Edgar Wright Quotes

A lot of recent comic book adaptations have gone two ways: either they're striving for some kind of realism, like 'Iron Man' or 'The Dark Knight,' or they're very stylised and gritty, like 'Sin City' and '300.'

- Edgar Wright

City, Some, Very, Striving

I know it's become an ongoing thing about whether videogames are art, and I think there's plenty of examples of things that use the form in a fascinating way. Things that are more surreal or artistic, like 'Katamari Damacy' or 'Vib-Ribbon.'

- Edgar Wright

I Think, Use, About, Surreal

Maybe directors who are more interested in realism and naturalism come from cities, where they see things on their doorstep every day. But growing up as a kid in a very pretty but ever-so-slightly boring town, where not a great deal happened, encouraged me to be more escapist, more imaginative, and more of a daydreamer.

- Edgar Wright

Deal, Maybe, Very, Realism

There are lots of films I wish stopped at installment number one. I like 'Back to the Future Part II' and 'Part III' enough, but I still like the ending of the first one better.

- Edgar Wright

Still, Films, Stopped, III

There are plenty of movies that you need to chew on a bit. Movies that you return to and see something different in the second time around.

- Edgar Wright

Need, Plenty, Bit, Chew

When I went to college, I discovered the Sega console, and 'Sonic the Hedgehog' became very dear to me.

- Edgar Wright

College, Console, Became, Sonic

Comics have years to explain this stuff, and in a movie, you have to focus on one thing. So it's about kind of streamlining, I think. Some of the most successful origin films actually have a narrower focus.

- Edgar Wright

Some, Explain, I Think, Narrower

When I was younger, I used to love Tim Burton's 'Batman.' I was, like, 15, and even then, I was aware, 'This is really the Joker's film.' It's like, the Joker just takes over, and Batman, you really don't learn too much about him.

- Edgar Wright

Love, Used, About, Tim

I think it's good to have pressure on yourself. The worst crime is to get kind of really complacent.

- Edgar Wright

Think, Kind, I Think, Complacent

I definitely went through a period when I was a teenager when every girl was 'The One' and every break-up was the 'Worst Thing That Had Ever Happened.'

- Edgar Wright

Through, Worst Thing, Period, Break-Up

Usually if I find a film that's challenging, that I'm intrigued by, I want to watch it again knowing what the ending is. I found that with something like 'The Godfather Part II.' I think it took me three watches to fully experience it in the way it was intended.

- Edgar Wright

Experience, I Think, Part, Intrigued

I'm very happy with my life and career, but I do find myself having serious attacks of nostalgia, and I don't quite know why. Even though I've got to travel the world and do amazing things, I still want to go back to my teenage years and change little aspects of it. It's strange, but it does continue to bug me.

- Edgar Wright

My Life, Career, Very, Teenage Years

Whenever I'm writing a script, I'm scoring myself by playing the right kind of music.

- Edgar Wright

Music, Scoring, Whenever, Right Kind

Critics should think about how the opening weekend audience might want to discover some surprises for themselves.

- Edgar Wright

Think, Discover, Some, Surprises

It's interesting that some people reading the comics see Scott Pilgrim as a blank slate in that they like to imagine themselves as Scott Pilgrim, so it's interesting that there are two kind of schools of thought about the character. One is, like, Scott Pilgrim is awesome. The second is Scott Pilgrim believes himself to be awesome.

- Edgar Wright

Thought, Some, Blank, Scott

I am always watching old films and trying to fill gaps in my knowledge.

- Edgar Wright

I Am, Always, Films, Gaps

If you go back to your home town or you're reunited with school friends, its always slightly bittersweet because as much as there's nice things in terms of seeing them again, the town has changed without you, and you're no longer a part of it.

- Edgar Wright

Back, Part, Slightly, Changed

We got offers to make sequels to both 'Shaun of the Dead' and 'Hot Fuzz,' and they never really interested us because we like having these endings where it seems very final but could hint at some kind of future adventure that you'll never see.

- Edgar Wright

Some, Very, Sequels, Endings

I have this theory about science fiction movies in that, when the space race sort of died, a lot of people sort of lost hope.

