We don't need no pancakes!

November 18, 2004 7:12 AM

The American Film Institute, striving ever harder for relevancy, announces their latest movie list: 100 Years...100 Movie Quotes, to be shown in June. Here's the list of 400 nominees [PDF]. What was unjustly left out? Let the debates begin!
posted by DevilsAdvocate (88 comments total)

"That woman deserves her revenge. And we deserve to die." -- Budd, Kill Bill, vol. 2 (to answer my own question)
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 7:14 AM on November 18, 2004

"That's it man, game over man, game over!"

"I've got a bad feeling about this!"
posted by shawnj at 7:19 AM on November 18, 2004

I think it's a bad sign that the official list of nominees begins with Ace Ventura's "Alllll righty then!"
posted by Robot Johnny at 7:20 AM on November 18, 2004

I'm not sure what was left out, but I do know what shouldn't have been on the list in the first place...

"Damn!"
- FRIDAY
posted by Arch Stanton at 7:20 AM on November 18, 2004

These are not the quotes you are looking for.
posted by seanyboy at 7:27 AM on November 18, 2004

It's a disgrace there's nothing in there from North by Northwest, especially given the amount of crap that has made it.
posted by biffa at 7:27 AM on November 18, 2004

Only 1 quote from Aliens? I despair!
posted by metaxa at 7:31 AM on November 18, 2004

Well, we've already got over 300 MeFi-submitted film quotes right here.
posted by grabbingsand at 7:31 AM on November 18, 2004

The Dude does not appear to abide. I feel this is an error.
posted by flashboy at 7:38 AM on November 18, 2004

No Matrix.
Rubbish Tarantino quotes.
No "Load Letter. What the hell does Load Letter mean".
No "I have been, and ever shall be, your friend."
No "I can see. I can see perfectly."

This is a rubbish list.
posted by seanyboy at 7:39 AM on November 18, 2004

Wait, considering the format of the previous shows, how is this going to work... they're going to play a 10-second quote, and then spend 2 minutes discussing the impact it had?

Okay, AFI. We get it. Movies are 100 years old. This is coming from a Film major: stop making these fucking shows, m'kay?
posted by XQUZYPHYR at 7:40 AM on November 18, 2004

IMO, the three most quotable movies (i.e., the one from which I actually hear my friends quote) of recent years are The Big Lebowski (as noted by flashboy), Office Space, and Napoleon Dynamite. I can understand the omission of that last film given its recent appearance, but ALL THREE? This list is teh suck.
posted by the_bone at 7:49 AM on November 18, 2004

The Dude does not appear to abide. I feel this is an error.

no shit man!! what a travesty!
posted by yeahyeahyeahwhoo at 7:52 AM on November 18, 2004

Dogma: "Was Wisconsin really that bad?"

The Big Lebowski: "You see what happens, Larry?"

Don't know if it counts, because it's a French film, but from Amelie, my favourite film quote of all time: "I'm nobody's little weasel."
posted by veedubya at 7:53 AM on November 18, 2004

Actually, we've got a pretty nice little Saturday planned. We're gonna go to Home Depot. Yeah, buy some wallpaper, maybe get some flooring, stuff like that. Maybe Bed Bath & Beyond, I don't know, I don't know if we'll have enough time!
posted by dhoyt at 8:00 AM on November 18, 2004

Heathers: "I love my dead gay son!"

Rocky Horror Picture Show: "I see you shiver, with antici... pation."
posted by fredosan at 8:01 AM on November 18, 2004

Use enough dynamite, Butch?
posted by chris24 at 8:04 AM on November 18, 2004

It's inevitable that a list like this will be highly subjective and second-guessed from here to Tuesday. I was really going to restrain myself.

But Sweet Suffering Cheeses, that's not even remotely the best quote from Out of the Past (1947). The best quote is Jeff Bailey's (Robert Mitchum) line (after after Kathy's said "Jeff, I don't want to die.") "Neither do I, baby, but if I have to I'm going to be the one who dies last. "

Oh, and the Dude must abide. No doubt.
posted by mojohand at 8:05 AM on November 18, 2004

"You just keep thinkin', Butch. That's what you're good at."

And the cruelest, most criminal omissions, both from one of the more quotable movies of the '40s. First:

RICK [responding to Maj Strasser]: I came to Casablanca for the waters.
RENAULT: But Rick, Casablanca is in the middle of a desert!
RICK: I was misinformed.

