The next installment in my Best of the 00′s series was by far the hardest to put together. It may be due to the lack of great quotes from the decade. I’m not sure that is the case though. I think this is the one category most dependant on the passing of time to help decide what lines resonate the loudest and which quotes become woven into the fabric of our culture. Who might have guessed “E.T. phone home” would have become the all time classic that it is? On paper, it is a simple line. Not as intelligent as Orson Welles’ cuckoo clock speech from The Third Man, nor is it as mystifying as “May the Force be with you,” from Star Wars, but still a classic nonetheless.
So I ask you to consider this while mulling over my list of the Top Ten Movie Quotes of the Decade. I’m sure there are a lot of great choices that I will leave out. As always, I encourage you to leave comments as to what you would have included or what you agree/disagree with. The debate is half the fun!
If you have missed any of my previous lists, you can check out my top ten Characters, Female Performances and Male Performances of the decade.
And now for my top ten quotes after the cut…
10. “That’s a Bingo!” – Christoph Waltz as Colonel Hans Landa in Inglourious Basterds (2009) (I’m going out on a limb with this one… if this grows to be a Tarantino classic then you never know. This is the line from the movie that I am hearing the most often already).
9. “All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.” – Sir Ian McKellen as Galdalf the Grey in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
8. “Remember, with great power comes great responsibility.” – Cliff Robertson as Ben Parker in Spiderman (2002)
7. “Why… so… serious?!” – Heath Ledger as The Joker in The Dark Knight (2008)
6. “I don’t want to be a product of my environment. I want my environment to be a product of me.” – Jack Nicolson as Frank Costello in The Departed (2006)
5. “What business is it of yours where I’m from, friendo?” – Javier Bardem as Anton Chigurh in No Country for Old Men (2007)
4. “What we do in this life echoes in eternity.” – Russell Crowe as Maximus Decimus Meridius in Gladiator (2000)
3. “I wish I knew how to quit you!” - Jake Gyllenhaal as Jack Twist in Brokeback Mountain (2005)
2. “My Precious!” – Andy Serkis as Gollum/Smeagol in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
1. “I drink your milkshake!” - Daniel Day-Lewis as Daniel Plainview in There Will Be Blood (2007)
Honorable mention: “I’m angry all the time… and I don’t know why.” – Sandra Bullock as Jean Cabot in Crash (2005); “It’s a funny thing about comin’ home. Looks the same, smells the same, feels the same. You’ll realize what’s changed is you.” – Brad Pitt as Benjamin Button in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008); “Mo cuishle means my darling. My blood.” – Clint Eastwood as Frankie Dunn in Million Dollar Baby (2004); “Appearances can be… deceptive?” – Brad Pitt as Chad Feldheimer in Burn After Reading (2008); “The way of the future.” – Leonardo DiCaprio as Howard Hughes in The Aviator (2004); ”I don’t know who you are. I don’t know what you want. If you are looking for ransom, I can tell you I don’t have money. But what I do have are a very particular set of skills; skills I have acquired over a very long career. Skills that make me a nightmare for people like you. If you let my daughter go now, that’ll be the end of it. I will not look for you, I will not pursue you. But if you don’t, I will look for you, I will find you, and I will kill you.” - Liam Neeson as Bryan Mills in Taken (2009); “Are you not entertained??!!” – Russell Crowe as Maximus Decimus Meridius in Gladiator; (2000); “There’s a whole ocean of oil under our feet! No one can get at it except for me!” AND “I have a competition in me. I want no one else to succeed. I hate most people.” - Daniel Day-Lewis as Daniel Plainview in There Will Be Blood (2007); “You can’t stop what’s coming.” – Barry Corbin as Ellis in No Country for Old Men (2007); “You probably heard we ain’t in the prisoner-takin’ business; we in the killin’ Nazi business. And cousin, Business is a-boomin’.” – Brad Pitt as Lt. Aldo Raine in In glourious Basterds (2009); “There’s a special rung in hell reserved for people who waste good scotch. And seeing as I might be rapping on the door momentarily…” – Michael Fassbender as Lt. Archie Hicox in Inglourious Basterds (2009); “I see you.” – Zoe Saldana as Neytiri in Avatar (2009).
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Great job Mark. I was glad to see the Burn After Reading quote from Brad Pitt. I know the movie is not great but that scene is amazing with him and Malcovich. I laugh every time I think of it. I also really like the line from Taken.
Burn After Reading is hilarious!! I need to see it again!
that’s a bingo is adorable. the manners of hans Landa and all the character per se is gorgeous. amazingly detestable.
