By
Stuart Fischoff, Ph.D., Esmeralda Cardenas, Angela Hernandez, Korey Wyatt, Jarod Young,
and
Rachel Gordon,
Executive Editor, Journal of MediaPsychology
Introduction
"You can't handle
the truth!" The truth is that
film quotes have become an integral part of our everyday language to such an
extent that they become separated from their filmic origins. People use them everyday as a form of informal communication
to convey a variety of attitudes and expressions.
Quotes like, "Is that a gun in your pocket or are you happy to see
me?" and "Here's looking at you kid" are prime examples.
In this day and age, film quotes have not only become a way of
expression, but also a top interest in our culture.
Different mediums of communication have devoted attention to this topic.
Newspapers (e.g., Seiler, 1997; Wloszczyna, 1991, 1997) books
(Bainbridge, 1999; Corey 1995; Nanda, 1996), and television programs have
disclosed information about favorite film quotes. The World Wide Web has made film quotes and databases
accessible to all individuals (e.g., Internet Movie Database). In addition, there are even a number of web sites that quiz
one's knowledge of film quotes and film sources.
Why
is it that some quotes have disappeared while others have stood the test of
time? One element could be that
what we remember is a reflection of who we are and, according to Denzin (1991),
people’s self-perceptions are increasingly influenced by film.
Personal
efficacy (Bandura, 1986) is also an element that contributes to individuals’
reliance on movie quotes to express themselves during contentious situations.
For our purposes, an individual may feel more personally efficacious in a
conversation when using a movie quote to convey difficult emotional issues.
For instance, many men may find themselves at a loss for words when their
partner says, “I love you.” By
using Patrick Swayze’s pithy response “Ditto” from the movie Ghost,
men evade what could have turned out to be a disaster. Humorous quotes (e.g., “Who you gonna call?” from
Ghostbusters) function in much
the same way as they take the edge off thorny situations.
So, it seems, we often borrow
quotes from films to fill in the gaps in our imagination.
We use phrases created by wordsmiths superior to us, to impress others,
if not so much with our creativity, then in our recognition of eloquence
and the facility to conjure up the bon
mots. Certain quotes exquisitely capture the mood or feeling we wish to
communicate to someone. We hear
them in movies and store them away for future use.
Some
memorable quotes are jarring in their ability to encapsulate the sturm
und drang of an entire movie and
reveal, in an instantly relatable and recognizable way, the frustrations that
both the onscreen character and the off-screen audience have experienced in not
dissimilar fashions. It is a phrase
that may provide a perfect ending to a perfectly awful ordeal.
Such a quote is a phrase which is often less elegant than it is
thundering in its emotional exactness. Robert
Redford’s line, “What do we do now?” at the end of the movie, The
Candidate, when he won a senatorial election and now is confronted by the
awesomeness of the task before him, captures a moment that many of us have
experienced when we fought the good fight but aren’t quite sure we’re up to
the task now that it’s upon us. Or,
in a different emotional chord, we have Rhett Butler’s parting line to
Scarlett O’Hara in the classic Gone with
the Wind, “Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn.”
Both quotes have a timeless utility for all of us, for all of us know
that someday, somehow, somewhere, we will need the strength or the
self-knowledge to meet the painful truth of the moment.
These are “moment of truth.” quotes.
It
is also true that words or phrases enter into the public sphere precisely
because they capture the mood of a country and express it in a way that is
instantly recognizable, e.g., “Go ahead, make my day,” uttered by the
memorable Clint Eastwood character, Dirty Harry, in the film, Sudden
Impact, a sequel to the eponymous original Dirty
Harry. The eloquence is less in
the exact phrasing than in the succinctness with which it captures a “cultural
zeitgeist.” Some of these cultural moods have lasting quality, such as
irritation at the perceived spread of unchecked, unprosecuted violence in a
country, and thus, “Go ahead, make my day” becomes embedded in our cultural
lexicon. These are “zeitgeist”
quotes.
The
popularity of other phrases, however, may be short-lived.
They are funny, raunchy, sexy, hostile, etc.
But it is the rapid transmission through the culture of words and phrases
in an immensely popular movie that motivates people to exploit them for a while,
which is the fuel for the phrases’ popularity.
The salaciously uttered phrase, “Yeah, baby,” from the successful spy
spoof series, Austin Powers, is
illustrative. The quote announces
to listeners that the person who uses the dialogue is pop culture cutting edge
and knows what’s hot and what’s not in the film marketplace.
But as the popularity of the film passes, so may the use of the phrase,
because it possesses no particular elegance or pungency.
The wave subsides and the culture moves on.
These are short-lived, “fad” quotes.
Still
other memorable lines of dialogue from films appeal to a particular segment of a
population and become “insider” phrases, phrases that any self-respecting
member of that segment will instantly recognize, know their filmic origins, and,
in a flash, identify the user as a kindred spirit.
Gays, for example, might be expected to immediately recognize the phrase
from the gay-themed film Boys in the Band,
“Give me Librium or give me death,” whereas non-gays might not be expected
to either use or recognize the quote or know the film origin of the phrase.
Alternatively, gays might remember a quote not because of what it says
but because of how the actor delivered it.
Thus, Bette Davis delivered the line “I’d kiss ya, but I just washed
my hair,” from the film Cabin in the Cotton. Is
it the quote itself, the context of the quote in an obscure movie, or the fact
that Miss Davis is so enjoyable to imitate, almost regardless of what line she
is delivering? These are
“niche” quotes.
Beyond
quotes, of course, some people remember whole passages of dialogue from movies
as either tour de forces or because they are simply eternally caught up in the
movie and its dramatic atmosphere and characters.
The movie Godfather is one such
famous example. This places a movie
beyond the realm of a good source of quotes to a cult classic that invites
people to not only memorize whole passages but inhabit favorite roles within the
movie for the delight of themselves and their friends.
The Rocky Horror Picture Show
is another fine example of the spell that can be cast by certain movies.
Clearly then, movies put words in the mouths of audiences and serve a multitude of social and individual purposes. Moreover, it would seem that movies have replaced books as the chief source of memorable lines in contemporary Western cultures. If we look at what are the currently popular and/or most memorable quotes from films, it might provide us with some sense of what our culture thinks about and highlight the social agendas that film dialogue often has an uncanny way of revealing. After all, it can be argued, we are what we find memorable.
