Peter Sellers is my great comedy hero. Christopher Guest More Quotes by Christopher Guest More Quotes From Christopher Guest You know it's important to have a Jeep in Los Angeles. That front wheel drive is crucial when it starts to snow on Rodeo Drive. Christopher Guest jeeps important snow In real life, people fumble their words. They repeat themselves and stare blankly off into space and don't listen properly to what other people are saying. I find that kind of speech fascinating but screenwriters never write dialogue like that because it doesn't look good on the page. Christopher Guest space real writing The movies have a way of seeping out there over time. We don't put them in 2,000 theaters. It wouldn't work that way. Christopher Guest theater way I would make a huge distinction between theater improvisation and film improvisation. There isn't much improvisation in film - there's virtually none. The people that theoretically could be good at this in a theater situation don't necessarily do this in a film in a way that will work, because it's much broader on a stage. But in a movie, it has to be real, and the characters have to look entirely real because it's being done as a faux documentary, so there are even fewer actors that can do that on film. Christopher Guest real character people I am interested in the notion that people can become so obsessed by their world that they lose sense and awareness of how they appear to other people. They're so earnest about it. But that's true of so many things. Christopher Guest obsession people world I'm married to the person I fell in love with. Christopher Guest married persons I spent a lot of time in London when I was growing up and I've always picked up accents without even really meaning to. It used to get me into trouble as a child. Christopher Guest growing-up london children I spent more time in America, but I developed a very English sense of humour. I clicked into it deeply with Peter Sellers, who is still probably my favourite comedian. Christopher Guest favourite comedian america Folk musicians have a lot of the same self-importance, but they're way more cruel and jealous than rock musicians - I know this for a fact because I used to be a folk musician. Christopher Guest jealous rocks self I painted sets before I ever performed. Christopher Guest We all know many people who have been through this reality, and how it changes them. This happens to be an area I know something about. It's a virus. Christopher Guest viruses reality people People want me to be funny all the time. They think I'm being funny no matter what I say or do and that's not the case. I rarely joke unless I'm in front of a camera. It's not what I am in real life. It's what I do for a living. Christopher Guest real people thinking Comedy is like music. You have to know the key and you have to find players with good chops. Christopher Guest comedy keys player You can't really dust for vomit. Christopher Guest stonehenge spinal-tap dust With a documentary, you can cut away, you can do jump cuts, cut to a photograph at any point to bridge two scenes. Christopher Guest bridge jump you photograph You know when you're young, you have this unbelievable stupidity and arrogance and ignorance all mixed in? Christopher Guest you arrogance stupidity ignorance I get asked, 'Who would you really like to work with?' I'm already working with them. Smart, talented, funny people, good musicians, an extended family, good friends. Christopher Guest good family work funny I've been fortunate. I get to write films. I get to write music in films. I get to play arenas wearing a wig. Christopher Guest write get music play My daughter recommended Chris O'Dowd to me after seeing him in 'Bridesmaids,' so I watched that and his sitcom, 'The IT Crowd.' When I was over in London, we met up, and I knew immediately he was the right person. Christopher Guest person me right-person daughter What's interesting about Laurel and Hardy is that in most comedy teams, there's a straight man, and then there's the funny guy. And with Laurel and Hardy, they're both the funny guy. Christopher Guest man comedy funny interesting
