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Great Film Quotes

On chasing the film that actually lands.

This page leans into the gap between a great film and a great career, including one filmmaker's blunt point that plenty of people make one great film and never follow it up. Pair it with Impact quotes for more on lasting creative work.

Some people make a great film and then they can't follow up.

Quotes by Woody Harrelson

Every great film should seem new every time you see it.

Quotes by Roger Ebert

Polanski is a great film director - although the much-acclaimed 'Chinatown' has a muddled script - but his true talent is to make fools of his friends.

Quotes by Richard Cohen

I watch 'Goodfellas,' and suddenly it frees me up entirely; it reminds me of what great film directing is all about.

Quotes by Peter Jackson

Art Quotes

The way Hollywood works, you're never sure if their first thought is to make a great film and honor the material or just another business property.

Quotes by Paul Dano

I want to make great films in my lifetime, and I really want to make a great film about Wonder Woman.

Quotes by Patty Jenkins

I was thinking I would love to make something that is a successful film that everybody sees, but I wasn't thinking about the actual dollar amount. I just wanted to make a great film that people responded to. That's always...

Quotes by Patty Jenkins

I've been really lucky to work with some really great film people in the past, but television works on a much quicker schedule, and it's the TV directors I've worked with that I looked to and became a big fan...

Quotes by Michael Weatherly

I think the fantasy of being a movie star is more powerful than the reality. So, for me, even if it's not a great film or a great play I'm doing, to know that you went for it. You had...

Quotes by Marisa Tomei

Emotion Quotes

My favourite film is probably 'Star Wars'. I do love 'Starship Troopers', it is a great film but it's not a film I watch over and over again. Whereas 'Star Wars' I've watched over and over again all my life,...

Quotes by Jess Phillips

We work in an environment where your options are to do, you know, Batman 10, so when you get to do a movie that's a really great film like this, people really step up to the plate and enjoy it.

Quotes by James Woods

The collective experience of watching a great film together in a room is a transcendent moment that will never die.

Quotes by Gael Garcia Bernal

I have been enormously lucky. My first role was in a great film by a woman director.

Quotes by Florence Pugh

Sometimes you're watching a great film actor, and if you stand 10 feet away from them, you're like, 'God, they're terrible. They're not doing anything.' And then you see the close-up, and it's so nuanced, and so much expression is...

Quotes by Finn Wittrock

Escape Quotes

That's what I wanted to do... I wanted to make a great film that just happened to be based on a video game.

Quotes by Duncan Jones

I always think it's better to take a smaller role in a great film rather than a leading role in something that you don't have complete faith in.

Quotes by Charlie Hunnam

I want to go wherever there's great work. I'm a huge fan of film primarily. But you can get a great TV show and get attached to it. Making a great film is forever, though, so I always want to...

Quotes by Aml Ameen

I'm in total awe of the technique of great film people. Because if you get your emotional life up to perfection by miracle on Take One, you better have a technique to keep doing it again and again and again.

Quotes by Ali MacGraw

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Frequently Asked Questions

What do these Great Film quotes actually focus on?
The page collects perspectives from filmmakers and actors on what makes a film great and how hard that is to repeat once you've done it. It's more about the craft and pressure than movie trivia.
Why would someone search for great film quotes?
People usually want language for talking about ambition in filmmaking, whether that's a director's career or their own favorite movie that they can't stop rewatching. A few of these lines work well for either use.
Is there a quote about following up a great film with another one?
Yes, one line bluntly notes that some people make a great film and then can't follow it up, treating one-hit success as its own kind of trap. It pairs well with Impact quotes on lasting creative work.
Does the page mention Star Wars or other specific films?
It does, with one actor naming Star Wars as a film they've rewatched endlessly, unlike Starship Troopers, which they still call great without the same rewatch habit. It's a good example of separating quality from personal attachment.
Is this page just about acting, or directing too?
It's both, mixing an actor's reflection on chasing the experience of a role with a director's honest comment about the difference between film and television schedules. For more on chasing creative experiences, Escape quotes covers related ground.

There's also an honest thread about chasing the experience of moviemaking even when the result isn't a masterpiece, plus a nod to rewatching a favorite endlessly. Follow with Escape quotes for more on why films stay with us.