"Willie: I'm serious, man, you gotta read some books. There's a revolution going on, Kovic. Brothers are gettin' it together, and if you ain't part of the solution, man, then you're part of the problem."

"Marine Sergeant: [to high school boys] Not everybody can become United States Marines. We want the best and we settle for nothing but the best because there is nothing prouder, nothing finer, nothing standing as straight as a United States Marine. Now they got the Air Force, they got the Navy, they got the Army, they got the Coast Guard - and if you want to join them, go ahead. They got plenty of room. But if you want a challenge, if you want to try something difficult, try to achieve the impossible - try 13 weeks of hell at Parris Island, South Carolina and find out if you got what it takes, find out if you really are a man, then the Marines might be what you are looking for. Tarawa... Iwo Jima... Belleau Wood...the frozen Chosin Reservoir. First to fight, we have never lost a war. We have always come when our country has called."

"[to Charlie] I had a mother; I had a father, things - things that made sense. Do you remember things that made sense? Things you could count on? Before we all got so lost? What are we gonna do, Charlie? What am I gonna do?"

"It's my leg! I want my leg, you understand? Can't you understand that? All's I'm sayin' is that I want to be treated like a human being! I fought for my country! I am a Vietnam veteran! I fought for my country!"

"People say that if you don't love America, then get the hell out. Well, I love America."

"[to a news camera, outside the 1972 Republican Convention] I'm here tonight to say that this war is wrong, that this society lied to me, lied to my brothers. They've deceived the people of this country, tricked them into going 13,000 miles to fight a war against a poor, peasant people who have a proud history of resistance, who have been struggling for their own independence for 1,000 years - the Vietnamese people. I can't find the words to express, and the leadership of this government sickens me. People say that if you don't love America, then get the hell out. Well, I love America. We love the people of America very much, but when it comes to the government, it stops right there. The government is a bunch of corrupt thieves, they are rapists and robbers. And we are here to say that we don't have to take it anymore. We are here to say that we are here to tell the truth; they are killing our brothers in Vietnam! We want them to hear the truth tonight!"

"I want a woman, Dad. I want somebody to love me. I wanna to be free again. I wanna walk in the backyard on the grass. I wanna put my bare feet in the ocean. I wanna run along the sand and feel it on my feet. I wanna stand up in the shower with the hot water streaming down my legs, in the morning... I wanna explode, Dad. I wanna get out of this fucking body I'm in. I wanna be a man again...I just wanna be a man again."

"Josh Evans - Tommy Kovic"

"Caroline Kava - Mrs. Kovic"

"John Hannah — Terry Swinton"

"Liev Schreiber — Sam Chaiton"

"Deborah Kara Unger — Lisa Peters"

"Vicellous Reon Shannon — Lesra Martin"

"Denzel Washington — Rubin "Hurricane" Carter"

"25 cent? Must not be much of a book."

"Hate put me in prison. Love's gonna bust me out."

"Debbi Morgan — Mae Thelma Carter"

"Dan Hedaya — Det. Sgt. Della Pesca Paterson"

"[to Vickie] You ever think of anyone else when we're in bed?...You know, like when we made love?"

"[to Vickie] You know how beautiful you are? Anybody ever tell you how beautiful? Yeah, tell you all the time."

"I remember those cheers They still ring in my ears And for years they'll remain in my thoughts. Cuz one night I took off my robe And what'd I do? I forgot to wear shorts. I recall every fall, every hook, every jab; The worst way a guy could get rid of his flab. As you know, my life wasn't drab... Though I'd rather hear you cheer, When I delve into Shakespeare. "A Horse, a Horse, my Kingdom for a Horse," I haven't had a winner in six months. I know I'm no Olivier But if he fought Sugar Ray, He would say That the thing ain't the ring, It's the play. So gimme a stage Where this bull here can rage. And though I can fight, I'd much rather recite That's entertainment! That's entertainment.."

