Midnight in Paris (2011)

Corey Stoll: Ernest Hemingway

Photos 

Quotes 

• Gil : Would you read it?

  Ernest Hemingway : Your novel?

  Gil : Yeah, it's about 400 pages long, and I'm just looking for an opinion.

  Ernest Hemingway : My opinion is I hate it.

  Gil : Well you haven't even read it yet.

  Ernest Hemingway : If it's bad, I'll hate it because I hate bad writing, and if it's good, I'll be envious and hate all the more. You don't want the opinion of another writer.

• Ernest Hemingway : I believe that love that is true and real, creates a respite from death. All cowardice comes from not loving or not loving well, which is the same thing. And then the man who is brave and true looks death squarely in the face, like some rhino-hunters I know or Belmonte, who is truly brave... It is because they make love with sufficient passion, to push death out of their minds... until it returns, as it does, to all men... and then you must make really good love again.

• Ernest Hemingway : No subject is terrible if the story is true, if the prose is clean and honest, and if it affirms courage and grace under pressure.

• Gil : Gil Pender.

  Ernest Hemingway : Hemingway.

  Gil : Hemingway?

  Ernest Hemingway : You liked my book?

  Gil : Liked? I loved all of your work.

  Ernest Hemingway : Yes. It was a good book because it was an honest book, and that's what war does to men. And there's nothing fine and noble about dying in the mud unless you die gracefully. And then it's not only noble but brave.

• Gil : Hi Mr. Hemingway.

  Ernest Hemingway : The assignment was to take the hill. There were four of us, five if you counted Vicente, but he had lost his hand when a grenade went off and couldn't fight as could when I first met him. And he was young and brave, and the hill was soggy from days of rain. And it sloped down toward a road and there were many German soldiers on the road. And the idea was to aim for the first group, and if our aim was true we could delay them.

  Gil : Were you scared?

  Ernest Hemingway : Of what?

  Gil : Of getting killed.

  Ernest Hemingway : You'll never write well if you fear dying. Do you?

  Gil : Yeah, I do. I'd say probably, might be my greatest fear actually.

  Ernest Hemingway : It's something all men before you have done, all men will do.

  Gil : I know, I know.

  Ernest Hemingway : Have you ever made love to a truly great woman?

  Gil : Actually, my fiancé is pretty sexy.

  Ernest Hemingway : And when you make love to her you feel true and beautiful passion. And you for at least that moment lose your fear of death.

  Gil : No, that doesn't happen.

  Ernest Hemingway : I believe that love that is true and real creates a respite from death. All cowardice comes from not loving, or not loving well, which is the same thing. And when the man who is brave and true looks death squarely in the face like some rhino hunters I know, or Belmonte, who's truly brave. It is because they love with sufficient passion to push death out of their minds, until the return that it does to all men. And then you must make really good love again. Think about it.

• Ernest Hemingway : Picasso only thinks that women are to sleep with, or to paint.

• Ernest Hemingway : If you're a writer,

  [slams fist on table] 

  Ernest Hemingway : declare yourself the best writer. But your not, as long as I'm around, unless you want to put the gloves on and settle it.

• Gil : I'm a huge Mark Twain fan. I think you can make the case that all modern American literature comes from Huckleberry Finn.

  Ernest Hemingway : Do you box?

  Gil : No. Well... Not really, no.

• Ernest Hemingway : I think a woman is equal to a man in courage. Have you ever shot a charging lion?

  Adriana : Never.

  Ernest Hemingway : Would you like to know how that feels?

  Adriana : I don't think so.

  Ernest Hemingway : You ever hunted?

  Adriana : No.

  Ernest Hemingway : You?

  Gil : Only for bargains.

• Adriana : Let's go!

  Ernest Hemingway : One of these days I plan to steal you away from this genius

  [points to Picasso] 

  Ernest Hemingway : who's great... But... he's no Miro.

• Ernest Hemingway : You'll never be a great writer if you fear dying, do you?

  Gil : Yeah, I do. I would say it's my greatest fear.

• [Ernest Hemingway is drunk] 

  Ernest Hemingway : Who wants to fight?

• Ernest Hemingway : [about Zelda]  She'll drive you crazy, this woman.

  F. Scott Fitzgerald : She's exciting and she has talent.

  Ernest Hemingway : This month it's writing, last month it was something else. You're a writer, you need time to write, not all this fooling around. She's wasting you because she's really a competitor. Don't you agree?

  Gil : Me?

  Ernest Hemingway : Speak up for chrissake. I am asking, do you think my friend is making a tragic mistake?

  Gil : I actually don't know the Fitzgeralds that well.

  Ernest Hemingway : You're a writer. You make observations. You were with them all night.

  F. Scott Fitzgerald : Can we not discuss my personal life in public?

  Ernest Hemingway : She's jealous of his gift and it's a fine gift, it's rare. You like his work? You can speak freely.

• Ernest Hemingway : You writing?

  Gil : A novel.

  Ernest Hemingway : About what?

  Gil : It's about a um... a man who works in a nostalgia shop.

  Ernest Hemingway : What the hell is a nostalgia shop?

  Gil : Y'know, a place where they sell old things, memorabilia. And, does that sound terrible?

  Ernest Hemingway : No subject is terrible if the story is true, if the prose is clean and honest, and if it affirms courage and grace under pressure.

• Gil : Hi, Mr. Hemingway.

  Ernest Hemingway : The assignment was to take the hill. There were four of us, five if you counted Vicente, but he had lost his hand when a grenade went off and couldn't fight as could when I first met him. And he was young and brave, and the hill was soggy from days of rain. And it sloped down toward a road and there were many German soldiers on the road. And the idea was to aim for the first group, and if our aim was true we could delay them.

  Gil : Were you scared?

  Ernest Hemingway : Of what?

  Gil : Of getting killed.

  Ernest Hemingway : You'll never write well if you fear dying. Do you?

  Gil : Yeah, I do. I'd say probably, might be my greatest fear, actually.

  Ernest Hemingway : It's something all men before you have done, all men will do.

  Gil : I know, I know.

  Ernest Hemingway : Have you ever made love to a truly great woman?

  Gil : Actually, my fiancé is pretty sexy.

  Ernest Hemingway : And when you make love to her you feel true and beautiful passion. And you for at least that moment lose your fear of death.

  Gil : No, that doesn't happen.

  Ernest Hemingway : I believe that love that is true and real creates a respite from death. All cowardice comes from not loving, or not loving well, which is the same thing. And when the man who is brave and true looks death squarely in the face, like some rhino hunters I know, or Belmonte, who's truly brave. It is because they love with sufficient passion to push death out of their minds, until it returns as it does to all men. And then you must make really good love again. Think about it.

• F. Scott Fitzgerald : Greetings and salutations. You'll forgive me, I've been mixing grain and grappa. Now this is a writer, Gil, yes?

  Gil : Gil Pender.

  F. Scott Fitzgerald : Gil Pender.

  Ernest Hemingway : Hemingway.

  Gil : Hemingway?

  Ernest Hemingway : You like my book.

  Gil : Liked? I loved, all your work.

  Ernest Hemingway : Yes, it was a good book because it was an honest book, and that's what war does to men. And there's nothing fine and noble about dying in the mud unless you die gracefully, and then it's not only noble but brave.

  Zelda Fitzgerald : Did you read my story? What'd you think?

  Ernest Hemingway : There was some fine writing in it, but it was unfulfilled.

  Zelda Fitzgerald : I might have known you'd hate it.