|
 Introduction:
Film speeches are normally delivered orally and directed at an audience
of three or more people, although there can be exceptions. They are
usually persuasive-type speeches, either designed to promote or to dissuade,
and they are highly quotable.
Greatest Film Speeches and Monologues: Video store
chain Blockbuster Video (in the UK) held a series of polls in
late 2003 with its customers to determine the 20 Greatest Film Speeches
and Monologues in cinematic history. These are marked in the following
lists with this symbol --  and
by their original ranking number in the top 20. Although
there were some excellent choices in their poll, the results almost
completely ignored early films, and entirely disregarded films with
speeches made by female characters. Greatest Films has provided
this expanded listing of Best Film Speeches and Monologues here
of deserving, best film monologues and speeches.
Note: The films that are marked with
a yellow star 
are the films that "The Greatest Films" site has selected as the 100
Greatest Films.
| |
| Film
and Brief Title |
Speech |
Example |
Pulp Fiction (1994)
 Executioner's
"The Path of a Righteous Man" (Loosely Based on Ezekiel
25:17)
|
# 4
Hitman Jules Winnfield's (Samuel L. Jackson) Bible
quote: ("The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides
by the iniquities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men.
Blessed is he, who, in the name of charity and good will, shepherds
the weak through the valley of darkness, for he is truly his brother's
keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down
upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt
to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know my name is
the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon thee.") |
|
| A
Tale About Great-Grandfather's Gold War Watch |
The unforgettable
speech (a childhood flashback) of Captain Koons (Christopher Walken)
talking to veteran boxer Butch Coolidge (Bruce Willis) about an
important heirloom that had been in the Coolidge family for three
generations: ("...This watch was on your Daddy's wrist when
he was shot down over Hanoi. He was captured and put in a Vietnamese
prison camp. He knew that if the gooks ever saw the watch, they
would confiscate it and take it away. The way your dad looked at
it, this watch was your birthright. He'd be damned if any slopes
were gonna put their greasy yellow hands on his boy's birthright.
So he hid it in the one place he knew he could hide something: in
his ass. Five long years, he wore this watch up his ass. Then, when
he died of dysentery, he gave me the watch. I hid this uncomfortable
piece of metal up my ass for two years. Then, after seven years,
I was sent home to my family. And now, little man, I give the watch
to you.")
|
|
| "I'm
Tryin' Real Hard to be a Shepherd" |
Hitman Jules Winnfield's
(Samuel L. Jackson) closing speech in a diner while holding a gun
on liquor store bandit Pumpkin (Tim Roth): ("Well, there's
this passage I got memorized. Ezekiel 25:17. 'The path of the righteous
man is beset on all sides by the iniquities of the selfish and the
tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who, in the name of charity and
good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of darkness. For
he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children.
And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious
anger those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you
will know I am the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon you.' I been
saying that shit for years. And if you heard it, that meant your
ass. I never gave much thought to what it meant. I just thought
it was some cold-blooded shit to say to a mother f--ker before I
popped a cap in his ass. But I saw some shit this mornin' made me
think twice. See, now I'm thinkin', maybe it means you're the evil
man. And I'm the righteous man. And Mr. 9 Millimeter here, he's
the shepherd protectin' my righteous ass in the valley of darkness.
