Matthew McGrory Quotes

I like to put my characters through a lot, so, in 'Talon,' my fans will find familiar themes of bravery and sacrifice, and what it means to be human... even if you're not human.

I've become accustomed to playing the good guy - maybe a rough exterior, but a heart of gold in there somewhere.

Evil has always been there; it's always a part of us. Evil is no big surprise. But what about the people who gave freely, who stood up for human dignity? Even in the most extreme and terrible situations, these acts of dignity existed. And for me, that is the banality of good.

I think we are ready to know that there are going to be people who are ready to save the world, who come out when you're in trouble and make sure that you're okay.

I do want to play characters that have redeeming qualities, that are likable, for sure, and I have in the past, and I will again.

Virtues, like viruses, have their seasons of contagion. When catastrophe strikes, generosity spikes like a fever. Courage spreads in the face of tyranny.

Being nice doesn't necessarily mean you're weak. You can be nice and be strong at the same time. That's a character trait that we need more in Washington.

Day after day, ordinary people become heroes through extraordinary and selfless actions to help their neighbors.

In any character I ever play, whether she's good or bad or whatever, my most important thing is heart.

To play a good guy is nice because in a way, he is so open for answers.

Some people are cowards... I think by and large a third of people are villains, a third are cowards, and a third are heroes. Now, a villain and a coward can choose to be a hero, but they've got to make that choice.

There are always great deals of humanity in the characters that have been offered to me.

I've always said a romance hero can be deeply flawed... as long as he's willing to rush into a burning building to rescue a basket of kittens.

I'm not a vindictive person. But I do want to shine a light on human frailty and heroism in equal measure.

There are no George Baileys anymore.

Jealousy, greed, fear. We're all full of these things. But also love and compassion. If you saw a drowning baby, it wouldn't matter if you were wearing a tuxedo on the way to your own wedding. You'd jump in to save him.

The studios are nervous on every movie. It never ends, because Marty's movies are so unusual. He doesn't repeat himself, so they don't know what to expect. We have to fight hard to keep them from being ruined. Film students can't believe that when I tell them, because they think, 'Well, it's Martin Scorsese.'

Our behavior is different. How often have you seen a headline like this?--TWO DIE ATTEMPTING RESCUE OF DROWNING CHILD. If a man gets lost in the mountains, hundreds will search and often two or three searchers are killed. But the next time somebody gets lost just as many volunteers turn out. Poor arithmetic, but very human. It runs through all our folklore, all human religions, all our literature--a racial conviction that when one human needs rescue, others should not count the price.

It is mercy, not justice or courage or even heroism, that alone can defeat evil.

Courage and compassion are two sides of the same coin. Compassion without courage is not genuine. You may have a compassionate thought or impulse, but if you don’t do or say anything, it’s not real compassion.

It is at times such as this that we show our true spirit of giving and of brotherhood - of revealing the good Samaritan in all of us.

I didn’t do anything wrong. All I know is I saw two people struggling to get inside these walls and they couldn’t make it. To ignore that because of some stupid rule seemed selfish, cowardly, and…well, stupid. If you want to throw me in jail for trying to save someone’s life, then go ahead. Next time I promise I’ll point at them and laugh, then go eat some of Frypan’s dinner.

It is these undeniable qualities of human love and compassion and self-sacrifice that give me hope for the future. We are, indeed, often cruel and evil. Nobody can deny this. We gang up on each one another, we torture each other, with words as well as deeds, we fight, we kill. But we are also capable of the most noble, generous, and heroic behavior.

No one in USAID embodied the spirit of compassion and brotherhood that underpins our efforts more than Larry Foley.

No God can put a man in hell in another world, who has made a little heaven in this. God cannot make a man miserable if that man has made somebody else happy.