I myself have never been able to find out precisely what feminism is: I only know that people call me a feminist whenever I express sentiments that differentiate me from a doormat.

There is no logical reason why the camel of great art should pass through the needle of mob intelligence.

Before a war military science seems a real science, like astronomy; but after a war it seems more like astrology.

Life ought to be a struggle of desire toward adventures whose nobility will fertilize the soul.

Prose is admittedly an art rooted in social intercourse, and a fiction writer is faster to find a common denominator with his cell mates than a poet is.

I think caring too much about the economics starts affecting the creative aspect of the film. That is a dangerous process for a filmmaker. He should make his film without having to worry about how much it has cost or how much it will be sold for.

We are fascinated with our own history, and we are fascinated with the Romans because they were millennia ago, and yet they still capture our imagination because they were actually so similar to us. They were very civilized. They had a very similar political system.

Creative thinking - in terms of idea creativity - is not a mystical talent. It is a skill that can be practised and nurtured.