best speeches from disney movies

23 Best Disney Movie Monologues For Auditions (30 sec – 2 min long)

Oh, wow! Are you ready to be swept away on a magical journey through the enchanting world of Disney movies?

In this blog post , get ready to discover the 23 best Disney movie monologues perfect for auditions, ranging from 30 seconds to 2 minutes in length. Featuring iconic films like “Ratatouille,” “Toy Story,” “The Little Mermaid,” “Lady and the Tramp,” and many more, both male and female characters will have their moment to shine with these captivating monologues. Get ready to dive into the world of Disney’s most beloved characters and bring their stories to life on stage or screen!

Table of Contents

The 23 Best Disney Movie Monologues For Auditions (Animated Movies)

1. the emperor’s new groove.

A monologue from the screenplay by David Reynolds

He can’t get rid of me that easily. Who does that ungrateful little worm think he is? Does he… have any idea of who he’s dealing with? How could he do this to me? Why, I practically raised him.

That’s it! I’ll get rid of Kuzco. Don’t you see? It’s perfect. With him out of the way and no heir to the throne… I’ll take over and rule the empire. Ah, how shall I do it? Oh, I know.

I’ll turn him into a flea, a harmless little flea… and then I’ll put that flea in a box and then I’ll put that box inside of another box.. and then I’ll mail that box to myself, and when it arrives… I’ll smash it with a hammer!

It’s brilliant, brilliant, brilliant, I tell you! Genius, I say! Or, to save on postage, I’ll just poison him with this.

Watch the movie here

2. Wreck It Ralph

A monologue from the screenplay by Phil Johnston and Jennifer Lee

Wreck-It Ralph

My name’s Ralph, and I’m a bad guy. Uh, let’s see… I’m nine feet tall, I weigh six hundred and forty three pounds, got a bit of a temper on me. My passion level’s very near the surface, I guess, not gonna lie.

Anyhoo, what else, uh… I’m a wrecker. I wreck things, professionally. I mean, I’m very good at what I do. Probably the best I know. Thing is, fixing’s the name of the game. Literally. Fix-It Felix Jr.

So yeah, naturally, the guy with the name Fix-It Felix is the good guy. He’s nice enough as good guys go. Definitely fixes stuff really well. But, uh, if you got a magic hammer from your father, how hard can it be?

If he was a regular contractor, carpenter guy, I guarantee you, you will not be able to fix the damage that I do as quickly. When Felix does a good job, he gets a medal. But, are there medals for wrecking stuff really well?

To that, I say, ha! And no, there aren’t. For thirty years I have been doing this, and I have seen a lot of other games come and go, how sad. Think about those guys at Asteroids? Boom, gone. Centipede?

Who knows where that guy is, you know? Look, a steady arcade gig is nothing to sneeze at, I’m very lucky. It’s just, I gotta say, it becomes kinda hard to love your job… when no one else seems to like you for doing it.

3. Alice in Wonderland

A monologue from the screenplay based on the children’s books by Lewis Carroll

“Who am I? Well, I’m not a silly pair of Tweedles who get all bent out of shape and tied up in knots if you don’t know the proper way to say hello! And I’m certainly not a bunch of snooty flower girls who act like they’re better than everybody else and whose only ambition in life is to look pretty.

And I’m not some party animal Mad Hatter who likes to cheat at games and break other people’s things just because he thinks it’s funny. I’m also not a crazy white rabbit who never has time to visit and play and get to know me, when all I wanted to do was be his friend.

And I’m absolutely, positively, categorically, not a big old nasty Queen of Hearts who bosses people around. Quiet! I’ll tell you who I am. I’m Alice.”

Well! After such a fall as this, I shall think nothing of tumbling down stairs! How brave they’ll all think me at home! Why, I wouldn’t say anything about it, even if I fell off the top of the house! (Bump. The fall is over. Alice gets up. A key is on the table.)

A glass table. And a key. Now where would…oh! A tiny door with a tiny keyhole! But how could anyone ever fit through there? What’s this? (She finds and picks up a bottle.) “Drink me.” It’s all very well to say, “Drink me” but I will check to see if it is marked “poison” first. (She checks. It isn’t.) No. Well then. (She drinks.)

Curious. Tastes like…roast turkey…toffee…pineapple… buttered toast…OH. I must be shutting up like a telescope. Oh! I do hope I stop soon, or I might go out altogether, like a flame on a candle. There. I’m the right size for the door!

But now I am so small…how will I do anything? I can’t even reach the key.

THE WHITE RABBIT

OH dear, dear, dear! I’m late! Mary Anne, Mary Anne, hurry, I can’t find my gloves—Mary Anne, Ginger, Gilligan, I don’t care what your name is., don’t argue with me. You’re making me later than I already am.

Hurry, hurry my gloves, somewhere in my house, I’M LATE!!! (Announcing the Queen’s entrance) Attention, attention, inhabitants and subjects and all other direct or indirect objects of Wonderland:

fall to your knees and tremble before her majestic majesty, her royal regality, yes, folks, your favorite monarch of mean and mine, The One, the Only, Queen of Hearts! Oh yeah, and the King too.

Watch the movie here – 1951 version | 2010 verzion

Check out more monologues here !⬅️

A monologue from the screenplay by Ron Clements, John Musker, Ted Elliott, and Terry Rossio

“Ah, Salaam and good evening to you worthy friend. Please, please, come closer – Too close, a little too close. There. Welcome to Agrabah. City of mystery, of enchantment and the finest merchandise this side of the river Jordan, on sale today, come on down!

Heh, heh. Look at this! Yes! Combination hookah and coffee maker, also makes Julienne fries. Will not break! Will not! It broke! Oh! Look at this! I have never seen one of these intact before. This is the famous Dead Sea Tupperware.

Listen. Ah, still good. Wait, don’t go! I can see that you’re only interested in the exceptionally rare. I think then, you would be most rewarded to consider…this. Do not be fooled by its common place appearance.

Like so many things, it is not what is outside, but what is inside that counts. This is no ordinary lamp! It once changed the course of a young man’s life. A young man who, like this lamp, was more than what he seemed.

A diamond in the rough. Perhaps you would like to hear the tale? It begins on a dark night, where a dark man waits, with a dark purpose…”

Genie: Aaaaahhhhh! OY! Ten-thousand years will give ya such a crick in the neck! Whoa! Does it feel good to be outta there! (pretends to have a microphone) Nice to be back, ladies and gentlemen. (to Aladdin) Hi, where ya from?

What’s your name? Aladdin! Hello, Aladdin. Nice to have you on the show. Can we call you ‘Al?’ Or maybe just ‘Din?’ Or howbout ‘Laddi?’ (suddenly is wearing a kilt) Sounds like “Here, boy! C’mon, Laddi!” Do you smoke? Mind if I do?

Oh, sorry Cheetah, hope I didn’t singe the fur! Hey, Rugman! Haven’t seen you in a few millennia! Slap me some tassel! Yo! Yeah! (high-fives carpet) Say, you’re a lot smaller than my last master. Either that or I’m gettin’ bigger.

Look at me from the side, do I look different to you? That’s right, you’re my master! He can be taught!! What would you wish of me, (as Arnold Schwarzenegger) the ever impressive, (inside a cube) the long contained,

(as a ventriloquist with a dummy) often imitated, but never duplicated …. Genie! Of! The Lamp! (as Ed Sullivan) Right here direct from the lamp, right here for your enjoyment wish fulfillment. Thank youuuuu! (back)

You get three wishes to be exact. And ix-nay on the wishing for more wishes. That’s it, three. Uno, dos, tres. No substitutions, exchanges or refunds.

(Speaking to Iago) You think I am PLEASED? “Pleased” to be playing nursemaid to a spoiled princess? “Pleased” to be keeping tabs on every petty thief in Agrabah? While day in and day out that blithering idiot remains Sultan!

I am working on an old document. With a NICE new paragraph I just added. Listen to this: “Should an unmarried Royal Princess, who is sole heir to the throne, fail to choose a husband within the time allotted for such selection,

the Sultan’s highest ranking official –that would be me – will immediately become betrothed to the princess and will himself inherit all the rights. Privileges and powers of the Sultan! (Evil Laugh)

Watch the movie here – 1992 version | 2019 version

5. Toy Story

A monologue from the screenplay by Joss Whedon, Andrew Stanton, Joel Cohen, and Alec Sokolow

A meeting with the toys is about to start in Andy’s bedroom. Woody is the speaker for this meeting.

Okay, (puh, puh – Woody blows on the microphone) everybody here? Up on the shelf – can you hear me? OK, Great. First item today… oh yeah, Has everyone picked a moving buddy? …. You guys think this is a big joke.

We’ve only got one week before the move. I don’t want any toys left behind. A moving buddy…If you don’t have one – GET ONE! Alright, next…ah…oh yes, I though last weeks plastic corrosion meeting was, I think, a big success.

And we want to thank Mr. Spell for putting that on for us. “Thank you, Mr. Spell.” (Clap hands) Ok, uh..yes, One minor note here, Andy’s birthday party has been moved to today. Ah…next we have….(toys grumble)

Well obviously she wanted to have the party before the move. Come on guys, every Christmas and birthday we go through this. Hey, nobody is getting replaced. This is Andy we’re talking about. We’re played with.

What matters is that we’re here for Andy when he needs us. That’s what we’re made for, Right? Ah….meeting adjourned.

Why would Andy want you?! Look at you! You’re a Buzz Lightyear. Any other toy would give up his moving parts just to be you. You’ve got wings, you glow in the dark, you talk, your helmet does that — that whoosh thing — you are a COOL toy.

As a matter of fact you’re too cool. I mean — I mean what chance does a toy like me have against a Buzz Lightyear action figure? All I can do is… (Woody pulls his own pullstring dejectedly) Why would Andy ever want to play with me, when he’s got you?

I’m the one that should be strapped to that rocket. Listen Buzz, forget about me. You should get out of here while you can.

6. Monsters Inc.

A monologue from the screenplay by Pete Docter, Jill Culton, Jeff Pidgeon, and Ralph Eggleston

We’re banished, genius! We’re in the human world! Oh, what a great idea, go to your old pal, Waternoose. Too bad he was in on the whole thing. All you had to do was listen to me. Just once. But you didn’t, did you.

You’re still not listening! (beat) He is not my friend. Thanks to you, I am stuck in this frozen wasteland! Boo? What about us? Ever since that kid came in, you’ve ignored everything I’ve said. And now look where we are?

We were about to break the record, Sully, we would’ve had it made! “None of it matters” – woah, woah, wait a second. None of it matters? Oh. I, I. No. Great. So now the truth comes out, doesn’t it. Sully, what about everything we ever worked for?

Does that matter? What about Celia? I am never… never going to see her again. Doesn’t that matter? What about me? I’m your pal, I’m… I’m your best friend. Don’t I matter? “We?” Woah. Woah. We? No.

There’s no we this time, pal. If, if you want to go out there and freeze to death, you be my guest. Because you’re on your own.

Abominable! Can you believe that? Do I look abominable to you? Why can’t they call me the adorable snowman, or the agreeable snowman, for crying out loud? I’m a nice guy! Snowcone? No, no no, don’t worry – it’s lemon.

Ah, how ‘bout you, big fella? Snowcone? Ah, poor guy. I understand. It ain’t easy being banished. Take my buddy Bigfoot. When he was banished, he fashioned an enormous diaper out of poison ivy. Wore it on his head like a tiara.

Called himself King Itchy. It won’t be so hard for you guys. How lucky can you get? Banished with your best friend. Oh. I just assumed you were buddies, you know, when I saw you out in the snow, hugging and all…

What, wasteland? I think you mean wonderland! How about all this fabulous snow, huh? And wait till you see the local village. Cutest thing in the world. I haven’t even mentioned all the free yak’s milk. Eh, yak’s milk?

Milking a yak ain’t exactly a picnic, but once you pick the hairs out, it’s very nutritious. What, kids in the village? Sure. Dumb kids, sissy kids, kids who climb on rocks – it’s at the bottom of the mountain. About a three day hike.

Ok, ok, rule number one out here: Always – no. Never go out in a blizzard. …Oh, would you look at that? We’re out of snowcones! Let me just… go out… and.. make some more…

7. The Little Mermaid

A monologue from the screenplay by Ron Clements and John Musker (Based on the fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen)

Flotsam my pet! Jetsam my darling! Come to me my little sea spies! Mama’s feeling…woebegone – banished to the nether regions of the sea. No food, hardly any company…I’m simply wasting away!

Use a little black magic to help out a few merfolk, and this is the thanks that I get! Well now it’s time to turn the tides on Triton. We just need to find his Achilles heel…a weakness that will crack his armor…Of course! Ariel!

You two find out what that girl really wants then lure her here to my lair. Once we have her trapped, Triton will rush to her rescue. And then the trident, crown, and throne will be all mine!!

Out of the frying pan and into the fire! The things I do for you, young lady! Now I should march you right back home to your father…so that you can be miserable the rest of your life…it’s true, I got no backbone. Alright child, I’m in.

But we got to get that boy to kiss you before it’s too late! Now, a few pointers from a clever crab to a little mermaid. You gotta bat your eyes – like this. Then you gotta pucker your lips – like this…Oh, that’s good!

You put those two things together tomorrow and you got that boy in the palm of your hand!

Shhh . . . (Seeing a fork.) Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh! Have you ever seen anything so wonderful in your entire life, Flounder? What is it? I don’t know. But I bet Scuttle will. (Puts fork in bag.) (Sees a pipe.) Hmm, I wonder what this one is?

Flounder, will you relax. Nothing is going to happen. Sometimes you’re such a guppy. Scuttle! Scuttle! Look what we found. This is very, very unusual. What is it? A dinglehopper! How lovely, a dinglehopper. Do either of you hear Music?

Oh, the concert! Oh my gosh, my father’s gonna kill me! The concert is today! Now! I’m sorry, I’ve gotta go. Thank you Scuttle!