But
at the same time, can we meaningfully speak nowadays of a single American
culture? With the diversity of
ethnic groups and gender preferences in films and with the increasing chasm
between generations of Americans fueled by an entertainment industry which finds
that the bottom line is best tended to by the dictum, “youth must be
served,” might it not be expected that different demographic groups have their
cache of memorable quotes from films and that a substantial overlap would be the
exception rather than the rule?
Compared
with films produced under the aegis of the Motion Picture Code (The Hays Code),
which lasted from about 1933-1964, films today are far more sexually explicit
and violent and the language is far more laden with sexual and violent
sentiments (Shales, 2000). Previous research on favorite films by the first author
(Fischoff, 1994; Fischoff, Antonio, & Lewis, 1997) has clearly indicated
that young people tend to prefer films released during their lifetimes; older
people tend to have a more chronologically broad distribution of favorite films
but with an emphasis on films released before the late 1980s.
It might be expected then, that there would be age differences in
favorite quotes.
Young
people, reared on post-Hays Code cinematic freedoms, should prefer more
aggressive and profanity-suffused quotes than older people.
Naturally, the release dates of films which are the origins of these
favored quotes would vary chronologically as a function of the age of the
respondent, with young people preferring more recently minted films and older
people casting a temporally wider net from which to draw favorite quotes.
While this would seem less inevitable given the availability of so many
early and late films on videocassette, research by Fischoff (1994) found that
people were more impressed by films seen originally in theaters than by films
first seen on television, however the picture is delivered.
It
would also be expected that young people would favor film quotes with more
explicit sexual, obscenity-laden or aggressive images given prevailing film
production patterns and formulas since the demise of the Hays Code.
Previous
research by Fischoff (1994), also found significant gender differences with
males favoring films with more violence and action than females, who, in turn,
favored films with more relationship issues and romantic storylines.
It might be expected that similar preferences would reveal themselves in
film quote preferences.
While
there are many popular sources of movie quotes, surprisingly, the present
authors were unable to find any scholarly research articles which sought to look
at people’s favorite movie quotes and/or draw any conclusions about what such
a repository of popular cultural memories says about our society.
The present research was undertaken to explore this surprisingly untapped
source of cultural revelation, untapped from just such a research-based
perspective. Specifically, the
present study sought to explore the following hypotheses (Hs)
and research questions (RQs);
H1:
People recall predominantly negative
sentiments
H2:
Males will cite more negative valence quotes than females.
H3:
Males will cite more aggressive/hostile quotes than females.
H4:
Females will cite more romantic and affectionate quotes than males.
RQ1:
Are the quotes that individuals remember actor gender specific, e.g. males
select more male originated quotes while females select more female originated
quotes?
RQ2:
Is age a determining factor in the
sentiment of the quote that is remembered?
RQ3:
Is there a bias in the age of respondents regarding the release dates of the
films that originated the quotes they favored?
RQ4:
Do some films generate more memorable individual quotes than other films?
Respondent
Sample
A
nation-wide independent, cross-sectional, convenience sample of 1,083
respondents, ranging in age from 10 years old to 90 years old, and primarily
representing the racial/ethnic groups of White (n = 449), Latinos (n = 263),
African-Americans (n =174), Asians (n = 151) and (n = 46) other groups or those
who gave no ethnic affiliation. Respondents were grouped according to age with the
Young group < 25 years old (n =
389), Middle group 26 to 49 years old (n = 385), Older group 50+ (n = 303), and
those who did not provide an age (n = 6). There
were 521 females and 562 males in the sample.
Respondents
were contacted through a variety of sources including mail, street interviews,
e-mail, web-site solicitations, and e-mail in response to live radio interviews
where the first author discussed the topic of favorite quotes.
In addition, data was collected through cooperation by faculty and
students at universities in California, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Michigan and New
York. Data was collected between
May 1999 and April 2000.
Questionnaire
Respondents
were asked to list up to 15 of their favorite film quotes.
Quotes cited by respondents were coded according to the gender or
character type of the speaker of the quote and the sentiment expressed in the
quote within the context of the film. Student
researchers at the Media Psychology Lab at California State University, Los
Angeles analyzed the data and participated in the development of a coding system
by which the quotes were classified into sentiment categories.
Sentiments were derived from pilot survey data and represented
generalized themes. The sentiment
of a quote was determined by the context in which it was used in the film. These
sentiments were then collapsed into 30 new sentiments that were then classified
into 13 clusters. Quotes were
classified into 3 different valences according to their affective tone; i.e.
positive, negative, and neutral. Quote accuracy was verified using the Internet
Movie Database and, when necessary, watching videotape of a film to accurately
capture a quote’s contextual meaning.
The
valence category was classified based upon the quotes given by the respondents.
There were 3 types of valances: positive, negative, and neutral. Positive valances were assigned to quotes that expressed
sentiments such as affection, attachment, and romance (e.g., "Here's
looking at you kid" from the film Casablanca.)
Quotes that expressed sentiments of irritation, disrespect, anxiety,
physical/verbal aggression, etc. were coded as having negative valances (e.g.,
"Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn" from Gone
with the Wind.) Neutral
valances covered quotes that showed neither positive nor negative content (e.g.,
"You gonna finish that?” from Diner).
There
were 31 sentiments extracted from the quotes cited.
