Speak - Quotes | Moviefone

Questioning Concern for a Friend

Melinda: Why should I worry about Rachel?

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

The Struggle for Speaking Out

David: The suffragettes fought for their right to speak. They were attacked, arrested and thrown in jail for daring to do what they wanted to do. Like them, Melinda is willing to stand up for what she believes. That no one should be forced to give speeches.

Mr. Neck: What is this?

David: Melinda has to deliver her report to the class as part of the assignment. She made copies everyone can read.

Mr. Neck: [to David; to Melinda] Oh, no you don't. When I say oral I mean oral. Now you sit down! And you, read that report. Open your mouth Sordino. Open your damn mouth!

Mr. Neck: I am so sick of your attitude.

Melinda: [voice over] I forgot: the suffragettes were hauled off to jail. Duh!

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

Questioning Melinda's Awareness and Response

David: Melinda! Hello? Can you count backwards from 10? Who is the president of the United States? Come on, open your eyes.

Ms. Keen: Dave, don't hit her!

David: [still slapping her] That's what you're supposed to do! My dad's a doctor. Melinda, who's the governor of Texas?

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

The Importance of Understanding Revolutionary Principles

Hairwoman: A revolutionary is only as good as his analysis. What does that mean?

Hairwoman: Melinda, better late than never. Why is a revolutionary only as good as his or her analysis?

Melinda: I think you should know what you stand for, not just what you're against. You should be able to show how things can be better.

Hairwoman: That's pretty darn good.

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

Struggling for Help in the Classroom

Melinda: Excuse me, sir? Um, I was wondering if... uh, I was j...

Mr. Neck: Come on, Sordino. Spit it out. You have to learn to enunciate. Or else no one will listen.

Melinda: I was wondering if there was any way I can raise my grade?

Mr. Neck: Parents got the report card, huh?

Melinda: No, I just wanted to.

Mr. Neck: Why should I give you that chance?

Melinda: Everyone deserves a second chance. I mean, isn't that what Jesus said?

Mr. Neck: Are you being smart with me?

Mr. Neck: OK. I'm feeling generous. Just because I don't wanna have to see your face in summer school. Write me a report on a cultural influence at the turn of the century. And it better be good.

Melinda Sordino: [voiceover] It will be. I'll write about the suffragettes. Before they came along, women were treated like dogs.

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

Navigating Differences in Friendship Dynamics

Heather: This is really awkward. No matter what... no, I don't wanna say that. I mean, we kinda paired up at the beginning of school when I was new and didn't know anyone and that was really really sweet of you. But I think it's time that we both admit to each other that we're just very different people. I mean, I have my modeling and I like to shop...

Melinda: I like to shop.

Heather: You don't like anything. You're the most depressed person I've ever met. And excuse me for saying this but I think you need professional help.

Melinda: So you're blowing me off because I'm a little depressed?

Heather: Once you get through this "life sucks" phase, I'm sure lots of people will wanna be your friend. But for right now, I don't think we should have lunch together.

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

Historical Perspectives on Employment and Discrimination

Melinda: [voiceover] We're studying American history for the ninth time in nine years. Every year they say we're gonna get right up to the present but we always get stuck in the industrial revolution.

Mr. Neck: My family has been in this country for over 200 years. We built this place. We fought in every war, from the first one to the last one, paid our taxes and voted. So tell me why my son can't get a job?

Mr. Neck: Reverse discrimination. He wanted to be a firefighter. Went up for the job but he didn't get it. What I'm suggesting here is maybe if we had closed our borders in 1900 then real americans would get the jobs they deserved.

Mr. Neck: Young lady.

Heather: Um, I think that we're all foreigners and should just give the country back to the Native Americans.

Mr. Neck: [scoffs] Now we have a debate, don't we? "Native Americans"?

Black student: Maybe your son didn't get the job because he wasn't good enough. Or maybe he's lazy. Or maybe the other guy was just better than him.

Mr. Neck: Watch your mouth, mister. That's my son you're talking about. You know what? That's enough debate. Everybody take out your book.

Mr. Neck: Mr. Petrakis, please take your seat.

David: If the class is debating, then each student has the right to say what's on his mind.

Mr. Neck: I decide who talks in here, Mr. Petrakis.

David: You opened a debate, you can't close it just because it's not going your way.

Mr. Neck: Watch me! Take your seat, Mr. Petrakis!

David: The constitution does not recognize different levels of citizenship based upon the time spent in the country. As a citizen and a student, I'm protesting the tone of this lesson as racist, intolerant, and xenophobic.

Mr. Neck: Sit your butt in that chair, Mr Petrakis, and watch your mouth! I try to get this debate going and you people turn it into a "race" thing. Sit down, Mr. Petrakis, or you're gonna go down to the principal's office.

Melinda: [voiceover] Dave Petrakis is my new hero.

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

The Struggle of Communication and Connection

Melinda: [voiceover] All that crap you hear on TV about communication and expressing feelings is a lie. No one really cares what you have to say.

Heather: So here's the plan. We join 5 clubs. One for every day of the week. Not like Latin club, but cool stuff. What do you wanna join? Hey, maybe we can tutor kids at the elementary school. What about your friends from last year? Don't you know Nicole?

Melinda: [voiceover] I wonder how long it would take for anyone to notice if I just stopped talking.

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

Interpreting Intentions in Complex Narratives

Hairwoman: [[Nathaniel Hawthorne|Hawthorne] Every word ] wrote, every comma, every paragraph break, these were done on purpose. It is our job to try and figure out what he's really trying to say.

Melinda: [voiceover] Why couldn't he just say what he meant? Would they pin a scarlet letter on his chest? "S" for straightforward?