(Looking through the telescope the wrong way, shouting.) Whoa! Mermaid off the port bow! Ariel, how you doin’ kid? What a swim! So show me what you found in this sunken ship – Was it really creepy? Ohhh! You got human stuff, huh?

Hey, lemme see. (Picks up fork.) Look at this. Wow – this is special – this is very, very unusual. It’s a dinglehopper! Humans use these little babies . . . to straighten their hair out. See – just a little twirl here an’ a yank there and – voi la!

You got an aesthetically pleasing configuration of hair that humans go nuts over! And what about this one? (Holding pipe) Ah – this I haven’t seen in years. This is wonderful! A banded, bulbous – snarfblat.

Now, the snarfblat dates back to prehistorical times, when humans used to sit around, and stare at each other all day. Got very boring. So, they invented the snarfblat to make fine music. Allow me.

( blows into the pipe; seaweed pops out the other end.) (Still contemplating pipe.) Maybe you could make a little planter out of it or somethin’. Oh, you gotta go? Well you’re welcome! Anytime sweetie, anytime.

Ariel, you went up to the surface again, didn’t you? DIDN’T YOU? Oh, Ariel, How many times must we go through this? You could’ve been seen by one of those barbarians – by – by one of those humans!

They’re dangerous. Do you think I want to see my youngest daughter snared by some fish-eater’s hook? Don’t you take that tone of voice with me young lady. As long as you live under my ocean, you’ll obey my rules!

Not another word – and I am never, NEVER to hear of you going to the surface again. Is that clear? (Ariel leaves, crying.) Teenagers. . . . They think they know everything. You give them an inch, they swim all over you.

Do you, er, think I – I was too hard on her?

Watch the movie here – 1989 version | 2018 version

8. Beauty And The Beast

A monologue from the screenplay by Linda Woolverton (based on the fairy tale by Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont )

Try to be patient, sir. The girl has lost her father and her freedom all in one day. Lumiere, it’s not that easy. These things take time. Master, you must help her to see past all that.

Well, you could start by trying to make yourself more presentable. But be gentle. And above all…you must control your temper Deep breaths, Master. Deep breaths.

(After Belle refuses to come out) Well, what did you expect? Would you have us give up? I like the girl. I like her spunk. (To Belle) Hello, Dearie.

I hope the Master didn’t frighten you too much. He can be a little temperamental.

Hello? Is anyone here? Please, I’m looking for my father. (sees papa) Papa! (runs to him) Your hands are like ice! Who has done this to you? (Beast appears) I won’t leave you here!

(says to Beast) Who’s there? I know someone’s there. Who are you? (sees Beast) Then, you’re the one who’s responsible for this! Release my father at once! (reacting to angered Beast) No!

Wait! Forgive me. Please, let him out. Can’t you see he’s not well? But he’s an old man. He could die! Wait, please…take me instead. If I did, would you let him go? (Beast agrees)

Come into the light. (Belle cringes) You have my word.

Watch the movie here – 1991 version | 2017 version

9. Ratatouille

A monologue from the screenplay by Brad Bird & Jim Capobianco

ALFREDO LINGUINI

Don’t look at me like that! You aren’t the only one who’s trapped. They expect me to cook it again! I mean, I’m not ambitious.

I wasn’t trying to cook. I was just trying to stay out of trouble. You’re the one who was getting fancy with the spices! What did you throw in there?

Oregano? No? What? Rosemary? That’s a spice, isn’t it? Rosemary? You didn’t throw rosemary in there? Then what was all the flipping and all the throwing the… I need this job.

I’ve lost so many. I don’t know how to cook, and now I’m actually talking to a rat as if you… Did you nod? Have you been nodding?

You understand me? So I’m not crazy! Wait a second, wait a second. I can’t cook, can I? But you… You can, right? Look, don’t be so modest. You’re a rat, for Pete’s sake. …

Whatever you did, they liked it. Yeah. This could work. Hey, they liked the soup! They liked the soup. Do you think you could do it again?

In many ways, the work of a critic is easy. We risk very little yet enjoy a position over those who offer up their work and their selves to our judgment. We thrive on negative criticism, which is fun to write and to read.

But the bitter truth we critics must face, is that in the grand scheme of things, the average piece of junk is probably more meaningful than our criticism designating it so.

But there are times when a critic truly risks something, and that is in the discovery and defense of the new. The world is often unkind to new talent, new creations, the new needs friends.

Last night, I experienced something new, an extraordinary meal from a singularly unexpected source. To say that both the meal and its maker have challenged my preconceptions about fine cooking is a gross understatement.

They have rocked me to my core. In the past, I have made no secret of my disdain for Chef Gusteau’s famous motto: Anyone can cook. But I realize, only now do I truly understand what he meant.

Not everyone can become a great artist, but a great artist can come from anywhere. It is difficult to imagine more humble origins than those of the genius now cooking at Gusteau’s, who is, in this critic’s opinion, nothing less than the finest chef in France.

I will be returning to Gusteau’s soon, hungry for more.

10. The Incredibles

A monologue from the screenplay by Brad Bird

See? Now you respect me, because I’m a threat. That’s the way it works. Turns out, there are a lot of people, whole countries, who want respect, and they will pay through the nose to get it.

How do you think I got rich? I invented weapons, and now I have a weapon that only I can defeat, and when I unleash it, I’ll get… You sly dog! You got me monologuing! I can’t believe it.

It’s cool, huh? Zero-point energy. I save the best inventions for myself. Am I good enough now? Who’s super now? I’m Syndrome, your nemesis and…Oh, brilliant

A monologue from the screenplay by Bob Peterson and Pete Docter

The wilderness isn’t quite what I expected. It’s kinda… wild. I mean, it’s not like they made it sound in my book. My dad made it sound so easy. He’s really good at camping and how to make fire from rocks and stuff.

He used to come to all my Sweat Lodge meetings. And afterwards we’d go get ice cream at Fenton’s. I always get chocolate and he gets butter brickle.

Then we’d sit on this one curb right outside, and I’ll count all the blue cars and he counts all the red ones, and whoever gets the most wins. I like that curb. (beat)

That might sound boring, but I think the boring stuff is the stuff I remember the most.

12. Lady And The Tramp

A monologue from the screenplay based on the story “ Happy Dan, The Cynical Dog ” by Ward Greene

Just a cute little bundle…of trouble. Yeah. They scratch, pinch, pull ears. Aw, but, shucks, any dog can take that. It’s what they do to your happy home. (to Jock) Move it over, will ya, friend?

Home wreckers, that’s what they are. Why, just wait till junior gets here. You get the urge for a nice, comfortable scratch and… “Put that dog out! He’ll get fleas all over the baby”.

You start barking at some strange mutt. “Stop that racket! You’ll wake the baby”. And then, then they hit you in the room and board department. Remember those nice, juicy cuts of beef?

Forget ’em. Leftover baby food. And that nice, warm bed by the fire? A leaky doghouse.

A monologue from the screenplay by Melissa Mathison

Coke. You see, we drink it. It’s a , it’s a drink. You know, food. These are toys, these are little men. (showing him Star Wars action figures)

This is Greedo, and then this is Hammerhead, see this is Walrus Man, and this is Snaggletooth and this is Lando Calrissian.

See. . . and look, they can even have wars. Look at this. (He play-acts with two characters who both shoot and kill each other, making appropriate noises) Look fish.

Fish eat fish food, and the shark (a toy) eats the fish, and nobody eats the shark. See, this is PEZ, candy. See you eat it. You put the candy in here and then when you lift up the head, the candy comes out and you can eat it.

You want some? This is a peanut. You eat it, but you can’t eat this one, ‘cause this is a fake. This is money. You see. You put the money in the peanut. You see? It’s a bank. See?

And then, this is a car. This is what we get around in. You see? Car. (E.T. takes the car and child-like putis it in his mouth to eat it.) Hey, hey wait a second. No. You don’t eat ‘em.

Are you hungry? I’m hungry. Stay. Stay. I’ll be right here. Okay? I’ll be right here.

14. The Lion King

A monologue from the screenplay by Irene Mecchi, Jonathan Roberts, and Linda Woolverton

Oh, just look at you two. Little seeds of romance blossoming in the savannah. Your parents will be thrilled… what with your being betrothed and all.

{trying to explain} Betrothed. Intended. Affianced. One day you two are going to be married! {beat} Well, sorry to bust your bubble, but you two turtle doves have no choice.

It’s a tradition… going back generations. {beat}

Oh, you can’t fire me. Only a king can do that. You’re not a king yet. And with an attitude like that, I’m afraid you’re shaping up to be a pretty pathetic king indeed.

If this is where the monarchy is headed count me out! Out of service, out of Africa, I wouldn’t hang about!

OLDER SIMBA

Well, I just … needed to get out on my own. Live my own life. And I did. And it’s great! No one needs me. { pause } Nala, we’ve been through this.

I’m not the king. Scar is. { pause } I can’t go back. You wouldn’t understand. It doesn’t matter. HakunaMatata. It’s something I learned out here.

Look, sometimes bad things happen… and there’s nothing you can do about it! So why worry? { pause } Listen! You think you can just show up and tell me how to live my life?

You don’t even know what I’ve been through. You’re wrong . I can’t go back. What would it prove, anyway? It won’t change anything.

You can’t change the past. { pause } { He looks up at the stars, speaking to his father } You said you’d always be there for me!… But you’re not.

And it’s because of me . It’s my fault…. It’s my … fault .

Simba? {pause for realization} Whoah!!! Well how did you.. where did you come from … it’s great to see you.. Wait ‘til everybody finds out you’ve been here all this time.

And your mother… what will she think? Everyone thinks you’re dead. Scar told us about the stampede. You’re alive. What else matters? And that means… you’re the king! {Quietly}

It’s like you’re back from the dead. You don’t know how much this will mean to everyone. {Pained expression} …What it means to me. I’ve really missed you.

Watch the movie here – 1994 version | 2019 version

A monologue from the play by Jennifer Lee

Hello. I am Princess Anna of Arendelle. I’m looking for my sister. She went all ice-crazy and I guess it was my fault. I got engaged to Prince Hans, but then Elsa freaked out because I only just met him, you know, today.

Yes I got engaged to someone I just met! Why is everyone so hung up on that? What can I say? I’ve got good instincts.

Anyway, can you tell me the way to get up the North Mountain, or not?

Goodness. That was awkward. (TO HANS) Not that you’re awkward, but just because we’re- I’m awkward. You’re gorgeous. Wait, what?

Oh, Princess Anna of Arendelle (HANS bows). Oh, no. You don’t have to do that. I’m not that princess. No, my sister Elsa is the Queen. I’m just me.

I mean, I’m not the heir, I’m just the spare. (feeling foolish) Forget it. I’m not making any sense. How embarrassing.

Hi! I’m Olaf, and I like warm hugs! Isn’t winter so beautiful? I love it! But it’s so white. You know, how about a little color? Must we bleach the joy out of it all?

I’m thinking like maybe some crimson, chartreuse… How ‘bout yellow? No. Yellow and snow is a no go. Am I right? Oh, and summer?!

I don’t know why, but I’ve always loved the idea of summer, and sun, and all things hot. Sometimes I like to close my eyes and imagine what it’d be like when summer does come…

A monologue from the screenplay by Jared Bush

(Timid) I am Moana of Motunui. You will board my boat, sail across the sea and restore the heart of Te Fiti. The ocean is a friend of mine…next stop Maui!

(Brave but not confident) I am Moana of Motunui, you will board my boat! So Maui, (Brave) Maui! Demigod of the wind and sea, I am Moana of Motunui.

(Confident) You will board my boat! No! (Strong) You will board my boat! Yeah! (Proud and Powerful) I am Moana of Motunui!

Gramma Tala

In the beginning. There was only ocean. Until “Mother Island” emerged. Te Fiti. Her heart has greatest power ever known. It could create life itself. And Te Fiti share it with the world. But in time, some begin to seek Te Fiti’s heart.

They believe the faith could possessed. The great power of creation would be vast. And one day… The most daring of them all… Voyage across the vast ocean to take it. He was Demigod of Wind and Sea.

He was a warrior … A trickster. A shape shifter who could change form. With the power of his magical fish hook. And his name was Maui. But without her heart. Te Fiti began to crumble.

Giving birth to a terrible darkness. Maui fright escape. But was confronted by another, who saw the heart. Te Ka, a demon of Earth and Fire. Maui was struck from a sky. Never to be seen again.

And his magical fish hook … And the heart of Te Fiti, were lost to the sea.

17. Fantast ic Mr. Fox

A monologue from the screenplay by Wes Anderson and Noah Baumbach (Based on the children’s novel by Roald Dahl )

Just on the other side of this mineral deposit. Follow me. I’m going to lose my temper now. Right now.

Twelve fox-years ago, you made a promise to me while we were caged inside that fox-trap that, if we survived, you would never steal another chicken, goose, turkey, duck, or squab, whatever they are.

I believed you. Why did you lie to me? You’re a husband and a father. I don’t care about the truth about yourself. This story is too predictable.

In the end, we all die. Unless you change.

Badger’s right. These farmers aren’t going to quit until they catch me. I shouldn’t have lied to your face. I shouldn’t have resigned slash gotten fired from the Gazette.

I shouldn’t have pushed these farmers so far and tried to embarrass them and cuss with their heads. I enjoyed it, but I shouldn’t have done it — and now there’s only one way out.

Maybe if I hand myself over and let them kill me, stuff me, and hang me over their mantelpiece Darling, maybe they’ll let everyone else live. I don’t know how i got myself into this, but I have a possible theory.

I think I have this thing where I need everybody to think I’m the greatest — the quote-unquote fantastic Mr. Fox — and if they aren’t completely knocked- out, dazzled, and kind of intimidated by me, then I don’t feel good about myself.

Foxes traditionally like to court danger, hunt prey, and outsmart predators — and that’s what I’m actually good at! I think, at the end of the day, I’m just — We’re wild animals.