Second:

RENAULT: I'm shocked -- shocked, I say! -- to find gambling in this establishment!
CASHIER: Your winnings, Capitane.
RENAULT [surreptitiously]: Oh, thank you.

posted by lodurr at 8:20 AM on November 18, 2004

Oh, almost forgot.

DETECTIVE [looking at the lead Falcon statuette]: What's this?
MARLOWE: It's the, uh ... it's the stuff dreams are made of.
posted by lodurr at 8:23 AM on November 18, 2004

JOHNNY CASTLE: Nobody puts Baby in a corner.

If this isn't #1, there is no justice in the world.

Seriously, lodurr's 2nd Casablanca quote above is definitely a grievous omission.
posted by GhostintheMachine at 8:25 AM on November 18, 2004

AFI at times seems to be confusing "great quote" with "great character". Inspector Clouseau is a great character, but is "Is that your dog?" really that good a quote because?

Likewise, they confuse "great quote" with "iconic actor". The John Wayne quote from True Grit -- not a great movie, not a great quote, but because The Duke said it, it makes the list.

Also, they attribute "He slimed me" to Ray Stantz when any self-respecting movie fan knows it was Peter effin' Venkman.
posted by Robot Johnny at 8:26 AM on November 18, 2004

You mean I'm going to stay this color?!

The Jerk
posted by mic stand at 8:28 AM on November 18, 2004

They shafted The Big Sleep. They picked one quote out of so many better. My choice:

"My, my, my! Such a lot of guns around town and so few brains! You know, you're the second guy I've met today that seems to think a gat in the hand means the world by the tail."

Oh, but they made sure to get in three different quotes from Airplane and that two-word slice of genius from Austin Powers. Feh. If I want good quotes, I'll just stay here.
posted by grabbingsand at 8:28 AM on November 18, 2004

"You know -- for kids."
posted by Robot Johnny at 8:29 AM on November 18, 2004

When I first saw this FPP, before I went to the top 400 link, inside my head, I thought, "I bet they don't have anything from Ace Ventura..." boy did the first half a second of viewing that page sure shock me. (Too bad it is a pathetic example of a quote from such a fantastic movie).
posted by mic stand at 8:32 AM on November 18, 2004

To piggyback on Robot Johnny's earlier comment, they also seem to be confusing "great quote" with "great catchphrase." From Toy Story, "To infinity and beyond!" (which is nominated) is a great catchphrase. "That's not flying! That's falling with style!" (omitted) is a great quote.
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 8:37 AM on November 18, 2004

Sadly for me, this one from The Blues Brothers did not make the list:

"It's a hundred and six miles to Chicago, we got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark, and we're wearing sunglasses."

Compared to that, "We're on a mission from God" seems kinda lame.
posted by alumshubby at 8:40 AM on November 18, 2004

"Thirty-Seven!"
posted by jonmc at 8:40 AM on November 18, 2004

If I'm all wet about this, somebody correct me...but it seems to me that "No wire hangers, ever!" from Mommie Dearest is a memorable scene, but not much of a quote.
posted by alumshubby at 8:50 AM on November 18, 2004

"Where are we going?!"

Planet Ten!

"When are we leaving?!"

Real Soon!
posted by petebest at 8:53 AM on November 18, 2004

"Why would a man want to marry another man?"
"Security!"
posted by kenko at 8:55 AM on November 18, 2004

pdf's are BS. They're not searchable. With a list of four hundred quotes one needs to be able to control F and type "foo" whatever. Why does this list have to look a certain way? Isn't there an html or docfile? Though the list is alphabetical by movie title, that doesn't help a lot when you're searching for a quote that you know was in some movie but you can't recall which one. A lot of these quotes just don't make any sense out of context:

17. Annie Hall: "La-dee-dah. La-dee-dah."

There's a lot of words in Annie Hall, and this is the best they can do? The other two choices aren't much better. They have only two quotes from Dr. Strangelove. Is Kevin Smith represented at all in this list? "I'm not even supposed to be here today." Clerks is not represented. Neither is Dogma.

