Top 230 Quotes & Sayings by Viggo Mortensen - Page 2

Kids accept where they are because they don't know the past. They know what they have; they know where they are.

I was raised speaking English and Spanish. And I also speak Danish. And I can get by in French and Italian. I've acted in Spanish and English, but when something has to do with emotions, sometimes I feel I can get to the heart of the matter better in Spanish.

I prefer the smaller acting than big histrionics. It's about reacting and looks, which is often underestimated.

What art does is it makes you feel alive and makes you feel like you're connected.

Adult characters are all the things they've encountered over time. But kids haven't accumulated all the life experience, all the regrets. They tend to be more in the moment, more willing to play, to be joyful.

Life is short and the older you get, the more you feel it. Indeed, the shorter it is.

I like movies that leave you with something to think about, to discuss, to debate, you know?

You know, Freud accepted his lot very stoically and very well and with a sense of humor. He aged and died gracefully, and there's a lot to be said for that.

When I land in a country and they ask for 'occupation,' I always just put 'artist.' I think that covers all of it.

Any nominations a movie gets helps to raise the level of curiosity in the public, so in that sense awards and nominations are important.

I like naturally occurring film grain, and what happens to film when it's under- and over-exposed.

Sometimes you look at a movie and you can see that the actor or actress said, 'I'm taking this onboard because I'm making a ton of money, and not because it's going to be something special.'

I don't think you get to be pope without making some enemies, like you do when you're president.

Every year I hear people complain that the quality of screenplays and movies is declining. In my opinion, the vast majority of scripts written - as well as most movies that are released - are not very original, well-written, or interesting. It has always been that way, and I think it always will be.

I've been lucky to learn by playing all kinds of roles and watching all kinds of really good cinematographers, actors, and directors for many years before people were even aware of me in terms of audience.

You do need to get lucky, no matter how talented you are.

My goal is just to make movies, whether they're big or small, that I'd like to see 10 years from now.

Usually the characters I play are men of few words, who communicate in non-verbal ways.

In a lot of places in the United States and certainly even more places around the world, the image of the cowboy has become, for some people, a negative one. The word 'cowboy' implies a strong, stubborn individual whose individualism depends on pulling down other people's individualism.

When I have a day off, I won't spend it at a Hollywood party. I'd rather be at home with paints and a blank canvas.

I'm sort of contrary and stubborn sometimes. When everybody says, 'You have to read this book! You have to read this book!' I'm like 'Oh, I'll get around to it.'

With any character I have played, there's infinite possibilities for how they might behave, depending on who they are talking to or how they react to things.

I'm not afraid of death, but I resent it. I think it's unfair and irritating.

You know, real life doesn't just suddenly resolve itself. You have to keep working at it. Democracy, marriage, friendship. You can't just say, 'She's my best friend.' That's not a given, it's a process.

Some people who like dogs don't like cats, but I'm not like that.

Each time I make a movie, it's like a paid scholarship to a different university course.

I'm optimistic about people and about the planet and about nature. I think it's resilient, like people are.

People will like to say that 'Eastern Promises' is brutal, but the only reason they say that is because the scenes stick with them. They are realistic. They are in-your-face and you see the consequences. It's not a bunch of quick editing cuts.

Those who have the power and should be the most responsible are often the least responsible.

Yes, I would agree that America, just like Spain was in the 17th Century, is the main empire of the world and they are the ones who, on the surface, are the most pushy: pushing their language, pushing their culture - or what there is of it - pushing by force their system on others.

It's very rare you get a great script just handed to you, or sent to you, by someone you don't know.

I grew up with horses when I was a kid in Argentina. I like them. I respect them. I'm careful around them. You never know what they're going to do. They're endlessly interesting. I've had some good acting partners that were horses over the years.

I love rehearsing, but a lot of directors don't, and some actors don't.

Looking at acting, in the movies or the theater, and the way I like to look at it, it's just an extension of childhood play... Kids play and imagine in a very intense fashion and they don't need any director telling them, 'You really have to believe in it.' They believe in it completely.

In terms of the movie business, being in a 'Lord of the Rings' has given me more interesting options as work.

I don't think Adam Sandler or Will Ferrell fear competition from me in their arena.

With few exceptions, one ought always do what one is afraid of.

Most movies are lucky to have one moment, one shot that you look at and you always remember that moment and that scene.

Be kind. It's worthwhile to make an effort to learn about other people and figure out what you might have in common with them. If you allow yourself to be somewhat curious - and if you get into the habit of doing that - it's the first step to being open minded and realizing that your points of view aren't totally opposite.

I've never played a Dane in a movie. I've had offers to be in Danish movies, including for some good directors, but I either had a job at the time or, when I was available, the movie just didn't happen. Hopefully someday I'll do one.

I've never been conscious of having any real career plan, and I do not have a wish-list of actors, directors, screenwriters, or cameramen I'm hoping to work with. Life, I feel, has a way of leading us to the right situations and people, or at least to interesting ones.

The first decade of your life is really important; it's formative.

When I make a movie, I don't break it down and analyze it. I could but it would get in the way of doing a job - on instinct based on all the research we did going in. you want to trust yourself and your director and your acting partners in the circumstances you're shooting. I don't like to have any kind of overview.

I realise how important it is to use the time I have. I respect people who want to do that by watching television. I happen to want to read books. But I know I can't read all the books or watch all the movies in one lifetime.

I don't like people who get into fights about football - or anything else.

I try to avoid conflict. I don't want people to be unhappy.

I mean, any movie or story that makes you accept and be grateful for something about your life is doing something right.

People talk about method actors, meaning someone that's prepared very, very well, or whatever they mean when they talk about it. But the right method is whatever works for you. And what works for me on any given day is going to be different.

I like stories that leave you wanting more, leave you wondering, but don't tell you everything.

I like a twisted sense of humour. On 'A History of Violence,' David Cronenberg and I would be doing the grimmest scenes and laugh a lot.

Pinochet and Barack Obama both have the same primary goal, and that's to be president and stay president as long as allowed.

To be honest, I don't really care about any pope. It's not something I think about much, to be quite honest with you.

Toronto Film Festival is one of those festivals where there are 400 movies, and unless you have a distributor who is super confident and puts a lot of money into it, sometimes movies can go unwatched or unnoticed.

You can't really divorce yourself and your life from the world you live in.

It's amazing to me that Glenn Beck can be on the cover of 'Time,' and there can be a whole article about him basically saying, 'Well, you know, he's controversial.' It's like, 'No, he's a dangerous idiot who needs the help of a good psychiatrist!'

You see people on the street yelling and think they're crazy, but maybe they're just happy and expressing what they feel at all times.

Awards for arts, where you make comparisons, don't make much sense.

I like the detail work of telling a story in small pieces, as is done in movie-making, and also the long leap of faith needed to see a theatre performance through each night. Both require focus and self-discipline.

As far as money goes, there's a saying in Denmark: 'Your last suit doesn't have any pockets.' You can't take it with you. You can make all the money you want, but who cares?

Ignorance breeds antipathy. Until I got to know how computers worked, I didn't want anything to do with them. I said, 'Well, why do I need them? I write letters.' Which I still do.