- Edgar Wright

Race, Fiction, About, Science Fiction

The worst thing you can do after a test screening is slash it for the lowest common denominator.

- Edgar Wright

Test, Worst Thing, Screening, Common Denominator

'RoboCop,' when that came out, was like the best comic book movie ever, and it's not based on a comic book.

- Edgar Wright

Movie, Like, Based, Comic Book

I think, 'Scott Pilgrim,' it was something where the general audience didn't necessarily understand straight away what it was.

- Edgar Wright

Think, Audience, I Think, Pilgrim

'Scott Pilgrim' is something that was a little bit more difficult to put in one box. But, to me, that's not necessarily a bad thing about the movie.

- Edgar Wright

Bad, More, Movie, Pilgrim

I first saw Walter Hill's second film, 'The Driver,' as a teenager, late at night on the BBC, quite possibly sitting too close to the telly. Given that this 1978 slice of neo-noir takes place almost entirely in the dark streets of a deserted downtown L.A., it's really a perfect midnight movie.

- Edgar Wright

Perfect, Movie, Streets, Telly

By the time I got to Bournemouth Art College, I'd been so inspired by Sam Raimi and Robert Rodriguez and their tiny, no-budget films that I decided to do a feature-length version of 'Fistful Of Fingers.'

- Edgar Wright

College, Been, By The Time, Rodriguez

In a lot of action films, a lot of guys are driving muscle cars or vintage cars, whereas in reality, a lot of getaway drivers would actually choose, like, commuter cars and find a way to blend into freeway traffic as quickly as possible.

- Edgar Wright

Blend, Quickly, Freeway, Whereas

Every time I watch a Clint Eastwood film, I'm in touch with my feminine side, I've developed a searing man-crush on Clint Eastwood.

- Edgar Wright

Side, Eastwood, Clint, Every Time

For 120 minutes, 'Birdman' floats from comedy to surrealism to high drama to quiet brilliance. I felt so inspired by watching this movie. It reaches for the sky and never comes back down to earth.

- Edgar Wright

Watching, Back, Movie, Brilliance

Growing up, there were TV shows that were very funny but very traditional. Classic things like 'Fawlty Towers,' obviously, and 'Blackadder' were pretty traditionally shot. And then there were the ones that start to break the mold or be really ambitious. The ones that spring particularly to mind would be 'The Young Ones.'

- Edgar Wright

Young, Very, TV, Towers

When you write something, at first you might feel very defensive and protective of every single thing, but after a while, you just see what works and what doesn't. Sometimes you do test screenings, and an audience tells you that, or sometimes you eventually just go, 'Let's cut the joke out.'

- Edgar Wright

Very, Single Thing, Works, Defensive

When you're doing a car chase movie, you're sitting in car waiting for places or grips or stuff for quite a while.

- Edgar Wright

Doing, Movie, Grips, Quite A While

I just remember watching 'Brass Eye' and being so utterly blown away by the scope of it and how much it managed to cram into an episode.

- Edgar Wright

Away, Brass, Episode, Blown Away

The sci-fi movies I grew up with, the metaphor was very rich, and they used to really mean something: David Cronenberg's films, or John Carpenter's films, or the Phil Kaufman and Don Segel versions of 'Invasion Of The Body Snatchers,' or George Romero's early zombie films.

- Edgar Wright

Body, Used, Very, Cronenberg

I would say 'American Werewolf in London' is like an unconventional buddy movie: even if the buddy dies 20 minutes in, he still remains throughout the picture, and their partnership is one of the best things in the movie.

- Edgar Wright

London, Movie, Werewolf, Unconventional

Once people realized that, 'Hey, we're going to be left on Earth here, and everything is going to hell quickly,' sci-fi soon became about our own self-destruction.

- Edgar Wright

Here, Going, Became, Hey

I'd rather try and cram in another two gags than leave a pause to say, 'Hey, wasn't that bit funny?'

- Edgar Wright

Say, Rather, Another, Hey

I found, after the experience of making 'Shaun Of The Dead' and then returning to the blank page - because 'Shaun Of The Dead' was the first screenplay I ever wrote properly - the experience of returning to the blank page and having nothing in the drawer was intensely painful.