Only one quote from Princess Bride? The Inigo Montoya quote. What about:
* "This a kissing book?"
* "We are men of action, lies do not become us."
* "You rush a miracle man, you get rotten miracles."
* "Rodents Of Unusual Size? I don't think they exist."
* "You're trying to kidnap what I've rightfully stolen."
* "He's only mostly dead."
* "I do not envy you the headache you will have when you awake. But for now, rest well ..and dream of large women."
* "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."
* "No. To the PAIN."
* "You can't hurt me. Westley and I are joined by the bonds of love. And you cannot track that, not with a thousand bloodhounds, and you cannot break it, not with a thousand swords."
* "As you wish."

Not to mention the entire sword fighting scene. The dialogue is as much a clash of intellects as the blades. "Throw me the rope." "Get used to disappointment" "I am not left handed either" Brilliant! And the whole iocane powder meeting of the minds thing with Vizzini. Inconceivable!

They're not even taking their own list seriously. That does it. AFI and this list are worthless.
posted by ZachsMind at 8:57 AM on November 18, 2004

Having read almost all of the top ten, I've gotta say Airplane wins:

CAPT. OVEUR
You ever been in a cockpit before?
JOEY
No sir, I've never been up in a plane
before.
CAPT. OVEUR
You ever seen a grown man naked?
posted by moift at 9:02 AM on November 18, 2004

The Princess Bride is so chock-full of great dialogue that it's a shame William Goldman wasn't even nominated for Best Screenplay.

If you had Acrobat and not Acrobat Reader, you could do searches. Alas, Adobe...
posted by alumshubby at 9:04 AM on November 18, 2004

Juan Miranda: [a bird in a cage defecates on Juan's head, Juan looks up] For the rich you sing.

You taught me one thing, you Irish bastard--how to get fucked!
posted by kenko at 9:07 AM on November 18, 2004

Yes, but what does the Film Actors Guild have to say?
posted by Krrrlson at 9:07 AM on November 18, 2004

ZachsMind, why can't you search PDF's? I can in Reader 6.0.
posted by smackfu at 9:14 AM on November 18, 2004

No Slapshot? No Lama? Off the top of my head...

"Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned for Sega" - Mallrats

"See this quarter? It used to be a nickel!" - Slapshot
"She's a lesbian! A lesbian!" - Slapshot

"No, Donny. These men are nihilists. There's nothing to be afraid of." - The Big Lebowski

"These are OR scrubs." "Oh, are they?" - Rushmore

"Oh, Stifler's Mom!" - American Pie

"I can practically hear you getting fatter" - Tommy Boy

"Blame Canada!" - SouthPark, the Movie.

...the list is weak.
posted by jimmythefish at 9:15 AM on November 18, 2004

pdf's are BS. They're not searchable.

What? They're perfectly searchable, what is it you're doing with them? I'm only in reader 5.1 and they work fine.
posted by biffa at 9:18 AM on November 18, 2004

I just updated the latest version of Acrobat Reader and it's not searchable. I also hate it when documents are cemented and I can't manipulate them. I don't like acrobat and never have. Right now it'd take over a hundred pages if you wanted to print this thing out. It's not like it's a legal contract. It's a list of movie quotes! Why'd they use a pdf file?
posted by ZachsMind at 9:23 AM on November 18, 2004

Leaving out Kevin Smith while including Friday is a travesty. Smith is nothing if not quotable. "In a row?"

As for Inspector Clouseau, I think "There's a minkey in my rheum" would have been the one to pick.

Big props for including They Live.

I do think that they should have only used quotes that are original to those films. So, the Usual Suspects quote, being a well-delivered cliche, would be a no-go. Instead, they could have used any of the other great lines:

"Give me the keys, you fucking cocksucker."
or
"Well I believe in God. And the only thing that scares me is Keyser Soze."
or
"One, two, three, four, five, six, seven. Huh. Oswald was a fag."
or
"I live in Queens. Did you put that together yourself, Einstein? You got a team of monkeys working around the clock on this?"

(Three year reader. First time poster. I have finally unclenched.)
posted by solid-one-love at 9:28 AM on November 18, 2004

It's all about the Hedwig, baby:

"I scraped by with baby-sitting gigs and odd jobs... mostly the jobs we call blow."

"Fuck you, I'M GOING TO GUAM!"