I guess we always were. I promise you: if I had all this to do over again, I’d have never let you down. It was always more fun when we did it together, anyway.

I love you, Felicity.

18. A Bug’s Life

A monologue from the screenplay by Andrew Stanton, Donald McEnery, and Bob Shaw

Guys! Order another round because we’re staying here! What was I thinking going back to Ant Island? I mean we just got here, and we’ve got more than enough food to last us through the winter, right?

Why go back? But, there was that ant that stood up to me. Yeah, you’re right! It’s just one ant! Hmmm, puny. Hey, let’s say that this grain is a puny little ant. Did that hurt? Well, how ’bout this one?

Well, how about this. You let one ant stand up to us and they all might stand up. Those puny little ants outnumber us a hundred to one, and if they ever figure that out there goes our way of life!!

It’s not about food! It’s about keeping those ants in line. That’s why we’re going back!… Does anybody else want to stay?

19. Winnie The Pooh

A monologue from the screenplay based on the novel by A. A. Milne and E. H. Shepard

Did somebody say something? (Pooh bends his head to his tummy) Oh. It was you! (Looks skyward) Looks like it’s about half past breakfast. I suppose it’s time for a little snack…

Maybe I have some honey!… Empty. Oh, bother….Someone has to have some honey lying around. Just enough for a small snackeral. Or maybe a large morsel…

It’s practically a quarter to lunchtime now! I bet Christopher Robin has some honey. He always has a snack or two for Pooh. Christopher Robin?

Yoo hoo, it’s Pooh!

Watch the movie here – 1977 version | 2011 version

20. Raya And The Last Dragon

A monologue from the screenplay by Qui Nguyen & Adele Lim

I know what you’re thinking.

A lone rider.

A dystopian world.

A land that’s gone to waste.

How did this world get so broken?

Well, that all began 500 years ago.

This is what we used to be.

When our land was whole, and we lived harmoniously alongside…dragons.

Magical creatures who brought us waterand rain and peace.

It was paradise.

But then, the Druun came.

A mindless plague that spread like wildfire, multiplying as they consumed life and turned everyone they touched into stone.

The dragons fought for us the best they could, but it wasn’t enough.

That’s when the Mighty Sisudatu, the last dragon, concentrated all her magic into a gem and… …blasted the Druun away.

Everyone that was turned to stone came back.

Except the dragons.

All that was left of Sisu was her gem.

It should have been this big inspirational moment, where humanity united over her sacrifice.

But instead, people being people, they all fought to possess the last remnant of dragon magic.

Borders were drawn, Kumandra divided.

We all became enemies, and the gem had to be hidden.

But that’s not how the world broke.

That didn’t truly happen until 500 years later, when I came into the story.

21. Tangled

A monologue from the screenplay by Dan Fogelman (based on the German fairy tale Rapunzel by the Brothers Grimm )

For every minute of the rest of my life I will fight! I will never stop trying to get away from you. But if you let me save him, I will go with you. I’ll never run, I’ll never try to escape

– just let me heal him, and you and I will be together forever just like you want. Everything will be the way it was. I promise. Just like you want. Just let me heal him. (beat) Eugene!

Oh, I’m so sorry. Everything is going to be okay, though. I promise, you have to trust me. Come on, just breathe… I can’t let you die

I can’t believe I did this. I can’t believe I did this! Mother would be so furious. But that’s okay. I mean, what she doesn’t know won’t kill her, right? (beat) Oh my gosh. This would kill her. (beat)

This is so fun!! (beat) I am a horrible daughter. I’m going back. (beat) I am never going back! (beat) I am a despicable human being. (beat) WOO-HOO! Best day ever! (Breaks down crying.)

22. Inside Out

A monologue from the screenplay by Pete Docter, Meg LeFauve, and Josh Cooley

Hey. That’s weird. Graham Cracker Castle used to be right here. I wonder why they moved it? (He walks on, concerned). Wow, that’s not…

I would have sworn Sparkle Pony Mountain was right here. Hey, what’s going on? (A wrecking ball hits a pink castle. Glitter dust plumes.)

Oh no! The Stuffed Animal Hall of Fame!

My rocket! (running after them) Wait! Riley and I, we’re still using that rocket! It still has some song power left!! (sings) Who’s your friend who likes to play?

Nooo!!! No! No! No! You can’t take my rocket to the dump! Riley and I are going to the MOON! Ahhh! Riley can’t be done with me. (Bing Bong sits, stunned.).

(still stunned) I had a whole trip planned for us. It’s all I had left of Riley. Once we flew back in time. We had breakfast twice that day.

We were best friends. (Bing Bong puts his head on Sadness’ shoulder and CRIES.)

I’m okay now. (stands) C’mon, the train station is this way. Hey, there’s the train!

A monologue from the screenplay by Adrian Molina and Matthew Aldrich

Amigo? (verklempt) Oh, that’s so nice, to hear you say that, because… (misty) I’ve just had a really hard Dia de Muertos, and I could really use an amigo right now.

(Hector leans gratefully toward the officer, overwhelmed with mock emotion.) And amigos, they help their amigos.

Listen, you get me across that bridge tonight and I’ll make it worth your while. (Hector spies a de la Cruz poster at the officer’s workstation.)

Oh, you like de la Cruz? He and I go way back! I can get you front row seats to his Sunrise Spectacular Show! I’ll — I’ll get you backstage, you can meet him! (beat)

You just gotta let me cross that bridge! Can I at least get my costume back? (In a huff, Hector marches out of the room.)

I always hoped I’d see her again. she’d miss me… maybe put up my photo. But it never happened. (beat) You know the worst part? (beat) Even if I never got to see Coco in the living world…

I thought at least one day I’d see her here. Give her the biggest hug… (beat) But she’s the last person who remembers me. The moment she’s gone from the living world…

You know, I wrote her a song once. We used to sing it every night at the same time, no matter how far apart we were. What I wouldn’t give to sing it to her… one last time.

I didn’t write “Remember Me” for I’m a pretty sorry excuse for a great-great grandpa.

It was hard. Saying goodbye to my hometown. Heading off on my own… Si. But I could not have done it differently. (beat) One cannot deny who one is meant to be.

And you, my great-great grandson, are meant to be a musician! You and I, we are artists, Miguel! We cannot belong to one family. The world is our family! Ooo, the fireworks have begun!

Soon, the party will move across town for my “Sunrise Spectacular!” (beat) Miguel, you must come to the show! You will be my guest of honor! Oh, I really do need to get you home.

It has been an honor. I am sorry to see you go, Miguel. I hope you die very soon. (beat) You know what I mean. (beat) Miguel. I give you my blessings.

In conclusion, incorporating powerful monologues from beloved Disney movies like Ratatouille, Toy Story, The Little Mermaid, Lady And The Tramp, and many more can truly elevate your audition performance. Whether you’re looking for a monologue that showcases bravery, humor, love, or determination, Disney movies offer a treasure trove of memorable lines for both male and female characters.

By selecting the perfect monologue that resonates with you and practicing it with passion and authenticity, you can captivate casting directors and leave a lasting impression in your auditions. So go ahead, unleash your inner Disney magic and shine on stage!

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2 thoughts on “23 Best Disney Movie Monologues For Auditions (30 sec – 2 min long)”

These are great! I have always wanted to go to a play, and finally-My mom just signed me up for one! I am so excited, and then I saw this website. These monologues are great!! I used the one from Ratatouille, and I am so excited!!

Glad you enjoyed the article Katie. Have fun acting!

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Cinematic Masterpieces: 25 Monologues That Shaped Film

A movie monologue is a speech given by a single character. The best monologues from movies mostly happen at important turning points, i.e., at the point of no return or near the end – at the movie’s climax . In other words, the most famous monologues in movies can turn the tide.

For the monologue to be convincing, the character who holds the speech has to convince the audience – big or small – in the film so that we, as viewers, are persuaded, and our disbelief is suspended.

I mention the rhetorical appeals throughout the article to add context to the quotes. If you’re unsure about what ethos, logos, and pathos are, click here .

1. The Newsroom: “America is not the greatest country in the world anymore.”

In this powerful monologue from The Newsroom (2012) , Will McAvoy (Jeff Daniels) explains to a sophomore why he thinks that America isn’t the greatest country in the world anymore.

Notice how he uses logos and pathos, which tells us that he has both the brain and the heart when it matters.

2. Contact. – Jodie Fosters Pitch

In this scene from Contact (1997) , we see Ellie Arroway (Jodie Foster) trying to secure funding for her SETI project.

Test your knowledge in the ultimate sci-fi movie quote quiz .

Notice how she abandons logos for pathos when she is initially denied funding by the board. And it’s her passion that convinces the mystical billionaire S.R. Hadden (John Hurt) to fund her research.

3. The Dark Knight: Joker meets the mob and does a Pencil Trick

In this scene from Batman: The Dark Knight (2008) , we see the Joker (Heath Ledger) trying to convince the mob of Gotham City to pay him half of their money to kill Batman.

Notice how he establishes credibility and authority (ethos) from the beginning so that the mob knows he is no fool (pun intended).

Heath Ledger did a great job as Joker, and his posthumous Academy Award for this role is well-deserved.

4. Hidden Figures. “Be The First” Appeal To The Judge

In this scene, Hidden figures (2016) , we see a strong appeal made by one of the female protagonists, Marie Jackson (Janelle Monáe), to the skeptical judge to allow her to attend an all-white high school.

In this 1-minute monologue, notice how she uses pathos to establish common ground and get the judge to see it from her point of view.

5. Independence Day. President Speech.

In this cult scene from Independence Day (1996) , the President of the United States, Thomas J. Whitmore (Bill Pullman), gives a motivational speech to the Air Force before the final battle against the aliens.

It’s a powerful speech. It comes from authority (ethos) – POTUS himself – who in the movie is raised to a pedestal as if he is not only the president of the US but the entire human population on earth.

The motivational speech is a pure pathos appeal based on fear and hope – we fight, win, or die!

Independence Day has many memorable lines. Check out the best quotes from the Independence Day movie .

6. The Devil’s Advocate. Al Pacino’s monologue about God

Here’s a great example of a monologue from the antagonist in a movie.

In this scene from The Devil’s Advocate (1997) , we see the devil (Al Pacino) giving a speech about God. As the devil himself, you won’t find a more authoritative figure (ethos) except for maybe God.

The monologue is a pathos appeal – rooted in anger, of course – to establish a common ground with our protagonist, Kevin Lomax (Keanu Reeves).

7. Scent of a Woman. “I’ll Show You Out of Order!”

Here’s a dramatic monologue by Al Pacino from the movie Scent of a Woman (1992) .

In this scene, the blind military veteran Lt. Col. Frank Slade (Al Pacino) defends the young prep school student Charlie Simms (Chris O’Donnell).

We see Slade establish credibility and authority (ethos) through his powerful appearance and references to his time in the military.

And though he is blind, he sees right through the school’s hypocrisy, which he unveils with his passionate choice of words and intonation (pathos).

It’s a great scene and an iconic performance by Al Pacino.

8. Braveheart: Freedom Speech

In this monologue from Braveheart (1995) , we see William Wallace (Mel Gibson) give a powerful speech to the clansmen of Scotland.

The pathos appeal is rooted in fear of losing their independence and freedom from England. And the purpose is to persuade the clans to unite and fight against the English army.

9. Good Will Hunting. “Your Move Chief”

Here’s a favorite scene from one of my favorite films, Good Will Hunting (1997) .

In the scene, we see the therapist, Dr. Sean Maguire (Robin Williams), giving Will Hunting (Matt Damon) an important lesson about life.

The monologue from Williams’ character becomes the turning point for Will, as he finally decides to be honest with his therapist and himself.

Williams’s character has life experience and credibility (ethos). Though he might not be a genius like Will, he knows enough (logos) to dismantle Will’s intellectual bullshit, which up to this point, has worked as a shield not to let anyone see who he is inside.

Maguire sees right through Will’s facade. It’s a warm and caring talking-to and lecture (pathos) that persuades Will to drop his guard and open up, and one of the best moments in the film.

Robin Williams did a great job in this movie and was rewarded an Academy Award as Best Actor in a Supporting Role, well deserved if you ask me!

10. Good Will Hunting. “My boy’s wicked smart”

Here’s another scene from Good Will Hunting.

In this scene, we see some of Will’s (Matt Damon) genius as he rips apart a condescending Harvard student, Clark, who tries to make a fool of his best friend, Chuckie (Ben Affleck).

We see how Will uses logos to outwit Clark (Scott William Winters) while establishing authority and dominance (ethos) at the same time.

He already has the upper hand when he suggests a fight, as both he and Chuckie are used to fighting, as we can see from their bruised faces.

Ultimately, it’s a double-win for Will, as Clark loses to muscles and brains.

Speaking of wins, it’s no surprise that the script, which Damon and Affleck wrote, received an Oscar for Best Screenplay.

11. Wall Street. “Greed […] is Good”

In this scene from the movie Wall Street (1987) , we see the anti-hero Gordon Gekko (Michael Douglas) persuading the audience at a shareholder’s meeting, announcing that “greed [..] is good. Greed is right, greed works”.

He establishes himself as an authority when he speaks of himself as a liberator of companies instead of their destroyer. He refers to the massive amount of money his takeovers have afforded other shareholders through the years.

The monologue aims to persuade the shareholders that it is a good idea to accept Gekko’s takeover bid.

He does this by – apparently – establishing a common ground (pathos) with shareholders on the floor while speaking against the vice presidents on the board who make a lot of money.

12. Apocalypse Now. “The Horror”

In this monologue from Apocalypse Now (1979) , we see Colonel Walter E. Kurtz (Marlon Brando) recalling the horrors of war. We’re invited into his mind to witness first-hand the cause of his insanity.

It’s a horrifying monologue (no pun intended) filled with pathos, which contrasts Kurtz’s screwed reasoning that if you can embrace horror, then you can “kill without feeling… without passion… without judgment”.

In doing so, Colonel Kurtz equals being able to kill without emotion and conscience with strength in its purest form.

