There are very few perfect films. I think Reservoir Dogs (1992) is close to being a perfect film.

Most actresses would have killed just to be an extra. I had to beg her to read the script first.

In an action movie, I don`t want to move the camera too much, because the movement should be within the frame. The same goes for comedy. You don`t want to push in for a joke; it`s plenty in a medium shot. Watch my jokes, they`re never in close-up. If the audience feels the camera, it`s horrible.

It`s been very important for me to stick to the tone. I feel so reverential to the first two [movies], I`m not reinventing anything that`s already been done.

Why do I need final cut? Final cut is for artistes quote unquote--directors whose movies don`t make a lot of money. Maybe Scorsese should have final cut because a guy like Harvey Weinstein or a studio might change it to make it a little more accessible or a little more commercial and he has a vision of what he wants it to be. He wants it to be four hours long or whatever.

In Hollywood you gotta keep the movement. You gotta have three or four projects and whichever one comes in first, or better, that`s the one you`re going to do.

I have chosen to withdraw as director of `Superman.` The difficulty of casting the role of Superman has contributed to my decision. I appreciate the efforts of Warner Bros. and the entire production team during this process.

She`s the most chameleon-like actress I`ve ever met. She`s a shy person, until she wants to become something else.

There`s no difference between a tacky Jew from Miami and a rap star. They both want the Cadillac and the Rolex with the diamonds.

This is as good or better than any feature script that I`ve read in the past few years. I think there`s less of a stigma now with television. It`s all based on the material, and I think filmmakers and writers are less judgmental.

Once they shaved their heads, we saw that the shape of their heads really matched,

No matter how successful you are, you are not invincible. The studio is writing the checks. It`s all about leverage and who has the power. The goal is to get the biggest deal you can, because you are going to have to give something back to the studios anyway.

But it`s also got a lot of humor. My attraction to it [the show] was that, not only was it smart and compelling, but it also had moments of humanity and humor. These characters are very colorful, and most of the best drama happens when there also is humor. So I think it`s really smart that you`re going to be able to laugh and maybe be scared for these characters, maybe even cry at some point.

They don`t really like change. But I think we`ll be able to settle their concerns pretty quickly.

[Explaining his recasting of the role of "Jack Crawford" with Harvey Keitel in Red Dragon (2002)]: When Jonathan Demme said make your own version, I couldn`t see anyone but Anthony Hopkins and I couldn`t see anyone but Anthony Heald as "Dr. Chilton". I can`t see another acting doing it. But what happened was I went down to the FBI, and discovered they`re like tough New York Cops. They weren`t like Scott Glenn.

Am I Orson Welles? Obviously not. But 50 years from now, who knows how, as a person, I`ll have grown. I`ve already changed, from being a 26-year-old kid to a 38-year-old guy - I`m not a man yet, really. But as I get older, who knows how my experiences and my knowledge, this past 12 years making movies, how that`s all going to affect the movies that I make? I know that the life I lived from 16 to 26 allowed me to make a movie like Rush Hour, so now let`s see...