I thought the list stank for actual quotes, but if only for reminding me of a whole bunch of films i haven't seen in far too long, it made me smile. They do seem to have a weird fetish for limp quotes from great movies, though...

Oh, and maybe it's too recent to sum up 100 years of film-making or whatever, but Shaun of the Dead still rules the quote-roost for me.

"Okay. But dogs can look up!"
posted by terpsichoria at 9:38 AM on November 18, 2004

I couldn't pick my favorite one hundred quotes from Bruce Campbell films, alone! And this list idea is supposed to distill the best film quotes of the past hundred years or so?

I'll lube my own crankshaft from now on!
posted by ZachsMind at 9:44 AM on November 18, 2004

not-so-long shot:
"Well, everyone knows Custer died at Little Bighorn. What this book presupposes is... maybe he didn't. " -- the royal tenenbaums

"You see Hopsi, you don't know very much about girls. The best ones aren't as good as you think they are and the bad ones aren't as bad. Not nearly as bad." -- the lady eve

long shot:
"i had a bad day. i had to subert my morals and kowtow to an idiot. television makes these daily sacrifices worthwhile." -- trust

"i got my meat, i got my potatoes, i got my vegetable, i got my dessert...and i don't even have to wash the dishes." -- stranger than paradise

never would make it, still a fun quote:
"I'M PERFECT! and none of you get to have me because i don't put out." -- ladies and gentlemen, the fabulous stains
posted by pxe2000 at 9:46 AM on November 18, 2004

"Son, you got a panty on your head" -- Raising Arizona
posted by briank at 9:48 AM on November 18, 2004

They've got a LOT of shitass quotes on there but some suprisingly good ones, too. I'd have included these:

"There's always got to be poison!" -- Carnal Knowledge

"It's your hand, Buckaroo." -- BB

"All these things... Up from the ground." -- Tin Men

"The power of Christ compels you!" -- Exorcist

"What heart?" -- Miller's Crossing

And these two from All that Jazz:

"The blonde with the television show in Philadelphia? I remember that girl's name. I remember that girl's name because that girl meant something to me. The blonde with the television show -- her name was Sweetheart!"

--

Angelique: Do you believe in love?
Joe: I believe in saying "I love you."

"This is the girl." -- Mulholland Drive

I would also have used "She's my sister and my daughter. Do you understand, or is that too tough for you?" from Chinatown instead of "She's my sister! She's my daughter!".

"All train compartments smell vaguely of shit." -- Glengarry Glen Ross
posted by dobbs at 9:52 AM on November 18, 2004

I did a quick search on the PDF, and finding that the two, best written movies I can think of (The Lion In Winter and Withnail and I) are unrepresented, I don't really have the desire to go through the rest of the list.

Of course, even imdb leaves off my favorite quote from the latter:
"What do you want a child for?"
"So I may tutor him in the ways of righteousness!"
posted by thecaddy at 10:06 AM on November 18, 2004

"I was born when she kissed me. I died when she left me. I lived a few weeks while she loved me." -- In a Lonely Place
posted by ed at 10:11 AM on November 18, 2004

As some have already mentioned, the list does, it seems, appear to have omitted all Lebowski-type quips, but at the very least it has:

"Hey Bud, let's party!"
- Jeff Spicoli

"Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."
- Ferris Bueller

Still, not having Lebowski is just harsh.
posted by LushMojo at 10:11 AM on November 18, 2004

#1 most quoted movie in my house:

Withnail: Look at that. Look at that. "Accident Blackspot"? These aren't accidents. They're throwing themselves into the road gladly. Throwing themselves into the road to escape all this hideousness.
[to a pedestrian]
Withnail: Throw yourself into the road, darling - you haven't got a chance.

Maybe #2:

"Tell me of your homeworld, Ussel."

or

"The sleeper has awakened!"
posted by Kafkaesque at 10:19 AM on November 18, 2004

Reggie Dunlop: You cheap sonofabitch. Those guys are retards.

McGrath: I got a good deal on those boys. Scout said they showed a lot of promise.

Reggie Dunlop: They brought their fuckin' TOYS with 'em!

McGrath: Id rather have em playin' with their toys than playin' with themselves

Reggie Dunlop: They're too dumb to play with themselves.
posted by The Card Cheat at 10:25 AM on November 18, 2004

"I just went gay all of a sudden!" --Bringing Up Baby
posted by nakedcodemonkey at 10:26 AM on November 18, 2004

Asinine.

