s back to The Fountainhead for that!

Intermission!

• A lot of Napoleon’s court was really enjoying listening to the reading of Justine.
• Maddy’s mother enjoying the Sade’s works? Funny story: as a joke, we once gave my maternal grandmother an issue of Playgirl. She leafed through it, expressing her disgust at each and every page, and holding up the more, um, obvious pictures so we could see exactly what she was talking about. Once she was done, she held the magazine out and said “Does anyone else want to look at this piece of filth?” From across the room, my paternal grandmother shot her hand into the hair like Hermione in a potions class. “I do!!!!!”
• That I really should actually review The Fountainhead movie starring Gary Cooper one day, for all that I talk about the book?
• The tune that the Marquis keeps humming throughout the film is the French children’s song “Au Clair de la Lune”, the second line of which becomes increasingly relevant — roughly translated, it is “Lend me your quill so I can write a word”. Quills is not at an accurate retelling of the Marquis de Sade’s life. As I understand it, Madeline WAS actually his lover, he died of natural causes, and I’m sure there’s other differences too. However, I did read a little bit of some of the Marquis’ works, and the Abbe is right. It’s the 19-th century equivalent of “Gee, my cable stopped working,” in terms of dialogue. Sheesh.

Groovy Quotes

• Sade: Who doesn’t dream of indulging every spasm of lust? Feeding every depraved hunger? Dr. Royer-Collard: This may not be pretty. But it is mercy, just the same.

Dr. Royer-Collard: Do you know how I define idealism, Monsieur Delbenet? Youth’s final luxury.

Madeline: He’s a writer, not a madman.

Sade: A kiss for every page.
Madeline: Must I administer them directly or might I blow them?

Abbe: Yes, but I’m not a beautiful young prospect, ripe for corruption.
Sade: Don’t be so sure.

Nun: In my experience poor girls who are orphaned never wed, they wind up spinsters — or worse, nuns!

Sade: It’s only a play.

Dr. Royer-Collard: I assume you have come here to plead for clemency on your husband’s behalf?
Madame Sade: Oh you do, do you? It’s my deepest hope, Doctor, that he remain entombed forever until at last when he perishes in the dark bowels of your institution he be left as carrion for the rodents and the vermin.
Dr. Royer-Collard: I stand corrected, Madame.

Maddy’s mother: Oh, that’s terrible. That’s too, too terrible. [pause] Well, go on!

Sade: Ah, you’ve come to read my trousers!

Abbe: It’s not even a proper novel. It’s nothing but an encyclopedia of perversions. Frankly, it even fails as an exercise in craft. The characters are wooden, the dialogue is inane. Not to mention the repetition of words like “nipple” and “pikestaff”.
Sade: There I was taxed; it’s true.
Abbe: And such puny scope. Nothing but the worst in man’s nature.
Sade: I write of the great, eternal truths that bind together all mankind. The whole world over, we eat, we s**t, we ****, we kill and we die.
Coulmier: But we also fall in love, we build cities, we compose symphonies, and we endure. Why not put that in your books as well?

If you liked this movie, try these:

• Young Adam
• American Beauty
• Titus