- Edgar Wright

Making, Blank, Having, Drawer

'The Driver' wasn't commercially successful at the time, but when I was a teenager, I had no knowledge of that.

- Edgar Wright

Driver, Had, Commercially, Teenager

If you ever watch police chases on, like, helicopter cams, they very quickly become nightmarish when you start to see the police coming in from the edge of the frame. I always find that terrifying.

- Edgar Wright

Always, Very, Terrifying, Frame

Tony Scott, Walter Hill, Michael Mann - I'm a big action fan, full stop. And even though Michael Mann is the more celebrated film-maker than Tony Scott, I love them both in different ways.

- Edgar Wright

Love, Big, Different Ways, Celebrated

I was at art school that had quite a celebrated film course as well. I tried for that film course when I was 18, but they said I was too young. I tried this audio and visual design course instead. Two years later, I reapplied for that higher course, but they said I was still too young and to try in five years.

- Edgar Wright

Young, Two, Had, Celebrated

You get some directors, and I can never understand it - there's a thing they call the 'video village' where all the monitors are, and you've probably seen it on set visits - I hate that! I never, ever like sitting in video village. I get either my own monitor or a hand held monitor, and I stand right by the camera.

- Edgar Wright

Some, Directors, Held, Sitting

I'd like to do some things over again. I never want to repeat anything that went well, though - I just want to do better at slightly different things.

- Edgar Wright

Some, Over, Slightly, Different Things

I think the premise of somebody trying to recreate a night from their teenage years stuck with me as something potentially very tragically comic.

- Edgar Wright

Think, I Think, Very, Potentially

Usually in TV... A TV director could be anything from a main grip to just a glorified cameraman, and sometimes a director can be the person who is hired last. It's very much a producer's medium.

- Edgar Wright

Very, TV, Grip, Glorified

The man-child in American comedies is always glorified; they never really show the darker side.

- Edgar Wright

Never, Always, Comedies, Glorified

I've always been fascinated by horror films and genre films. And horror films harbored a fascination for me and always have been something I've wanted to watch and wanted to make.

- Edgar Wright

Always, Been, Films, Horror Films

Occasionally, you'll get a 'District 9,' a film that is politically charged, but there is nothing going on beneath the surface with a lot of horror films. They are not about anything.

- Edgar Wright

Horror, Beneath, Films, Horror Films

Mel Brooks is an interesting one because he started out making films about stuff that he was totally affectionate about, like musicals, westerns, horror films, Hitchcock films. And then, as they get further on, and you get to 'Spaceballs,' then it's just kind of contrived.

- Edgar Wright

About, Affectionate, Horror Films

Some people are brilliant on the first take, some people are brilliant on the fourth take, and when you are doing a group scene, you kind of have to figure that out.

- Edgar Wright

Doing, Some, Brilliant, Group

I used to stay up all night playing 'Resident Evil 2,' and it wouldn't stop until the sun came up. Then I'd walk outside at dawn's first light, looking at the empty streets of London, and it was like life imitating art. It felt like I'd stepped into an actual zombie apocalypse.

- Edgar Wright

London, Used, Streets, Resident

The making of documentaries for 'Humanoids From The Deep,' 'Galaxy Of Terror' and 'Forbidden World' are absolutely fascinating.

- Edgar Wright

Deep, Making, Terror, Galaxy

There have been recorded cases of people learning how to fly a plane after playing a flight simulator, but there's never been a case of someone learning to fight by playing 'Tekken.'

- Edgar Wright

Flight, Been, Plane, Case

My parents used to talk about Sergio Leone films a lot. And I got really into them. I love Clint Eastwood. I love the camera angles. I love the music.

- Edgar Wright

Love, Eastwood, Films, Camera

What 'Shaun of the Dead' and 'Hot Fuzz' and 'World's End' do is smuggle a different movie under the guise of a zombie movie or a cop or alien invasion movie. Even though they all have action and carnage, they are really films about growing up and taking responsibility.

- Edgar Wright

Movie, Cop, About, Smuggle

In 'Shaun of the Dead,' it's not Shaun's fault that there's a zombie apocalypse - he just has to get through the day.

- Edgar Wright

Through, Get, Zombie, Apocalypse

I tire of franchises, remakes, and endless sequels.

