Monica Bellucci

Born in Citta di Castello, Umbria, Italy

“An actor works with their soul and their thought.”

“I think the lawyers are such incredible actors.  Can you imagine the performance they have to do every day?”

“I’m not a movie star.  I’m just an actress.”

“In acting process, it’s very difficult to explain.  It’s something very intimate, very private.”

“Irreversible is not glamorous at all.  I try to do different things because I want to grow as an actress and I like to take risks.”

“Mel is a great director because he’s not just a director, he’s an actor, so he knows how to direct actors.  I loved working with him.  He’s great as a director.  He’s so intelligent.  He’s generous.  I really loved him.”

“Now, all the movies are for teenagers.  It’s very difficult for an actress to find really deep, beautiful characters to play.”

“I have no idea how I’m perceived in America because I don’t live the reality of America.”

“I believe that time destroys everything.  You can take one beautiful apple, red.  After a while, it becomes shrivelled and full of worms, just like what happens to us.”

“I feel fine and comfortable with myself, but not because I’m beautiful.”

“I know many beautiful people and their lives are just so terrible.  They feel so uncomfortable with themselves.  Being comfortable is not about what you look like, but how you feel.”

“I’m a lucky person because I’ve been loved a lot.  I have a great family.”

“If you have a script that’s not great, if you have a great director, you can make a great movie, but if you have a great script with a director who’s not good, never are you going to have a good movie.”

“Sometimes it’s more difficult to exist as a female lead, especially in action movies because all those men are around you.  They take so much place.”

“We all need illusions.  That’s why we love movies.”

“When I make an American movie it’s going to come out all over the world-it doesn’t happen the same way for an Italian film or a French film.”

“When you see a silent movie, you understand everything that’s going on from the images because the images are so strong.”

“When you’re in front of the camera, for a small budget or a big budget movie, there’s no difference.”

“When I eat with my friends, it is a moment of real pleasure, when I really enjoy my life.”

“Envy is human nature.”

“In a couple, sometimes, one or both people have to give up their personal life, dreams and ambitions for the good of the family.”

“After a while in marriage, it doesn’t work anymore.  There is something missing, there is something wrong.  There are few marriages that stay alive forever.  We like something, and after a while, we hate what we used to love.”

“When a relationship doesn’t work anymore, it’s terrible to stay with someone that you don’t love.”

“Time destroys everything.”

“When people divorce, it’s always such a tragedy.  At the same time, if people stay together it can be even worse.”

“It’s not the Jews that killed Christ.  It was a political situation, and it was the Romans who killed Jesus.  They put Jesus on the cross, not the Jews.”

“When I have to go to Cannes, that is boring to me.”