13. The Matrix Reloaded. The Merovingian on Causality

In this scene from The Matrix Reloaded (2003) , we see the antagonist, The Merovingian (Lambert Wilson), lecturing Neo et al. on causality, i.e., cause and effect.

As a program himself (logos), he separates himself from human avatars in the matrix – embodied by the female guest – who are controlled by emotions and instincts (pathos).

The “why” in his monologue is reasoning (logos) and power.

If you don’t understand – “why,” a.k.a. the cause – you become a slave to your emotions (pathos) and those who understand the “why” because they can control you by manipulating those emotions.

14. Kill Bill Vol. 2: Kill Bill on Superheroes

In this memorable performance from Kill Bill Vol. 2 (2004) , we see Bill (David Carradine) speaking about how Superman differs from other superheroes.

Other superheroes – like Spider-Man – are weak and human, except when they have transformed into their superhero alter ego and put on their mask.

It is the opposite way around with Superman. Superman is always a superhero underneath his cape, and his alter ego, Clark Kent, is the weak one.

The speech is an analogy to female assassin Beatrix Kiddo (Uma Thurman), a.k.a. The Bride, a.k.a. Arlene Plimpton.

As her former teacher, Bill doesn’t condone her wish to live a simple life like Arlene Plimpton. In Bill’s perspective, becoming Mrs. Plimpton resembles Superman becoming Clark Kent – a weak alter ego. Bill sees Beatrix Kiddo as “a natural born killer.”

As her former teacher and a feared assassin, Bill already possesses much authority (ethos). And though the Superman analogy might seem like a logos appeal, it is a pathos appeal where Bill tries to re-establish a common ground with his former apprentice.

It’s the classical “we are the same you and I” antagonist monologue, only it is wrapped in clever Tarantino writing.

15. Ratatouille. “Anyone can cook”

Here’s a scene from one of my favorite Disney films, Ratatouille (2007) by Pixar.

It’s a wonderful climactic monologue near the end of the film, where the cooking of the rat Remy (Patton Oswalt) and Linguini (Lou Romano) is judged by the feared food critic Anton Ego (Peter O’Toole).

It’s not only a well-written monologue on art and criticism. It is also about the transformative power of acceptance, courage, and risk-taking, as Anton Ego has to revise his biased views on cooking.

As a feared food critic, Anton Ego has established himself as an authority (ethos) that can make or break a restaurant through the power of his words (logos).

But when he writes the review, he risks and loses this credibility. Instead, he is reborn and reconnected with the happy feelings from his childhood (pathos), which he hasn’t been in contact with for years.

16. Mona Lisa Smile. Katherine’s speech to the class.

In this Mona Lisa Smile (2003) scene, we see art history teacher Katherin Ann Watson (Julia Roberts) in a passionate speech to her students at Wellesley College in 1953.

Julia makes a strong pathos appeal to get the students to see that there is more to life than getting married and fill out the roles the girls “were born to fill” – as her highly conservative student Elizabeth “Betty” Warren (Kirsten Dunst) had written in an editorial for the college paper.

She also uses logos appeals as she shows the class contemporary ads with demeaning portraits of women, which act like a mirror to the young students.

It’s a powerful 2-minute monologue of female empowerment.

17. The American President.

In this monologue from the movie The American President (1995) , we see the Democratic President of the US, Andrew Shepherd (Michael Douglas), giving a speech before the press about free speech.

He also rebukes the attacks by his political opponent – the Republican Senator Bob Rumson.

It’s a passionate monologue (pathos) starkly contrasting his earlier measured speeches (logos). Again, we see how logos is overtaken by pathos when it matters.

18. Malcolm X

In this powerful speech from the movie Malcolm X (1992) , we see Malcolm X (Denzel Washington) address Harlem’s citizens.

It’s a classic us-against-them speech in which he first establishes a common ground with the black community of Harlem (pathos) by peeling away all that could divide them and then putting them against the white man, a.k.a. the government and politicians.

19. A Few Good Men. “You can’t handle the truth!”

In this famous movie monologue from A Few Good Men (1992), we see Col. Nathan R. Jessep (Jack Nicholson) admitting that he ordered Code Red – a violent extrajudicial punishment – which led to the death of marine officer William Santiago.

Up until this point, the courtroom battle has been a case of providing evidence and a battle of wits (logos) between Jessep and lawyers Daniel Kaffe (Tom Cruise) and JoAnne Galloway (Demi Moore).

But as Kaffe catches Jessep in a lie, things heat up, and Nicholson gives a powerful and passionate monologue rooted in anger (pathos), starting with the famous words, “You want the truth? You can’t handle the truth!”

It’s also an excellent example of using a rhetorical question to set up the answer.

20. Skyfall. “Mommy was very bad.”

In this scene from Skyfall (2012), James Bond (Daniel Craig) meets the villain Silva (Javier Bardem) for the first time.

Check out our list of the best 007 movies of all time .

As Silva enters the room where Bond is held captured, he gives a disgusting (pathos) monologue about getting rid of a rat infestation on his grandmother’s island when he was a kid.

The rats thrived by eating coconuts, and the way to get rid of the rats was to capture them in an oil drum and let them eat each other until there were only two left.

The two survivors will now have changed their nature to feast on rats instead of coconuts and are released into the wild.

Of course, the two surviving rats are an analogy of Bond and Silva, whose nature has been changed as they are both trained MI6 agents. Instead of killing other rats, the two agents have a license to kill other humans. – Or at least one of them does. For Silva, killing is a feast in itself.

21. Samuel L. Jackson in Pulp Fiction (1994)

Another honorable mention is Jules Winnfield’s (Samuel L. Jackson) citation of the verse Ezekiel 25:17 in Pulp Fiction by Quentin Tarantino:

Anyone familiar with Pulp Fiction might remember that the quote appears twice in the film.

The second time is in the final scene where Jules lectures Ringo, a.k.a. Pumpkin, on how to be a bad-ass motherfucker – or is it a shepherd?

Here is the monologue in full.

Well, there’s this passage I got memorized: Ezekiel 25:17: ‘The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who, in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of the darkness. For he is truly his brother’s keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know I am the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon you.” I’ve been sayin’ that shit for years. And if you heard it, that meant your ass. I never gave much thought to what it meant. I just thought it was some cold-blooded thing to say to a motherfucker before you popped a cap in his ass. But I saw some shit this mornin’ made me think twice. Seee, now I’m thinking: maybe it means you’re the evil man. And I’m the righteous man. And Mr. 9-millimeter here, he’s the shepherd protecting my righteous ass in the valley of darkness. Or it could mean you’re the righteous man and I’m the shepherd and it’s the world that’s evil and selfish. I’d like that. But that shit ain’t the truth. The truth is you’re the weak. And I’m the tyranny of evil men. But I’m tryin’, Ringo… I’m tryin’ real hard to be the shepherd. – Jules Winnfield

22. Meryl Streep in One True Thing (1998)

In this heartwarming (and heartbreaking at the same time) monologue, Meryl Streep plays a cancer-stricken mother, Kate Gulden, talking to her daughter Ellen (Renée Zellweger). The latter is upset with her father, George (William Hurt).

It’s a moment of truth about marriage, the idea of a good father, and life and death at the most basic level. And it’s filled with pathos.

It’s another excellent performance from Meryl Streep, who was nominated for Best Actress at the Academy Awards.

23. ‘Tears in the Rain’ by Rutger Hauer in Blade Runner (1982)

I’m a huge Blade Runner fan, so this may be biased. But I love this final monologue from the Nexus-6 model Roy Batty (Rutger Hauer):

It’s a pivotal moment in the film because the Nexus model chooses to save Rick Deckard’s (Harrison Ford) life.

At this point, it is assumed by most that Deckard is human, so for a Nexus model to save a human enforces the Tyrell Corporation’s idea of creating robots that are ‘more human than human.’

Viewed analytically, the logos from the cold-blooded soldier Nexus-6 model makes way for a pathos-filled moment in its final hour.

24. John Goodman in The Big Lebowski (1998)

One of the movie’s most hilarious monologues is from Walter Sobchak (John Goodman). Granted, this movie is filled with crazy dialog and scenes and is one of the best comedy movies of all time .

In this scene, Walter gives a ceremonious speech before he scatters Theodore Donald ‘Donny’ Kerabatsos’s (Steve Buschemi) ashes near the sea while The Dude (Jeff Bridges) listens in the background.

A trusted friend and bowling partner, Donny was true to the trio until the end. Donny dies from a heart attack after an altercation with the nihilists who’ve just set the Dude’s car on fire at the movie’s end.

But even though the three friends have bowled for years, the Dude and Walter don’t know much about Donny. So Walter has to make up a speech on the spot, which is more logos than pathos.

Here it is in full:

Donny was a good bowler and a good man. He was… he was one of us. He was a man who loved the outdoors… and bowling. And as a surfer, he explored the beaches of southern California from La Jolla to Leo Carillo and up to Pismo. He died.. he died as so many young men of his generation before his time. In your wisdom, Lord, you took him… as you took so many bright, flowering young men at Khe Sanh, and Lan Doc, and Hill 364. These young men gave their lives, and so Donny. Donny who loved bowling. And so… Theodore Donald Karabotsos… in accordance with what we think your dying wishes might well have been… we commit your final, mortal remains to the bosom of the Pacific Ocean, which you loved so well. Goodnight, sweet prince. – Walter Sobchak

25. Joaquin Phoenix in Gladiator (2000)

Gladiator (2000), directed by Ridley Scott, is one of my favorite movies. It’s a great story, and it is filled with amazing performances – not at least by Joaquin Phoenix as Commodus and Russell Crowe as Maximus.

In this pathos-filled scene, Commodus realizes that his father, Marcus Aurelius (Richard Harris), won’t let his son be the new emperor of Rome. Instead, he’ll pass the torch to his general Maximus.

Commodus tries to redeem himself and let his father know that he is ready to be the new emperor:

[Commodus] You wrote to me once… listing the four chief virtues. Wisdom, justice, fortitude, temperance. As I read the list, I knew I had none of them. But I have other virtues, Father. Ambition. That can be a virtue when it drives us to excel. Resourcefulness. Courage. Perhaps not on the battlefield, but… there are many forms of courage. Devotion… to my family… to you. But none of my virtues were on your list. Even then, it was as if you didn’t want me for your son. [Marcus Aurelius kneels: Oh, Commodus… you go to far.] [Commodus] I search the faces of the Gods for ways to please you, to make you proud. One kind word, one full hug where you pressed me to your chest and held me tight… would have been like the sun on my heart for a thousand years. What is it in me that you hate so much? All I’ve ever wanted was to live up to you. Caesar. Father. [Marcus Aurelius: Commodus. Your faults as a son is my failure as a father.]

Tough love! That’s ancient Rome’s idea of a good father for you! Probably not the best or wisest way to respond to a disgruntled son from whom you’ve just denied the emperor’s throne.

Honorary mentions: Charlie Chaplin in The Great Dictator

Any famous movie monologues list wouldn’t be complete without mentioning this quote from the final scene in The Great Dictator (1940) by Charlie Chaplin.

The quote is as relevant then as it is today:

Machinery that gives abundance has left us in want. Our knowledge has made us cynical; our cleverness, hard and unkind. We think too much and feel too little. More than machinery, we need humanity. More than cleverness, we need kindness and gentleness. Without these qualities, life will be violent, and all will be lost.– A Jewish Barber A Jewish Barber

The quote encompasses pathos, logos, and ethos, making this one of the best movie monologues ever.

What makes great monologues from movies?

It can be valuable and fun to view and understand the monologues from a rhetorical perspective and apply the rhetorical appeals ethos, logos, and pathos .

Ethos, logos, and pathos are tools you can use to persuade an audience and turn them to your side.

An ethos appeal is the speaker’s credibility and authority, a logos appeal is to logic and reasoning (in what’s being said), and a pathos appeal is to the audience’s emotions and passions.

For a monologue to be effective, the character has to have credibility, and he or she has to speak with pathos, a.k.a. passion. In other words, he or she has to speak to our hearts.

I find that pathos, more than logos, often powers these speeches.

Monologues aren’t just for protagonists.

However, the best monologues from movies aren’t reserved for the protagonist. Villains have held some great movie monologues throughout film history, which we’ll examine.

Monologues for villains are so common that Disney’s Pixar made fun of them in The Incredibles. Check out this comedic monologue from Syndrome:

So, without further ado, here are the best movie monologues of all time (in no particular order).

If you’re an aspiring actor, it’s time to start practicing monologues yourself. Here, you can see some great examples of 1-minute monologues for auditions.

So those were the best film monologues I could think of.

Did I miss any obvious ones? What are your favorite famous movie quotes?

Let me know in the comments below.

Jan Sørup is a indie filmmaker, videographer and photographer from Denmark. He owns filmdaft.com and the Danish company Apertura, which produces video content for big companies in Denmark and Scandinavia. Jan has a background in music, has drawn webcomics, and is a former lecturer at the University of Copenhagen.

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4 thoughts on “Cinematic Masterpieces: 25 Monologues That Shaped Film”

This is really helpful for my drama class, and it has one that I’ve looked for before and couldn’t find, so thank you.

Thank you. I’m glad you found it useful. Good luck in drama class 🙂

Yoo I needed a monoloague to declaim in class, this website helped me a lot to find it. Thankss!!!

thank you so much this help me in my performance.

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ActorsCareerGuide.com

Use monologues from disney movies to help you land your next big role.

Every actor has a toolbox of tips and tricks they use to land “wow” at auditions and land gigs. One of the most important tools in your toolbox as an actor is a collection of monologues. 

And where best to get your monologues than from the many blockbuster movies Disney has produced?

If you’re in need of great monologues, give Disney monologues a shot. Most are short, punchy, and very memorable.  

​Monologue – Is it Really You Talking to Yourself? (That’s Just Weird)

But I’m getting ahead of myself.  Let’s define what a monologue is. It may not be what you think. Most people define a monologue as a scene in which one person is talking. Period. But a monologue is actually a scene in which you speak – and another character listens. 

