Getting To The Truth
…At the end of two weeks of rehearsal, I had a run-through of the script. There were no major problems. In fact, it seemed quite good. But somehow it seemed rather flat. …
…I said that there was a certain aspect of Frank Galvin’s character that was missing so far. I told him that I wouldn’t invade his privacy, but only he could choose whether or not to reveal that part of the character and therefore that aspect of himself…we lived near each other and rode home together. The ride that evening was silent. Paul (Newman) was thinking. On Monday, Paul came into rehearsal and sparks flew. He was superb. His character and the picture took on life… I know that decision to reveal the part of himself that the character required was painful for him…
— Sidney Lumet
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I write books, I know that in today’s bookstores they sell many books that are not books, that you open them and there is nothing written on them even though you see them stained with letters on all pages, a huge amount of phrases that say nothing. Reading is something else: it is a unique experience, an expedition to the bottom of oneself, opening up to the world and to the other. That’s literature, something magnificent that makes you see new things you didn’t know about. That stands in front of fake literature, where all the so-called phenomenons, certain bestsellers, all…