Examples of these sentiments are physical/verbal aggression, romance,
sarcasm, disrespect, and enthusiasm. Sentiments
were then classified as subgroups of clusters. (see Table 1, below)
TABLE 1
Sentiment Clusters by Sentiment Classification
|
Cluster
# |
Name |
Sentiment |
Sentiment
# |
|
100 |
Emotionally/Sexually
Open |
|
|
|
|
|
attachment |
102 |
|
|
|
sex |
101 |
|
|
|
romance |
100 |
|
|
|
verbal affection |
103 |
|
101 |
Hostility/Aggression |
|
|
|
|
|
physical/verbal
aggression |
105 |
|
|
|
disrespect |
104 |
|
|
|
kiss-off |
30 |
|
|
|
sarcasm/bitchy/catty |
38 |
|
102 |
Advice/Assistance |
|
|
|
|
|
warning |
107 |
|
|
|
wisdom |
106 |
|
|
|
sharing information |
41 |
|
|
|
bless/inspire/motivate |
27 |
|
103 |
Agitation |
|
|
|
|
|
irritation |
110 |
|
|
|
anxiety |
108 |
|
|
|
astonishment/shock/bewilderment |
109 |
|
104 |
Emotionally Closed |
|
|
|
|
|
defensiveness |
15 |
|
|
|
distrust |
20 |
|
|
|
rejection |
34 |
|
|
|
cynicism |
13 |
|
|
|
depressed/defeated |
52 |
|
105 |
Emotionally
Expansive |
|
|
|
|
|
braggadocio |
9 |
|
|
|
enthusiasm |
22 |
|
|
|
playful
exaggeration/humor |
33 |
|
|
|
|
51 |
|
Independent
Sentiments |
identity |
|
25 |
|
|
nonsense
phrases/music notes |
|
32 |
|
|
irony |
|
29 |
|
|
directive |
|
17 |
|
|
declaration |
|
14 |
|
|
dying/expiring |
|
49 |
|
|
defiance |
|
50 |
Realizing that film dialog comes from a wide variety of characters, it was decided to code the type of character who generated the quote. Therefore, the character type of the quote source was broken down into the following subcategories: male, female, animated male, animated female, animal, and alien/non-human.
RESULTS
A
total of 1,083 respondents generated 5,652 movie quotes.
If each quote is counted only once, there were 2,638 separate quotes
cited. The average number of quotes
cited per person was 5.26.
Only
the “Top 20” for each demographic segment of the sample will be cited and
discussed here. Later discussion of
results will focus on all quotes and movie sources viewed collectively in terms
of valence, sentiments, and clusters.
Quotes
Table
2 (below) shows the results of the “Top 20” movie quotes (in
most tables more than 20 actual films are included because of tied ranks),
their film sources, release dates of film sources and additional statistics to
be discussed below.
Table 2
"Top
20" Quotes for All Respondents
(N = 1,083)
|
Rank |
Quote |
Citation
Frequency |
Film
Source |
Release
Date |
Number of
Quotes From Film Source in "Top 20" |
Film
Source % of Total "Top 20" Quotes |
Percentage
of "Top 20" Quotes
(N = 1,554) |
|
1 |
I'll be back |
159 |
Terminator |
1984 |
1 |
3.8% |
10.2% |
|
2 |
Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn |
145 |
Gone With The Wind |
1939 |
1 |
3.8% |
9.3% |
|
3 |
Show me the money |
140 |
Jerry Maguire |
1996 |
2 |
7.7% |
9.0% |
|
4 |
Go ahead, make my day |
123 |
Sudden Impact |
1983 |
1 |
3.8% |
7.9% |
|
5 |
Mama always said life is like a box of chocolates… |
108 |
Forrest Gump |
1994 |
2 |
7.7% |
6.9% |
|
6 |
You can't handle the truth |
85 |
A Few Good Men |
1992 |
1 |
3.8% |
5.5% |
|
7 |
Hasta la vista, baby |
82 |
T2 |
1991 |
1 |
3.8% |
5.3% |
|
8 |
May the force be with you |
76 |
Star Wars |
1977 |
1 |
3.8% |
4.9% |
|
9 |
There's no place like home |
67 |
The Wizard of Oz |
1939 |
2 |
7.7% |
4.3% |
|
10 |
Yeah, baby |
49 |
Austin Powers Films |
1998 |
1 |
3.8% |
3.2% |
|
11 |
Here's looking at you, kid |
46 |
Casablanca |
1942 |
2 |
7.7% |
3.0% |
|
11** |
E.T. phone home |
46 |
E.T. |
1982 |
1 |
3.8% |
3.0% |
|
12 |
(I'll) make him an offer he can't refuse |
43 |
The Godfather |
1972 |
1 |
3.8% |
2.8% |
|
12** |
Bond, James Bond |
39 |
James Bond Films |
1981 |
1 |
3.8% |
2.5% |
|
13 |
Are you talking to me? |
35 |
Taxi Driver |
1976 |
1 |
3.8% |
2.3% |
|
14 |
I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore |
34 |
Network |
1976 |
1 |
3.8% |
2.2% |
|
15 |
Fasten your seatbelts it's going to be a bumpy night |
33 |
All About Eve |
1950 |
1 |
3.8% |
2.1% |
|
16 |
You complete me |
32 |
Jerry Maguire |
1996 |
* |
* |
2.1% |
|
17 |
Hakuna Matata |
29 |
The Lion King |
1994 |
1 |
3.8% |
1.9% |
|
18 |
Play it again Sam (Play it once, Sam, for old time's
sake. Play "As time goes
by.") |
27 |
Casablanca |
1942 |
* |
* |
1.7% |
|
18** |
Run, Forrest, run |
27 |
Forrest Gump |
1994 |
* |
* |
1.7% |
|
18** |
Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas any more |
27 |
The Wizard of Oz |
1939 |
* |
* |
1.7% |
The
five most popular quotes all received triple-digit citations.
In ranked order they included "I'll be back" from The
Terminator (159 citations). "Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn"
from Gone with the Wind (145
citations) "Show me the money" from Jerry Maguire (140 citations), “Go ahead, make my day” from Sudden
Impact (123 citations) and “Mama always said life is like a box of
chocolates, never know what you’re going to get,” from Forrest
Gump (108).
Age
There
are obvious differences between the three ages groups in terms of what films and
what quotes stand out as memorable (see Tables 3, 4, and 5), suggesting dynamics
that will be discussed below. But,
there are also some strong similarities. Some
film quotes seem to transcend age. In no particular order, the quotes that
reverberate across the three generations are as follows:
“Here’s
looking at you, kid.”
Casablanca
“Go
ahead, make my day.”
Sudden Impact
“There’s
no place like home.”
The Wizard of Oz
“I’m
mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore.”
Network
“Frankly,
my dear, I don’t give a damn.”
Gone With The Wind
“I’ll
be back.”
The Terminator
“(I’ll)
make him an offer he can’t refuse.”
The Godfather
“Mama
always said life was like a box of chocolates…”
Forrest Gump
“You
can’t handle the truth.”
A Few Good Men
“Show
me the money.”
Jerry Maguire
“May
the force be with you.”