This means when you do a monologue, you have to imagine the other character listening, and even reacting. When you do a monologue with the other character in mind, your monologue becomes more lively and convincing. 

That’s the whole point, isn’t it? To give such a powerful solo performance people actually believe you’re talking to a real person.

​Why Monologues from Disney Movies are Some of the Best (Ever)

​Image Source: www.pinterest.com

When it comes to entertainment, Disney must have the magic formula everyone is looking for. Great concepts, amazing storytelling, and brilliant artwork make all of us look forward to the next Disney production.

But one thing they do best, even though they never get credit for it, is creating great speeches for their characters. So, what makes Disney monologues great?

​They are Packed with Emotions

​Whether it’s a Disney princess monologue (I know kids of today call it a rant. How uncultured of them!), or a funny intro to the story, Disney knows how to pack emotions into a monologue. 

A great example is Dory begging Marlin to stay with here in the Disney movie Finding Nemo – “No. No, you can’t. …STOP! Please don’t go away. Please? No one’s ever stuck with me for so long before. And if you leave…if you leave… I just, I remember things better with you! I do, look! P. Sherman, forty-two…forty-two… I remember it, I do. It’s there, I know it is because when I look at you, I can feel it. And…and I look at you, and I…and I’m home! Please…I don’t want that to go away. I don’t want to forget.”

If you can pull off an emotionally charged monologue, whether for an audition or an audience, you’re bound to steal the show.

​Image Source: www.pinterest ​ .com

​They Have a Clear Format

When you study Disney movies monologues, you will discover they all have a clear pattern – beginning, middle, and end. That pattern has a reason behind it, and the reason is to take you on a journey with the character (albeit a short one).  

The beginning hooks you and makes you empathize with the character. The middle carries you on an emotional high, and finally, the end brings you back down again. It may take a few minutes, but that simple monologue can hook you to the entire story and make you a big fan.

Now, imagine having that kind of effect on the judges at an audition. Why not steal a couple of monologues from Disney movies and “own” them?

​They are Short, Precise, and Punchy

The most used one-liners anywhere are 1-minute monologues from Disney. Why? They are short, precise, and punchy. Above that, they are very memorable. These are the kind of monologues you should employ in order to make a lasting impression. 

​Image Source: www.unilad.co.uk

​Have a Clear Purpose

A good monologue must have a clear purpose, or two. For example, it can be used to reveal the characters deep feelings in a way acting alone cannot. The monologue expands the character. In other instances, a monologue can be used to elicit certain feelings from the audience, usually empathy, if it’s the “hero” of the story doing the talking.

 A good example is a monologue from the Disney movie 101 Dalmatians. Here’s Cruella De Vil’s epic monologue: “You beasts! But I’m not beaten yet. You’ve won the battle, but I’m about to win the wardrobe. My spotty puppy coat is in plain sight and leaving tracks. 

In a moment I’ll have what I came for, while all of you will end up as sausage meat, alone on some sad, plastic plate. Dead and medium red. No friends, no family, no pulse. Just slapped between two buns, smothered in onions, with fries on the side. Cruella De Vil has the last laugh!”

The interesting thing about this monologue is that the way the villain is talking about the heroes of the show actually makes the audience feel sorry for them. I mean, who would want a cute Dalmatian turned into a spotty coat in an evil woman’s wardrobe? Or as sausage meat?

Lights, Camera, Disney Monologue!

As you prepare for your next audition, remember the lessons you have learned from the monologues in Disney movies. Go out there and impress – enough to get the role.

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Best Movie Monologues — Top 20 Ranked for Writers & Actors

M ovies have been known to transport us to different worlds, times, and experiences through the power of storytelling. And one of the most magical ways that movies do this is through the use of monologues. From inspiring speeches that make us want to stand up and take action to heart-wrenching confessions that bring us to tears, the best movie monologues can capture the essence of a film and stay with us long after the credits have rolled. In this blog post, we’ll take a look at some of the best monologues in movie history that have left an imprint on our hearts and minds. 

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Best Monologues from Movies

20. call me by your name  (2017).

Call Me By Your Name Monologue 

In the film Call Me By Your Name , Elio’s father, played by Michael Stuhlbarg shares a powerful monologue with his son as they sit quietly together. The father reflects on his own experiences with love and heartbreak, and shares a powerful message about the importance of embracing life's challenges and being courageous in the face of uncertainty. 

The monologue is a poignant moment of connection between father and son, and a reminder to all of us to live fully in the present moment, and to never be afraid to take a chance on love, no matter where it may lead us.

Best Movie Monologues in Dramas

19. manchester by the sea (2016).

Manchester by the Sea Police Station Scene

Manchester by the Sea is a powerful film that deals with themes of grief, loss, and redemption. One of the most memorable moments in the film comes in the form of a monologue delivered by the character Lee Chandler, played brilliantly by Casey Affleck, in a police station. 

The monologue is a raw and heartbreaking exploration of the human condition and is a testament to the film's incredible writing and acting. The scene is a pivotal moment in the story and showcases the power of cinema to move us deeply and challenge our understanding of the world around us.

Best Monologues from Movies 

18. gone girl (2014).

Gone Girl  •  Cool Girl Monologue

In Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl , one of the most memorable and chilling moments comes in the form of the "cool girl" monologue by Rosamund Pike playing Amy Dunne. The monologue is both a scathing critique of societal norms and a poignant examination of the masks we wear to fit in.

With razor-sharp prose and a gut-punch of a message, the "cool girl" monologue is a standout moment in an already-iconic novel.

Famous Movie Monologues

17. hidden figures (2016).

Hidden Figures Bathroom Speech Scene

This powerful monologue from the award-winning   Hidden Figures is short, but powerful. As one of the few black women working as mathematicians at NASA during the Civil Rights era, Katherine Johnson, played by Taraji P. Henson, is constantly faced with discrimination and segregation. 

Her words ring with a raw truth and an unflinching determination to fight against the systemic racism that surrounded her every day. The bathroom may seem like a small issue, but it becomes a poignant symbol of the larger struggle for equality and dignity in a world that seeks to diminish the humanity of those who do not fit into its narrow mold.

Oscar Winning Best Monologues from Movies

16. everything everywhere all at once.

Everything Everywhere All at Once  •  Monologue 

One of the most recent monologues on this list comes from The Daniels’ iconic Everything Everywhere All at Once  (2022). The scene features the character of Ling, played by Michelle Yeoh, who reminisces about a past life where she wished to share the mundane yet intimate moments of daily life with someone she loved. 

We brought the monologues into StudioBinder’s screenwriting app to analyze it further and see how it helped land Ke Huy Quan his first Oscar.

The monologue is a testimony to the emotional depth and subtlety of the film's storytelling, and it will surely leave a lasting impression on anyone who watches it.

15. The Tragedy of Macbeth (2021)

Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow 

While the writing of the monologue itself can’t be attributed solely to the Coen’s, their adaptation of it on the screen as well as Denzel Washington’s brilliant performance gives it a spot on this list. 

In this  adaptation  of  Macbeth from the Coen Brothers , Denzel Washington delivers a haunting performance in the iconic "Tomorrow Tomorrow Tomorrow" monologue. The Coen Brothers' haunting imagery , coupled with Washington's unforgettable performance, makes this one of the most captivating and memorable adaptations of Shakespeare's tragedy.

Tarantino’s Best Movie Monologues

14. inglorious basterds (2009).

Inglourious Basterds Monologue

Brad Pitt's opening monologue in one of Quentin Tarantino's best movies , Inglourious Basterds , is a tour de force in cinematic storytelling. Playing the role of Lt. Aldo Raine, Pitt delivers a fiery and captivating speech that sets the stage for the entire film.

His aggressive and almost comical demeanor adds to the intensity of his words, as the audience is pulled into the world of WWII-era Europe. 

As an actor, Pitt brings a larger-than-life quality to the role that perfectly captures Tarantino's punk rock style of filmmaking. Overall, Pitt's opening monologue in Inglourious Basterds is a masterclass in acting and writing, and sets a tone for the film that is both exciting and unforgettable.

Famous Movie Monologues in Voice Over

13. american psycho (2000).

Morning Routine  •  American Psycho

The morning routine voice-over monologue in American Psycho has become one of the most iconic and recognizable scenes in film history. Christian Bale's portrayal of the psychotic Patrick Bateman perfectly captures the absurdity and darkness of the character's morning rituals. 

The monologue's absurdity and dark humor have made it a favorite among fans, and it has since been parodied and referenced in countless films, TV shows, and even internet memes. Bale's mesmerizing performance and the monologue's unique mix of horror and humor have solidified its place in cinema history as one of the most memorable and iconic monologues.

Best Movie Monologues in Action Films

12. the matrix (1999).

Blue Pill or Red Pill  •  The Matrix

"Red or blue? The choice is yours." These famous words spoken by Morpheus in the sci-fi blockbuster, The Matrix , have become synonymous with the idea of making life-altering decisions. The moment when Morpheus holds out his palms, offering Neo the choice between the red pill and the blue pill, is a pop culture classic. 

The red pill or blue pill monologue is more than just a movie quote, it's a metaphor for the truth-seeking journey we all embark on at some point in our lives. Whether we choose the red pill and accept the harsh realities of the world or the blue pill and live in blissful ignorance, this moment in The Matrix will forever be remembered as a pivotal point in cinematic history.

11. The Godfather  (1972)

THE GODFATHER  •  Opening Scene

While there are a few great monologues in one of the greatest gangster films of all time The Godfather perhaps the most iconic is found in the opening scene.

"Bonasera, Bonasera." These two simple words, uttered by Salvatore Corsitta have become synonymous with cinematic brilliance. The opening monologue delivered by Corsitta is a masterful display of storytelling that sets the tone for what is to come. In just a few short minutes, we are transported into the world of the Corleone family and understand the power dynamics at play. 

The melancholic music, coupled with the somber tone of the scene is a stark contrast to the violence that lies ahead. Salvatore Corsitta's monologue is not only a scene-setting device but also an iconic moment in cinematic history. 

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Robin Williams’ Famous Movie Monologues

10. good will hunting (1997).

Robin Williams' Speech  •  Good Will Hunting

Robin Williams' performance in Good Will Hunting was unforgettable, particularly his powerful monologue in the park scene. In that scene, Williams, who played the character of therapist Sean Maguire, talked to Matt Damon's character Will Hunting about love, loss, and life.

It was a perfectly written and performed monologue that achieved exactly what it had to for the plot, character, and emotional story

Williams' performance in Good Will Hunting remains a testament to his incredible talent and his ability to connect with audiences in meaningful ways. His work in the film will be remembered for years to come as a true cinematic masterpiece.

9. The Shawshank Redemption (1994)

The Shawshank Redemption  •  Rehabilitation

Through his measured and melodic delivery, Freeman brought a sense of wisdom and gravitas to his monologue in The Shawshank Redemption , making it a standout moment in the film. He spoke with empathy and insight about the challenges of re-establishing oneself in society after being incarcerated.

Critics and audiences alike praised Freeman for his performance, which was a testament to his incredible talent as an actor. His portrayal of Redding remains one of the highlights of his career, and his monologue is often considered to be one of the most poignant and memorable moments in the film.

Brando’s Best Movie Monologues

8. apocalypse now (1979).

Apocalypse Now: Marlon Brando Horror Speech 

It would be difficult to have any sort of best monologue list without one mention of Marlon Brando. In one of Francis Ford Coppola’s best films Apocalypse Now , Brando's character, Colonel Kurtz, delivers a haunting speech in which he reflects on his experiences during the Vietnam War.

Despite the notorious challenges on set with Brando, his performance in the monologue scene is truly mesmerizing. He was given free reign to improvise (since Brando never read the script) which in the end contributed to the truly immortal performance.

Overall, Brando's monologue in Apocalypse Now is a testament to his talent as an actor. Despite the challenges, he was able to deliver a performance that is still talked about and revered today.

Monologues Movies Female Performances

7. fences (2016).

Fences  •  The Same Spot As You Scene

Viola Davis' performance as Rose in the film Fences cements her as one of the best actors working today. As Rose confronts her husband (Denzel Washington) about his infidelities and his failure to appreciate her sacrifices, Davis delivers a raw and emotional performance that leaves a lasting impact on the audience. 

Her words are filled with pain and frustration, yet also with a deep sense of resilience and determination. Through her powerful delivery and aching vulnerability, Davis captures the essence of a woman who has endured years of hurt and betrayal but refuses to be broken. It's a stunning moment in a truly unforgettable film.

Great Monologues in Movies

6. to kill a mockingbird (1962).

All Men Are Created Equal  •  To Kill a Mockingbird

In the film adaptation of Harper Lee's masterpiece novel, To Kill a Mockingbird , Gregory Peck delivers a stunning closing argument monologue that leaves a lasting impact on the viewer. 

Peck plays Atticus Finch, a small-town lawyer defending a black man falsely accused of rape. With unwavering conviction, Peck captures the essence of Atticus, delivering a poignant speech that speaks to the human spirit and embodies the virtues of courage, compassion, and equality.

His masterful portrayal of Atticus Finch is a testament to his exceptional talent as an actor and solidifies his place as a Hollywood legend.

5. Pulp Fiction (1994)

Pulp Fiction  •  The Gold Watch monologue

In the iconic film Pulp Fiction , Christopher Walken proves his ability to captivate audiences even when he has only a few minutes of screen time. Playing the role of Captain Koons, Walken's character regales a young Butch Coolidge with the history of the watch, which had been passed down through generations of Coolidge's family. 

The intensity in Walken's voice and delivery captures the attention of audiences as he recounts the watch's journey from a prisoner of war camp in Vietnam to Coolidge's father, who died with the watch hidden in his rectum. 

Rocky’s Best Monologues from Movies

4. rocky balboa (2006).

Rocky Balboa's inspirational speech

In the 2006 film Rocky Balboa , Sylvester Stallone delivers an inspiring monologue as Rocky Balboa, the boxing legend, as he motivates his son. 

