Sidney Lumet Quotes

• For any director with a little lucidity, masterpieces are films that come to you by accident.

  Sidney Lumet

  Directors, Littles, Film

  50 Copy quote

• While the goal of all movies is to entertain, the kind of film in which I believe goes one step further. It compels the spectator to examine one facet or another of his own conscience. It stimulates thought and sets the mental juices flowing.

  Sidney Lumet

  Believe, Goal, Juice

  "Biography/ Personal Quotes". www.imdb.com.

  22 Copy quote

• It's art. It's commerce. It's heartbreaking and it's fun. It's a great way to live.

  Sidney Lumet

  Art, Fun, Way To Live

  Sidney Lumet (2010). “Making Movies”, p.10, Vintage

  13 Copy quote

• All great work is preparing yourself for the accident to happen.

  Sidney Lumet

  Opportunity, Entrepreneur, Great Work

  "Biography/Personal Quotes". www.imdb.com.

  19 Copy quote

• Everything becomes creative if the person doing the job is

  Sidney Lumet

  Jobs, Creative, Persons

  Sidney Lumet (2010). “Making Movies”, p.185, Vintage

  20 Copy quote

• In drama, the characters should determine the story. In melodrama, the story determines the characters.

  Sidney Lumet

  Drama, Character, Stories

  Sidney Lumet (2010). “Making Movies”, p.31, Vintage

  17 Copy quote

• All good work requires self-revelation.

  Sidney Lumet

  Hard Work, Self, Good Work

  Sidney Lumet (2010). “Making Movies”, p.59, Vintage

  47 Copy quote

• Good style, to me, is unseen style.

  Sidney Lumet

  Style, Unseen

  Sidney Lumet (2010). “Making Movies”, p.52, Vintage

  17 Copy quote

• Don't let the difficulty of actually achieving a shot make you think that the shot is good.

  Sidney Lumet

  Thinking, Make You Think, Achieve

  11 Copy quote

• There are no minor decisions in movie making. Each decision will either contribute to a good piece of work or bring the whole movie crashing down around my head many months later.

  Sidney Lumet

  Decision, Pieces, Months

  10 Copy quote

• Work is my norm. I have mad energy, insane energy, a kind of stamina in terms of work that's a little crazy.

  Sidney Lumet

  Crazy, Mad, Insane

  10 Copy quote

• There's no such thing as a small part. There are just small actors.

  Sidney Lumet

  Actors, Small Parts

  "Biography/Personal Quotes". www.imdb.com.

  12 Copy quote

• Suffice to say that the theme (the WHAT of the movie) is going to determine the style (the HOW of the movie).

  Sidney Lumet

  Style, Theme, Determine

  Sidney Lumet (2010). “Making Movies”, p.10, Vintage

  8 Copy quote

• I don't know how to choose work that illuminates what my life is about. I don't know what my life is about and don't examine it. My life will define itself as I live it. The movies will define themselves as I make them. As long as the theme is something I care about at the moment, it's enough for me to start work. Maybe work itself is what my life is about.

  Sidney Lumet

  Long, Care, Life Is

  Sidney Lumet (2010). “Making Movies”, p.13, Vintage

  10 Copy quote

• The nature of the work is to prepare for a good accident .

  Sidney Lumet

  Preparation, Accidents

  10 Copy quote

• I only said 'Titanic' is unwatchable because one can not watch it.

  Sidney Lumet

  Watches, Said, Can Not

  13 Copy quote

• There's a powerful magic about being a writer that I still marvel at.

  Sidney Lumet

  Powerful, Magic, Stills

  Sidney Lumet (2010). “Making Movies”, p.47, Vintage

  6 Copy quote

• Dolby was in the driver's seat. "Surround Sound" was added. Now we had three speakers behind the screen, two more on the left side of the theater, and two on the right. A closely guarded secret about all this is that you hear the correct balance only if you're sitting in the center of the theater. On the left or right side, those speakers tend to dominate.

  Sidney Lumet

  Surround Sound, Two, Secret

  15 Copy quote

• The varying physical characteristics of the actors may also necessitate changes. Sean Connery is six feet four. Dustin Hoffman isn't.

  Sidney Lumet

  Feet, Actors, Four

  13 Copy quote

• There are no personal revelations other than feelings arising from the work itself

  Sidney Lumet

  Feelings, Revelations, Personal Revelation

  Sidney Lumet (2010). “Making Movies”, p.10, Vintage

  5 Copy quote

• If I don't have a script I adore, I do one I like. If I don't have one I like, I do one that has an actor I like or that presents some technical challenge.

  Sidney Lumet

  Challenges, Actors, Scripts

  "Biography/Personal Quotes". www.imdb.com.

  6 Copy quote

• Over-length is one of the things that most often results in the destruction of the movie in the cutting room.

  Sidney Lumet

  Cutting, Rooms, Destruction

  5 Copy quote

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