"I want to make movies about my country from my point of view."

"The quality of one's emotional life changes over the years, doesn't it? But the basic instincts and desires, greed and hope, seem to remain constant. In the larger scope of things, there's a sense of fulfillment to living a creative life. So I guess that's what keeps me going."

"I don't think I would describe my sense of humor. Doesn't sound like the kind of thing I'd do."

"I do not have a sense of humor of any recognizable sort."

"In the course of American history, great steps are taken by ordinary people, and ordinary people are not perfect."

"If military movies were automatically successful we'd make nothing but military movies. But seriously, patriotism is one thing that all Americans have in common."