These are the most repeated movie lines and not the cleverest/wittiest, I assume? Oh, the clever writer who came up with "All-Righty, then."

That said, I nominate, "Al-a, al-a, al-a-ka-zaam!"

-- Cumshot from porn I can't remember the name of.
posted by flarbuse at 10:28 AM on November 18, 2004

Oh, yeah, one more from Slap Shot;

Lily Braden: What's the story on that dog?

Reggie Dunlop: That's the dog that saved Charleston from the 1938 flood.

Lily Braden: Well, FUCK HIM.
posted by The Card Cheat at 10:30 AM on November 18, 2004

"Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn."
posted by mania at 10:45 AM on November 18, 2004

Mame: "You've got to live! Live! Live!"
--Auntie Mame


Walter: "You'll be here too?"
Phyllis: "I guess so, I usually am."
Walter: "Same chair, same perfume, same anklet?"
Phyllis: "I wonder if I know what you mean."
Walter: "I wonder if you wonder."
--Double Indemnity

Reggie: "You know what's wrong with you?"
Peter: "What?"
Reggie: "Nothing."
--Charade

Lloyd: "I'm gonna take Diane Court out again."
Corey: "Well that's unlikely."
Lloyd: "Is the movies a good second date, you know? As a date?"
Corey: "Well you never had a first date."
Lloyd: "Yes we did. I sat across from her at a mall. We ate together. We ate. That's eating. Sharing an important physical event."
Corey: "That's not even a scam."
Lloyd: "What's a scam?"
Corey: "Going out as friends."
DC: "No its not. Scam is lusting."
Lloyd & Corey: "Then what's a date?"
DC: "A date is prearrangement. With a possibility for love."
Corey: "Then what's love?"
--Say Anything
posted by nakedcodemonkey at 10:47 AM on November 18, 2004

How about Khaaan?
posted by inksyndicate at 10:55 AM on November 18, 2004

"I still don't think that's Pete"

"Damn! We're in a tight spot!"

"That's not the issue Delmar. Even if that did put you square with the Lord, the State of Mississippi's a little more hard-nosed. "

"Pete, it's a fool that looks for logic in the chambers of the human heart. "

Delmar: Care for some gopher Everett?
Everett: No thank you, Delmar. One third of a gopher would only arouse my appetite without bedding it down.

O Brother Where Art Thou
posted by Danf at 10:56 AM on November 18, 2004

"I think I fall into the 'or what' category."

Okay I gave Adobe Acrobat Reader a roadie's screwdriver and now it's letting me search. I just have to hold my mouth just right when I point & click is all. I still hate this thing.

I really don't understand what criteria was used to decide what makes it into the list and what doesn't. Take Star Wars for example. You get "May the force be with you," and "Do or do not, there is no try" from Empire Strikes Back. Okay I get that. Where's:

* "Get this walking carpet out of my way."
* "These are not the droids you're looking for"
* "That's no moon. It's a space station"
* "I got a bad feeling about this."
* "Mos Eisley spaceport. You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy. We must be cautious."
* "If money is all you love, then that's what you'll receive."
* "It's not wise to upset a Wookiee."
* "If there's a bright center to the universe, you're on the planet that it's farthest from."
* "In my experience, there's no such thing as luck."

Why did those other quotes make it in and these did not? And R2D2 gets some of the best lines even though we have only occasional clues what he's saying. "Don't get technical with me!" "Don't call me a mindless philosopher, you overweight glob of grease." C3P0 gives us hints, but I like to imagine Artoo's really got the foulest mouth of them all and he's cussing every other beep. So the best quotes are the ones we never hear.
posted by ZachsMind at 10:57 AM on November 18, 2004

"You know -- for kids."
When I saw the post, this was the first quote I thought about

Guess no Month Python made it because it is British?
"I'm invincible!" - Black Knight

"Please! This is supposed to be a happy occasion. Let's not bicker and argue about who killed who." - King of Swamp Castle

And the whole dialogue between King Arthur and Dennis, "Listen, strange women lying in ponds distributing swords is no basis for a system of government. Supreme executive power derives from a mandate from the masses, not from some farcical aquatic ceremony."
posted by brolloks at 10:57 AM on November 18, 2004

How much for one rib?
posted by 23skidoo at 11:03 AM on November 18, 2004

Sorry about the length of this:

They're trying to pick from a hundred years of film. While we like to think that what happened in the world/life/culture/pop culture today is most important...it's not. You won't really know for another 10-20 years.