- Edgar Wright

Endless, Sequels, Tire

We were shooting 'Hot Fuzz' in my hometown of Wells, Somerset, and I remember looking at the dailies and going, 'Wait, there's a Starbucks in the shot. I don't remember that being there!' We had to digitally remove it; the same thing happened with a McDonald's in another scene. I had this sensation of, 'What's going on here? Where am I?'

- Edgar Wright

Wait, I Remember, Here, Remove

I love horror, sci-fi and action, or I wouldn't make these kinds of movies, but those designations are Trojan horses to make these personal comedies.

- Edgar Wright

Love, Horror, Kinds, Comedies

I find just in terms of free time I'm always envious of people I know who... listen to music, watch films, play games, read books. I have to pick. And I find frequently that if I've got Sophie's Choice, I'll try to keep up with music and keep up with films. So my book reading and comic reading and game playing is terrible and infrequent.

- Edgar Wright

Game, Play, Frequently, Terrible

I was never a DC kid - I went through a phase from, like, 11 to 17 where I would try to buy as many Marvel titles as possible. And '2000 AD' was kind of the sort of sci-fi/punk of British comics.

- Edgar Wright

Kid, Through, Buy, Titles

Wes Anderson deserves an award for sheer persistence of vision.

- Edgar Wright

Vision, Award, Anderson, Persistence

I love the Zucker brothers' films - 'Airplane!,' 'Top Secret' and 'Police Squad!' - are my formative experiences.

- Edgar Wright

Love, Brothers, Films, Squad

I grew up on 'Battle of the Planets.'

- Edgar Wright

Battle, Up, Grew, Planets

Usually, if you read a script by somebody else and there's a dense page of stage directions, people just skip through it or speed read it.

- Edgar Wright

Through, Read, Skip, Directions

Some actors don't even read the stage directions at all.

- Edgar Wright

Some, Stage, Read, Directions

I'm a big believer in keeping the stage directions really tight.

- Edgar Wright

Big, Stage, Believer, Directions

I guess a lot of comic-book adaptations strive for realism. Christopher Nolan is making Batman seem very real and very serious.

- Edgar Wright

Real, Making, Very, Nolan

The idea of fighting your new girlfriend's ex-lovers, 'Street Fighter' style, is the ultimate geek wish-fulfilment.

- Edgar Wright

New, Girlfriend, Idea, Geek

When I did 'Hot Fuzz,' I tried to get Barbara Steele in the movie, but I was told she had retired.

- Edgar Wright

Hot, Movie, Had, Retired

I think where the criticism of videogames come from is where videogames are just Xeroxes of films, and when you get a film adaptation of that game, you've just Xeroxed something twice. I think that's where a lot of the criticism comes from - there are ultra-violent games that are already based on a million films.

- Edgar Wright

Game, Adaptation, I Think, Videogames

The first TV show I worked on was with the guys from 'Little Britian,' Matt Lucas and David Walliams, who did a show in 1995 I directed, 'Mash and Peas.'

- Edgar Wright

TV, Directed, Lucas, Matt

Sometimes, some things have to settle, and you have to think about the intention of it.

- Edgar Wright

Think, Sometimes, Some, Intention

When I was at school, I used to end every school day with fountain pen ink all over my hands and face and down my shirt.

- Edgar Wright

Hands, Fountain, Over, Pen

We need to make more original movies, and audiences would do well to support original movies for the future of the medium.

- Edgar Wright

Movies, Original, Would, Medium

When you're struggling to get a feature film off the ground, there's no big overarching tenure plan or anything like that.

- Edgar Wright

Big, Like, Feature Film, Struggling

I'm very happy with the response for everything I've done, but, you know, sometimes you get things like, 'Oh, 'Spaced' Series One wasn't as good as 'Spaced' Series Two.' Or 'Shaun of the Dead' is not as good as 'Spaced,' or, 'Hot Fuzz' is not as good as 'Shaun.' Or, now, 'The World's End' is not 'Shaun of the Dead.'

- Edgar Wright

Happy, Sometimes, Very, Response

Television was essentially my college.

- Edgar Wright

College, Television, Essentially

I like watching films that can play in any language because they're essentially silent.

