It was a unique experience in several ways, because I don't think Sam [Fuller] had ever collaborated with another writer over his whole career.

That love of movies is very much alive in me.

Hollywood, of course, is the city of illusion.

I can't speak to how Michael [Douglas] approached it in terms of his process.

A day doesn't go by when I don't get a compliment on L.A. Confidential, for example.

You can dress it up, but it comes down to the fact that a movie is only as good as its script.

Movie stars exaggerate certain things to let the audience know they're just playing a character, as if they're saying, "Look at me, I'm not really an old man, I'm just playing one." Or "I'm not really a homosexual, I'm just playing a gay character. Or an alcoholic. Or somebody who's mentally impaired." They often do it very successfully and win awards for it.