AFI's members are older, this skews the quotes as well. MTV's viewers would be more current films..

"1939 is the most represented year with 19 movie quotes. 1942 has 17 quotes and 1980 has 12"

What I consider quotable isn't necessarily what you would. Think about what is quotable and sums up a film (as opposed to your favorite line.)

I'm sure we all feel that the latter is important...but I think that the former is important too (the Butch Cassidy line).

Kevin Smith is eminently quotable - but his style of direction is poor and his characterizations/storytelling are so-so at best (and I really like his stuff. It's funny.) Being funny doesn't make it instantly on the list.

According the the AFI:
"Today, AFI distributed a ballot with 400 nominated movie quotes to a jury of over 1,500 leaders from the creative community, including film artists (directors, screenwriters, actors, editors, cinematographers), critics and historians."

Those last two are people who are learned in films, but have likely never made one.

"Due to the extensive number of memorable movie lines in American film, jurors may also write in votes for up to five quotes that may not already appear on the ballot."


"The jurors have been asked to consider the following criteria in making their selections:

MOVIE QUOTE
A statement, phrase or brief exchange of dialogue spoken in an American film.* (Lyrics from songs are not eligible.)

CULTURAL IMPACT
Movie Quotes that viewers use in their own lives and situations; circulating through popular culture, they become part of the national lexicon.

LEGACY
Movie Quotes that viewers use to evoke the memory of a treasured film, thus ensuring and enlivening its historical legacy.""

(Disclaimer - I don't necessarily agree or disagree with anyone here or the AFI - I'm just trying to understand what they picked rather than to say "Dammit, my favorite quote isn't there!")

Oh, and today's quote? (in context please)
Hooper: Check this shit. You got cracker farm boy Luke Skywalker, Nazi poster boy, blond hair, blue eyes. And then you got Darth Vader, the blackest brother in the galaxy, Nubian god!
Banky Edwards: What's a "Nubian?"
Hooper: Shut the fuck up!

posted by filmgeek at 11:41 AM on November 18, 2004

Fellini - 81/2

"The world abounds with superfluity. Why add disorder to disorder?... It's better to destroy than to create what's inessential." Besides, what really deserves to survive? We're suffocated by words, sounds, images that emerge from the void only to return to the void. A true artist must swear an oath: "Dedication to silence."
posted by monkeyboy_socal at 12:01 PM on November 18, 2004

I, too, am appalled at the absence of The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension.

"Why is there a watermelon there?"

And, of course, the legendary:
"No matter where you go, there you are."

(First MeFi comment from a years-long lurker. We all have to start somewhere.)
posted by Faint of Butt at 12:11 PM on November 18, 2004

How could I forget this one:

"Chopper! Sick balls!" - Stand By Me
posted by jimmythefish at 12:14 PM on November 18, 2004

In "Once Upon a Time in Mexico"

Johnny Depp: Are you a Mexican or a Mexican't?
Cheech Marin: I'm a Mexican!
posted by x_3mta3 at 12:25 PM on November 18, 2004

AFI's members are older, this skews the quotes as well. MTV's viewers would be more current films..

Hmmm.... seems to me that, given 100 years to pick from, they skew pretty recent.
posted by lodurr at 12:27 PM on November 18, 2004

x_3mta3 -- actually, that was Cucuy:

Agent Sands: Are you a Mexi-CAN or a Mexi-CAN'T?
Cucuy: I'm a Mexi-CAN
Agent Sands: Good. Then do as I say.

...followed later by:

Cucuy: Well, seeing as I'm a Mexican, I guess I can do whatever the fuck I want.

... now this is why I keep coming back here...
posted by lodurr at 12:32 PM on November 18, 2004

The omission of Ealing Comedies is a shame.

