Category: Movies

“You want to see a miracle, son? Be the miracle.”

From: Bruce Almighty

Genre: Movies

Who said it?: God

The story behind the quote: This week’s quote comes from God. Well, actually it comes from Morgan Freeman, who plays God in the 2003 comedy Bruce Almighty. The film also stars Jim Carrey, who play Bruce Nolan, a down on his luck reporter who is given God’s omnipotent power to see if he can do any better.

The quote comes near the end of the film as both of them clean up the mess that Bruce did during his “tenure” as God by giving everything they prayed for. God then give Bruce a tip on what a real miracle is all about…

Geek wisdom: We all want to achieve our wants and desires. That’s not the problem. The issue is that a lot of us don’t want to put in the time and effort to actually achieve them. We like to complain and gripe about how our live has turned out and we weren’t given the right opportunities. But sometimes, lady luck isn’t on our side. This is when we have to make our own luck. Our own opportunities and our own miracles. We just have to work for it.

“Get off my lawn.”

From: Gran Torino

Genre: Movies

Who said it?: Walt Kowalski

The story behind the quote: The quote comes the 2008 drama Gran Torino, which starred and also directed by Clint Eastwood. In the film, Clint Eastwood plays Walt Kowalski, an aging Vietnam veteran who lives in a bad neighborhood of Detroit. Many poor Hmong immigrants have moved into the neighborhood as of late and, as such, gang violence has become rather commonplace in Walt’s area.

The quote comes from the early part of the film. One of the gang leaders try to bully Thao, one of the Hmong teens living in the area, to try out for his gain. However, this leads into a major squabble, which spills into Walt’s property. This is when Walt gets his shotgun and delivers the quote. And, despite the gang trying to intimidate Walt, he doesn’t back down.

Geek wisdom: You may be older but that doesn’t mean that the other, younger generation have the right to disrespect you. In fact, it is the younger people that should try to learn from the older generation and try to respect their boundaries. If they don’t, then it’s the older person/s right to demand the respect they deserve.

“Dark and difficult times lie ahead. Soon, we must all face the choice between what is right and what is easy.”

From: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Genre: Movies

Who said it?: Dumbledore

The story behind the quote: The quote comes from the fourth film of the Harry Potter films, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Note that I said that the quote comes from the movies as, while Dumbledore does say something like this week’s quote, it isn’t the exact quote.

Anyway, the quote comes near the end of the film. Dumbledore (played by Michael Gambon) talks to Harry (played by Daniel Radcliffe) and the headmaster of Hogwarts tries to warn The Boy Who Lived about the impending attack of Lord Voldemort. This is when he delivers the quote.

On a side note, the quote from the book reads as such: Remember, if the time should come when you have to make a choice between what is right, and what is easy, remember what happened to a boy who was good and kind and brave because he strayed across the path of Lord Voldemort.

Geek wisdom: It is difficult to fight back, especially when against specific circumstances. You may be fighting against a greater opponent who’s stronger or even something like a practice that is being done that is simply wrong but no one questions it. It would be so easy to just lay down and not fight back. However, that is the easy way and we have to be brave and look at injustice for what it is and decide to combat it.

“You must unlearn what you have learned.”

From: The Empire Strikes Back

Genre: Movies

Who said it?: Yoda

The story behind the quote: This week’s quote comes from one of the most popular sci-fi geek movie franchises of all time, Star Wars. More specifically, this week’s quote comes from The Empire Strikes Back. While I have already covered a bunch of quotes from Yoda, one of the greatest Jedi Masters from a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, that doesn’t mean that I’ve run out of quotes from him! Actually, this quote is closely linked to one of Yoda’s other quotes I’ve covered before. But it is still worthy of getting a separate entry here.

The quote comes from the middle of the film, while Luke Skywalker is training in Dagobah with Yoda in the ways of The Force. R2-D2 alerts Luke that his X-Wing is sinking in the swamp. While Luke thinks it’s impossible to get his ship out now, Yoda tells him that he seems so sure of it when he really shouldn’t…

Geek wisdom: At some point, we are satisfied with what we know and we are so sure of ourselves regarding this knowledge. We stop questioning alternatives and just go with what we know without even seeing if these new methods or if these new discoveries are true. We have to be open to new ideas and give them a try even if they seem like they wouldn’t work.

“Oh, what a day… What a lovely day!”

From: Mad Max: Fury Road

Genre: Movies

Who said it?: Nux

The story behind the quote: This quote comes from Mad Max: Fury Road. This is the fourth installment of the Mad Max series of films which takes place in a post-apocalyptic wasteland where gangs ravage the wasteland and scavenge for whatever food and fuel is left. In this entry, Mad Max (played this time by Tom Hardy) joins forces with Furiosa (played by Charlize Theron) as the latter tries to rescue a group of girls from a savage gang leader named Immortan Joe.

The quote comes from early in the film. Furiosa steers her tanker into a sandstorm in the hopes of shaking off a group of Immortan Joe’s party. The chasing party drives into the storm as well, leading to some of their deaths. However, one driver, Nux (played by Nicolas Hoult), manages to survive. As he has been trained since birth to treat death as a glorious new phase of life, he utters the quote in glee.

Geek wisdom: Always start out each day with a positive outlook. We do have a tendency to look at the day ahead with gloom because of various circumstances. But you never know. The day ahead may also be one of the best days of your life. Try to think positive and look forward to the day because it just may be one of the most fruitful ones you may experience.

