Quills is a fictional telling of the final days of Marquis De Sade (Rush), who is locked up in an insane asylum in hopes of curing him of his wicked desires. In his cell, he continues to write out his perverse tales of sex and has a chambermaid (Winslet) sneak them off the premises, under the nose of the Abby (Phoenix) and the head doctor (Caine), to be printed.

Quills is dark and demented, flavored with bits of raunchy humor. There's a perverse air that hangs about the film. Visually, the movie is sharp and well directed. The sets, costumes and makeup are all well done, giving a completely immersive feel to the story.

While Rush performs excellently, a lot of the other cast members seem to fall in rather traditional roles that don't showcase their acting abilities. In fact, except for the minor bit characters, a lot of the performances feel lifted from previous movies and even stereotypes of characters. This is not to say the acting is bad, but the characters just seem fairly traditional, and the script, to a point, is predictable. You won't really be surprised by much of what's going on.

You'll walk away from this film feeling grimy and disgusting. It's a good film that's held back by the average plot. The script illicts a few laughs here and there, and Rush's performance is as good as he ever is. Give this one a rental before buying. Unless, of course, you're big on the Marquis De Sade.

- - Kinderfeld