Star Wars
Table
3
"Top
20" Quotes
Young:
Ages 15-25 (N = 389)
|
Rank |
Quote |
Citation
Frequency |
Film
Source |
Release
Date |
Number of
Quotes From Film Source in "Top 20" |
Film
Source % of Total "Top 20" Quotes |
Percentage
of "Top 20" Quotes
(N = 620) |
|
|
1 |
I'll be back |
82 |
Terminator |
1984 |
1 |
3.7% |
13.2% |
|
|
2 |
Show me the money |
59 |
Jerry Maguire |
1996 |
3 |
11.1% |
9.5% |
|
|
3 |
Mama always said life is like a box of chocolates… |
49 |
Forrest Gump |
1994 |
2 |
7.4% |
7.9% |
|
|
4 |
Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn |
38 |
Gone With The Wind |
1939 |
1 |
3.7% |
6.1% |
|
|
5 |
Hasta la vista, baby |
37 |
T2 |
1991 |
1 |
3.7% |
6.0% |
|
|
6 |
May the force be with you |
31 |
Star Wars |
1977 |
2 |
7.4% |
5.0% |
|
|
7 |
Yeah, baby |
28 |
Austin Powers Films |
1998 |
3 |
11.1% |
4.5% |
|
|
8 |
Go ahead, make my day |
24 |
Sudden Impact |
1983 |
1 |
3.7% |
3.9% |
|
|
9 |
Do I make you horny? |
21 |
Austin Powers Films |
1998 |
* |
* |
3.4% |
|
|
10 |
You can't handle the truth |
20 |
A Few Good Men |
1992 |
1 |
3.7% |
3.2% |
|
|
11 |
E.T. phone home |
19 |
E.T. |
1982 |
1 |
3.7% |
3.1% |
|
|
12 |
You complete me |
18 |
Jerry Maguire |
1996 |
* |
* |
2.9% |
|
|
13 |
(I'll) make him an offer he can't refuse |
17 |
Godfather, The |
1972 |
1 |
3.7% |
2.7% |
|
|
14 |
Oh, behave |
16 |
Austin Powers Films |
1998 |
* |
* |
2.6% |
|
|
14** |
There's no place like home |
16 |
Wizard of Oz |
1939 |
1 |
3.7% |
2.6% |
|
|
14** |
You got knocked the fuck out |
16 |
Friday |
1995 |
1 |
3.7% |
2.6% |
|
|
15 |
To infinity and beyond |
15 |
Toy Story |
1995 |
1 |
3.7% |
2.4% |
|
|
16 |
Say hello to my little friend |
14 |
Scarface |
1983 |
1 |
3.7% |
2.3% |
|
|
17 |
You had me at hello |
13 |
Jerry Maguire |
1996 |
* |
* |
2.1% |
|
|
18 |
Do you understand the words coming out of my mouth? |
12 |
Rush Hour |
1998 |
1 |
3.7% |
1.9% |
|
|
19 |
Hakuna Matata |
11 |
Lion King, The |
1994 |
1 |
3.7% |
1.8% |
|
|
19** |
Here's looking at you, kid |
11 |
Casablanca |
1942 |
1 |
3.7% |
1.8% |
|
|
19** |
Use the force, Luke |
11 |
Star Wars |
1977 |
* |
* |
1.8% |
|
|
19** |
As if… |
11 |
Clueless |
1995 |
1 |
3.7% |
1.8% |
|
|
19** |
Run, Forrest, run |
11 |
Forrest Gump |
1994 |
* |
* |
1.8% |
|
|
20 |
Are you talking to me? |
10 |
Taxi Driver |
1976 |
1 |
3.7% |
1.6% |
|
|
20** |
Luke, I'm your father |
10 |
Star Wars |
1977 |
* |
* |
1.6% |
|
|
|
TOTAL |
620 |
Average
Release Year |
1983.7 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
** = tied ranks |
|
* = repeat
citation |
|
|
|
|
|
Table
4
"Top
20" Quotes
Middle:
Ages 26-49 (N = 385)
|
Rank |
Quote |
Citation
Frequency |
Film
Source |
Release
Date |
Number of
Quotes From Film Source in "Top 20" |
Film
Source % of Total "Top 20" Quotes |
Percentage
of "Top 20" Quotes
(N =661) |
|
|
1 |
I'll be back |
65 |
The Terminator |
1984 |
1 |
3.6% |
9.8% |
|
|
2 |
Go ahead, make my day |
61 |
Sudden Impact |
1983 |
1 |
3.6% |
9.2% |
|
|
3 |
Show
me the money |
59 |
Jerry Maguire |
1996 |
1 |
3.6% |
8.9% |
|
|
4 |
Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn |
58 |
Gone With The Wind |
1939 |
1 |
3.6% |
8.8% |
|
|
5 |
You can't handle the truth |
42 |
A Few Good Men |
1992 |
1 |
3.6% |
6.4% |
|
|
6 |
Mama always said life is like a box of chocolates… |
41 |
Forrest Gump |
1994 |
1 |
3.6% |
6.2% |
|
|
7 |
Hasta la vista, baby |
33 |
T2 |
1991 |
1 |
3.6% |
5.0% |
|
|
8 |
May the force be with you |
32 |
Star Wars |
1977 |
1 |
3.6% |
4.8% |
|
|
9 |
There's no place like home |
24 |
The Wizard of Oz |
1939 |
2 |
7.1% |
3.6% |
|
|
10 |
E.T. phone home |
21 |
E.T. |
1982 |
1 |
3.6% |
3.2% |
|
|
11 |
Yeah, baby |
20 |
Austin Powers Films |
1998 |
2 |
7.1% |
3.0% |
|
|
12 |
Are you talkin' to me? |
19 |
Taxi Driver |
1976 |
1 |
3.6% |
2.9% |
|
|
13 |
Here's looking at you, kid |
16 |
Casablanca |
1942 |
2 |
7.1% |
2.4% |
|
|
13 |
Hakuna Matata |
16 |
The Lion King |
1994 |
1 |
3.6% |
2.4% |
|
|
14 |
Play it again Sam (Play it once, Sam, for old time's
sake. Play "As time goes
by.") |
15 |
Casablanca |
1942 |
* |
* |
2.3% |
|
|
15 |
(I'll) make him an offer he can't refuse |
14 |
The Godfather |
1972 |
1 |
3.6% |
2.1% |
|
|
16 |
Fasten your seatbelts, it's going to be a bumpy night |
13 |
All About Eve |
1950 |
1 |
3.6% |
2.0% |
|
|
17 |
Run, Forrest, run |
12 |
Forrest Gump |
1994 |
* |
* |
1.8% |
|
|
18 |
I love the smell of napalm in the morning |
11 |
Apocalypse Now |
1979 |
1 |
3.6% |
1.7% |
|
|
18** |
Bond, James Bond |
11 |
James Bond Films |
1981 |
1 |
3.6% |
1.7% |
|
|
18** |
Here's Johnny |
11 |
The Shining |
1980 |
1 |
3.6% |
1.7% |
|
|
19 |
Adrian |
10 |
Rocky |
1976 |
1 |
3.6% |
1.5% |
|
|
19** |
