There is sadness of when you're watching someone enjoy something that you think is substandard. The ineffable sadness when someone is happy and something is not as good as it should be.

I had more fun making Traffic than either of the Ocean's films.

I don't consider myself to be particularly gifted in the way that other filmmakers are gifted.

You should never assume anything coming from a critical standpoint. You should go into everything assuming you're going to get crushed.

I've never been a snob. It [movie] is just about stories. And I've never felt just because it's a big screen and you plop down your eight bucks that gives it a special meaning. It's just "Are you good at telling a story?"

I like a lot of different kinds of movies, I like a lot of different kinds of paintings.

I never leave the writer behind, because you rewrite the movie in post, or at least I do. I always do, and I feel like anybody who doesn't at least explore that possibility is short-changing themselves. Editing is the most fun and most exciting part of the process.