- Edgar Wright

Play, Silent, Films, Essentially

'Don't Look Now' is a masterpiece. I think it's the best-edited movie of all time. I adore it.

- Edgar Wright

Think, Movie, I Think, Masterpiece

If you have ever driven around London and seen the amount of one way systems... they basically rubbed out all car chase crime. In fact, if you get bank robberies in the U.K., they're using scooters.

- Edgar Wright

London, Fact, In Fact, Driven

My favorite film of all time is 'Raising Arizona.' I watched it again as soon as it was over. I had it on VHS, rented it, and I watched it and said, 'I want to watch that again, right now.' I think I did the same with something like 'Goodfellas,' which is a completely different genre.

- Edgar Wright

Arizona, I Think, Had, Genre

When we made 'Shaun of the Dead,' it was our first feature, and we were just lucky to make a film, full stop.

- Edgar Wright

Lucky, Dead, Made, Feature

Not everybody fantasizes about robbing a bank, but I think most people have that fantasy of being in a high speed chase.

- Edgar Wright

Think, Everybody, I Think, Robbing

I remember seeing 'Gremlins' and having my mind blown and seeing 'Ferris Bueller's Day Off' at 13, and it was this hugely aspirational experience.

- Edgar Wright

Mind, I Remember, Hugely, Blown

If you're on a road trip, you need driving music.

- Edgar Wright

Music, Road, Driving, Trip

It's a very rare and fortunate position to be able to make movies with two of your best friends who happen to be really amazing actors and writers.

- Edgar Wright

Best, Happen, Very, Fortunate

I grew up on Marvel and, like, '2000 AD.'

- Edgar Wright

Like, Marvel, Up, Ad

I'm a big fan of films that I grew up on and would watch obsessively, over and over again. If I didn't feel like I got everything on the first watch good, I want to see it again immediately.

- Edgar Wright

Big, Over, Films, Big Fan

Between the ages of 18 and 20, I made three hour-long films. One was a superhero film called 'Carbolic Soap.' One was a cop film called 'Dead Right.' And the other was called 'A Fistful Of Fingers.'

- Edgar Wright

Other, Cop, Films, Fingers

It's funny: sometimes with 'Spaced,' people would try and read too much into something I'd done, with the references meaning something more than they do.

- Edgar Wright

More, References, Read, Meaning

I always liked movies like 'American Graffiti' and 'Gregory's Girl.' 'Gregory's Girl' is particularly perfect because it really captures that summer holiday bubble of teenage utopia. Even though it's got a happy ending, there's a feeling that these characters may never see each other again.

- Edgar Wright

Happy, Perfect, Other, Captures

You cannot put 50 years of the Marvel universe into a movie. It's impossible.

- Edgar Wright

Impossible, Universe, Movie, Marvel

I remember when we did 'Shaun of the Dead,' and when we were trying to get it off the ground in 2001 before we actually made it, a lot of people just didn't want to know.

- Edgar Wright

I Remember, Remember When, Ground

I think you write the film that you want to see, and you try and do it honestly, and you can't control people's responses, really.

- Edgar Wright

Think, I Think, Honestly, Responses

I use music to focus, like an internal motor.

- Edgar Wright

Music, Like, Internal, Motor

When I was a kid, I just figured we'd be living on the moon by the year 2000.

- Edgar Wright

Living, Kid, Year, Moon

I loved the idea of somebody literally fighting for love.

- Edgar Wright

Love, Loved, Idea, Fighting

All of my films have been very dialogue-heavy, and that's great. It always makes it more of a challenge to market in other countries.

- Edgar Wright

Always, Very, Films, Market

One of the reasons for me that there's no 'Spaced 3' is that I don't think you can pretend to be 26 for ever.

- Edgar Wright

Think, Pretend, Ever, Reasons

Car chases are as painstaking to make as they are fun to watch. They take a lot of time, and you have to keep the energy up.

- Edgar Wright

Car, Lot, Take, Painstaking

If you're searching for quotes on a different topic, feel free to browse our Topics page or explore a diverse collection of quotes from various Authors to find inspiration.

Powerful Edgar Wright for Daily Growth