Or it could mean you're the righteous man and I'm the shepherd and
it's the world that's evil and selfish. Now I'd like that. But that
shit ain't the truth. The truth is you're the weak. And I'm the
tyranny of evil men. But I'm tryin', Ringo, I'm tryin' real hard
to be the shepherd.") |
|
The Shawshank
Redemption (1994)
Suicide
Letter
|
Brooks' (James
Whitmore) despairing letter, read in voice-over, to his ex-fellow
inmates about life outside of prison, preceding his suicide by hanging:
("Dear Fellas. I can't believe how fast things move on the
outside. I saw an automobile once when I was a kid, but now they're
everywhere. The world went and got itself in a big damn hurry. The
parole board got me into this halfway house called the Brewer, and
a job bagging groceries at the Food-Way. It's hard work. I try to
keep up, but my hands hurt most of the time. I don't think the store
manager likes me very much. Sometimes after work I go to the park
and feed the birds. I keep thinking Jake might just show up and
say hello. But he never does. I hope wherever he is, he's doing
okay and making new friends. I have trouble sleeping at night. I
have -- bad dreams, like I'm falling. I wake up scared. Sometimes
it takes me a while to remember where I am. Maybe I should get me
a gun and rob the Food-Way, so they'd send me home. I could shoot
the manager while I was at it, sort of like a bonus. I guess I'm
too old for that sort of nonsense anymore. I don't like it here.
I'm tired of being afraid all the time. I've decided not to stay.
I doubt they'll kick up any fuss. Not for an old crook like me.") |
|
"Rehabilitated?" |
The third, final
parole board meeting in which Ellis Boyd "Red" Redding
(Morgan Freeman) is again wearily asked his thoughts on rehabilitation:
("Rehabilitated? Well, now, let me see. You know, I don't have
any idea what that means...I know what you think it means, sonny.
To me, it's just a made up word, a politician's word, so that young
fellas like yourself can wear a suit and a tie and have a job...
Rehabilitated? It's just a bulls--t word. So you go on and stamp
your form, Sonny, and stop wasting my time. Because to tell you
the truth, I don't give a s--t.") |
|
| "I
Hope" |
Red's expectant
"Get busy livin'" closing monologue after being paroled
and invited to come to Mexico by Andy Dufresne (Tim Robbins): ("Get
busy livin', or get busy dyin'. That's god-damn right. For the second
time in my life, I am guilty of committing a crime. Parole violation.
Of course, I doubt they'll toss up any roadblocks for that. Not
for an old crook like me... I find I am so excited I can barely
sit still or hold a thought in my head. I think it's the excitement
only a free man can feel, a free man at the start of a long journey
whose conclusion is uncertain. I hope I can make it across the border.
I hope to see my friend and shake his hand. I hope the Pacific is
as blue as it has been in my dreams. I hope.") |
|
Sleep
With Me (1994)
Script
Analysis of Top Gun
|
Sid's (Quentin
Tarantino) notorious monologue in which he analyzes and deconstructs Top Gun (1986) as having a homosexual subtextual meaning:
("You want subversion on a massive level? You know what one
of the greatest f--king scripts ever written in the history of Hollywood
is? Top Gun. Top Gun is f--king great. What is Top
Gun? You think it's a story about a bunch of fighter pilots...
It is a story about a man's struggle with his own homosexuality.
It is! That is what Top Gun is about, man... And it's over,
and they f--king land, and Iceman's been trying to get Maverick
the entire time, and finally, he's got him, all right? And what
is the last f--king line that they have together? They're all hugging
and kissing and happy with each other, and Ice comes up to Maverick,
and he says, 'Man, you can ride my tail, anytime!' And what does
Maverick say? 'You can ride mine!' Swordfight! Swordfight! F--kin'
A, man!") |
|
The
American President (1995)
Defiant
Presidential Press Conference
|
President
Andrew Shepherd's (Michael Douglas) defiant press conference responding
to Sen. Robert Runsom's (Richard Dreyfuss) attacks on his character
and girlfriend Sydney Ellen Wade (Annette Bening): ("...We've
got serious problems, and we need serious people. And if you want
to talk about character, Bob, you'd better come at me with more
than a burning flag and a membership card. If you want to talk about
character and American values, fine. Just tell me where and when,
and I'll show up. This a time for serious people, Bob, and your
fifteen minutes are up. My name is Andrew Shepherd, and I am the President.") |
|
Braveheart (1995)
Inspirational "They'll Never Take Our Freedom"
|
# 10
William Wallace's (Mel Gibson) inspirational words:
("And I see a whole army of my countrymen here in defiance
of tyranny. You have come to fight as free men, and free men you
are. What will you do with that freedom? Will you fight?...Aye,
fight and you may die, run and you'll live - at least a while.
