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We’re given a code to live our lives by. We don’t always follow it, but it’s still there.

Gary Oldman

I like celluloid, I like film, I like the way that when a movie is projected it sort of breathes a little in the gate. That’s the magic of it to me.
GARY OLDMAN

Breathe Gate Magic Movie Myself Projection Way
I went and lived in Chicago for a year , and I studied at the police academy.
GARY OLDMAN

Academy Live Myself Place Police Study
If one could have a wish, or an alternative life, I would’ve liked to have been John Lennon.
GARY OLDMAN

Dreams Myself Preference Wish
The industry has changed. Two years ago I could tell a company I’ve got Russell Crowe and that would get the film made. Now they’d ask ‘And who’s the girl?’ Just one famous face isn’t enough any more.
GARY OLDMAN

Change Company Creation Enough Face Famous Industry Movie Myself
Overall I enjoy a certain anonymity. I live a very normal, very ordinary life.
GARY OLDMAN

Anonymous Enjoyment Live Myself Normal Ordinary
Rather like Batman, I embody the themes of the movie which are the values of family, courage and compassion and a sense of right and wrong, good and bad and justice.
GARY OLDMAN

Bad Family Goodness Justice Movie Myself Theme Value Wrong
Each role you play, they set a bar of challenges that you meet. And in the past, I’ve played characters that emotionally expressed themselves a bit more in a physical way. It was a joy, actually.
GARY OLDMAN

Bar Challenge Emotional Expression Happiness Joy Myself Play Role
Any actor who tells you that they have become the people they play, unless they’re clearly diagnosed as a schizophrenic, is bullshitting you.
GARY OLDMAN

Actor Movie People Play Yourself
How do you remember all those lines? By forgetting everything else.
GARY OLDMAN

Forget Line Myself Remember Yourself
I had a guitar when I was 6 or 7, a plastic guitar with the Beatles’ faces on it. It would be a collector’s item now. It would fetch a hefty sum, I imagine.
GARY OLDMAN

Collection Guitar Imagination Instrument Musician Old
The thing a drama school can’t give you is instinct. It can sharpen instinct but that can’t be taught, and you have to have intuition. It’s an essential ingredient.
GARY OLDMAN

Drama Essential Intuition School Sharp Yourself
Interesting things come your way but as you get older, your lifestyle changes. I don’t want to travel; I don’t want to be in a hotel room away from my family.
GARY OLDMAN

Change Family Interest Life Myself Old Style Travel
You can play older than yourself. You can play younger than yourself up to a point, and then that just becomes impossible because you carry a weight with you that you can’t shift, unless you have very boyish looks.
GARY OLDMAN

Impossible Old Play Point Weight Younger Yourself
I’m almost incapable of lying. I’d be a terrible spy.
GARY OLDMAN

Capability Lying Myself Terrible
I enjoy playing characters where the silence is loud.
GARY OLDMAN

Character Enjoyment Loud Play Silence
People have an idea that one is in control of a career, a lot more than you really are. You can engineer things to an extent. But you are at the mercy of what comes in across the desk.
GARY OLDMAN

Career Control Ideas Mercy People Yourself
Shakespeare doesn’t really write subtext, you play the subtext.
GARY OLDMAN

Play Writing Yourself
The script is your map of the world, isn’t it? And if someone knows that if it’s well-written, you get all of the beats, it will tell you everything you need to know.
GARY OLDMAN

Need Scripture World Writing Yourself
I was brought up by my mother and my two sisters, although they’re older than me and fled the nest very young, so I was technically raised as an only child, but I was very much loved.
GARY OLDMAN

Children Love Mom Myself Raise Sister
I was never really that interested in the punk movement. I was a blues guy: I liked Motown, James Brown.
GARY OLDMAN

Interest Myself Preference
On set I keep myself to myself; I’d rather the director speak up. I’m not gonna direct a younger actor. I think the power of example works best, actually.
GARY OLDMAN

Best Director Example Power Talk Work Young
Speaking very generally, I find that women are spiritually, emotionally, and often physically stronger than men.
GARY OLDMAN

Man Myself Physical Spiritually Strong Woman
I did have a knack for playing weirdos. There’s still sort of this perception of me out there as being this crazy guy.
GARY OLDMAN

Crazy Man Myself Perception Play Weird
But you see, I have played more good guys than I have played villains.
GARY OLDMAN

Goodness Play See Yourself
Reality TV to me is the museum of social decay.
GARY OLDMAN

Decay Museum Myself Reality Social
My passion and energy get mistaken for anger.
GARY OLDMAN

Angry Energy Mistake Passion
Change is vital to any actor. If you keep playing lead after lead, you’re really gonna dry up. Because all those vehicles wean you away from the truths of human behaviour.
GARY OLDMAN

Actor Behavior Change Human Play Truth Vehicle

We’re given a code to live our lives by. We don’t always follow it, but it’s still there.

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We’re given a code to live our lives by. We don’t always follow it, but it’s still there.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

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