--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A lot of films mistake convolutedness for…" description: "\"A lot of films mistake convolutedness for complexity. To me, a simple story can be a powerful spine to build around.\" — Panos Cosmatos" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a1/panos-cosmatos-10908_cinema_a-lot-of-films-mistake-convolutedness-fo_975800.jpg" --- # A lot of films mistake convolutedness for complexity. To… ![“A lot of films mistake convolutedness for complexity. To me, a simple story can be a powerful spine to build around.” quote by Panos Cosmatos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a1/panos-cosmatos-10908_cinema_a-lot-of-films-mistake-convolutedness-fo_975800.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a1/panos-cosmatos-10908_cinema_a-lot-of-films-mistake-convolutedness-fo_975800.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a1/panos-cosmatos-10908_cinema_a-lot-of-films-mistake-convolutedness-fo_975800.jpg) > “A lot of films mistake convolutedness for complexity. To me, a simple story can be a powerful spine to build around.” [Panos Cosmatos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/panos-cosmatos/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Complexity is often confused with convoluted plots; simplicity can provide a strong narrative backbone. **In simple terms:** Simple stories give a clear, powerful structure. Key Takeaway Focus on clear storytelling. Themes storytelling film simplicity Mood thoughtful analytical Type critical insightful When to use this quote - screenwriting - film critique - directing - audience engagement Key Concepts narrative structure clarity Questions to Reflect On - How can simplicity enhance emotional impact? - When does simplicity become bland? A Different Perspective Simplicity may limit depth if overused. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cinema](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cinema/) [Complexity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/complexity/) [Story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/story/) ## Related quotes > [All propaganda or popularization involves a putting of the complex into the simple, but such a move is instantly not constructive. For if the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-eagleton/all-propaganda-or-popularization-involves-a-putting-of-the-complex/) [Terry Eagleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-eagleton/) > [My take is that the kind of complexity which says we can always generate complexity from simple interactions following for example rules.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-byrne/my-take-is-that-the-kind-of-complexity-which-says-we-can-always/) [David Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-byrne/) > ['The Immigrant Story,' which took me about twenty-five years to write, was a very simple story, but I couldn't think of how to tell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-paley/the-immigrant-story-which-took-me-about-twenty-five-years-to-write/) [Grace Paley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-paley/) > [Just telling a story. That's cinema. It's not silent, black and white. It's a simple story that's well made.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-dujardin/just-telling-a-story-that-s-cinema-it-s-not-silent-black-and-white-it/) [Jean Dujardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-dujardin/) > [I came on board 'Clown' because it was a very simple story, and it was a very nice script and a very refreshing take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-stormare/i-came-on-board-clown-because-it-was-a-very-simple-story-and-it-was-a/) [Peter Stormare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-stormare/) > [A lost coin is found by means of a candle; the deepest truth is found by means of a simple story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-de-mello/a-lost-coin-is-found-by-means-of-a-candle-the-deepest-truth-is-found/) [Anthony de Mello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-de-mello/) > [Script wise, the story of 'Eega' is universal. It's a simple story which everyone can understand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nani/script-wise-the-story-of-eega-is-universal-it-s-a-simple-story-which/) [Nani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nani/) > [Be a friend. You don't need glory. Friendship is a simple story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-guest/be-a-friend-you-don-t-need-glory-friendship-is-a-simple-story/) [Edgar Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-guest/) > [“So I am content to tell my simple story, without trying to make things seem better than they were; dreading nothing, indeed, but falsity,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/so-i-am-content-to-tell-my-simple-story-without-trying-to-make-things/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [“I left him with only that--the simple story that he had been with his mother this entire time, that he had helped her all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandra-bracken/i-left-him-with-only-that-the-simple-story-that-he-had-been-with-his/) [Alexandra Bracken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandra-bracken/) > [The novels take longer to write than the picture book texts, and they do take a different sort of concentration. However, a very short,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mahy/the-novels-take-longer-to-write-than-the-picture-book-texts-and-they/) [Margaret Mahy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mahy/) > [Take