“It was Beauty killed the Beast.”

From: King Kong (All Versions)

Genre: Movies

Who said it?: Carl Denham

The story behind the quote: This quote is actually one of the most misquoted movie quotes ever for one good reason: it sounds like its grammatically incorrect. Still, this quote has been in all versions of King Kong as it perfectly encapsulated the tragic ending of the film.

The quote usually comes at the end of the films. After King Kong climbs a building (usually the Empire State Building but it has been revised in the past to feature the World Trade Center before) with Ann Darrow in tow, planes are sent to shoot the giant ape down. Knowing that Ann will be hurt, King Kong shields the woman with his own body. The “monster” eventually succumbs to the wounds and falls from atop the building. Although the crowds cheered for the creature’s demise, Carl Denham, the man that brought King Kong from Skull Island in the first place, is more sympathetic. While it was indeed the airplanes that shot down King Kong, Carl Denham knows why the giant ape allowed himself to get shot up in the first place…

As mentioned, the quote usually closes out the movie. It was done in the first King Kong movie released in 1933 with Robert Armstrong playing Carl Denham…

…as well as in the 2005 remake by Peter Jackson with Jack Black in the role.

Geek wisdom: People will do some imaginable things for their loved ones as they will try their best to protect and shield them from any possible harm. Love can be that powerful.

“Slimy… yet satisfying.”

From: The Lion King

Genre: Movies

Who said it?: Pumbaa and Simba

The story behind the quote: This week’s quote comes from The Lion King. This is actually the third time I’m getting a quote from this classic Disney film but that just goes to show you how memorable this film has become.

The quote comes from the middle of the Hakuna Matata number. After Simba leaves the Pridelands, he stumbles across Timon, a meerkat voiced by Nathan Lane and Pumbaa, a warthog voiced by Ernie Sabella. The duo shows the young lion that their sole source of food and protein comes from bugs. This initially disgusts Simba but, after trying one, he does agree to how the grubs fill his empty stomach.

Geek wisdom: There may be things that may seem distasteful initially, But, once you get used to it, you may actually grow to love it. So go ahead and try something new. You may never know it but you may actually find something you really like in something you initially thought to be disgusting.

“Blast this Christmas music! It’s joyful and triumphant.”

From: The Grinch

Genre: Movies

Who said it?: The Grinch

The story behind the quote: The quote comes from the live action version of The Grinch, which is based on the Dr. Seuss book “How the Grinch Stole Christmas.” As they had to fill in the extra time needed for a full theatrical release, the live action movie added more scenes and story arcs, such as the Grinch’s origins and how he came to hate Christmas.

The quote comes during the scene where The Grinch (played by Jim Carrey) is fast asleep. However, the citizens of Whoville (who love Christmas) are playing Christmas carols. The Grinch starts to sing in his sleep and he awakes in fear as he realizes what he’s doing. This is when the Grinch utters the quote.

Geek wisdom: Once in a while you will get the Holiday doldrums. When you don’t really feel like celebrating the season to be jolly. Actually, there is nothing wrong with that. However, just because you’re not in the spirit, that doesn’t give you the right to try to stop others from enjoying themselves.

“Who’s scruffy looking?”

From: The Empire Strikes Back

Genre: Movies

Who said it?: Han Solo

The story behind the quote: This week’s quote comes from Episode V of the Star Wars films, The Empire Strikes Back. I don’t really think that there’s much I have to say about the franchise as it’s one of the most popular franchises of all time. So, let’s get to the quote!

The quote comes early in the film, just after Han Solo (played by Harrison Ford) rescues Luke Skywalker (played by Mark Hamill) on the icy (and ironically named) planet Hoth. Han Solo then makes a snarky comment to Princess Leia, making it seem like she made the order to ground all flights from leaving the planet to keep him in the base. The confrontation escalates and Leia insults Han by calling him a “half-witted, scruffy looking nerf herder.” Strangely, Han doesn’t have any issues with being called a half-wit or a nerf herder…

Geek wisdom:  People will take offense to the weirdest things. You can call a certain person all kinds of bad things and it will just roll off their back. However, there is a chance you may say the wrong thing to the same person, something you may think is innocuous and unoffensive, and they’re take it as the ultimate form of insult. So, always think first of what you want to say and choose your words carefully as much as possible.

“I collect spores, molds and fungus.”

From: Ghostbusters (1984)

Genre: Movies

Who said it?: Dr. Egon Spengler

The story behind the quote: This quote comes the extremely popular film from 1984, Ghostbusters. The film is the story of three scientists who establish a way of capturing and imprisoning ghosts and turn it into a business. Ghostbusters was a phenomenal success and spawned a sequel, an incredibly successful cartoon and toy line as well as a 2016 remake.

The quote comes early on in the film as the Ghostbusters has just established their paranormal extermination business. After Peter Venkman (played by Bill Murray) checks in with their secretary Janine Melnitz (played by Annie Potts) if they got any calls, brilliant parapsychologist Egon Spengler (played by Harold Ramis) crawls out from under her desk. Janine tries to strike a conversation regarding their likes and dislikes. When going to the topic of hobbies, Egon does mention what he loves to collect…

Geek wisdom: Everybody needs a hobby. It seems boring or even not a worthwhile obsession to others. But whatever hobby you have is your own. If you enjoy something, even if it is collecting spores, molds and fungus, you should do it.