Top 119 Quotes & Sayings by Robert De Niro - Page 2

As a kid I didn't root for the bad guys.

You don't have to rush to do anything.

I always say people can call me anything they want as long as they don't call me late for supper.

Feeling a little bit alive is a lot better than just waiting to die.

In civilized societies, we spend our lifetimes trying to become what is socially acceptable. We're dark and we're light. We all have both sides to us.

It's a very stressful thing, directing a movie. You have the budget, you have the schedule, you are in certain confines, and you have everybody giving you advice about what to do.

Movies are hard to make, and you have to work toward a common ethic and do your best. You don't want to work with people who don't care or who are acting out some neurotic, crazy thesis on the set.

I have to be able to trust you with my life. Do you understand?

I will not hesitate. Not for a second.

As an actor who's starting out, you can't say, "Hey, I'm too good for this." You gotta do it, because people see you, your name gets around, and it has a cumulative effect.

You do what you do best, try to stop guys like me

I certainly know the difference between right and wrong.

You don't just play a part. You've got to earn the right to play it.

You have to think about one shot. One shot is what it's all about. A deer's gotta be taken with one shot.

Things rarely turn out the way we want them to.

Somebody steals from me, I'm gonna say you stole. Not talk to him for spitting on the sidewalk. Understand?

New York is more exciting, I guess, than even Paris or London. New York's the center of something; I don't know what, really - the center of a lot of things. With all its problems and chaos and craziness, it's still a great place to live. I can't see myself living anywhere else.

You always learn something about movies. Directing or acting, there's always something new. It's the technological thing; there's always something to learn.

Sometimes if you have financial restraints, it's a benefit. It forces you to come up with a more creative way.

When you make a movie, everyone should leave their own personal problems at home. When they start bringing those to set, filming can be very difficult... You don't need any extra drama. Put the drama into the story, in the characters.

Loneliness has been following me my whole life.

I got some bad ideas in my head.

The bottom line is if the movie does well, everybody is happy and they forget about what they went through. And if it doesn't, it's 'I told you.' There's one director who I won't mention, who said, 'it's all blood under the bridge.'

When you feel that you can't fight it, you just go for it. When it comes to the arts, passion should always trump common sense.

The one thing I always talk about in terms of restaurants is consistency.

The one thing I always talk about in terms of restaurants is consistency. I think that's what we love about the vodka, is that it's consistent. It's consistent in its pureness and that's how I tie it to restaurants. When I think of a good restaurant, it's where the food has been consistent; there's always a consistency.

Don't let yourself get attached to anything you are not willing to walk out on in 30 seconds flat if you feel the heat around the corner.

Running a casino is like robbing a bank with no cops around. For guys like me, Las Vegas washes away your sins. It's like a morality car wash.

Thank God for the rain to wash the trash off the sidewalk.

Callista Gingrich. Karen Santorum. Ann Romney. Now do you really think our country is ready for a white first lady?

Whenever there is any doubt, there is no doubt.

When you are working hard, you don't have time for anything other than what you are doing in the scene and what the director wants.

Everyone's always interested in a dark theme, especially when there's humor connected to it. It seems like that helps, if that's an integral and organic part of the whole story.

You draw on whatever’s relevant to the part you’re playing; it makes it more personal.

I always enjoy coming to Israel. Israelis are warm, they're energetic people. Forthright. Very smart. I always like smart people. They're nice people, you know. Aggressive, and I respect that aggressiveness because you need it in their situation.

'What's the difference between sex and love?' Hmm. That's a good question. Hey, you interviewed Al Pacino. How'd he answer that?'

The hardest thing about being famous is that ... in a conversation everybody's agreeing with what you're saying. ... You need people who can tell you what you don't want to hear.

I guess the only thing to do now is meet his parents. I'm sure they're decent people. I mean they gotta be if they named their son Gaylord Focker.

Even I like to go to certain restaurants and places where you have to wear a jacket, a suit and a tie, and I like that sort of old world style. I am sure it will come back in many ways, if it hasn't already. It's kind of nice and it breaks it up.

As I get older, I think that things have been pre-determined for me, whether I liked it or wanted it, wished for it, whatever, way before in some way. And with others, you do have a choice that you can change. And that choice that you make is still part of this grand scheme.

If we do a sequel, I want to beat somebody's ass!

One regret I have: I didn't get as much of the family history as I could have for the kids.

I don't remember what made me want to be an actor. In fact, I'm always curious.

There are certain things I am clueless about as far as the new technologies. I see these people in front of these computers all day and I don't know what they are doing - they are doing something, obviously - with Facebook, Instagram and all that. I am aware of it, but basically not in touch.

Certain writers have it very precise and there's not much room to add something.

I think that's what we love about the vodka, is that it's consistent. It's consistent in its pureness and that's how I tie it to restaurants.

Every set up that you do, everything is precisely modulated and raised and lowered.?

In the casino, the cardinal rule is to keep them playing and to keep them coming back. The longer they play, the more they lose, and in the end, we get it all.

When I think of a good restaurant, it's where the food has been consistent; there's always a consistency.

Everybody's in New York and, hopefully, my younger kids will go to college in New York and find something they want to do so they'll stay in the city

Ok let me explain, if you were bitten by a mad infected dog, who will you blame? the dog or its owner? Definitely the owner, so, all the blame is on the USA Government’s shoulders for adopting and supporting a state like Israel

I can get around pretty easily. People don't expect to see me walking around.

I have either a cucumber martini, gin martini, or a vodka martini. That's it. Simple.

Auditions are like a gamble. Most likely you won't get the part, but if you don't go, you'll never know if you could've got it.

I hurt someone's feelings once.

If De Niro wants to spend the twilight of his career as the McDonald's of master thespians, we can't stop him.

As an actor, you use the things from yourself that you can apply to the character.

I don’t get into these long-winded heavy discussions about character - do we do this or that or what. At the end of the day, what you gotta do is just go out there and do it.

I always wanted to direct. Directing is a lot more of a commitment though, a lot more time. I like directors who do very few takes, they know what they want.