Say hello to my little friend |
10 |
Scarface |
1983 |
1 |
3.6% |
1.5% |
|
|
19** |
We don't need no stinking badges. (Badges? We ain't
got no badges. We don't need no badges. I don't have to show you any
stinking badges.) |
10 |
Treasure of the Sierra Madre (and Blazing Saddles) |
1948 |
1 |
3.6% |
1.5% |
|
|
19** |
Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas any more |
10 |
The Wizard of Oz |
1939 |
* |
* |
1.5% |
|
|
20 |
Oh, behave |
9 |
Austin Powers Films |
1998 |
* |
* |
1.4% |
|
|
20** |
Ditto |
9 |
Ghost |
1990 |
1 |
3.6% |
1.4% |
|
|
20** |
I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore |
9 |
Network |
1976 |
1 |
3.6% |
1.4% |
|
|
|
Total |
|
Average
Release Year |
1974.8 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
** = tied ranks |
|
* = repeat
citation |
|
|
|
|
|
Table 5
"Top
20" Quotes
Older: Ages 50+ (N = 303)
|
Rank |
Quote |
Citation
Frequency |
Film
Source |
Release
Date |
Number of
Quotes From Film Source in "Top 20" |
Film
Source % of Total "Top 20" Quotes |
Percentage
of "Top 20" Quotes
(N = 452) |
|
1 |
Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn |
50 |
Gone With The Wind |
1939 |
1 |
3.8% |
11.1% |
|
2 |
Go ahead, make my day |
38 |
Sudden Impact |
1983 |
1 |
3.8% |
8.4% |
|
3 |
There's no place like home |
27 |
The Wizard of Oz |
1939 |
2 |
7.7% |
6.0% |
|
4 |
I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore |
24 |
Network |
1976 |
1 |
3.8% |
5.3% |
|
5 |
You can't handle the truth |
24 |
A Few Good Men |
1992 |
1 |
3.8% |
5.3% |
|
6 |
Show me the money |
23 |
Jerry Maguire |
1996 |
1 |
3.8% |
5.1% |
|
7 |
Fasten your seatbelts it's going to be a bumpy night |
21 |
All About Eve |
1950 |
1 |
3.8% |
4.6% |
|
8 |
Here's looking at you, kid |
20 |
Casablanca |
1942 |
4 |
15.4% |
4.4% |
|
9 |
I coulda been a contender |
19 |
On The Waterfront |
1954 |
1 |
3.8% |
4.2% |
|
10 |
Mama always said life is like a box of chocolates… |
18 |
Forrest Gump |
1994 |
1 |
3.8% |
4.0% |
|
11 |
We don't need no stinking badges. (Badges? We ain't
got no badges. We don't need no badges. I don't have to show you any
stinking badges.) |
17 |
Treasure of the Sierra Madre (and Blazing Saddles) |
1948 |
1 |
3.8% |
3.8% |
|
12 |
(I'll) make him an offer he can't refuse |
16 |
The Godfather |
1972 |
1 |
3.8% |
3.5% |
|
13 |
Play it again Sam (Play it once, Sam, for old time's
sake) |
15 |
Casablanca |
1942 |
* |
* |
3.3% |
|
14 |
Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas any more |
14 |
The Wizard of Oz |
1939 |
* |
* |
3.1% |
|
14** |
Bond, James Bond |
14 |
James Bond Films |
1981 |
1 |
3.8% |
3.1% |
|
14** |
I vant to be alone |
14 |
Grand Hotel |
1932 |
1 |
3.8% |
3.1% |
|
15 |
May the force be with you |
13 |
Star Wars |
1977 |
1 |
3.8% |
2.9% |
|
16 |
I'll be back |
12 |
The Terminator |
1984 |
1 |
3.8% |
2.7% |
|
17 |
Plastics |
11 |
The Graduate |
1967 |
1 |
3.8% |
2.4% |
|
18 |
Round up the usual suspects |
10 |
Casablanca |
1942 |
* |
* |
2.2% |
|
18 |
That'll do pig, that'll do |
10 |
Babe |
1995 |
1 |
3.8% |
2.2% |
|
19 |
I'm ready for my close-up, Mr. DeMille |
9 |
Sunset Boulevard |
1950 |
1 |
3.8% |
2.0% |
|
19** |
I can see that you're upset, Dave |
9 |
2001 |
1968 |
1 |
3.8% |
2.0% |
|
20 |
We'll always have Paris |
8 |
Casablanca |
1942 |
* |
* |
1.8% |
|
20** |
What do we do now? |
8 |
The Candidate |
1972 |
1 |
3.8% |
1.8% |
|
20** |
The horror, the horror |
8 |
Apocalypse Now |
1979 |
1 |
3.8% |
1.8% |
|
|
Total |
|
Average
Release Year |
1963.7 |
|
|
|
|
|
** = tied ranks |
|
* = repeat
citation |
|
|
|
|
Table
6 shows the results of the “Top 20” movie quotes for Males only.
The film that was the source of the most individual quotes ending up in
the “Top 20” for Males was the 1942 romantic drama, Casablanca.
The second most popular source of quotes was the 1939 film classic, The
Wizard of Oz. Casablanca
generated quotes which comprised 12.5% of the Top 20 and The Wizard of Oz (“Toto,
I’ve a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore,” and “There’s no place
like home.”) comprised 8.5%. While
no quote from Casablanca came close to
the five most frequently cited quotes (I’ll be back” from The
Terminator (88 citations), “Go
ahead, make my day,” from the Dirty Harry film Sudden
Impact (83 citations), “Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn,” from Gone
With the Wind (64 citations), “Show me the money,” from Jerry
Maguire (58 citations), and “You can’t handle the truth,” from A Few Good Men (54 citations), it did generate, collectively, three
of the most memorable quotes. They
were “Here’s looking at you, kid,” “Play it again, Sam (the actual quote
being, “Play it once, Sam, for old time’s sake.