And dying in your beds many years from now, would you be willing
to trade all the days from this day to that for one chance, just
one chance to come back here and tell our enemies that they may
take our lives, but they'll never take our freedom! Alba gu
bra! (Scotland forever!)") |
|
Casino
(1995)
Las
Vegas Will Never Be the Same
|
Sam "Ace"
Rothstein's (Robert De Niro) wistful, disdainful eulogy for Las
Vegas casino life during a closing montage: ("The town will
never be the same. After the Tangiers, the big corporations took
it all over. Today, it looks like Disneyland. And while the kids
play cardboard pirates, Mommy and Daddy drop the house payments
and Junior's college money on the poker slots. In the old days,
dealers knew your name, what you drank, what you played. Today,
it's like checkin' into an airport. And if you order room service,
you're lucky if you get it by Thursday. Today, it's all gone. You
get a whale show up with four million in a suitcase, and some twenty-five-year-old
hotel school kid is gonna want his Social Security Number. After
the Teamsters got knocked out of the box, the corporations tore
down practically every one of the old casinos. And where did the
money come from to rebuild the pyramids? Junk bonds. But in the
end, I wound up right back where I started. I could still pick winners,
and I could still make money for all kinds of people back home.
And why mess up a good thing?") |
|
"That's
My Business. That's What I Do"
|
Nicky Santoro's (Joe Pesci)
threatening and intimidating verbal denouncement of banker Charlie
Clark (Richard Riehle), demanding to get his money back: ("I
think that you've gotten the wrong impression about me. I think
in all fairness, I should explain to you exactly what it is that
I do. For instance, tomorrow morning, I'll get up nice and early,
take a walk down over to the bank and... walk in and see and uh...
if you don't have my money for me, I'll... crack your f--kin' head
wide-open in front of everybody in the bank. And just about the
time that I'm comin' out of jail, hopefully, you'll be coming out
of your coma. And guess what? I'll split your f--kin' head open
again. 'Cause I'm f--kin' stupid. I don't give a f--k about jail.
That's my business. That's what I do. And we know what you do, don't
we, Charlie? You f--k people out of money and get away with it.") |
|
Clueless
(1995)
Debating
Haitian Immigration
|
Cher's (Alicia
Silverstone) debate class speech (taking the pro position) on 'Whether
all oppressed people should be allowed refuge in America': ("So,
OK, like right now, for example, the Haitians need to come to America.
But some people are all 'What about the strain on our resources?'
But it's like when I had this garden party for my father's birthday,
right? I said R.S.V.P. because it was a sit-down dinner. But people
came that, like, did not R.S.V.P. So I was, like, totally buggin'.
I had to haul ass to the kitchen, redistribute the food, squish
in extra place settings; but by the end of the day it was, like,
the more the merrier!...") |
|
Dead
Man Walking (1995)
Capital
Punishment
|
Matthew Poncelot's
(Sean Penn) final speech before being executed by lethal injection:
("...I just wanna say I think killin' is wrong, no matter who
does it, whether it's me or y'all or your government...") |
|
Mallrats
(1995)
True
Story About a Cat Stuck Up One's Ass to Get the Gerbil Out
|
The opening
voice-over of Brodie (Jason Lee) about his cousin Walter: ("One
time my cousin Walter got this cat stuck up his ass. True story.