away the robots and the special effects, and Star Wars is just the simple story of a group of friends planning a terrorist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-gould/take-away-the-robots-and-the-special-effects-and-star-wars-is-just/) [Dana Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-gould/) > [“The story of the young woman whose death I witnessed in a concentration camp. It is a simple story. There is little to tell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viktor-e-frankl/the-story-of-the-young-woman-whose-death-i-witnessed-in-a/) [Viktor E. Frankl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viktor-e-frankl/) > [“You see it is likely that, when my brother told the story, that night when we got home and my mother and sister sat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherwood-anderson/you-see-it-is-likely-that-when-my-brother-told-the-story-that-night/) [Sherwood Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherwood-anderson/) > [“It was just too easy to say that adults did not like stories that were simple, and perhaps that was wrong. Perhaps that was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/it-was-just-too-easy-to-say-that-adults-did-not-like-stories-that/) [Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/) ## More by Panos Cosmatos > [I've had a VHS collection for many, many years. But I would prefer to watch a movie in the best format possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/panos-cosmatos/i-ve-had-a-vhs-collection-for-many-many-years-but-i-would-prefer-to/) [Panos Cosmatos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/panos-cosmatos/) > [My goal from the very beginning was to make very visually lush, juicy films that you can really sink your teeth into. That's always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/panos-cosmatos/my-goal-from-the-very-beginning-was-to-make-very-visually-lush-juicy/) [Panos Cosmatos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/panos-cosmatos/) > [I try to look at the films as I make them from a distance, in a way. I think of them as kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/panos-cosmatos/i-try-to-look-at-the-films-as-i-make-them-from-a-distance-in-a-way-i/) [Panos Cosmatos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/panos-cosmatos/) > [In the night there's sometimes a sort of cursed quality to the Pacific Northwest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/panos-cosmatos/in-the-night-there-s-sometimes-a-sort-of-cursed-quality-to-the/) [Panos Cosmatos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/panos-cosmatos/) > [Well, when I was really young and we lived in Sweden, the only films that were around at that point were... We had this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/panos-cosmatos/well-when-i-was-really-young-and-we-lived-in-sweden-the-only-films/) [Panos Cosmatos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/panos-cosmatos/) > [I think what I was unconsciously expressing in 'Black Rainbow' was a very abstract and metaphorical grief, in the way I had suppressed my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/panos-cosmatos/i-think-what-i-was-unconsciously-expressing-in-black-rainbow-was-a/) [Panos Cosmatos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/panos-cosmatos/) > [I think most religious belief structures are essentially like mind viruses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/panos-cosmatos/i-think-most-religious-belief-structures-are-essentially-like-mind/) [Panos Cosmatos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/panos-cosmatos/) > [I don't know anybody who goes horseback riding at sunset, but everybody watches TV and eats.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/panos-cosmatos/i-don-t-know-anybody-who-goes-horseback-riding-at-sunset-but/) [Panos Cosmatos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/panos-cosmatos/) > [Certain things just rub me the wrong way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/panos-cosmatos/certain-things-just-rub-me-the-wrong-way/) [Panos Cosmatos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/panos-cosmatos/) > [We moved around a lot when I was younger. I never really felt at home until we moved to Canada, but even then, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/panos-cosmatos/we-moved-around-a-lot-when-i-was-younger-i-never-really-felt-at-home/) [Panos Cosmatos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/panos-cosmatos/) > [I just find there's nothing funnier and more scary than a delusional man who thinks they're the center of the universe, and in fact…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/panos-cosmatos/i-just-find-there-s-nothing-funnier-and-more-scary-than-a-delusional/) [Panos Cosmatos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/panos-cosmatos/) > [My mother died in 1997 and I spiralled into this self-destructive vortex of trying to annihilate my consciousness. I was afraid to face the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/panos-cosmatos/my-mother-died-in-1997-and-i-spiralled-into-this-self-destructive/) [Panos Cosmatos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/panos-cosmatos/) > [The thing I do miss about the way some sequels were in the past was that each film felt like its own unique, complete…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/panos-cosmatos/the-thing-i-do-miss-about-the-way-some-sequels-were-in-the-past-was/) [Panos Cosmatos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/panos-cosmatos/) > [I was, like, 'I really wanna see an Eric Rohmer movie take place in a Bert I. Gordon universe.' Where there's a story going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/panos-cosmatos/i-was-like-i-really-wanna-see-an-eric-rohmer-movie-take-place-in-a/) [Panos Cosmatos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/panos-cosmatos/) > [I want my films to be very tactile, visually and sonically.