My top 10 greatest movie quotes of the decade:
10.) “Get off my lawn!” – Clint Eastwood as Walt Kowalski in GRAN TORINO(2008)
9.) “That ain’t no Etch-A-Sketch. This is one doodle that can’t be un-did, Homeskillet.” – Rainn Wilson as Rollo in JUNO(2007)
8.) “You probably heard we ain’t in the prisoner-takin’ business; we in the killin’ Nazi business. And cousin, Business is a-boomin’.” – Brad Pitt as Lt. Aldo Raine in INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS(2009)
7.) “I wish I knew how to quit you!” – Jake Gyllenhaal as Jack Twist in BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN (2005)
6.) “I’ve killed a hell of a lot of people to get to this point, but I have only one more. The last one. The one I’m driving to right now. The only one left. And when I arrive at my destination, I am gonna kill Bill.” – Uma Thurman as The Bride(Beatrix Kiddo) in KILL BILL: VOL. 2(2004)
5.) “1958. It’s been traveling twenty-two years to get here. And now it’s here. And it’s either heads or tails. And you have to say. Call it.” – Javier Bardem as Anton Chigurh in NO COUNTY FOR OLD MEN(2007)
4.) “Look what I’ve created. I…have made…fire!” – Tom Hanks as Chuck Noland in CAST AWAY(2000)
***3.) “Happiness only real when shared.” – Emile Hirsch as Christopher McCandless in INTO THE WILD(2007)
2.) “I’m gonna disconnect your air machine, then you’re gonna go to sleep. Then I’ll give you a shot, and you’ll… stay asleep. Mo cuishle means my darling, my blood.” – Clint Eastwood as Frankie Dunn in MILLION DOLLAR BABY(2004)
**1.) “How it’s a living thing. I like to think about what was going on the year the grapes were growing; how the sun was shining; if it rained. I like to think about all the people who tended and picked the grapes. And if it’s an old wine, how many of them must be dead by now. I like how wine continues to evolve, like if I opened a bottle of wine today it would taste different than if I’d opened it on any other day, because a bottle of wine is actually alive. And it’s constantly evolving and gaining complexity. That is, until it peaks, like your ’61. And then it begins its steady, inevitable decline.” – Virginia Madsen as Maya in SIDEWAYS(2004)
Honorable mention:
“And if it is any consolation I have heartburn that is radiating in my knee caps.” – Ellen Page as Juno MacGuff in JUNO(2007)
*”We might just make it. Did that thought ever cross your brain? Well regardless I would rather take my chance out there on the ocean, than to stay here and die on this sh*thole island spending the rest of my life talking to a God damn volleyball.” – Tom Hanks as Chuck Noland in CAST AWAY(2000)
“I am not drinking any f*cking Merlot!” – Paul Giamatti as Miles Raymond in SIDEWAYS(2004)
“Now, stick your nose in it. Don’t be shy, really get your nose in there.” – Paul Giamatti as Miles Raymond in SIDEWAYS(2004)
“Each and every man under my command owes me one hundred Nazi scalps. And I want my scalps. And all y’all will git me one hundred Nazi scalps, taken from the heads of one hundred dead Nazis. Or you will die tryin’.” – Brad Pitt as Lt. Aldo Raine in INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS(2009)
“No, you’re not my family, okay? I don’t want to be your family! I hate you f*cking people! I hate you! Divorce? Bankrupt? Suicide? You’re f*cking losers! You are losers!” – Paul Dano as Dwayne in LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE(2006)
“I’m an old broken down piece of meat. And I deserve to be all alone. I just don’t want you to hate me.” – Mickey Rourke as Randy “The Ram” Robinson in THE WRESTLER(2008)
“Get some rest, Pam. You look tired.” – Matt Damon as Jason Bourne in THE BOURNE SUPREMACY(2004)
*I would like to add Wilson, the volleyball, from CAST AWAY to my honorable mention list of my greatest movie characters of the decade.
**This is writing at its best. Exquisitely delivered by Madsen in the film SIDEWAYS. I remember my heart melting when I was watching this scene for the first time. It still gets me. I also remember saying to myself, “Damn, I wish I had a girlfriend like this.”
***This is a written line in the film, not a spoken one.
Great choices! I love Sideways as well! I almost put the “Merlot” line in my honorable mention. Your number one line came from a great scene that almost won Madsen her Oscar. They were all great in that film. Still surprised Giamatti didn’t get nominated for that. I enjoyed your list! Thanks for adding it!!
[...] Throughout my Best of the 00’s series, we have looked at the best Quotes, Female Performances, Male Performances, Characters, Songs, Scores, and Scenes. I will now [...]
[...] If you have missed any of my prior top 10 lists of the decade, feel free to check out my Characters, Male Performances, Female Performances and Quotes pages. [...]
[...] Also, to see the rest of my Best of the 00’s series, you can check out my top 10 Quotes, Female Performances, Male Performances, Characters, Songs, Scores, and Scenes by clicking on [...]