Quotes from Jonathan Levine

As a director, your expectation and reality don't always match up, and I think that that's... I think it's a little jarring.

I watched 'Return Of The Living Dead.' That one's cool, man. I like that one.

Do I wish I was Martin Scorsese? Yeah. But am I really proud of the movies I've made and really happy that I get to keep making them? Yes.

There's so often - in filmmaking, you're backed into something that already has these set parameters, whether it's a sequel or a book that people love.

I have a lot of friends with bad taste in music - some might say that I have bad taste in music.

I've been a huge fan of Hal Ashby forever. And I think that the distinctive thing about 'Coming Home' is the love story, and how - kind of emotionally real it is, and how these two characters allow each other to see their - kind of vulnerabilities. And it's great because it's a love story that's not really that cheesy, either.

I don't like being pigeonholed at all. It stemmed from after 'Mandy Lane': I was being offered all these horror movies. I love horror movies, but when I dreamed of being a director, it was always doing all sorts of things.

'Warm Bodies' was a more long-term thing; I had to write the script, who knew if it was every really going to happen, if I'd find the right actors, and so on, so I grabbed '50/50' because I just fell in love with it.

I really hope everyone who saw 'Twilight' sees 'Warm Bodies,' but at the same time... I don't resent the comparison on a level of quality because I don't judge other movies like that. Now that I make movies, I see how hard it is to do everything. I pretty much love all movies.

I have a cameo in every movie. In '50/50,' I'm in the back of the bus.

For me, the best high school movie is, like, 'Fast Times' and what Cameron Crowe is like.

I don't often watch something I've done on TV. Usually, I'll change the channel and watch something else.

I've had a couple of family members deal with cancer, and I remember that moment where they're going into surgery, and you just have no idea what's going to happen, and it's really scary.

My first real television-watching experience was when I watched 'L.A. Law,' like, at 10 o'clock Thursday nights with my parents. They would let me stay up late.

I used to drive a convertible around L.A. a lot.

I really like it when movies take a song and use it to counterpoint a scene.

I always look at myself as kind of a work in progress. I hope that's not always the case. But for me, every film is a learning experience.

As a director, there's no natural career progression. So after 'The Wackness,' which was very personal to me, I was very, very picky about what I was going to do next, to the point where I think that I was almost too picky.

After 'Mandy Lane,' I didn't really know what to do because I didn't know anyone who'd made a feature yet.

As I continue to evolve as a filmmaker, I'm going to continue to do different stuff.

I like a pretty relaxed, fun set. Everyone knows they can bring whoever they want and hang out.

For me, I just value my friendships so much. I mean, I love my family, too, but my friends - I have a really special connection with my friends.

I have about 100 gigs of music, and I'm always going through thinking about what song I can match to a scene and all that.

I grew up with Woody Allen and early Spike Lee movies in which New York was such a specific character. The city has a certain vibe and beat which really informs your entire existence.