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/panos-cosmatos/i-want-my-films-to-be-very-tactile-visually-and-sonically/) [Panos Cosmatos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/panos-cosmatos/) [Explore all 62 Panos Cosmatos quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/panos-cosmatos/) ## More Cinema quotes > [I made, like, five movies while I was in college. I think they just weren't memorable movies. I've taken breaks as the years have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodie-foster/i-made-like-five-movies-while-i-was-in-college-i-think-they-just/) [Jodie Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodie-foster/) > [You have to have a great director to make a great movie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thelma-schoonmaker/you-have-to-have-a-great-director-to-make-a-great-movie/) [Thelma Schoonmaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thelma-schoonmaker/) > [I'm trying to write a film with my friend. I'd love to get the thrill of speaking actors making my work even funnier.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-howard/i-m-trying-to-write-a-film-with-my-friend-i-d-love-to-get-the-thrill/) [Russell Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-howard/) > [I wasn't attracted to American cinema, but I fell in love with Los Angeles the minute I arrived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-varda/i-wasn-t-attracted-to-american-cinema-but-i-fell-in-love-with-los/) [Agnes Varda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-varda/) > [There was a time in the 1980s when I worked in 22 films a year.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/radha-ravi/there-was-a-time-in-the-1980s-when-i-worked-in-22-films-a-year/) [Radha Ravi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/radha-ravi/) > [To an ever greater extent out experience is governed by pictures, pictures in newspapers and magazines, on television and in the cinema. Next to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-crimp/to-an-ever-greater-extent-out-experience-is-governed-by-pictures/) [Douglas Crimp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-crimp/) > [In the future, I would like to do more films with contemporary themes. Perhaps comedy, which is something I have done in theater but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-evans/in-the-future-i-would-like-to-do-more-films-with-contemporary-themes/) [Luke Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-evans/) > [I am tired of our characters being so incomplete. When do we ever save the day in a film? When does a Latino actor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esai-morales/i-am-tired-of-our-characters-being-so-incomplete-when-do-we-ever-save/) [Esai Morales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esai-morales/) > [I love film people and actors and I am in the right world because I am one of those people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ewan-mcgregor/i-love-film-people-and-actors-and-i-am-in-the-right-world-because-i/) [Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/) > [Personally, I prefer contemporary films, but the market calls for more period choices, especially since China opened up a cinema market in Hong Kong.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donnie-yen/personally-i-prefer-contemporary-films-but-the-market-calls-for-more/) [Donnie Yen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donnie-yen/) > [I'd love to work in the States; I'd love to work anywhere where you get a good script and a good part to play.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-carmichael/i-d-love-to-work-in-the-states-i-d-love-to-work-anywhere-where-you/) [Laura Carmichael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-carmichael/) > [I even see the cinema itself as a woman, with its alternation of light and darkness, of appearing and disappearing images](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/federico-fellini/i-even-see-the-cinema-itself-as-a-woman-with-its-alternation-of-light/) [Federico Fellini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/federico-fellini/) > ['Rear Window' isn't really a horror film, but it is a psychological drama, which I love. It is very tense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-silvers/rear-window-isn-t-really-a-horror-film-but-it-is-a-psychological/) [Diana Silvers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-silvers/) > [What a thrill. You know you've entered new territory when you realise that your outfit cost more than your film.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-yu/what-a-thrill-you-know-you-ve-entered-new-territory-when-you-realise/) Jessica Yu > [I am not interested in churning out a certain number of films every year. For me, it's about the quality of work. I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepika-padukone/i-am-not-interested-in-churning-out-a-certain-number-of-films-every/) [Deepika Padukone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepika-padukone/) [Browse all 23,940 Cinema quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cinema/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A lot of films mistake convolutedness for complexity. 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