I like the smell of film. I just like knowing there's film going through the camera.

There is something that you have that no one else ever had ... When you watch Kirk's [Douglas] performance in anything, in anything he's ever done, you cannot take your eyes off of him. It's not possible to look away from him.

You can be great just by being yourself.

I made 'Empire of the Sun' in Shanghai in the 1980s and want to come back one day to make a movie in China.

I hate that people think it's wrong to say you're inspired by Jaws or by Raiders Of The Lost Ark. You're allowed to be.

I'd rather direct than produce. Any day. And twice on Sunday.

I'm always in favor of Israel responding strongly when it's threatened. At the same time, a response to a response doesn't really solve anything. It just creates a perpetual-motion machine.