Play it, Sam. Play ‘As
time goes by.’”), and “Round up the usual suspects.”
Table
6
"Top
20" Quotes
Males
(N = 562)
|
Rank |
Quote |
Citation
Frequency |
Film
Source |
Release
Date |
Number of
Quotes From Film Source in "Top 20" |
Film
Source % of Total "Top 20" Quotes |
Percentage
of "Top 20" Quotes
(N = 768) |
|
|
1 |
I'll be back |
88 |
The
Terminator |
1984 |
1 |
4.2% |
11.5% |
|
|
2 |
Go ahead, make my day |
83 |
Sudden Impact |
1983 |
1 |
4.2% |
10.8% |
|
|
3 |
Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn |
64 |
Gone With The Wind |
1939 |
1 |
4.2% |
8.3% |
|
|
4 |
Show me the money |
58 |
Jerry Maguire |
1996 |
1 |
4.2% |
7.6% |
|
|
5 |
You can't handle the truth |
54 |
A Few Good Men |
1992 |
1 |
4.2% |
7.0% |
|
|
6 |
May the force be with you |
42 |
Star Wars |
1977 |
1 |
4.2% |
5.5% |
|
|
7 |
Hasta la vista, baby |
33 |
T2 |
1991 |
1 |
4.2% |
4.3% |
|
|
8 |
Mama always said life is like a box of chocolates… |
29 |
Forrest Gump |
1994 |
1 |
4.2% |
3.8% |
|
|
9 |
Bond, James Bond |
27 |
James Bond Films |
1981 |
1 |
4.2% |
3.5% |
|
|
10 |
Here's looking at you, kid |
25 |
Casablanca |
1942 |
3 |
12.5% |
3.3% |
|
|
11 |
Are you talking to me? |
24 |
Taxi Driver |
1976 |
1 |
4.2% |
3.1% |
|
|
12 |
I love the smell of napalm in the morning |
22 |
Apocalypse Now |
1979 |
1 |
4.2% |
2.9% |
|
|
13 |
E.T. phone home |
21 |
E.T. |
1982 |
1 |
4.2% |
2.7% |
|
|
14 |
Yeah, baby |
20 |
Austin Powers Films |
1998 |
1 |
4.2% |
2.6% |
|
|
14** |
(I'll) make him an offer he can't refuse |
20 |
The Godfather |
1972 |
1 |
4.2% |
2.6% |
|
|
14** |
I'm mad as hell |
20 |
Network |
1976 |
1 |
4.2% |
2.6% |
|
|
14** |
Say hello to my little friend |
20 |
Scarface |
1983 |
1 |
4.2% |
2.6% |
|
|
15 |
Fasten your seatbelts it's going to be a bumpy night |
19 |
All About Eve |
1950 |
1 |
4.2% |
2.5% |
|
|
15** |
I coulda been a contender |
19 |
On The Waterfront |
1954 |
1 |
4.2% |
2.5% |
|
|
16 |
Play it again Sam (Play it once, Sam, for old time's
sake. Play "As time goes
by.") |
18 |
Casablanca |
1942 |
* |
* |
2.3% |
|
|
17 |
There's no place like home |
17 |
The Wizard of Oz |
1939 |
2 |
8.3% |
2.2% |
|
|
18 |
Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas any more |
16 |
The Wizard of Oz |
1939 |
* |
* |
2.1% |
|
|
19 |
We don't need no stinking badges. (Badges? We ain't
got no badges. We don't need no badges. I don't have to show you any
stinking badges.) |
15 |
Treasure of the Sierra Madre (and Blazing Saddles) |
1948 |
1 |
4.2% |
2.0% |
|
|
20 |
Round up the usual suspects |
14 |
Casablanca |
1942 |
* |
* |
1.8% |
|
|
|
Total |
768 |
Average
Release Year |
1969.1 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
** = tied ranks |
|
* = repeat
citation |
|
|
|
|
|
Table
7 shows the results of the “Top 20” movie quotes for Females only.
There was noticeable overlap between males and females in terms of the
favorite quotes with nine films and their related quotes cited by both sexes,
although females had two, very romantic, quotes from Jerry
Maguire, “You complete me,” and “You had me at hello,” on their list
(26 citations), while these quotes were absent from the male’s list.
Table
7
"Top
20" Quotes
Females
(N = 521)
|
Rank |
Quote |
Citation
Frequency |
Film
Source |
Release
Date |
Number of
Quotes From Film Source in "Top 20" |
Film
Source % of Total "Top 20" Quotes |
Percentage
of "Top 20" Quotes
(N =743) |
|
1 |
Show me the money |
82 |
Jerry Maguire |
1996 |
3 |
12.5% |
11.0% |
|
2 |
Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn |
81 |
Gone With The Wind |
1939 |
1 |
4.2% |
10.9% |
|
3 |
Mama always said life is like a box of chocolates… |
79 |
Forrest Gump |
1994 |
3 |
12.5% |
10.6% |
|
4 |
I'll be back |
71 |
Terminator |
1984 |
1 |
4.2% |
9.6% |
|
5 |
Hast la vista, baby |
49 |
T2 |
1991 |
1 |
4.2% |
6.6% |
|
6 |
There's no place like home |
48 |
The Wizard of Oz |
1939 |
2 |
8.3% |
6.5% |
|
7 |
Go ahead, make my day |
40 |
Sudden Impact |
1983 |
1 |
4.2% |
5.4% |
|
8 |
You can't handle the truth |
31 |
A Few Good Men |
1992 |
1 |
4.2% |
4.2% |
|
9 |
Yeah, baby |
29 |
Austin Powers Films |
1998 |
2 |
8.3% |
3.9% |
|
10 |
You complete me |
26 |
Jerry Maguire |
1996 |
* |
* |
3.5% |
|
11 |
Hakuna Matata |
24 |
The Lion King |
1994 |
1 |
4.2% |
3.2% |
|
12 |
Here's looking at you, kid |
21 |
Casablanca |
1942 |
1 |
4.2% |
2.8% |
|
13 |
You had me at hello |
19 |
Jerry Maguire |
1996 |
* |
* |
2.6% |
|
14 |
Oh, behave |
18 |
Austin Powers Films |
1998 |
* |
* |
2.4% |
|
15 |
Run, Forrest, run |
17 |
Forrest Gump |
1994 |
* |
* |
2.3% |
|
16 |
I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore |
16 |
Network |
1976 |
1 |
4.2% |
2.2% |
|
17 |
I vant to be alone |
15 |
Grand Hotel |
1932 |
1 |
4.2% |
2.0% |
|
18 |
Fasten your seatbelts it's going to be a bumpy night |
14 |
All About Eve |
1950 |
1 |
4.2% |
1.9% |
|
18** |
To Infinity and beyond |
14 |
Toy Story |
1995 |
1 |
4.2% |
1.9% |
|
19 |
As if |
13 |
Clueless |
1995 |
1 |
4.2% |
1.7% |
|
20 |
That'll do pig, that'll do |
12 |
Babe |
1995 |
1 |
4.2% |
1.6% |
|
20** |
Stupid is as stupid does |
12 |
Forrest Gump |
1994 |
* |
* |
1.6% |
|
20** |
Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas any more |
12 |
The Wizard of Oz |
1939 |
* |
* |
1.6% |
|
|
Total |
|
Average
Release Year |
1978.8 |
|
|
|
|
|
** = tied ranks |
|
* = repeat
citation |
|
|
|
|
The
non-overlapping films that contained the quotes cited by females can be
characterized as being less hard-edged than those cited by males and, most
important, more likely to feature or star women actors.
