Top 10 Most Quoted Movie Lines

This day in age, you can walk up to a total stranger and say things like “say hello to my little friends” or “come with me if you want to live,” and as long as you attach a bad impression of Al Pacino or Arnold Schwarzenegger, nobody will think you’re introducing them to dwarves or threatening their lives.  Why is this?  Because those quotes have actually become a part of popular culture!  Even though there are thousands upon thousands of very good movie lines, only a select few have become intertwined with out culture, and for reasons nobody can really grasp.  Whether it’s because the line really hit home for the viewers at the time or it simply came with a catchy tune, these are the top 10 most quoted movie lines that have infused themselves in our culture.

 

“Bond.  James Bond.”  Spoken by: James Bond.  Film: Dr. No.

If you’re going to be a spy, this is the only way to introduce yourself.  Although this isn’t quoted word for word because people like to insert their own names or aliases to feel cool, and it does make you feel cool, but regardless, the idea is still from the movie.  James Bond is full of countless quotes like “dry martini. Shaken, not stirred,” but this one is easily his most popular, and the best quote to kick off this list with the style only James Bond can.

 

“Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn.”  Spoken by: Rhett Butler.  Film: Gone With the Wind

 

What a classy way to tell a woman to go to hell!  Scarlett asks Rhett what she’s going to do without him and he tells her he doesn’t care in one of the most memorable movie lines of all time.  They tried several different ways to say this, particularly trying not to swear, but nothing else fit, and it’s easy to see why.  Even people who haven’t seen the movie are familiar with this famous Clark Gable quote!

 

 

“Hakuna Matata.”  Spoken by: Timon and Pumba.  Film: The Lion King

It means no worries for the rest of your days!  How can this NOT be quoted all the time?  First of all, it comes with a really catchy tune that almost everyone knows.  Second, it’s really fun to say.  Third, these two words are translated into an eight word meaning, and we all know how lazy we can be, so to cut an entire sentence by 75% is simply too enticing to pass up.  Fourth, it’s got a really good message and it’s a good motto to live by.  “What a motto?”  “Nothing.  What a-motto with you?”

 

“Go ahead.  Make my day.”  Spoken by: Harry Callahan.  Film: Sudden Impact

Just about everything in this scene is corny by today’s standards.  The way Clint Eastwood delivers his lines is almost laughable because, for the most part, they’re all one liners that have been strung together, and he delivers them without a hint of anything but seriousness.  The thing that makes this line so quoteable is the exact same thing that makes it laughable, the seriousness of it all.  The fact that, at any moment, a waitress could be missing half her skull and the robber would follow soon after, and what does Harry Callahan do?  He tells the robber to go ahead and do it!  He tells the robber that he wants to shoot him, so give him a reason to!  The delivery is very cheesy, but the line is so cool that anyone who says it becomes a temporary badass.

 

“Live long and prosper.”  Spoken by: Spock.  Film: Star Trek

What makes this such a quoteable line?  Probably because it comes with a cool hand gesture.  What other lines can you think of that come to mind simply my making a shape with your hands?  I can only think of one other one, and that’s the one fingered driver’s salute, which really isn’t from a specific movie, so it didn’t make the list.  But not only does “live long and prosper” come with the gesture, but it’s also a very decent goodbye.  There aren’t many better well-wishes than to hope the person lives forever and gets super rich.  (That’s what it means, right?)

 

“You can’t handle the truth!”  Spoken by: Col. Jessup.  Film: A Few Good Men

 

What is the only response to someone who is yelling at you to tell them the truth?  “You can’t handle the truth!”  More than one smart alleck teenager has recited this line to his or her parents while getting yelled at for lying to them, I myself am guilty of this during my wilder teenage years.  The thing about this line is that it cannot be whispered, it MUST be yelled.  That’s the only way it works.  If you’re lucky, screaming this line might be able to break the tension just enough to wriggle your way out of trouble if you’ve been caught in a lie, or get you in even more trouble, which was my case.

 

“Houston, we have a problem.”  Spoken by: Jim Lovell.  Film: Apollo 13

 

It’s a known fact that whenever you’re working on something with someone else and something goes wrong, the other person’s name become Houston so that you can tell them you have a problem.  I have never met anyone that says “Uh… My name isn’t Houston” after I’ve said “Houston, we have a problem.”  And if they did say that, I’d slap them in the face for not knowing the quote.

 

 

“I’ll be back.”  Spoken by: The Terminator.  Film: The Terminator

At first, this quote doesn’t seem too interesting when Schwarzenegger says it to the cop in the police station when he’s told that Sara Connor is making a statement and she’ll be awhile.  He tells him he’ll be back, turns around and leaves.  What’s special about that?  Well, when he returns, he comes with a car that SMASHES INTO THE FRONT OF THE POLICE STATION!  He meant what he said, that’s for sure.  Why is it quoted so much?  I don’t know.  Maybe because of the popularity of the movie and the fact that it’s said at least once in every one of its sequels in one form or another, or maybe it’s because Schwarzenegger impressions are always fun to do and that’s one of the easiest lines to do it with.

 

“Run Forrest, run!”  Spoken by:  Jenny Curran.  Film:  Forrest Gump

 

This film has many, many quoted lines from it.  “Life is like a box of chocolates.”  “My name is Forrest Gump, you can call me Forrest Gump.”  This line, however, is easily the most quoted, because it’s the most applicable to daily life.  One could argue that the box of chocolates quote is more applicable to life, but that saying was around long before the movie came out.  Try this:  Run down the hall in any junior high or high school, or down the aisle in a crowded supermarket, and see how many people shout at you to “Run Forrest run!”  It happens.  Alot.

 

 

“May the force be with you.” Spoken by: Obi Wan Kenobi.  Film: Star Wars

 

I know it’s not exactly fair to attribute this line to just Obi Wan, considering it’s said countless times in every Star Wars film by almost every main character, but he was the first to say it, so we’ll give him the credit.  So why is this most quoted?  I have no idea.  But I hear it all the time.  Maybe it’s the appeal of the thought of being a jedi and having the force, or maybe it’s just because a lot of people think it’s funny to say when someone is headed to the bathroom.  Whatever the case may be, it’s weasled its way into our heads and become the most quoted movie line of all time.

 

So there you have it!  The top 10 most quoted movie lines.  It will be interesting to see which movie lines will become the new fads.  My bet is that the Thunder Buddies song from “Ted” will explode, but I guess we’ll have to wait and see.  This is far from a perfect list, and I’m sure many of you will disagree with my choices, so feel free to comment with your own opinions on which movie lines are most quoted, or even what quotes you think will become popular in the future!

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