He bought it at our local mall, so the whole fiasco wound up on
the news. It was embarrasing for my relatives and all, but the next
week, he did it again. Different cat, same results, complete with
another trip to the emergency room. So, I run into him a week later
in the mall and he's buying another cat. And I says to him: 'Jesus,
Walt! What are you doing? You know you're just gonna get this cat
stuck in your ass too. Why don't you knock it off?' And he said
to me: 'Brodie, how the hell else am I supposed to get the gerbil
out?' My cousin was a weird guy.") |
|
Tommy
Boy (1995)
Manic
Sales Pitch to An Auto Executive
|
Loud-mouthed
idiot child Tommy Boy Callahan's (Chris Farley) re-enactment of
a car crash (with expensive model cars) to a car executive in order
to sell brake pads: ("Uh, what my associate is trying say is
that, uh... Our new brake pads are really cool. You're not even
gonna believe it. Like, uhm, let's say you're driving along the
road with your family. (He picks up a model car) And you're drivin'
along, la-de-da, woo. Then, all of a sudden there's a truck tire
in the middle of the road. And you hit the brakes. EEEEEEEEE! Whoa,
that was close. Ha-ha. Now let's see what happens when you're drivin'
with the "other guy's" brake pads. You're drivin' along,
you're drivin' along, and then all of a sudden, the kids are yellin'
from the back seat: "I gotta go to the bathroom, Daddy!"
"Not now, damn it!" Truck tire. EEEEEEEE! "I CAN'T
STOP!" (He slams the model car into a lighter) HELP! There's
a cliff! AAAAAHH! And your family's screamin': (He sets the model
car on fire) "Oh my God, we're burnin' alive!" "No!
I can't feel my legs!" Here comes the meat wagon. (He imitates
siren sound) And the medic gets out and says: "Oh, my God!".
New guy's in the corner puking his guts out. (He imitates puking
sound) All because you want to save a couple extra pennies. Ha,
ha. And to me, it doesn't..." -- "GET OUT!")
|
|
The Usual Suspects
(1995)
"The
Greatest Trick the Devil Ever Pulled..."
|
Limping, weaselly con
man Roger "Verbal" Kint's (Oscar-winning Kevin Spacey) questioning
scene by customs agent/officer Dave Kujan (Chazz Palminteri) with
Kint's lengthy, wily tale of the notorious, mysterious, devilish
crime lord Keyser Soze's early life ("The greatest trick the devil
ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist"), his description
of the criminal mastermind's coldblooded dealings with Hungarian
rivals - followed by his disappearance: ("And like that, he's
gone. (He blows on his fingers, as if to say 'Poof!') Underground.
Nobody's ever seen him since. He becomes a myth, a spook story that
criminals tell their kids at night...Well, I believe in God, and
the only thing that scares me is Keyser Soze") |
|
Beautiful
Girls (1996)
"A Beautiful Girl Can Make You Dizzy"
|
Paul Kirkwood's (Michael Rapaport) glowing monologue about "supermodels" and "beautiful girls" while surrounded by pinups tacked on the wall: ("Supermodels are beautiful girls, Will. A beautiful girl can make you dizzy, like you've been drinkin' Jack and Coke all morning. She can make you feel high - full of the single greatest commodity known to man - promise. Promise of a better day. Promise of a greater hope. Promise of a new tomorrow. This particular aura can be found in the gait of a beautiful girl. In her smile, in her soul, and the way she makes every rotten little thing about life seem like it's gonna be okay. The supermodels, Willy? That's all they are. Bottled promise. Scenes from a brand new day. Hope dancing in stiletto heels.") |
|
"Get
a Grip" |
Gina Barrisano's
(Rosie O'Donnell) tirade against the unreal "beautiful"
portrayal of women in the media, men's magazines, etc.: ("You
wanna know what your problem is? MTV, Playboys, and Madison- f--king
Avenue. Yeah. Let me explain something to you. OK, look, girls with
big tits have big asses, girls with little tits have little asses.
That's the way it goes. God doesn't f--k around, he's a fair guy.
He gave the fatties big, beautiful tits, and the skinnies little,
tiny niddlers. If you don't like it, call him...No matter how perfect
the nipple, how supple the thigh, unless there's some other s--t
going on in the relationship besides physical, it's going to get
old, okay? And you guys, as a gender, have got to get a grip, otherwise
the future of the human race is in jeopardy.") |
|
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BEST FILM SPEECHES AND MONOLOGUES