Quasi Review: Quasi is a comedy-drama film directed by Kevin Heffernan and written by Heffernan and Broken Lizard members- Steve Lemme, Jay Chandrasekhar, Paul Soter, and Erik Stolhanske. Based on the 1831 classic novel The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo, the film is produced under the banner of Searchlight Pictures and Broken Lizard.
The cast for the film is crisp and talented. It features Kevin Heffernan, Steve Lemme, Jay Chandrasekhar, Paul Soter, Erik Stolhanske and Adrianne Palicki. It has a runtime of approximately two hours. The cinematography of the film is by Joe Collins. It is edited by Frank McGrath with music from Jason Akans.
– Hulu’s Quasi Movie Review Does Not Contain Spoilers –
Quasi: A New Look at the Hunchback Story
If you sign up for Quasi feeling it will be a genuine way in which The Hunchback of Norte Dame is being told then you are not quite right but, you aren’t entirely wrong either. The film stays true to the source material in the way the story is being told but, what is being told changes over scenes and contexts. One can say that this one represents what Netflix’s Persuasion tried to be. However, in both films, it was the cast that made it a success more than the script.
The film takes us to medieval France where we are introduced to our main protagonist, the hunched back named Quasimodo. Just like the way things happen in the book, this funny guy is just an ordinary guy working his way through life. His friend Duchamp is his sole cheer person and the two work in the royal torture chamber for a king whose narcissism knows no bounds. Living his life, Quasi does not have many expectations from it, just to have some peace and quiet and, maybe, a little love. His hunched back does not make it easy for him to survive in a society that deems him abnormal.
We come to a turning point in the film when the king decides to hold a lottery that will grant any common man winning it the opportunity to be graced by his and his queen’s presence. Quasi is supplied a ticket by Duchamp for this event as the latter has many and, luckily, it is the former who ends up winning the prize.
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However, what initially seems like a winning game, an opportunity for a lifetime turns out to be a deal Quasi was never ready to get into. With a series of events set in motion, our titular character is soon caught in a murderous plot that includes two victims that need to be his, although he does not really want to kill them. A funny hypocritical drama plays out as we see all the characters come together to give us Hugo’s rejuvenated classic.
Quasi Review: Final Verdict
Overall, Quasi is a film that you will end up enjoying. It will not be for the jokes essentially but, will be more focused on how the jokes are landing or who is actually telling them. Thus, it is needless to say that the burden of the entire film and how well it fairs lies on the shoulders of the cast. The Broken Lizard are surely amazing; they have proved it time and again with their various works and they do the same in this film too.
The film has been released by Searchlight Pictures on Hulu on April 20, 2023 (United States). It will also be available on Disney+ via the Star content hub internationally and Star+ in Latin America.
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