--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Doing crime films...maybe it's to some…" description: "\"Doing crime films...maybe it's to some extent a matter of taste. Certainly my first novel had a criminal element and was about the similarity of crimin..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c7/william-monahan-3226_artist_doing-crime-films-maybe-it-s-to-some-ext_1826306.jpg" --- # Doing crime films...maybe it's to some extent a matter of… ![“Doing crime films...maybe it's to some extent a matter of taste. Certainly my first novel had a criminal element and was about the similarity of criminals and artists. Pretextually, it was sort of a money bag thriller. But it was aggressively not what it seemed to be. It was kind of Duchamps.” quote by William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c7/william-monahan-3226_artist_doing-crime-films-maybe-it-s-to-some-ext_1826306.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c7/william-monahan-3226_artist_doing-crime-films-maybe-it-s-to-some-ext_1826306.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c7/william-monahan-3226_artist_doing-crime-films-maybe-it-s-to-some-ext_1826306.jpg) > “Doing crime films...maybe it's to some extent a matter of taste. Certainly my first novel had a criminal element and was about the similarity of criminals and artists. Pretextually, it was sort of a money bag thriller. But it was aggressively not what it seemed to be. It was kind of Duchamps.” [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Crime stories blend art and crime, challenging expectations like a Duchamp piece. **In simple terms:** Crime fiction can be artistic. Key Takeaway Embrace genre subversion. Themes genre subversion artistry crime creativity Mood analytical creative Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - novel writing - screenwriting - film critique - creative workshops Key Concepts postmodern narrative art‑crime juxtaposition Questions to Reflect On - How can you balance crime elements with artistic intent? - What makes a crime story feel like art? A Different Perspective Audience may resist unconventional style. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Crime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crime/) [Criminals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/criminals/) [Elements](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elements/) [Film](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/film/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/novel/) [Thrillers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thrillers/) ## Related quotes > [I've got a peculiar weakness for criminals and artists. Neither takes life as it is. Any tragic story has to be in conflict with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-kubrick/i-ve-got-a-peculiar-weakness-for-criminals-and-artists-neither-takes/) [Stanley Kubrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-kubrick/) > [The British were doing crime stories first, but the British thing is a very different thing. There, the stories are about restoring a break…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-e-westlake/the-british-were-doing-crime-stories-first-but-the-british-thing-is-a/) [Donald E. Westlake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-e-westlake/) > [Every time you pick up the phone, dial a number, write an e-mail, make a purchase, travel on the bus carrying a cell phone,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/every-time-you-pick-up-the-phone-dial-a-number-write-an-e-mail-make-a/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [“The world of French crime films is a particular place, informed by the French love for Hollywood film noir, a genre they identified and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ebert/the-world-of-french-crime-films-is-a-particular-place-informed-by-the/) [Roger Ebert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ebert/) > [Lots of crime films are about work. Free Fire could have been about a company of plumbers doing pipe-fixing and stuff. But the plumbing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-wheatley/lots-of-crime-films-are-about-work-free-fire-could-have-been-about-a/) [Ben Wheatley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-wheatley/) > [I love so many different genres. I love crime films - and unusual coming-of-age pieces.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoffrey-s-fletcher/i-love-so-many-different-genres-i-love-crime-films-and-unusual-coming/) [Geoffrey S. Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoffrey-s-fletcher/) > [I always feel that crime films are about capitalism,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-dominik/i-always-feel-that-crime-films-are-about-capitalism/) [Andrew Dominik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-dominik/) > [I had this whole issue of doing a crime film in the 2010s. The genre's been mined very, very heavily. 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I've never done one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cierra-ramirez/i-m-actually-a-very-dark-person-so-i-really-want-to-get-into-some/) [Cierra Ramirez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cierra-ramirez/) > [I read a lot of ghost stories because I was writing a ghost story. I didn't think at all I was writing a horror…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-hill/i-read-a-lot-of-ghost-stories-because-i-was-writing-a-ghost-story-i/) [Susan Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-hill/) > [If you're going to reach for it, reach all the way for it. Albums like 'Purple Rain' and 'Thriller' and those kind of records,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-sitek/if-you-re-going-to-reach-for-it-reach-all-the-way-for-it-albums-like/) [Dave Sitek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-sitek/) > [It's absolutely fun to walk around and have people respect you. When Michael Jackson did Thriller, I was in the park one day, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-ross/it-s-absolutely-fun-to-walk-around-and-have-people-respect-you-when/) [Rick Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-ross/) > [No Time For Goodbye is a deliciously smart thriller, full of surprises and perfect pacing. I'm jealous I didn't write it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alafair-burke/no-time-for-goodbye-is-a-deliciously-smart-thriller-full-of-surprises/) [Alafair Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alafair-burke/) ## More by William Monahan > [“I put no stock in religion. By the word religion I have seen the lunacy of fanatics of every denomination be called the will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/i-put-no-stock-in-religion-by-the-word-religion-i-have-seen-the/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [When I was a kid in London there was just something about the light and there's something about the way London