Stallone's delivery is masterful, depicting the wise and grounded wisdom of a seasoned fighter imparting his knowledge to his son. It is a powerful speech that resonates with anyone who has had to face struggles and hardships in life, and it serves as a reminder that the only things that can truly hold us back are the limits we place on ourselves.

3. Persona (1966)

Persona  •  Alma’s Confessions

The 1966 film Persona features a riveting monologue delivered by Bibi Andersson in her role as Alma, a nurse caring for a mentally unstable actress. In the monologue, Alma pours out her innermost thoughts and feelings, confessing her darkest secrets and desires to the actress. 

The monologue provides a deep understanding of who Alma is, giving the audience insight into her complex psyche.  The monologue beautifully explores the themes of identity, self-discovery, and the blurred lines between reality and fiction. 

Spielberg’s Dramatic Monologues from Movies

2. jaws (1975).

Jaws  •  The Indianapolis Speech Scene 

The Indianapolis Speech monologue in one of Spielberg’s best films Jaws is considered one of the most iconic movie monologues of all time. In the scene, Quint, played brilliantly by Robert Shaw, tells the story of the sinking of the USS Indianapolis and the horrific events that followed. 

Shaw's delivery of the monologue is spellbinding, drawing the audience in with his captivating storytelling and vivid descriptions of the shark attack, the struggle for survival, and the aftermath. Even decades after the movie's release, the Indianapolis Speech remains a powerful moment in one of cinema’s most unforgettable films. 

Best Monologues from Movies of All Time

1. the great dictator (1940).

Charlie Chaplin  •  Final Speech from The Great Dictator

Charlie Chaplin's closing monologue in the film The Great Dictator is a powerful plea for peace, unity and compassion, and it remains one of the most iconic speeches in cinema history. The speech denounces fascism, anti-Semitism, and intolerance, and calls for humanity to embrace love, respect and brotherhood. The speech's universal message is as relevant today as it was when the film was made over 80 years ago. 

It continues to inspire people all over the world to strive for peace and to stand up against hate and oppression. Chaplin's eloquent words remind us that, as human beings, we have the capacity to create a better world for ourselves and for future generations. 

The Best One-Liners in Cinema

On the opposite end of the monologue is the cinematic one-liner. Check out our next article to see some of the best single-line deliveries in all of cinema, ranging from comedies to dramas.

Up Next: Best One-Liners→

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32 Most Inspiring Speeches In Film History

There's nothing better to fire you up than an inspiring speech.

A lot of great speeches come from sports movies, but that's not the only genre that can make us want to run through walls. Some speeches are so good it has us rooting for the bad guys. Most are by the good guys though, and we'll follow those good guys anywhere. Here is our list of the most inspiring speeches in film history. 

Independence Day - President Witmore

President Thomas J. Whitmore's ( Bill Pullman ) speech in Independence Day has become one of the most iconic film moments of the last 50 years. While the movie can be polarizing, some people can't get enough of it, others hope to never see it again. Still, it's hard to find anyone who truly hates the speech and that moment in the film. If you ever find yourself fighting against annihilation by a bunch of E.T.s, this is the speech for you. 

The Hunt For Red October - Captain Ramius

If you thought you could never get fired up about the Soviet Union picking a fight on the United States during the Cold War, check it out. When Captain Marko Ramius ( Sean Connery ) tells his crew that the salad days of the Cold War are not behind them, and the United States will "tremble again - at the sound of our silence," it makes you want to stand up and fight for communism. At least for a brief moment. 

Any Given Sunday (Coach D'Amato)

It's used at almost every professional football game in America, almost every Sunday, because in Any Given Sunday , Coach D'Amato implores his team and the rest of us to claw for every inch we can. It might not be Pacino's most award-winning role, but that scene... that scene is some of his finest and most enduring work. 

Gladiator (Maximus)

"My name is Maximus Decimus Meridius." If those words don't immediately fire you up, it's time to check for a pulse. Audiences spend most of Gladiator waiting for Maximus ( Russell Crowe ) to finally get his revenge on that conniving Commodus ( Joaquin Phoenix ) and finally we get it. Maximus will have his vengeance, in this life or the next.

Friday Night Lights (Coach Gaines)

In Friday Night Lights , Coach Gaines ( Billy Bob Thornton ) tells us how to be perfect. It has nothing to do with the final score, or winning. It's about how we treat each other and ourselves. It's about telling the truth and not letting anyone down. Live in the moment, "with joy in your heart." That's what makes us perfect. The swelling music by Explosions in the Sky only adds to the drama of the moment. 

While he doesn't say "Clear Eyes, Full Hearts, Can't Lose," (that comes from the TV show), he does mention his clear eyes and his full heart and afterward, none of us lose. 

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Henry V (Henry V)

It's not just one of the most inspiring speeches in film history, it's one of the most famous speeches in human history. When William Shakespeare wrote the words to the famous St. Crispin's Day Speech in Henry V , he could not have known that it would be used for centuries afterward to inspire men. For we few, we lucky few, we can watch the speech brilliantly delivered by Kenneth Branagh in one of his finest roles , in his film version from 1989. 

Animal House (Bluto)

"Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?" Of course it wasn't! Bluto (John Belushi) does a lot to inspire the brothers of the Delta house in Animal House but nothing more so than his speech after "Wormer dropped the big one" and suspended the fraternity. Instead of wallowing in self-pity, the men of Delta are inspired to have the best time of their lives, and Wormer? He's a dead man! Marmalard? Dead! Niedermeyer...

Gone With The Wind (Scarlett O'Hara)

Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh) is not the most sympathetic movie character of all time. In fact, she ranks close to the bottom in that category, but you can't deny the power of her speech just before the end of the first part of the movie. Her family's plantation, Tara, is in shambles, her mother is dead, and her father has lost his mind. When all hope is lost, she promises herself she will fix it, and she will "never be hungry again."

Barbie (Gloria)

It's truly a show-stopping moment in Barbie when Gloria ( America Ferrera ) lays out what it's like to be a woman in today's world. The entire essence of the movie's message is summed up in that brilliant speech. It makes everyone want to jump up on their feet and applaud. It's a moment that will forever live in cinema history. 

Good Will Hunting (Sean Maguire)

It's not just the words that matter. It takes a special actor to deliver a speech like Sean Maguire's in Good Will Hunting . Thankfully there was the great Robin Williams. In a speech that is meant to devastate and inspire Will (Matt Damon), Williams tells him everything he is doing wrong but manages to show him how he can fix it, and open up an entirely new world for himself. It's cutting and loving. And brilliant. "Your move, chief."

Lord Of The Rings: Return Of The King (Aragorn)

Like so many other battle scenes in movies, Aragorn's (Viggo Mortensen) speech at the Black Gates in Lord Of The Rings: Return Of The King has us willing to fight to the death with our fellow soldiers. There is nothing like a leader riding back and forth on horse inspiring his troops. 

Braveheart (William Wallace)

Always remember, that no matter how badly you are treated by a tyrannical English king, he can never take your freedom! William Wallace (Mel Gibson) brilliantly reminds us of that in Braveheart . While it's easy to mock the poor history telling in the movie (and we argue if it was really one of the best movies of 1995 ), you can never say that the speech Wallace gives before the biggest battle in the movie won't have you ready to take on the entire British Empire. 

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (Elizabeth)

Speeches made by leaders to inspire men in battle aren't unique in movies. What makes the speech unique in Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End is that the speech is made by a woman. Elizabeth's (Keira Knightly) speech isn't a lot different than a lot of its ilk, but it's more inspiring to hear it from a woman because we've never heard that before. So hoist the colors! 

Stripes (John Winger)

John Winger (Bill Murray) is the biggest misfit in a platoon filled with them in Stripes . He's the least likely to inspire the rest with a razzle-dazzle speech firing them up, yet that's exactly what he does before their graduation from boot camp. Bill Murray has some of the best lines in movie history, and this speech is near the top of them. 

Miracle (Herb Brooks)

"Great moments are born from great opportunity." That is something we can all stand to remember. In Miracle , Herb Brooks inspires his rag-tag team of college kids to defeat maybe the greatest hockey team ever assembled in the Soviet National Team at the 1980 Winter Olympics. The movie is based on a true story and while it's impossible to know exactly with the real Brooks said, if it was anywhere close to what Russell delivers, it's no surprise we all believe in miracles today. 

Rocky IV (Rocky Balboa)

The Cold War inspired a lot of movies, even sports movies like Rocky IV . Early in the Rocky series, Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) wasn't a man of many words, but at the end of Rocky IV , he finds some of the most inspiring words of the whole series, imploring all of us to get along, despite our differences. 

Swingers (Trent)

What's a good friend if not someone to pep you up when you're feeling low? That's exactly who Trent (Vince Vaughn) is to Mike (Jon Favreau) in Swingers . Not only does he take him to Vegas for a night of fun, on the way home, after the trip doesn't pep Mike up as much as it should, Trent explains exactly why Mike is so money, and he doesn't even know it. 

Network (Howard Beale)

It's scary just how much a movie like Network , released almost 50 years ago is still so relevant. We don't need Howard Beale (Peter Finch) to tell us just how bad things are, we just need to him to inspire us to go to the window, open the window and yell to the world that we're not going to take it anymore! 

The Goonies (Mikey)

"The Goonies never say die!" When all seems lost in the Goonies quest to rescue their neighborhood from developers, Mikey (Sean Astin) reminds them all exactly how far they've come in the quest for One-Eyed Willie's gold. We don't get a lot of inspirational speeches from kids, but when we do, we love them. 

Clueless (Cher)

When Cher (Alicia Silverstone) compares her garden party to a refugee crisis, your inclination is to think she's an airhead. But like so many before and after her, there is kind of a subtle brilliance to her thought process. She takes what she knows and uses that to find the emotion we should all feel for her side of the argument. 

Milk (Harvey Milk)

Milk , based on the true story of Harvey Milk (Sean Penn), is inspiring in and of itself, but Milk's speech on the steps of San Fransisco City Hall at the Gay Pride Rally is a masterpiece. 

Troy (Achilles)

In another classic example of a military leader inspiring his troops, Achilles' (Brad Pitt) speech reminding his men that they are lions, is enough to get anyone to storm the beaches of Troy. There's a reason the story has been told for thousands of years. 

Norma Rae (Norma Rae)

The best thing about Norma Rae's (Sally Field, in one of her best roles ) speech in Norma Rae is that the most important word isn't spoken at all. She simply holds up a sign that says "Union" in the middle of her sweatshop. That's all she needs to "say" to get everyone in the textile mill to agree. It's brilliant. 

We Are Marshall (Jack Lengyel)

We Are Marshall tells the tragic and heroic story of the 1971 Marshall University football team. At the end of the 1970 season, a plane carrying most of the team and its coaches crashed in North Carolina. Before the start of the next season, the new coach, Jack Lengyel (Matthew McConaughey) makes a speech at a memorial for some of the lost players and what he says about never forgetting the past but looking to the future will bring a tear to anyone's eyes.

Legally Blonde (Elle Woods)

More than 20 years after the first Legally Blonde movie was released Elle Woods (Reese Witherspoon) continues to inspire us. With an address like the one she makes at the end of the movie, as she's graduating, it's easy to see why. "You must always have faith in people. And most importantly, you must always have faith in yourself."

Avengers: Endgame (Captain America)

In a room full of superheroes, leave it to Captain America to make the hype speech. In Avengers: Endgame , that's exactly when Cap (Chris Evans) psyches the cadre up for their mission to reverse the Snap. "Whatever it takes."

Hoosiers (Norman Dale)

When tiny Hickman High School makes it to the Indiana State Basketball Finals, they are facing a huge school, in a huge arena. Coach Norman Dale (Gene Hackman) takes only a minute or so to lay out what will make them successful, and a minute is all he needs. It's why Hoosiers one of the best sports movies ever made. 

Rudy (Rudy)

The speech in Rudy is a little different. Rudy really has no audience, save for one person, but that doesn't stop him from delivering a first-rate speech that any Notre Dame alum gets goosebumps when they hear it, including the parts he lifted from the great Knute Rockne.

Juno (Mac MacGuff)

When Juno MacGuff (Elliot Page) is wondering what her future holds, her father Mac MacGuff (J.K. Simmons) explains simply and succinctly, "The best thing you can do is find a person who loves you for exactly what you are." We couldn't have said it better ourselves. 

Stand And Deliver (Jaime Escalante) 

Jaime Escalante (Edward James Olmos) is a no-nonsense math teacher who is determined to get the most from his students. He decides he needs to raise the level of expectations inside and outside of the classroom and he starts by breaking down when he is going to be so hard on his students, to get the most out of them. All they need is ganas – motivation. 

Rocky Balboa (Rocky)

Leave it to Rocky to make a speech in 2006's Rocky Balboa meant to inspire his son to inspire all of us together. It's pure Rocky, leave it all out, don't accept things you don't like, and never make excuses, no matter how hard it is. And it seems like this was advice he took to heart when it became a struggle to make the film . 

300 (Dilios)

Dilios (David Wenham) fires up the Spartans like no other person could. It's truly one of the great hype speeches in film history. It's exactly what you would expect from a civilization of warriors. Whether it really happened or not is irrelevant. The message is the same, "Remember us."

From sports to war, love to education, and beyond, a great speech raises goosebumps like nothing else in film can. These examples are some of the best speeches we've used to inspire us. 

Hugh Scott is the Syndication Editor for CinemaBlend. Before CinemaBlend, he was the managing editor for Suggest.com and Gossipcop.com, covering celebrity news and debunking false gossip. He has been in the publishing industry for almost two decades, covering pop culture – movies and TV shows, especially – with a keen interest and love for Gen X culture, the older influences on it, and what it has since inspired. He graduated from Boston University with a degree in Political Science but cured himself of the desire to be a politician almost immediately after graduation.

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20 best monologues in movie history.

