What happens when these young men and women come home so scarred and so wounded? We are ignoring that fact. We're just shoving them under the carpet.

I don't think writers should write about answers. I think writers should write about questions.

I miss my mother very, very much.

Usually the characters are where I start. Then I continually ask myself, 'What's the worst thing that could happen to this character?'

You don't do pictures because the audience is ready for them. You do them because there's something gnawing at you, something inside.

I found two true stories. One was in 2003. One was the beginning of 2004. I decided to meld them. Richard Davis' story which is the largest portion of this, a lot of the events are exactly as you saw, exactly what happened and the locations. Exactly as it was said with the chicken house and the strip club. Richard's parents were on the set and they'll tell you that the story is different than their son's. I was very concerned because I called them to say, 'You understand I'm fictionalizing this story?

United States could be a great country. It needs to be a great country. It's our responsibility as citizens to make that happen, every single one of us.