Story Overview

Quills is a provocative historical drama that delves into the final years of the infamous writer Marquis de Sade, portrayed with unsettling intensity by Geoffrey Rush. Confined to an asylum for his scandalous and transgressive writings, de Sade continues to challenge moral authority through words that refuse to be silenced.

The institution is overseen by a conflicted young priest, Joaquin Phoenix, who believes that encouraging de Sade to write may purge him of his inner demons. Yet these writings mysteriously find their way beyond the asylum walls and are published in Paris, igniting outrage at the highest levels of power.

As the controversial texts circulate, Napoleon himself demands that the books be destroyed and their author executed. When reason prevails against immediate execution, a new strategy is devised: a physician is sent to closely monitor the writer and uncover how his forbidden words continue to escape confinement.

Balancing philosophical inquiry with visceral drama, Quills explores censorship, freedom of expression, and the dangerous allure of ideas that defy societal boundaries. The film stands as a daring examination of art versus authority, and the price paid by those who refuse to be silent.