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by Emma Sutton

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No director, no matter how talented, can make a good movies without a great script. The scripts are the backbone and the heart and soul of a good movie. A director or bad editing can ruin a great script. Thankfully, the good movies and the bad movies have great lines in them.

"That is the bravest thing I have ever seen a tomato do." It is hard to believe a future Oscar winner said that line in one of his earlier movies. That Oscar winner was George Clooney in the movie "Return of the Killer Tomatoes." The movie, despite it's handsome star, is probably one of the worst movies ever made. How it was released is still a mystery. Despite it being an awful movie, that is one great line.

"If you want him, come and claim him." That delicate elf meant business. She didn't care that those evil horsemen outnumbered her and many of Middle Earth felt they were unstoppable. She was going to stand her ground and fight them to finish. With a little help from her elf magic. Liv Tyler uttered those fiery words in the movie "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings." That was another great line, this time from a great movie.

"I've just shot an intruder." Another tough line from a delicate actress. Julia Roberts uttered these words in "Sleeping with the Enemy. Why that that such a tough line? She was looking into the eyes of her very much still alive abusive husband. She hadn't shot anyone. Not yet, that is. She did shoot him. He deserved it.

"Psychos do not blow up when sunlight hits them. I don't care how crazy they are." Another great line from a not-so-great movie. George Clooney said this "From Dusk til Dawn." Though not a fan of vampire movies, this one was not so bad. It was cleverly written and had some good actors in it.

"I'll have what she's having." Rob Reiner's mother said that in "When Harry Met Sally." It was in the famous scene when Meg Ryan did "you know what." Well, she faked the you know what. Deadpan wasn't so dead anymore as the emotion-less mother of a famous director made theaters around the world roar with laughter.

"It's easier to believe the bad stuff." Of all the lines in "Pretty Woman," this one has to be the best. It is too true to be anything else. It strikes a chord with anyone who has ever felt like they weren't quite good enough. We have all felt like that at least once. Julia Roberts delivered another great line, this time from a great movie and a great script.

"I can shoot straight, if I don't have to shoot too far." This line was taken, word for word, from a classic book. It was said by a classic actress, Vivian Leigh. The movie was a little picture known by the same name as the book - "Gone with the Wind." This, of course, was not a little picture; major epic it was. Though not as famous as an another line in that famous movie, it added humor. It also showed the spunk of a southern belle who was many years ahead of her time.

"Stay golden." A movie with a cast of soon-to-be superstars "The Outsiders" was a great movie. In fact, it was the best movies of many of it's stars in the making. Patrick Swayze was not in another movie this good. Neither was Matt Dillon. Tom Cruise was the only one to go on to make a movie that was even close to this powerful flick. He just got lucky to star next to Dustin Hoffman in "Rain Man."

"Charlie Babbitt made a joke." Speaking of Dustin Hoffman and "Rain Man," this is a great line. The autistic brother of a greedy and spoiled man who never grew up broke through his disability and connected with another human being with this one line. It was the most poignant moment in a movie full of meaningful moments. A great line from a great movie.

"There are no victims in this classroom." Michelle Pfieffer said this in "Dangerous Minds." This was an excellent movie that depicted life of students in an inner-city high school. This movie should be a requirement in every Education 101 class in every college and university. Future teachers need to know they can make a difference, if only in one life.

Good movies and bad movies can have great lines in them. When the actors deliver them with truth and conviction, they sound great on the big screen. The writers play a huge part in what makes a great line as well. Thank you, screenwriters, for making the movie experience so wonderful with your words.

Learn more about this author, Emma Sutton.

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