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William Monahan

William Monahan Quotes

Screenwriter

William Monahan, born on November 3, 1960, is an American screenwriter known for his profound insights into crime themes and his exquisite narrative skills. His works, including 'The Departed' and 'The Departed', have earned him an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.

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Famous William Monahan Quotes

“I'm a huge fan of director's cuts or reassemblies if they're good, but I remember being really excited about the restored version of Apocalypse Now, and then I preferred the original film. Kingdom of Heaven as a director's cut is the real picture, but in fact someone recently told me that there was another cut, the original first cut, which he said was just extraordinary. I've never seen it - and of course now I want to, if it exists, and so would everybody else.”

“I have no reason as a director to have films go up in versions that I don't like. My only experience of film after ten years is honestly that if a picture doesn't get second-guessed you're looking at four Oscars, and if a picture does get second-guessed, you're not. I've got an advanced degree in that lesson.”

Ifs Years Doe Reason Film Four Lessons Directors Ten Degrees Honestly Versions No Reason Oscars

Author:William Monahan

“Yeah, well I can't see a situation where I wouldn't at least re-write as a director something I was going to direct. At the moment, I wouldn't direct anything that I hadn't written. I can now say, as everybody else says, that it all depends on the script.”

Writing Wells I Can Moments Situation Written Depends Directors Direct Yeah Scripts

Author:William Monahan

“I don't move until an actor is happy, but it was very important to me as a so-called "first time director" to keep the machine moving. It was especially important to me to keep it moving and not be some kind of precious writer-director.”

Firsts Kind Important Moving Actors Directors First Time Machines Keep It Moving

Author:William Monahan

“As a director, you're given a tremendous apparatus to work with, and very great talents are available to you.”

Given Talent Directors Available Great Talent

Author:William Monahan

“As first time director, though, you're like a new officer coming up to be in charge of very serious veterans, and you're always going to have guys looking at each other for the first day until they realize you're not screwing around.”

Firsts Guy Realizing Serious Directors First Time Officers Veteran

Author:William Monahan

“You evolve in the ways in which you are precious. When you are the director, you are also continuing to write on the floor as you go along.”

Way Writing Directors Evolve Continuing

Author:William Monahan

“Saying directors don't write because they don't type is very wrong, it's like saying Dylan doesn't write music because he doesn't write notation.”

Writing Type Directors Music Is Dylan

Author:William Monahan

“The thing about movies is if somebody has an idea that works, it's in, and I say that as a screenwriter as well as a director.”

Ifs Wells Ideas Directors Working It Screenwriters

Author:William Monahan

“If you see, as I do, in edited film, you're going to end up as a director.”

Ifs Ends Film Directors Edited

Author:William Monahan

“I don't think Roger Ebert has ever mentioned a screenplay. He assigns every auctorial move to the director, which makes some sense since the director has run a one-off game, but if Hamlet were written last year and had been only performed once as a film, and it didn't come off well on screen for whatever reason, it would be gone forever as a literary work, and never would have been considered as one.”

Ifs Thinking Years Wells Has Beens Reason Would Be Running Lasts Film Moving Games Gone Forever Written Directors Screens Last Year Screenplays Roger Literary Works

Author:William Monahan

“I'd been working so hard making the film that I hadn't even emotionally processed the fact that I was a director.”

Hard Facts Film Directors Working So Hard

Author:William Monahan

About the Author

Born: November 3, 1960
Known for: Screenwriter
Quotes: 135

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