Stanley Fish, author of the recently published How to Write a Sentence (And How to Read One), selects his all time favorite lines from these classic films.
1. "We didn't need dialogue; we had faces."
Sunset Boulevard, Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson)
2. "It's gonna be cold, it's gonna be grey, and it's gonna last you for the rest of your life."
Groundhog Day, Phil Connors (Bill Murray)
3. "They're stuck with each other and they got to ride all the way to the end of the line and it's a one way trip and the last stop is the cemetery."
Double Indemnity, Barton Keyes (Edward G. Robinson) about Phyllis Dietrichson (Barbara Stanwyck) and Walter Neff (Fred McMurray)
4. "I'm not responsible for what people think, Pat, only for what I am."
The Big Country, James McKay (Gregory Peck) to Julie Maragon (Jean Simmons)
5. "I'll pick you up outside the factory, you'll be my pick-up."
A Place in the Sun, Angela Vickers (Elizabeth Taylor) to George Eastman (Montgomery Clift)
6. "Can't you just love me for who I am?"
Vertigo, Judy (Kim Novak) to Scottie (Jimmy Stewart)
7. "Everybody in this room is smart and everybody was just doing their job and Teresa Perrone is dead."
Absence of Malice, Michael Gallagher (Paul Newman)
Bonus: "You wuz wrong Mr. Dunson."
Red River, Nadine Groot (Walter Brennan) to Tom Dunson (John Wayne)
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Stanley Fish is the Davidson-Kahn Distinguished University Professor and a professor of law at Florida International University. He is the author of twelve books and is now a weekly columnist for the New York Times.