Top 279 Quotes & Sayings by Nicolas Cage - Page 3

The best characters are the ones that somehow manage to be both attractive and repulsive at the same time. If you do that, you're at the center of the universe - if you can find characters who are more ambiguous and can raise more questions than answers.

I knew I wanted to be an actor when I was very young. I guess I was about 6 years old at the time, and I was fascinated by television. I started having waking fantasies where I was in a movie and there were crane shots of me during a scene.

Actors, their greatest tool, their greatest resource is imagination. You can take things, power objects, you can recruit your dreams, you can access your memories and get there. So the idea is not to act but to just be.

I do enjoy animated movies. I really love anime and movies like 'Spirited Away' and 'Howl's Moving Castle.'

I definitely went through my magic phase. I think all little boys do at some point or another - they get fascinated by magic tricks.

Good science fiction is intelligent. It asks big questions that are on people's minds. It's not impossible. It has some sort of root in the abstract.

When I won the Oscar, I made a point of actively going against that and doing adventure films like 'Con Air' and 'Gone in 60 Seconds,' not what would be expected.

I've gotten pretty good at leaving characters on the set. I go home and try to relax and regroup and be ready for the next day.

I've really had good luck working with younger actors. Every younger actor that I have worked with has always been really on top of their game and fascinating to watch.

I do tend to apply myself to projects that make me uncomfortable because usually when that happens I try to find a way of existing in the project that is more creative.

I think I've spent more time in front of a camera than off camera. That's just the way it is.

I'm not really gadget oriented. I'm not into technology or computers. I'm not good at interfacing with that sort of gear.

I loved 'Fantasia' as a kid because it filled me with wonder, enchantment and awe. It was my first real introduction into classical music. It was totally inspiring to me.

Helen Mirren is someone that I have really admired ever since I saw her in 'Excalibur.' That was the first thing I said to her. 'I loved you as Morgan Le Fay.'

It's no secret that I've always had an interest in mythology. Whether it's Arthurian or ancient Greek or even Marvel universe. I've always connected with it on some level.

I believe that there's a way to question authority with manners, with dignity. There's no reason to be rude about it.

I would love to work with Tim Burton. I think we would be very good together.

I haven't isolated myself. I am not living on a yacht somewhere. I am not tucked away or behind a gate somewhere. I am not flying on a private plane. I am going to the airport, I am with people, some of the interactions are good, some of them are not so good, but it keeps me in touch with being, you know, part of society.

I like movies where you feel like you're going into another world, and no matter how many times you watch it, you're gonna see something new in that world. That level of detail really inspires me.

Film acting is one of the only industries where you're criticized for working hard. In any other industry, it's considered a quality and something to behold.

Mel Blanc is a hero because of what he could do with his voice for all the Looney Tunes, the Warner Brothers cartoons, to be the voice of Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Elmer Fudd, Porky Pig. To me, he's a great actor.

I've always had an interest in Louisiana, especially New Orleans.

Idris Elba is a grand actor. He's very larger than life; he's bigger than life.

Someone like Vincent Price or somebody like Christopher Lee, they never won an award, and it doesn't matter. They're cool.

In this day and age, where you have a lot of comic book movies made every day, and most of them are really good boys, it's important to have a couple bad boys out there, too.

Zoology has always been interesting to me. Nature is fascinating.

I try not to be proud. I try to actively attack pride.

Personally, my interests are ancient history and ancient civilizations. In my own life, I'd like to go to places like Easter Island.

I'm not contractually obligated to sequels on anything.

When you start a movie, it's not like other kinds of work that you have when you know your boss for years or colleagues for years. You're meeting everyone, mostly, for the first time. You have to get comfortable with those people so you can perform, because the first thing that is going to shut you down is any kind of anxiety.

Acting is like any other art form, in that you have the option to go very big or go very small.

I like both Blu-ray and DVD, but Blu-ray gives you more options.

You get dinged for wanting to do a comedy, then wanting to do a big-budget action film, and then wanting to do an indie. But you can't let other people trying to label you get in the way of trying to do something artistically.

Just because you're a man doesn't mean that you can't raise your kid. I think that families should stay together, but if you are a single father, don't give up no matter what they say.

If I do do a sequel, I'm going to have to know for sure that the script is better than the original. So I'm going to be very careful about that because I'm not eager to repeat myself.

Often you hear stories about never working with children. I disagree because children still have that residual magical thinking. They haven't had their imagination knocked out of them by turning into adults and life experiences.

The only reason why I tend to pass on a movie is either I don't think I'm right for the material and can't play it honestly, or because of time constraints with personal things in my life.

I want people to discover my movies, and however they choose to receive it is their business.

Film has lost something in the translation to high tech. It's become so super-real. It's with digital this and stereo that, and everything's like a CD.

My house is basically a trailer. I live a circus lifestyle. I'm always moving. It's not always easy for people that live with me, but that's the path I chose.

I'll speak for myself, but there's a lot of humor to be found in sarcasm and darkness. You talk to any paramedic, they survive by developing a pretty off-kilter sense of humor.

I cry a lot. My emotions are very close to my surface. I don't want to hold anything in so it festers and turns into pus - a pustule of emotion that explodes into a festering cesspool of depression.

Those who have the ability to take action have the responsibility to take action.

If you're really special, meaning you're doing something unique and original, it could scare people.

We've become so glorified in the movie-star system that it's become this artificial royalty. The truth is that we're circus clowns.

I'm a seeker. I'm very much a believer in science. But I do think there are times when science and mysticism intersect.

I guess it would fall into the stalker category more or less. I was being stalked by a mime - silent but maybe deadly. Somehow, this mime would appear on the set of 'Bringing Out the Dead' and start doing strange things. I have no idea how it got past security. Finally, the producers took some action and I haven't seen the mime since. But it was definitely unsettling.

I remember once imagining what my life would be like, what I'd be like. I pictured having all these qualities, strong positive qualities that people could pick up on from across the room. But as time passed, few became qualities that I actually had. And all the possibilities I faced, and the sorts of people I could be, all of them got reduced every year to fewer and fewer until finally they got reduced to one - to who I am. And that's who I am.

I'm legally unable to ride motorcycles. It's a contract that I have with my life insurance, so whenever I get a chance to do a movie and ride a bike I go for it.

Don't lose the best thing in your life just because you are not sure.

Some things are true whether you believe in them or not.

I don't like it when people on the street say "smile" or "cheer up." It's a real cheap line. I'm feeling good. I'm feeling real grateful for everything. It's a solid time in my life. When people say I look sad, they're wrong.

I always add a year to myself, so I'm prepared for my next birthday. So when I was 39, I was already 40.

I like being at that place where you can either fall or stand. That's where I think you really have a shot at doing something truthful.

I don't know if my wife left me because of my drinking or I started drinking 'cause my wife left me.

My definition of a father is someone who empowers their children.

Nobody ever thinks clearly at the airport.

You aren't a true internationalist until you've supplied weapons to kill your own countrymen.

I'm going to steal the Declaration of Independence.

To begin... To begin... How to start? I'm hungry. I should get coffee. Coffee would help me think. Maybe I should write something first, then reward myself with coffee. Coffee and a muffin. Okay, so I need to establish the themes. Maybe a banana-nut. That's a good muffin.