Tim Robbins quotes:

Bush is very clever. When the debate should have been about the deterioration of our cities and the lack of action by government, he sent in his idiot to make an outrageous statement about Murphy Brown.

Any time you're trying to do a movie with a happy ending, it's very difficult because it's been done before and you don't want to be manipulative.

Most good actors have a huge intelligence about the human condition and a real open heart to different kinds of people and behavior.

I couldn't care less about being a presenter at the Oscars.

I like Spike Lee a lot. He's incredibly gifted and I don't think he gets the credit he deserves as a filmmaker.

Considering the fact that I've used it in the past, and know what it is, and seen the results of it, I don't view marijuana as a dangerous drug.

I was a sports fan, but I also went to peace marches.

There's nothing more boring than unintelligent actors, because all they have to talk about is themselves and acting. There have to be other things.

You get money out of acting. You get gray hair out of directing. Actually, I get more of a rush from directing.

I learned much more about acting from philosophy courses, psychology courses, history and anthropology than I ever learned in acting class.

I have personal beliefs and they are sometimes reflected in the movies I make, but I also reflect other points of view.

I think the enemy is self-censorship. In a free society the biggest danger is that you're afraid to the point where you censor yourself.

I don't care about Clinton's haircuts or his affairs or any of that stuff.

My father described me as the oldest baby he'd ever seen. I apparently was very serious and reflective.

When you have a person in power who punishes people for speaking their mind, it's truly dangerous.

I've long ago compromised my eight hours a night.

Susan is just great. I know I'm biased, but she's a great actress.

It was dangerous to hit the wrong kid in my neighborhood, because a lot of the guys I played with had fathers in the Mafia.

I've used drugs that I do consider to be dangerous, drugs that are potentially detrimental to kids and society at large.

If you find yourself in a movie that you have questions about, it's not a compromise to your integrity.

I learned never to listen to acting teachers because they don't know what the hell they're talking about.

If I'm a commodity, it wouldn't be a wise idea to buy stock in me - although, in the long run, maybe I'm a slow growth investment.

Just because someone gets arrested doesn't mean what they are doing is wrong. Some laws are unfair and unjust.

American people are not evil. Given information, they will do the right thing. But they're not given the information.

I wouldn't say I'm a method actor. I do research when I feel I don't have enough experience for the part I'm playing.

There are dumb actors. But there are dumb politicians and dumb bakers.

I've been lucky-my looks haven't put me into one category. I don't look like a blue blood. I don't look like a criminal. I don't look like anything.

I don't know if I ever really bought into the eternal damnation bit.

I'm the kind of person who does not remember bad things.

To the world you may be just one person but to one person you may be the world The road to finding 'the one' is paved with a bit of promiscuity.

As we applaud the hard-edged realism of the opening battle scene of Saving Private Ryan, we cringe at the thought of seeing the same on the nightly news.We are told it would be pornographic.

Is Walt turning over in his grave? A man named Joe Roth runs Disney right now-he gave me the go-ahead and total freedom to do whatever I wanted to do.

I ran spotlight. Swept up. Did box office. Ran the lighting board. But acting was the most fun.

Toy Soldiers was my introduction to film. I certainly didn't think I was doing art by any stretch of the imagination.

I started getting on my feet and clowning around, and they ended up putting me in a play when I was 12. And I was hooked.

I'm six foot four and a half and I have a temper. It's reserved for very important issues. If someone is asking me to make an artistic concession, then I'll become a madman.

Every man dies. Not every man lives.

I wouldn't even get elected. I'd probably deck a couple of people, too which would not play very well with the national media.

I'm not gangly; I'm very coordinated. I do have a bit of a baby face. But I guess that just means I'll be working longer.

Directing is creating a whole. You're able to combine different elements and create a film that is unique and true to your vision.

Americans accept that gangsters are running the government.

When you make the judgement as a network that there are only three candidates, you are censoring points of view.

It's certainly a lot more difficult to get a project made if you're talking about something progressive. That's just the nature of the industry.

I don't view myself as a political leftie. I view myself as a storyteller who is fair to both sides.

Altman was told they wouldn't do the film with me. He could easily have abandoned me, but he stood by me and really bailed me out.

Any journey in life, if not done for human reasons of understanding and love, would be a very empty and lonely one.

I don't think people have been able to deal with the fact that African American filmmakers can make movies about life and relationships.

I don't want people to be inspired or offended by what I do. If you determine your behavior by what [other people] want, you're screwed.

I grew up in New York, and I have that in me, that be-honest-at-all-costs, don't b.s. me attitude. I say, If you've got something to say about me, say it to my face. And then we'll either talk about it or fight about it.

I had been unaware that baseball was a Republican sport.

I love iconoclasts. I love individuals. I love people that are true to themselves, whatever the cost.

I mean, what are they scared of? Who's going to vote for anyone from the Communist Party, for God's sake?

If you say, I'm living in America and I have freedom of speech but I choose not to use it because it's going to cost me, well, you're not living in freedom. You're not free.

If you're in the position to help someone and you do it, it's very rewarding.

I'm fairly competant as a director and actor, but I am Mr. Neurotic as a writer. I just don't have enough confidence in my abilities to take criticism well. I take it personally. Start with 'It's a masterpiece,' and then tell me what you think could be changed.

In this time when a citizenry applauds the liberation of a country as it lives in fear of its own freedomwhen people all over the country fear reprisal if they use their right to free speech, it is time to get angry. It is time to get fierce.

It simply comes down to this, Get Busy Living, or Get Busy Dying.

It's difficult when you have to turn down a tremendous amount of money because you don't like what the script is saying and you don't have any money.

My philosophy is, don't take no for an answer and be willing to sacrifice your entire project for freedom.

New York is not conductive to theater. New York does not encourage its young. It does not encourage experimentation.

Notice what no one else notices and you'll know what no one else knows.

Our resistance to this war should be our resistance to profit at the cost of human life. Because that is what these drums beating over Iraq are really about. This is about business.

There are a great number of Republicans who are economically conservative but have hearts and a consciousness about their country.

There is no question that [Dan] Quayle is an uneducated idiot. But someone, somewhere cleverly realized that the best diversion from Bush is to put on a clown show.

There's always someone telling you not to do something. The main thing is just to ignore them.

There's the theory that nudity doesn't really make something sexy; the characters and their relationship make it sexy.

What you get is what you get. What you do with what you get, that's more the point.

You had to know how to fight or you had to know how to avoid a fight. I didn't enjoy fighting, so I learned how to avoid them.

You should never try irony or self-effacing humour.