Thus, women cited quotes from films such as Grand
Hotel, where Garbo utters her famous line, “I want to be alone,” and Clueless
(“As if…), and less edgy, animated films like Babe (“That’ll do, pig, that’ll do”), The Lion King (“Hakuna Matata”),
and Toy Story (“To infinity and
beyond”).
The
average release date of these Top 20 quote film sources is 1974.
Nine films (33%) were released in the decade of the 90s.
The 80s offered 5 films (18.5%), the 70s offered five films (18.5%), the
60s gave us zero films, the 50s provided two films (7.4%), while the 40s and 30s
contributed 3 films (11%) each.
Age
of respondents provides an explanation for this distribution and bias toward
older films as the source for the greatest number of memorable quotes.
The correlation between Age and Release Date of film quote sources is r
= -.47 (5,518), p < .001, indicating that age and the year of a
quote’s origin film are negatively related such that the older a respondent
the earlier in the century the film’s initial release date.
The
average release date for all film quote sources, not just the “Top 20,” is
1980. This release date average
varies dramatically between age groups. For
Young respondents it is 1988. For
Middle respondents it is 1979, and for Older respondents it is 1967.
The decade-wide differences between the three Age groups is significant,
F (2, 5515) = 573.67, p < .001. All
differences between each Age group are also significant.
These
results provide a definitive “yes” answer to RQ3.
It is also consistent with findings of Fischoff, et al, (1997), which
found that older people tended to favor films that are of an earlier release
vintage than those cited by younger people.
It
should be noted here that it is entirely possible that many people who cited
quotes never, in fact, saw the movie from which it originated.
Certain quotes simply become part of a cultural lexicon of quotes.
Females tended to cite quotes from films that were of a more recent vintage than
males. The average
release date for “Top 20” male films was 1969, while it was 1979, a decade
later, for females. This
difference is likely due, in part, to the fact that the average age of males in
the sample is 39.8, SD = 17.6, while it is 34.4, SD = 16.47, for females, t (1,074) = 5.21, p
< .001. But, for
all films cited, females and males differ by only three years in terms of
release year of film source for quote citations, Males, M
= 1978, Females, M = 1981, t
(5391.5) = 5.98, p < .001.
So, only for the top ranking films does age seem to make a major
difference between males and females in terms of release dates of films
originating quotes.
Research
Q4 asked which films tended
to generate the greatest number of separate quotes. In other words, are some films a treasure trove of memorable
lines as compared with other films that may generate only one or two memorable
lines? Results indicate the answer
is yes.
As
Table 8 shows, when all respondents quotes are taken together, the
youth-oriented, obscenity-laden comedy, Friday, won top honors generating 35 separate quotes.
Scarface, with 29 separate
quotes, came in second. Titanic,
South Park: Bigger Longer, Uncut,
and Pulp Fiction rounded out the top 5
film quote sources. All of the
films except Titanic generated quotes
with a remarkable number of expletives, e.g., “You fucking cockroach,” from Scarface.
Table
8
"Top 10" Films Generating the Most Individual Quote
|
|
All
Respondents (N = 1083) |
|
|
Young
(N = 389) |
|
|
Rank |
Film |
#
of individual quotes |
Rank |
Film |
#
of individual quotes |
|
1 |
Friday |
35 |
1 |
Friday |
33 |
|
2 |
Scarface |
30 |
2 |
Austin
Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me |
23 |
|
3 |
Titanic |
24 |
3 |
South Park:
Bigger, Longer & Uncut |
20 |
|
4 |
South Park:
Bigger, Longer & Uncut |
20 |
4 |
Pulp Fiction |
17 |
|
5 |
Pulp Fiction |
19 |
5 |
Scarface |
15 |
|
6 |
The Wizard of
Oz |
19 |
6 |
Rush Hour |
13 |
|
7 |
The Color
Purple |
18 |
7 |
The Color
Purple |
10 |
|
8 |
Star Wars |
17 |
8 |
Monty Python
and the Holy Grail |
9 |
|
9 |
The Godfather |
15 |
9 |
2001: A Space
Odyssey |
8 |
|
10 |
Jerry Maguire |
14 |
10 |
The Empire
Strikes Back |
7 |
|
10 |
Monty Python
and the Holy Grail |
14 |
10 |
The Godfather |
7 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Middle
(N = 385) |
|
|
Older
(N = 303) |
|
|
Rank |
Film |
#
of individual quotes |
Rank |
Film |
#
of individual quotes |
|
1 |
Scarface |
15 |
1 |
The Wizard of
Oz |
8 |
|
2 |
The Color
Purple |
10 |
2 |
A Night at
the Opera |
7 |
|
3 |
Monty Python
and the Holy Grail |
9 |
3 |
She Done Him
Wrong |
6 |
|
4 |
2001: A Space
Odyssey |
8 |
4 |
The Godfather |
5 |
|
5 |
The Empire
Strikes Back |
7 |
4 |
Dr.