"Friends. They're in a huddle. Big business meeting. By the pool, they sit around and talk. Big deals. They make sure she can hear. Big Man. Get the fuck outta here. Big shot. Get 'em all in a back room, smack 'em around, no more big shot, without his gun. They're tough guys. They're all tough guys....Big Shot."

"Frank Vincent - Salvy Batts"

"Nicholas Colasanto — Tommy Como"

"Lori Anne Flax — Irma"

"Cathy Moriarty - Vickie Thailer"

"Joe Pesci — Joey LaMotta"

"Robert De Niro — Jake LaMotta"

"Vickie: [to Jake] I fucked all of them! What do you want me to say?...I fucked all of them - Tommy, Salvy, your brother! All of them! I sucked your brother's cock, what do you want me to say?...I sucked his cock and everybody else on the fucking street, too. What do you want? You're nothin' but a fat pig, selfish fool! [Jake viciously slaps her again] His fucking cock is bigger than yours, too!"

"Tommy Como: [After Janiro fight] He ain't pretty no more."

"Irma: I'm not gonna be here when you get back, you fuckin' bunch of guineas, you're always hangin' out together. Why don't you fuckin' stop? You're not goin' on business. You're gonna suck each other off, right? Suck 'em, suck 'em baby. You fuckin' queer. Faggot."

"He gave you the old good news/bad news routine. The good news is - you're gonna get the shot at the title. And the bad news is - they want ya to do the old flip-flop for 'em."

"[on the phone, not realizing it's his brother Jake who's called him] Salvy, this ain't funny anymore. Is it you? I know somebody's there. I can hear you breathin'. You listenin'? Your mother sucks fuckin' big fuckin' elephant dicks. You got that?"

"What are ya thinkin' about? Ya keep lookin'. Where the fuck you going? You're dead! You're married! You're a married man, it's all over. Leave the young girls for me."

"[Last lines, to himself] Go get 'em, champ. I'm da boss, I'm da boss, I'm da boss, I'm da boss, I'm da boss... I'm da boss, I'm da boss, I'm da boss, I'm da boss, I'm da boss, I'm da boss."

"Guy comes home, finds his wife in bed with another guy. The wife says, 'Look who's here. Big mouth. Now the whole neighborhood'll know.'"

"Why? Why? Why?...Why'd you do it? Why? You're so stupid...I'm not an animal. Why do you treat me like this? I'm not so bad."

"That reminds me of two friends of mines. One was married, one was single. The married guy tells the single guy: 'Oh, what's the matter with you? What's the matter with you? Look at me. And look at you. And look at me. And look at you. Let me get on with it. When I come home at night, my wife's at the door with a tall drink in her hand. And she gives me a nice hot bath. Then she gives me a nice rub-down. Then she makes passionate love to me. Then she makes me a nice dinner. What more could you ask for? You oughta try that.' The other friend says: 'Hey, that sounds great. When does your wife get home?'"

"That's the kind of girl that you want to bring home to your father - especially if he's a degenerate. Ah, seriously folks, it's a thrill to be standing here before you wonderful people tonight. Well, in fact, it's a thrill to be standing."

"It's over for me. Boxing's over for me. I'm through. I'm tired of worryin' about weight all the time. That's all I used to think about was weight, weight, weight. After a while, you know, you realize other things in life. I mean, I'm very grateful. Boxing's been good to me: I've got a nice house, I've got three great kids, I've got a wonderful, beautiful wife - what more could I ask for?"

"[After being beaten half to death by Sugar Ray Robinson, Jake is still standing.] Hey, Ray, I never went down, man! You never got me down, Ray! You hear me, you never got me down."

"I take the dive. What more do they want?...They want me to go down too? Well, I ain't goin' down, no, not for nobody."

"I'm gonna win. There's no way I'm goin' down. I don't go down for nobody."

"Who's an animal? Your mother's an animal, ya son of a bitch."

"Cherry Jones - Pamela Duncan"

"Erin Brockovich - Restaurant waitress"