To make amends, from Kind Hearts and Coronets:

"It is so difficult to make a neat job of killing people with whom one is not on friendly terms."
posted by Navek Rednam at 12:46 PM on November 18, 2004

"Don't go near the elevator, that's just what they want us to do."
and of course
"With a little luck his life was ruined forever."
posted by superposition at 12:55 PM on November 18, 2004

"open up, it's dave"
"dave's not here man"
posted by isthisthingon at 1:58 PM on November 18, 2004

"I'm sorry, Dave, I can't do that."
posted by lodurr at 2:20 PM on November 18, 2004

Nobody:"Stupid fucking white man."

-- Gary Farmer, Dead Man.
posted by Devils Slide at 2:47 PM on November 18, 2004

What exactly is the intent of the list? Is it supposed to list the quotes that have filtered into our culture? The phrases which have become household terms? Or is it supposed to somehow reflect some element or elements of the modern man's essence of being? Or is it just a way for the AFI to pretend to be somehow valid and relevant?

I dunno. I'm gonna make my own list and the heck with AFI. No Buckaroo Banzai! No Monty Python!? I spit in their general direction! Their father was a hampster and their mother smelt of elderberries! ...or somethin'.

And it was ""I'm sorry, Dave, I'm afraid I can't do that."
posted by ZachsMind at 2:52 PM on November 18, 2004

"Those aren't pillows!"
posted by Devils Slide at 3:01 PM on November 18, 2004

We have a user named Faint of Butt?

Awesome.
posted by mr_crash_davis at 3:09 PM on November 18, 2004

filmgeek: Trouble is the AFI hasn't even followed its own stupid rules - Gandhi and Lawrence of Arabia (as a minimum) aren't American movies, they're British - surely they can't have decided that having a US distributor qualifies them as american ?!?
posted by daveg at 3:12 PM on November 18, 2004

lodurr: They do have 100 years to choose from, but the first 30 or so were silent.

It's kind of an exercise in pointlessness anyway.
posted by SoftRain at 4:06 PM on November 18, 2004

So these have to be American movies then?

Because I think "There's a little Godzilla in all of us..." is my favorite movie quote. Especially when it's followed by THE END?
posted by hughbot at 4:20 PM on November 18, 2004

I just realized it's AMERICAN Film Institute, which would kind of explain the lack of Withnail & I or Monty Python.
posted by Kafkaesque at 5:50 PM on November 18, 2004

For some inexplicable reason, my favorite Buckaroo Banzai quote is "They landed in New Jersey in 1938, and they HYPNOTIZED Orson Welles!"

I'm actually more than a little surprised they included the "kick ass and chew bubblegum" line from They Live, but as long as they're quoting John Carpenter films, they should have included "Snake Plissken? I heard you were dead."
posted by MrBadExample at 11:06 PM on November 18, 2004

On a team I worked on a few years go, when you'd been vindicated on an issue, it was common practice to remark: "Call me Plissken."
posted by lodurr at 5:36 AM on November 19, 2004

BIG-BOO-TAY! TAY! TAY!
posted by ZachsMind at 6:04 AM on November 19, 2004

I don't know how many of you have seen "The Way of the Gun" but it's chock full O' goodies like:


"Shut that cunt's mouth or I'll come over there and fuck start her head."

"Tell ya the truth, I don't think this is a brains kind of operation."
posted by MikeMc at 12:02 PM on November 19, 2004

My reaction to their list and one of my favourite quotes:

"You gotta be fucking kidding me"
posted by filmgoerjuan at 2:16 PM on November 19, 2004

We have a user named Faint of Butt?

Awesome.

::grins::

MetaFilter is not a place for the faint of heart... or the faint of butt.
posted by Faint of Butt at 10:11 PM on November 21, 2004

John Carpenter has some often ignored ones tough guy quotes:

Sorry about the balls. It was a lucky shot. (In the Mouth of Madness)

I came to chew bubblegum and kick ass. And I'm all out of bubblegum. (They Live)

Next time some eight foot tall, wild-eyed maniac taps the back of your favorite head up against the barroom wall and asks you if you've paid your dues, well, you just do what ol' Jack Burton always does at a time like that. You stare that sucker right back in the eye. 'Have you paid your dues, Jack?' 'Yes sir, the check is in the mail. (Big Trouble in Little China)

President of What? (Escape from New York)

I've got a message for you, and you're not going to like it. (Prince of Darkness)

And the perfect capper to a perfect movie:
Why don't we just wait here a while...see what happens. (The Thing)
posted by jbielby at 5:57 PM on November 23, 2004