The Jews have never been ashamed of being Jews, whereas homosexuals have been stupid enough to be ashamed of their homosexuality.

Yes, actually ever since I saw his films and tried to write about them, Sirk's been in everything I've done. Not Sirk himself, but what I've learned from his work.

The more real things get, the more like myths they become.

So certainly, if we can tell evil stories to make people sick, we can also tell good myths that make them well.

And I don't believe that melodramatic feelings are laughable - they should be taken absolutely seriously.

I'd like to be for cinema what Shakespeare was for theatre, Marx for politics and Freud for psychology: someone after whom nothing is as it used to be.