“The United States of Leland” quotes

“The devil makes more sense than God does. It's good to have somebody to blame for the bad stuff. Maybe God is there because people get scared of all the bad stuff they do. They figure that God and the Devil are always playing this game of tug-of-war game with them. And they never know which side they're gonna wind up on. I guess that tug-of-war...” (continue)(continue reading)
Ryan Gosling - Leland P. Fitzgerald

“You have to believe that life is more than the sum of its parts. What if you can't put the pieces together in the first place?”
Ryan Gosling - Leland P. Fitzgerald

“I see a boy and a girl in love and kissing, you know. I just see that they're gonna be one of those sad old couples one day who just cheats on each other and can't even look at each other in the eye.”

Ryan Gosling - Leland P. Fitzgerald

“I think there are two ways you can see the world. You either see the sadness that's behind everything or you choose to keep it all out.”
Ryan Gosling - Leland P. Fitzgerald

“- Pearl Madison: You'll have to forgive Mr. Madison today, he's moving kinda slow. His head's hurting like it's the end of the world.
- Guillermo: You been drinking that cheap ass burgundy, ain't you?”
Don Cheadle - Pearl Madison
Michael Peña - Guillermo

“You know what the funny thing about earthquakes is? After an earthquake you see people pulling other people out of broken down buildings and people hugging and junk because they saw a little girl's shoe in the middle of the road and no little girl around. Then a couple days later they forget all about it.”
Ryan Gosling - Leland P. Fitzgerald

“Sometimes you say things that aren't all the way true, but you say them anyways because you want to be true. You know, maybe, maybe that's good enough. Just tell me everything's gonna be okay.”
Jena Malone - Becky Pollard

“Maybe we don't have God because we're scared of the bad stuff. Maybe we're really scared of the good stuff. Because if there's no God, well, that means it's inside of us and we could be good all the time if we wanted. So when we do bad things, it'd be because we want to or because we have to. Or maybe we just need the bad stuff to remind us what...” (continue)(continue reading)
Ryan Gosling - Leland P. Fitzgerald

“The worst part is knowing that there is goodness in people. Mostly it stays deep down and buried.”
Ryan Gosling - Leland P. Fitzgerald

It's funny how people only say that after they do something bad. I mean, you never hear someone say, "I'm only human" after they rescue a kid from a burning building.

Ryan Gosling - Leland P. Fitzgerald

“It's all part of the trade off man. Love is only such a great thing because you know what it feels like to get your heart broken. What it feels like to be alone.”
Don Cheadle - Pearl Madison

“I figured out that tears couldn't make somebody who was dead alive again. They can't make somebody who doesn't love you any more love you again. It's the same with prayers. I wonder how much of their lives people waste crying and praying to God.”
Ryan Gosling - Leland P. Fitzgerald

“You want a why. Well, maybe there isn't one. Maybe this is just something that happened.”
Ryan Gosling - Leland P. Fitzgerald

“I'm developing this theory that the suicide rate of Venice is real low. 'Cause if you jump off a building, all your ass is gonna do is splash in a canal and shit.”

Michael Peña - Guillermo

“- Airplane Woman: Aren't you an actor?
- Albert T. Fitzgerald: Aren't we all, dear.”
Angela Paton - Airplane Woman
Kevin Spacey - Albert T. Fitzgerald

“White boys ain't about that gang shit though, huh? Especially not white boys like you who don't look like no Slim Shady. White boys like you the ones who did some fucked up shit, huh?”

Michael Peña - Guillermo

“I recall when our lives were unusual and electric. When we burned with something close to fire. But now we sway to a different rhythm. Lives lived without meaning or even directed hope. The passage of time measured only by loss. Loss of a job, loss of a minivan... a son.”
Kevin Spacey - Albert T. Fitzgerald

“- Becky Pollard: I don't want to hurt you.
- Leland P. Fitzgerald: Then don't.”
Jena Malone - Becky Pollard

“They want a reason. Something to tie up with a little bow and bury in the backyard. Bury it down so deep it's like it never happened. They want me to say how I'm so sorry, and it was my mom's fault. Or maybe it was my dad's fault. Or it happened because of TV or movies or some junk like that. Or maybe I blame some girl.”

Ryan Gosling - Leland P. Fitzgerald

“Do you have a normal radio in here for music? I was just thinking that when you're parked somewhere waiting for a guy to speed, you'd want some music to help pass the time.”

Ryan Gosling - Leland P. Fitzgerald

“There's some kids playing baseball. All I see is the one kid they won't let play because he tells corny jokes. And no-one thinks they're funny.”

Ryan Gosling - Leland P. Fitzgerald

“- Leland P. Fitzgerald: I stabbed myself.
- Bengel: If you're going for suicide, I'd say try for the stomach or somethin'.
- Leland P. Fitzgerald: I just wanted to know what it felt like.
- Bengel: I bet it hurt. You should've just asked me devil boy. I would have saved you some trouble.”

Ryan Gosling - Leland P. Fitzgerald
Wesley Jonathan - Bengel

“They take all this stuff away from you, freedom, girls and sunshine, because it's supposed to make it so when you get back on the outs you never wanna screw up again. All that really does is get you to thinking that you're this small thing that doesn't matter for anything. And by the time you do get out, you don't even feel like a human person...” (continue)(continue reading)

Wesley Jonathan - Bengel

“When I say I don't remember that day, I'm not lying. I wish I did, but I just don't. Sometimes the most important stuff goes away. Goes away so bad it's like it was never there to begin with.”
Ryan Gosling - Leland P. Fitzgerald

“Maybe somewhere in all of this there's a reason, there's a why. But nothing, not getting angry, not prayers, and not tears, nothing can make something that happened unhappen.”
Ryan Gosling - Leland P. Fitzgerald