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The monologues that appear on this list are a collection of strong and memorable performances across American film. All of the monologues featured are in English. While there are numerous other monologues that could have easily also been featured on this list, special attention was given holistically so that the monologues here are representative of a wide array of movies, actors, directors, writers, and genres. This means that classic and celebrated monologues appear alongside monologues of equal merit, although perhaps less recognition. The list may have a numeric ranking, but it is also important to acknowledge how varied and exceptional each of these monologues is. The list takes into consideration the writing and performance of each monologue, but it also considers factors like cultural relevance and the larger effect that the monologue itself had on the film or within popular culture.

Additionally, movie "rants", which are a form of monologue, have their own list which can be viewed here . This includes Alec Baldwin in  Glengarry Glen Ross  (1992), Jack Nicholson in A Few Good Men (1992), and Peter Finch in Network (1976).

While this list only includes films, there is also a companion list that examines the greatest monologues in television, which can be found here.

Here are the  20 Greatest Monologues in Movie History:

20. Laurence Fishburne in The Matrix

In his famous monologue from The Matrix (1999), Morpheous offers Neo a choice between two pills - and Laurence Fishburne opens up the world of the Matrix to the viewers of the Wachowski sisters' groundbreaking film.

The Matrix is everywhere. It is all around us. Even now, in this very room.

Morpheous reveals that Neo is a slave trapped in a prison, who has been made to believe that he's free even while he is trapped in a machine. Of course, Neo chooses the "red" pill, which allows him to see the truth and escape the Matrix.

The monologue helps to showcase Fishburne's immense vocal control. As he tells Neo the truth, relating Neo's journey to Alice going down the rabbit hole, he manages to capture complex emotions: amusement at Neo's skepticism, awareness of the absurdity, and yet, a grounded, clear, and determined stance that has come from years of staring into the harsh abyss of reality. The speech captures the complexities of both Morpheous and the Matrix, and it signals a turning point for the film.

19. Angela Lansbury in The Manchurian Candidate

Dame Angela Lansbury is perhaps best known for her roles in musicals ( Mame ), mysteries ( Murder, She Wrote ), and animated films ( Beauty and the Beast ). However, one of Lansbury's most famous and acclaimed portrayals is that of Mrs. Eleanor Iselin, in The Manchurian Candidate (1962). Mrs. Iselin is the mother of Staff Sergeant Raymond Shaw (Laurence Harvey); Shaw has been brainwashed to obey Communist orders, and his mother is his handler. Mrs. Iselin instructs her son in a detailed monologue of his mission: "You are to shoot the presidential nominee through the head."  Lansbury's character is cold, articulate, demanding - devoid of any maternal qualities. But then, she reveals that she did not know that her own son would be the agent, and that after he completes his mission, she will exact her revenge. Her delivery and performance - coupled with long, wide takes that are reminiscent of a stage play - create the portrait of a dynamic and memorable villain.

18. Salvatore Corsitta in The Godfather

In the opening moment of The Godfather (1972), Amerigo Bonasera (played by Salvatore Corsitta) utters, " I believe in America ." Then, in agonizing detail, he recounts the story of his daughter getting savagely beaten by two American men. He demands, begs for vengeance from Marlon Brando's Don Corleone. As Bonasera tells Don Corleone the plight of his daughter, the camera slowly pans out on the scene. Without any pretext, the audience is transported directly into the brutal and violent world of the film.

Don Corleone, as it happens, is the godfather of Bonasera's daughter, and his assurance that Bonasera will receive justice is coupled with his menacing:

" Someday, and that day may never come, I will call upon you to do a service for me. But until that day, accept this justice as a gift on my daughter's wedding day. "

It is the perfect way to introduce Don Corleone to the world.

17. The Blair Witch Project

Heather Donahue's monologue, as she clutches a camera in the dark and apologizes to her parents, is perhaps the most iconic moment of  The Blair Witch Project (1999). The low-budget indie horror film would go on to influence and inspire countless horror movies and indie film producers in the years to come. Donahue's voice and close-up footage of her face was also used in the film's famed marketing campaign - her (largely improvised) words were what drew people to the theaters in droves. In the film, Donahue (who plays a character of the same name) is one of three student filmmakers who goes to investigate a local legend and disappears - the film is "pieced together" after the filmmakers' disappearance when it was "discovered" a year later. In the monologue, Donahue is alone, afraid, and scared for her life, capturing the paranoia and fear that The Blair Witch Project instilled in countless audience members.

16. Viggo Mortensen in Return of the King

Some monologues are meant to rally people together, from teammates on a sports team to men about to go to war. From as early as Shakespeare's "St. Crispin's Day" speech in Henry V (performed hundreds of years later on screen by Laurence Olivier in 1944 and by Kenneth Branagh in 1989) to The Mighty Ducks (1992), monologues can be used by leaders to inspire.

Perhaps the best example of this "genre" of monologue is Aragorn (played by Viggo Mortensen) during the final battle of The Return of the King (2003) at the Gates of Mordor. Aragorn has grown over the course of The Lord of the Rings trilogy, and this speech does not only look to the ensuing battle, but also at the journey that has led him to this point. He encourages his men, saying:

" A day may come when the courage of men fails, when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship, but it is not this day. A hour of wolves and shattered shields, when the age of men comes crashing down, but it is not this day!"

It is hard to imagine the skeptical and closed off Strider uttering these words, but Aragorn has embraced his destiny and role as king. He is prepared to die for his friends, his kingdom, and his mission.

15. Faye Dunaway in Mommie Dearest

The wire hanger monologue from the cult-classic  Mommie Dearest (1981) is famous for its absurdity. The film got mixed reviews, but the monologue is the highlight of Faye Dunaway's performance as Joan Crawford. The film is a biography film that portrays Crawford as an abusive adoptive mother to her two children; the script was based on the memoir of Crawford's adopted daughter. In the scene, Crawford discovers a wirehanger, which she claims will damage the clothes, in her daughter's closet. She takes the use of the wire hanger very personally, saying that she is delibarately being sabotaged and undermined by her young children. Dunaway's over-the-top performance in the scene is a feat to behold: she screams and rants, she throws clothes, and she beats her daughter. It's clear why this is the moment from the film that audiences remember - she's deranged, she's horrifying, and she is a thing of nightmares.

14. Rosamund Pike in Gone Girl

Rosamund Pike plays the titular "girl", Amy, in  Gone Girl   (2014), who disappears under mysterious circumstances which make it seem as though her husband murdered her. In a chilling voiceover, Amy reveals that she isn't dead, but instead has gone into hiding. While the audience watches her escape and transformation into a different person, Amy explains how she had actively tried to embody the paradoxical male desire of the "cool girl" - a woman who is effortlessly attractive, interested in sports and other "masculine" hobbies, and who is never demanding or judgmental. After years of trying to please her husband, Amy realized that he didn't know her at all, and decided to take matters into her own hands. At the end of her reflection, she says coldly, as if to justify why she framed her husband for her murder:

Can you imagine, finally showing your true self to your soulmate, and having him not like you?

13. Robin Williams in Good Will Hunting

Over the course of his career, Robin Williams has performed a number of incredible monologues. From  The Dead Poets Society   (1989) to  The Birdcage (1996), Williams has played a number of characters who inspired, berated, and joked - and he was a known improviser who would ad lib and add his own personal charm. Even in  Good Will Hunting (1997), Williams has a number of inspirational and hilarious monologues as Sean Macguire, a therapist who has been asked to help a troubled mathematical genius Will Hunting after Will has a run in with the police.

At first, Will is cocky, refusing to open up to Sean, and asserting his intelligence. Sean fires back with a monologue telling Will that he knows nothing about life:

You don’t know about real loss, because that only occurs when you love something more than you love yourself. I doubt you’ve ever dared to love anybody that much. I look at you; I don’t see an intelligent, confident man; I see a cocky, scared shitless kid.

Sean puts Will in his place, and this risky play actually convinces Will to start opening up to Sean. Sean doesn't beg Will, he doesn't push him, he simply says, " Your move, chief ."

12. Charlize Theron in Monster

Charlize Theron's portrayal of real-life serial killer Aileen Wuornos in  Monster (2003) won her critical acclaim and ultimately an Oscar for Best Actress. One of the most moving parts of the film is a monologue when Aileen reflects on her life, and remembers when she was a young and hopeful little girl. She describes herself, waiting for a movie scout to discover her like Marilyn Monroe and to take her away from her life, seeing her as a diamond in the rough. Unfortunately, the audience already knows that is not how Aileen's life turned out; instead, she has become a prostitute, who eventually turns to murdering her clients. In the final line, Aileen says:

Yeah. I lived that way for a long long time. In my head, dreaming like that. It was nice. And one day, it just stopped.

Reality took its toll on the young girl, and she gave up.

Steven Spielberg's Jaws (1975) helped to bring about the rise of the blockbuster, but one of the films' quietest moments is also its most powerful. Robert Shaw plays the shark hunter Quint, whose hatred of sharks is as obsessive as Ahab's hatred of Moby Dick. In his captivating monologue about being aboard the USS Indianapolis, Quint details to Roy Scheider's Martin Brody and Richard Dreyfuss's Matt Hooper the story of how the ship was sunk by the Japanese in World War II. He then tells them about a number of shark attacks that killed men, including Quint's friends, before his very eyes over the four days leading to his rescue. Interestingly, actor Robert Shaw actually helped to write the monologue, contributing along with two screenwriters to craft the horrifying story. The result is an absolutely riveting long-take monologue that many fans cite as the best part of the entire film.

10. Charlie Chaplin in The Great Dictator

Charlie Chaplin's 1940 satire  The Great Dictator  was mocking Adolf Hitler long before Pearl Harbor brought the United States into World War II. The film, Chaplin's first full-sound movie, gained commercial and critical success in America. Chaplin plays a Jewish man who is mistaken for the country's dictator, Adenoid Hynkel - hilarity (of course) ensues, at Hitler's expense. Despite this, the film ends on a powerful and serious note when Chaplin makes an impassioned speech. Chaplin condemns dictators and promotes the power of democracy. The speech is a call to arms, and in the years to come, it would be a rallying point for America as it went back to war. Even though Chaplin's words were clearly meant for his own moment and location in history, they resonate with fans today as much as ever. The speech is simply a masterpiece for all times.

9. Morgan Freeman in The Shawshank Redemption

Morgan Freeman's performance in The Shawshank Redemption  (1994) as Ellis Boyd Redding - or "Red" for short - garnered him an Oscar nomination. His character, who has spent the last two decades in prison, gives a number of speeches in the film. However, of all of these speeches, his voiceover in the final moments of the film is truly inspiring and exceptional. After being let out of prison, Red decides to break his parole and join his friend, Andy, in Mexico. While the camera pans to the Pacific, Red says:

I hope I can make it across the border. I hope to see my friend and shake his hand. I hope the Pacific is as blue as it has been in my dreams. I hope.

After years in captivity, Red is given the chance to live again - and he takes it. The monologue is the culmination of the film, and, with the aid of Freeman's legendary voice, it does not disappoint.

8. Marlon Brando in Apocalypse Now

Marlon Brando is regarded as one of the greatest actors of all time, and his numerous acclaimed performances over the course of his prolific career make it difficult to choose a single performance that encapsulates his many talents as an actor. If there was one monologue, however, it would be his powerful performance as Colonel Kurtz, the central antagonist of the film  Apocalypse Now (1979). Kurtz reflects on the horrors of war, and decides that judgment is what inhibits soldiers from doing whatever is necessary. He praises the Viet Cong forces for not showing the same weakness as American soldiers do. Kurtz is a man who is willing to commit horrors of his own, but it is clear that his mind has been warped by his experiences in war. This twisted character allows Brando to illustrate his range, and paint a horrifying story of mutilation and cruelty with words alone.

7. Ellen Burstyn in Requiem for a Dream

Ellen Burstyn's Sara in  Requiem for a Dream  (2000) is an Oscar-nominated performance that fans have not soon forgotten. Burstyn is a powerhouse who brings immense energy and emotional depth to every scene, including her moving monologue to her grown son, Harry (Jared Leto). Sara explains that her life has been meaningless without people to take care of - but since she has been offered a spot on a television game show, she has a reason to wake up in the morning and smile, " It makes tomorrow all right ."  Requiem for a Dream is a story of addiction and what it can cost people, and Sara's addiction begins with her dream life, where she isn't lonely and people like her. Even though Sara claims to be happy in the monologue, it's a heart-wrenchingly sad look into her lonely life - apparently even a member of the camera crew teared up while filming her.

6. Tom Wilkinson in Michael Clayton

A well-placed (and well-paced) monologue can create some of cinema's most memorable moments. For instance, in the opening moments of  Michael Clayton (2007), Tom Wilkinson delivers a voiceover monologue as Arthur; as he recounts an incident to Michael, it becomes clear that Arthur is having some sort of mental health lapse. As Arthur speaks at an increasing pace, his words are coupled with shots of the law firm, largely devoid of people, as the credits appear. Arthur's breakdown puts the events of the film into motion, and this opening sequence propels the viewer directly into the story without any pretext. The audience is left to figure out who Arthur and Michael are from the pieces; the film chooses to show rather than tell, and the result is truly masterful storytelling. Tom Wilkinson was nominated for an Academy Award for his portrayal of Arthur, and this monologue showcases what a truly brilliant actor he is; with only his voice, he is able to convey so much about his character and propel the story along at an incredible pace.

5. Meryl Streep in Sophie's Choice

Meryl Streep's performance as Sophie in  Sophie's Choice (1982) is legendary; even for Streep's incredible career,  Sophie's Choice is perhaps her single most acclaimed film and performance. In the film, Sophie has a number of confessional monologues as she recounts the events that led to her being a prisoner in Auschwitz who was forced to choose which of her two children would live. In one monologue, she explains that her father was actually himself a Nazi sympathizer who believed that the Jews should be exterminated. As Sophie tells the story, the film intercuts close-ups of Streep's face, staring directly into the camera with visuals of the events. After Sophie hastily tries to type up her father's speech, he makes mistakes because of her grammatical mistakes. She repeats his harsh words: " Zosia, your intelligence is pulp . Pulp. " After all these years, it is clear that these words still ring in Sophie's ears, and Streep's delivery is perfect.

