There is a misperception, if you will, in critical response or even in Hollywood, that I can only do exaggerated characters. Or what they would call over-the-top performances. Well, this is completely false.

Guy Pearce is very precise and clear about understanding the rhythm and the music of a scene.

If I could have been a marine biologist I would have, but I didn't have that kind of intelligence. Numbers were never my strong point.

I think what makes people fascinating is conflict, it's drama, it's the human condition. Nobody wants to watch perfection.

Music is the life of a film.

Celebrity has become, for better or worse, an art form. An artist can use themselves as a medium to become a celebrity as a walking work of art.

David Mamet was great to work with. He was everything that I thought he would be as a director. He's incredibly articulate, an easy collaborator. Extraordinarily knowledgeable about film and writing.

My parents always pushed creativity on us, but they made it seem like the fun thing to do.