went onto film…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/when-i-was-a-kid-in-london-there-was-just-something-about-the-light/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [I think the only real referent for anybody writing drama is probably Hamlet. You have the most extreme tragic drama, this sort of blood-boltered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/i-think-the-only-real-referent-for-anybody-writing-drama-is-probably/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [If you need someone to come out of the sewer with a wire you don't hire someone who needs laborious collective instruction. You let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/if-you-need-someone-to-come-out-of-the-sewer-with-a-wire-you-don-t/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [In reviewing films, people get quite liberal about saying "the script" this and "the script" that, when they've never read the script any more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/in-reviewing-films-people-get-quite-liberal-about-saying-the-script/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [The era I love most is the Federal period, just after the Revolution and the formation of the United States. The birth of America…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/the-era-i-love-most-is-the-federal-period-just-after-the-revolution/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [You know a shooter when you see it. At least the creative people do. If a picture isn't obvious in the first draft you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/you-know-a-shooter-when-you-see-it-at-least-the-creative-people-do-if/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [If you see, as I do, in edited film, you're going to end up as a director.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/if-you-see-as-i-do-in-edited-film-you-re-going-to-end-up-as-a-director/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [I wanted to do London Boulevard because I saw the potential of a story about two people who need each other desperately, who love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/i-wanted-to-do-london-boulevard-because-i-saw-the-potential-of-a/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [Dialogue is used to reveal not what we want to say, but what we are trying to hide.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/dialogue-is-used-to-reveal-not-what-we-want-to-say-but-what-we-are/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [Poetry died as a commercial form and then it died as a serious art form. No one serious touches it. It used to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/poetry-died-as-a-commercial-form-and-then-it-died-as-a-serious-art/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [Casting is all about availability, as much as anything else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/casting-is-all-about-availability-as-much-as-anything-else/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [For me, film has been good because I'm able to work at top crack, working at something I love to do, in the only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/for-me-film-has-been-good-because-i-m-able-to-work-at-top-crack/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [London matters to me because it's the center of what I do for a living and has been since Tudor times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/london-matters-to-me-because-it-s-the-center-of-what-i-do-for-a/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) > [I was always entirely about work, about getting where I am now. If I'm not working I'm thinking about it, though at some point…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/i-was-always-entirely-about-work-about-getting-where-i-am-now-if-i-m/) [William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) [Explore all 136 William Monahan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/) ## More Artist quotes > [One is a painter because one wants so-called freedom; one doesn't want to go to the office every morning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-duchamp/one-is-a-painter-because-one-wants-so-called-freedom-one-doesn-t-want/) [Marcel Duchamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-duchamp/) > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [“People in coats and ties were milling around the Talley gallery, and on the wall were the minimally rendered still lifes by Giorgio Morandi,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-martin/people-in-coats-and-ties-were-milling-around-the-talley-gallery-and/) [Steve Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-martin/) > [The prophet who fails to present a bearable alternative and yet preaches doom is part of the trap that he postulates. Not only does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-prophet-who-fails-to-present-a-bearable-alternative-and-yet/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) Taf Teh > [From as long as I can remember, I was always fond of drawing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-lucia/from-as-long-as-i-can-remember-i-was-always-fond-of-drawing/) [St. Lucia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-lucia/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [Designers shouldn’t design for museums any more than mummies should die for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-caplan/designers-shouldn-t-design-for-museums-any-more-than-mummies-should/) [Ralph Caplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-caplan/) > [I don't believe in competitions between artists. This is insane. Who has the authority to say someone is better?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-arkin/i-don-t-believe-in-competitions-between-artists-this-is-insane-who/) [Alan Arkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-arkin/) > [I am not the avant-garde. I am the artist who comes after the advancing guard. I am more concerned with continuity of ideas and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-oliveira/i-am-not-the-avant-garde-i-am-the-artist-who-comes-after-the/) [Nathan Oliveira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-oliveira/) > [I am a horrible visual artist. I can't fix a car, sew, knit, cook, etc. Statistically, there is more I don't do than do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-brownstein/i-am-a-horrible-visual-artist-i-can-t-fix-a-car-sew-knit-cook-etc/) [Carrie Brownstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-brownstein/) [Browse all 32,600 Artist quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Doing crime films...maybe it's to some extent a matter of taste. Certainly my first novel had a criminal element and was about the similarity of criminals and artists. Pretextually, it was sort of a money bag thriller. But it was aggressively not what it seemed to be. 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