You are always hoping that movie audiences are interested in characters and interested in story values rather than just mindless special effects. But you never know.
This film cost $31 million. With that kind of money I could have invaded some country.
I'm not really conservative. I'm conservative on certain things. I believe in less government. I believe in fiscal responsibility and all those things that maybe Republicans used to believe in but don't any more.
The country has come a long way in race relations, but the pendulum swings so far back. Everyone wants to be so sensitive.
I grew up with J. Edgar Hoover. He was the G-man, a hero to everybody, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation was the big, feared organization. He was ahead of his time as far as building up forensic evidence and fingerprinting. But he took down a lot of innocent people, too.
I've always felt that if I examine myself too much, I'll find out what I know and don't know, and I'll burst the bubble. I've gotten so lucky relying on my animal instincts, I'd rather keep a little bit of the animal alive.
I keep working because I learn something new all the time.
I don't think I've met anyone with a stronger work ethic than Ray Charles.
It takes tremendous discipline to control the influence, the power you have over other people's lives.
On 'Mystic River,' I had to cut my salary and everyone else's to get it made.
Drama usually has some sort of intense conflict.
I was drafted during the Korean War.
You should never give up your inner self.
I'm just a kid - I've got a lot of stuff to do yet.
I played characters with villainous aspect. But out-and-out villain? No.
Prime time for men is, say, 35 to 45. Then they level off and fall off.
I'm a mentor to anybody who's interested.
My uncle played rugby, and my dad played football, and they used to argue which game was the roughest - and everybody agreed rugby was. It's a great team sport, and to be successful, every person has to play in the same level.
In 'Changeling,' I tried to show something you'd never see nowadays - a kid sitting and looking at the radio. Just sitting in front of the radio and listening. Your mind does the rest.
When I did 'Bird,' it was a surprise to some people, first because I wasn't in it and second because most of the films I'd been doing were cop movies or westerns or adventure films, so to be doing one about Charlie Parker, who was a great influence on American music, was a great thrill for me.