Hairwoman: The house with the chunks of glass in its walls, is a symbol of what? Well, it would reflect, sparkle? Come on people, the house symbolizes...?

Rachel: How do you know that's what he meant to say? I mean, you could just make all that up, it's just a story.

Hairwoman: This is Hawthorne, one of America's greatest novelists. And not that it makes any difference but I wrote my dissertation on Hawthorne.

Rachel: Fine, but, I thought we were all supposed to have opinions here. I mean it's a good story especially when Hester and that guy fall in love. But I don't really believe in symbolism. I mean you can just make all that up.

Hairwoman: [about to cry] Alright class, I want you all to write a 500 word essay on symbolism. And then... turn it in!

Melinda: [voiceover] Poor hairwoman. I hope they send her to a conference or something. I'm ready to help pay for a sub.

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

Exploring Fear Through Artistic Expression

Mr. Freeman: In here is a piece of paper and on that piece of paper is a word. You are gonna spend the rest of the year turning that object into art.

Ivy: Uh, Mr Freeman? When I was little I was really scared of clowns and I don't wanna relapse and have to go back into therapy.

Mr. Freeman: Oh yeah, well, fear is a great place to begin art.

Melinda: I learned how to draw a tree in like the 2nd grade.

Mr. Freeman: Oh really? Um. Well, do you wanna show me? It's OK. I won't grade you.

Mr. Freeman: That's a pretty good start. Yeah, let's see what it looks like at the end of the year.

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

The Importance of Creativity and Imagination

Mr. Freeman: [holds up a smashed globe] Can anybody tell me what this is?

Ivy: A globe?

Mr. Freeman: A Globe? Gosh... What're you guys? 13? 14? You already let them beat the creativity outta you?... It's ok. I used to let my daughters kick this around my studio when it was too wet to play outside. And one day Jenny put her foot right through Texas and the entire United States crumbled into the sea. I mean, you could, you could paint a wet muzzled dog... chewing Alaska! The possibilities are endless. It's almost too much but you all are important enough to give it too.

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

Cheerleading for New School Mascot Confusion

Melinda: [voiceover] The school board decided that Trojans didn't send a strong message of abstinence. So we'll now be the home of the Merryweather Hornets.

Cheerleader: What are we supposed to cheer? We are the hornets, the horny horny hornets?

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

Hallway Kissing Prohibited by Authority

Mr. Neck: There is no kissing in the hallway!

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

Transforming Pain into Creative Expression

Mr. Freeman: [describing a painting] It's night in Venice. This is the color of an accountant's soul - a love rejected. This, I once grew mold on an orange this color when I was living in Boston. And these are various members of the school board. You see, if something's eating at you, you gotta find a way to use it.

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

Exploring the Truth through Artistic Vision

Mr. Freeman: You need to visit the mind of the great one. Picasso, who saw the truth. Who painted the truth. Who ripped it from the earth with two angry hands.

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

Finding Your Soul Through Art

Mr. Freeman: Hi everybody! Welcome to Art. The only class that will teach you how to survive. This is where you can find your soul, if you dare. Don't ask me to show you how to draw a face. Ask me to help you find the wind.

Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.

Understanding Your Values and Vision for Change

Melinda Sordino: I think you should know what you stand for, not just what you're against. You should be able to show how things can be better.

Identifying Personal Aspirations on Career Day

Melinda Sordino: [voiceover] Today is career day. Am I A: a helper B: a doer C: a planner or D: a dreamer?

Refusal to Engage in Social Interaction

Melinda Sordino: [voiceover] Dave Petrakis invited me over to do lab homework. I said no. No thanks. I just... I can't.

Observations on Social Dynamics and Wealth

Melinda Sordino: [voiceover] Heather has found a clan. The Marthas. Very Connecticut. Very prep. I suspect money changed hands.

Frustration with Ms. Kane's Teaching Style

Melinda Sordino: [voiceover] It's impossible to listen to Ms. Kane. Her voice sounds like an engine that won't turn over. Plus she laughs at her own jokes.

Feeling Clanless and Isolated

Melinda Sordino: [voiceover] There is no point talking to my ex-friends. Our clan, the Plain Janes, has been absorbed by rival groups. Nicole hangs out with the jocks. Rachel went all Euro. Ivy straddles two crowds: the goths and the Marthas. And then there's me. I'm clanless.

Critique of Gym Culture and Its Impact

Melinda Sordino: [voiceover] Gym should be illegal. It's humiliating.

Lessons from Nature's Resilience

Melinda Sordino: [voiceover] Here's what I learned in bio. If the seed is planted too deep it doesn't warm up in time. Once the plant surfaces it sprouts leaves so it can absorb more sun. If someone picks the flower the plant grows another bloom to produce more seeds.

Confronting an Unavoidable Truth

Melinda Sordino: [voiceover] It happened. There's no avoiding it. No forgetting.

Struggling with Belonging and Restlessness

Melinda Sordino: [voiceover] It's hard to sleep at home. How long would it take for the nurses to figure out I don't belong here? Would they let me rest for a few days?

The Urge to Share a Burden

Melinda Sordino: [voiceover] I should probably tell someone. Just... anyone. Get it over with. Blurt it out.

Emphasizing the Importance of Mental Health Days

Melinda Sordino: [voiceover] It's time for a mental health day. So conjugate this: I cut class. You cut class. He/she/it cuts class.

Discontent with Winter in the Midwest

Melinda Sordino: [voiceover] I hate winter. I've lived in the midwest my whole life and I hate winter. It starts too early and it ends too late. Why doesn't everyone just move to Florida?