Strangelove |
5 |
|
5 |
The Godfather |
7 |
4 |
Butch Cassidy
and the Sundance Kid |
5 |
|
5 |
Titanic |
7 |
4 |
Sunset Blvd. |
5 |
|
6 |
Casablanca |
6 |
5 |
The Producers |
4 |
|
6 |
Animal House |
6 |
5 |
My Fair Lady |
4 |
|
6 |
Three Stooges
films |
6 |
5 |
King Kong |
4 |
|
6 |
Top Gun |
6 |
|
|
|
|
6 |
Young
Frankenstein |
6 |
|
|
|
The
popularity of most expletive-ridden films like Friday
can best be understood by looking at the three age groups separately.
Friday found 33 of its 35
citations with those under age 26, all 20 of the South
Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut, 17 of the 19 Pulp Fiction citations. They
also favored the swear-fest action comedy Rush Hour, a film absent from citations chosen by the other age
groups. Only the film Scarface,
with its river of four-letter words and violent allusions, was favored equally
by Young and Middle age groups. Scarface was not on the quote radar screen of Older respondents.
Older people were far more interested in quotes from The
Wizard of Oz, the Marx Brother’s classic, A
Night At The Opera, and the sexual
innuendoed Mae West film, She Done Him
Wrong (“Is that a gun in your pocket or are you glad to see me?”).
Mae West’s risqué humor which made her so controversial in the 1930s
stands in stark contrast with the sexually explicit, gross out dialogue from a
film such as American Pie, which was
also a trove of quotes for Young respondents.
It
is noteworthy that of the top 27 quotes only four (15%) are out the mouths of
women. Table 9, which lists which
actors are in the greatest number of movies that were the source of memorable
quotes, can shed some light on the gender disparity.
As far as males are concerned, the top five actors in descending order
are Al Pacino (14 films), Jack Nicholson (12 films), Humphrey Bogart and Robert
DeNiro (9 films), and Marlon Brando (8 films).
With regard to females, the list is shorter and the numbers are smaller:
Bette Davis (7 films), Katherine Hepburn (5 films), Whoopie Goldberg (4 films),
and Mae West (3 films). Obviously
fewer female actors are provided with dialogue that a cross-section of Americans
find memorable. There are more men
than women who have lead roles in movies and more movies with memorable dialogue
coming from their mouths.
Table 9
Gender of Actor Quote Source by Males
& Females
|
|
|
Numbers |
|
|
Actor
Gender |
FEMALE |
MALE |
Total |
|
Male |
1625 |
2237 |
3862 |
|
Female |
603 |
360 |
963 |
|
Animated
Male |
87 |
39 |
126 |
|
Animated
Female |
9 |
6 |
15 |
|
animal |
45 |
9 |
54 |
|
alien/non-human |
197 |
212 |
409 |
|
TOTAL |
2566 |
2863 |
5429 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Percentages |
|
|
Actor
Gender |
FEMALE |
MALE |
Total |
|
Male |
63.3 |
78.1 |
71.1 |
|
Female |
23.5 |
12.6 |
17.7 |
|
Animated
Male |
3.4 |
1.4 |
2.3 |
|
Animated
Female |
0.4 |
0.2 |
0.3 |
|
animal |
1.8 |
0.3 |
1.0 |
|
alien/non-human |
7.7 |
7.4 |
7.5 |
|
TOTAL |
100 |
100 |
100 |
Valence
All Respondents
Recall
that the valence of a quote refers to whether it expressed a sentiment which was
positive, negative, or neutral. Among
all respondents there was a significant difference between the frequency of
citing each of these quote valences, c2(2,
N = 5,497) = 2192, p < .001.
The number of neutral quotes was 226, while the number of positive and
negative quotes were, respectively, 2,364 and 2,907.
Both positive and negative quotes were significantly different from
neutral quotes and the differences between positive and negative quotes was also
significant, c2(1,
N = 5,271) = 55.94, p < .001.
Negative valence quotes were cited 52% of the time and positive valence
quotes occurred 44% of the time. Quotes
with a neutral valence (e.g., “Shaken, not stirred." from the James
Bond series) were only mentioned 4% of the time among all subjects.
These results support H1,
which predicted negative quotes would outnumber positive quotes.
Gender
Males
and females were significantly different in terms of their preferences for
positive or negative valence quotes. Males
favored quotes which were negative 60% of the time and positive 40% of the time
while females split their preferences between positive and negative quotes
equally, c2(1,
N = 5,271) = 51.67, p < .001.
This supports the prediction of H2.
Age
The
differences between the three age groups in their preferences for positive or
negative valence quotes was effectively small though statistically significant, c2(1,
N = 5,259) = 8.85, p < .001.
Young participants preferred negative valence quotes 53% of the time,
Middle preferred them 57% of the time and Older preferred them 55% of the time.
While Older and Middle age respondents were not significantly different
from each other and Older and Younger respondents were not significantly
different from each other, Middle and Younger were significantly different from
each other, c2(1,
N = 4,004) = 8.80, p < .003.
Thus, while respondents in all age groups favored negative over positive
(and neutral) quotes, Middle age respondents tended to favor negative quotes
more than respondents in the other age categories.
Having
said this, it is necessary to get more specific to see exactly what sort of
negative and positive quotes were cited, i.e., what were the sentiments
expressed most often in these quotes?
It may be recalled that
the 31 sentiments coded for quote classification were collapsed into 13 clusters
for ease of understanding. When
clusters are inspected, significant differences emerge not only between genders
but between age groups. A list of
Clusters is presented in Table 1 along with the Sentiments of which they are
comprised.
All Respondents
As
Tables 10 and 11, which contain Cluster and Sentiment percentages for all
demographics, indicates, Cluster 101 (Hostility/Aggression, e.g., "Say
hello to my little friend" from Scarface) was the most frequently cited cluster for all subjects,
occurring 25% of the time. The
Sentiment characterizing the greatest proportion of quotes in Cluster 101 is
Physical/Verbal Aggression. This is
to be expected given that two of the quotes in the “Top 20” for all
respondents were the physical threats, “I’ll be back” and “Go ahead,
make my day,” from The Terminator
and “Sudden Impact,” respectively from the lips of Arnold
Schwarzenegger and Clint Eastwood. This
again supported H1, which predicted that hostile or
aggressive quotes would be those most frequently cited.
Table
10
Cluster Frequencies by Demographics