4. Mo'Nique in Precious

Mo'Nique won both the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress and a Sundance special jury prize for her portrayal of Mary, the mother of Precious in Precious (2009). Mary physically and emotionally abuses Precious, and seemingly turns a blind-eye to Precious's father's sexual abuse, which has resulted in two pregnancies. When Mary is confronted about this, she tearfully breaks down, saying that she secretly resents Precious:

That was my man and he wanted my daughter. And that’s why I hated her because it was my man who was supposed to be loving me, who was supposed to be making love to me, he was fucking my baby and she made him leave, she made him go away… It was Precious’ fault because she let my man have her and she didn’t say nothin’, she didn’t scream, she didn’t do nothin’...

Mary's confession is the last straw for Precious; she leaves her mother, and goes to live on her own.

3. Samuel L. Jackson in Pulp Fiction

Quentin Tarantino loves a good monologue. His films are full of characters waxing ex tempore (and usually profanely). At the end of  Pulp Fiction   (1994), Samuel L. Jackson's Jules Winnfield recites Ezekiel 25:17 for the last time - well, in the film anyway. Samuel L. Jackson proudly still knows the Bible verse and has quoted it on talk shows before. As Jules tries to de-escalate the attempted robbery in the diner, he explains to robbers Ringo (Tim Roth) and Yolanda (Amanda Plummer) that he always quotes Ezekiel 25:17 before he kills someone. However, the significance of the verse itself isn't even necessarily clear to him. He concludes by saying:

Or it could mean you're the righteous man and I'm the shepherd and it's the world that's evil and selfish. Now I'd like that. But that shit ain't the truth. The truth is you're the weak. And I'm the tyranny of evil men. But I'm tryin', Ringo. I'm tryin' real hard to be a shepherd.

Jules lets Ringo and Yolanda go, and maybe is better for it.

2. Viola Davis in Doubt

Beatrice Straight famously won an Oscar for her supporting performance in Network (1976), winning with only five minutes and forty seconds of screen time. Straight's performance does feature a short monologue, but her performance in the scene as a whole, including the dialogue with her philandering husband really showcases why she deserved the award.

Viola Davis's performance in Doubt (2008) is in a similar vein. Davis was nominated for an Oscar for Best Actress in a Supporting role for her performance, which was under eight minutes and less than two scenes. Davis's monologue, however, is her crowning achievement, a powerful and sorrowful story.

Sister Aloysius Beauvier (Meryl Streep) approaches Donald Miller's mother (Davis) to tell about the possibility that Father Flynn (Phillip Seymour Hoffman) is abusing Donald. Mrs. Miller reveals that she doesn't care - her son is gay, which has meant that he is bullied and his father beats him. She claims that she doesn't want to know why Father Flynn is kind to her son, because her son needs his kindness. Mrs. Miller leaves the domineering Sister Beauvier speechless - and Davis steals the scene from Meryl Streep.

1. Gregory Peck in To Kill a Mockingbird

There are a number of powerful courtroom dramas that lend themselves to impressive monologues: lawyers, witnesses, and defendants will speak uninterrupted, which provides an opportunity for actors to demonstrate their talents. Jack Nicholson's speech in A Few Good Men (1992), when he shouts the famous, " You can't handle the truth ," occurs in a courtroom - and is featured on our list of best movie rants.

The number one spot for movie monologues, however, is saved for the courtroom speech of Atticus Finch. Gregory Peck's Atticus in To Kill a Mockingbird (1962) is one of the most beloved heroes in cinematic history, even being voted number one on the American Film Institute's list of movie heroes. Peck won an Oscar for the role, and when watching his portrayal, it's no wonder why. His performance culminates in Atticus Finch's legendary defense of Tom Robinson, a black man on trial for a violent crime he didn't commit. In his closing remarks to the jury, Finch invokes God, American ideals, truth, and the duty of the jurors - he famously ends with the line:

In the name of God, do your duty. In the name of God, believe Tom Robinson .

Despite Atticus Finch's efforts, Tom is condemned by an all-white jury, and denied justice by a jury of his peers. The audience, however, is certainly won over by Peck's legendary performance.

What monologue do you think is the greatest of all time? Join the conversation in the comments!

The 30 Best Movie Inspirational Speeches

Cinema's most stirring oratories and spirit-raising team talks.

In times of trouble, you need a little help getting up and going, and film can often provide just that. Cinema has a long and storied history of providing great words of motivation and encouragement, sometimes for the characters' own benefit and occasionally to the audience. Here, we've chosen 30 of the best that should fit almost any occasion - but if you're really pressed for time, here are 40 condensed into a two-minute span { =nofollow}. If you have a little longer, read on!

Also: The 25 Best Movie Bollockings

The Great Dictator

Made at a time when the shadow of World War II was looming over Europe, Charlie Chaplin’s speech here – he’s playing a poor Jewish barber in disguise as a preening dictator and forced to address a Nuremberg-style rally – is a heartfelt plea for sanity and compassion in a time of madness. It’s the perfect antidote to extremism, and uses fiery rhetoric for good. If only we’d be able to pull this switcheroo in real life.

Buy The Great Dictator

Independence Day

Sure, there are cheesemongers with less cheese on offer than you see here and OK, the American jingoism doesn’t work at all for those of us not of a Yank disposition. But Bill Pullman’s slightly sheepish style blends here with steely determination, and he delivers the American St Crispin’s Day speech with conviction. Then, like any US President, he leaps into his fighter jet and flies off to battle aliens.

Buy Independence Day

For those who prefer a little humour in their motivational speeches, try the pitch-black streak in this opener, establishing Russell Crowe’s Maximus Decimus Meridius as a leader of men and a helluva guy. Galloping around the Legions in his cool armour and fur-lined cloak, you might question whether he really needs an entire army to back him up, but you’ll never doubt for a moment that they’d choose to follow him as he unleashes hell.

Buy Gladiator

Any Given Sunday

There’s a lot to be said for a little personal touch to leaven your high-flung rhetoric, and it’s a trick that Al Pacino uses well here, in the first of three American football speeches we’re going to include (hey, we can’t help it if the heavily-padded sport produces some great pep talks). Pacino’s troubled Tony D’Amato unveils his own problems with brutal honesty before using his own failures as a spur to rev on his team to greatness, speaking of team spirit and commitment as someone who has been known to suck at both.

Buy Any Given Sunday

Friday Night Lights

The film has been somewhat overshadowed nowadays by the equally good TV show that followed it, but watch Billy Bob Thornton here and be reminded that Kyle Chandler isn’t the only fundamentally decent man who can inspire a team of small-town boys to great efforts in pursuit of perfection. It’s also worth noting that he puts his emphasis here on excelling and not winning, making it clear that victory isn’t only measured by the scoreboard. Clear eyes, full hearts, can’t lose.

Buy Friday Night Lights

It is, and will probably always be, the greatest inspirational speech ever made. It’s endlessly flexible, and works even when not declaimed by the classically trained (see this Renaissance Man version for proof). And it’s by Shakespeare, still the best writer in Hollywood. We have, controversially perhaps, chosen Branagh’s version over Olivier’s because the latter sounds a little shrill to the modern ear, while Branagh convinces us that he could convince his men. This speech, given by the titular monarch to a vastly outnumbered force about to fight the French, obviously works especially well for English people, but by God, Harry and St George, it’s universal in its rousing effect.

Buy Henry V

This is a little-known film in the UK but it’s revered in certain communities in the US. Sean Astin’s Rudy has overcome dyslexia, poor grades and his relatively small stature to win a place on Notre Dame’s famous Fighting Irish American football team. Only problem is that he’s never been off the bench, and with his final game approaching he threatens to quit the team if he isn’t allowed to play – prompting this inspirational speech / telling off from a friend who points out that he’s being whiny and entitled and needs to grow a pair. Soon he’s back on the bench and given a starting position when his entire team threatens not to play unless he’s given a shot.

An honourable mention for Hector’s pep talk but Achilles wins the battle of the inspirational speeches just as he wins their duel (c’mon, that’s not a spoiler; it’s in the 2000 year-old Iliad). This is a short snippet, but then godlike Achilles, the man-killer, is a man of action rather than words. And what he does say – focusing on lions, glory and the manifold abilities of his small, hand-picked group of Myrmidons – would convince a rock to fight any Trojan who dared oppose it.

Animal House

Not every inspirational speech is about trying to inspire his cohorts to kill people or batter them up and down the length of a football field. Some aspire to a higher goal. Some aspire to debauchery, drinking and probably nudity. Some aspire to party like 1999 might have done had it tried harder. Some aspire to a particular kind of grubby, deranged greatness. One such is John Belushi’s Bluto, and this is the greatest night of his life.

Buy Animal House

The Goonies

Come the hour, cometh the man – and in this case the man is a small, asthmatic Sean Astin, inspiring his fellow Goonies to never say die and to keep going in their quest to find treasure and save their community. In his yellow rain slicker and with his voice on the edge of breaking he may not look like a modern Napoleon, but he has the same effect on his exhausted and discouraged troopers. He’s so good you’ll almost forget to laugh at his mentions of One-Eyed Willy. snigger

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The Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King

Death comes to us all, and Aragorn ain’t going to lie about it. But he still gees up his troops with the assurance that their civilisation will survive the onslaught of the forces of Mordor. Sure, they’re vastly outnumbered and sure, it seems likely that Frodo has failed in his quest to destroy the Ring in Mount Doom (especially if you’re watching the Extended Edition) but Viggo Mortensen’s Aragorn ensures that no one will be quitting any time soon. Not this day!

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Bill Murray isn’t usually the guy you turn to for sincere, inspiring words of comfort. He’s more the type to puncture any attempt at same, and probably to fast-talk his opponents into giving up and going for a karaoke session while he’s about it. But after his heart grows two sizes during the course of Scrooged, he makes a plea for kindness and niceness from all mankind. He still does it in a recognisably Murray, manic and scattershot way, but that just makes him all the more compelling. Someone hire this man to play Santa Claus.

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Stirring sports speeches are limited to American Football. Miracle On Ice chronicles the based-on-truth tale of how the US Olympic hockey team triumphed over their Russian rivals. Kurt Russell's the speech-giver here, playing coach Herb Brooks. "Tonight, we are the greatest hockey team in the world," he tells them. You'll feel a swell of pride and inspiration too.

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Deep Blue Sea

“You think water’s fast? You should see ice.” Samuel L. Jackson’s been around the block more than once, and he’s seen the worst of mankind. It’s with the weight of that history behind him that he takes charge and orders his fellow survivors of a marine disaster to start pulling together and quit arguing. His speech also has what is, unquestionably, the greatest punchline on this list. Still, it achieves the desired effect once everyone has quit screaming.

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If in doubt, steal from classical history, something that David Wenham’s Dilios demonstrates with aplomb here. In actual history, the one survivor of the 300 was so shamed by his survival that he executed a suicidal one-man attack on the Persians at this Battle of Plataea, but Wenham seems more in control and also like he has quite a bit of back-up. “The enemy outnumber us a paltry three-to-one,” notes Dilios triumphantly. Why, it was hardly worth the Persians turning up.

Good Will Hunting

Here’s an inspirational speech well-suited to highly-paid sports teams and the enormously talented. Ben Affleck’s argument is, basically, that if you’re lucky enough to get extraordinary chances in your life, it’s your duty to the rest of us schmoes to actually take those chances and run with them as far as you can. If you can get past the shellsuit and the hair, he’s basically Yoda-like in his wisdom.

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Most people only remember the last word – “Freedom!” – but the rest of the speech is pretty killer too. Mel Gibson’s William Wallace starts off by puncturing his own legend, and acknowledges the urge to cut and run in the face of a far superior English force. But then he reminds his men what they’d be missing if they do, and soon they’re all back on side and facing down the hated English. By the end of this speech, you’ll all hate the English with them – even if you are one.

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Coach Carter

You’d expect the inspiration in this basketball film to come from the titular no-nonsense coach, played by a fiery Samuel L. Jackson. But in fact it’s one of his players who nabs the best lines, as he and the team sit studying to keep their grades as high as their scores. There is a little cheating here: Rick Gonzalez’ Timo actually steals his inspirational speech from Marianne Williamson (it’s sometimes wrongly attributed to Nelson Mandela) but he delivers it well so we’re going to allow it.

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While it’s his skills in the ring that he is most lauded for, Rocky Balboa is something of a poet to boot. An incoherent one, certainly; a poet who says “I guess” a lot more often than Wordsworth might like, but a poet nevertheless. His moving words here, as he single-handedly ends the Cold War and ushers in a new era of East-West relations, are just one example. Another is…

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Rocky Balboa

If his last speech was incoherent – in fairness, his rhythm may have been thrown off by the translator – this one verges on incomprehensible when he really gets going. Still, there’s real passion in Rocky’s plea for one last shot and an argument that’s applicable to all sorts of situations of institutional injustice or unfeeling bureaucracy.

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Stand And Deliver

Those who've watched him on the modern Battlestar Galactica know that Edward James Olmos is a past master at giving speeches. This is him from a little earlier in his career, playing Jaime Escalante, a real-life teacher who inspired his students to stop dropping out and start taking calculus seriously. Here, he's handing out as pop quiz, so anyone having to home school their kids can take note.

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Good Night, And Good Luck

This one is couched particularly at media moguls, but there’s a call for excellence and the highest moral standards here that we would all do well to live by. David Strathairn’s Edward R. Murrow, in a speech lifted directly from Murrow’s actual address to the Radio and Television News Directors Association in 1958, pleads for TV to inform as well as entertain. We feel that if more people saw this speech, Made In Chelsea would be cancelled immediately and reality TV would be banned, so spread the word!

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Anyone who has ever flirted with a romantic interest knows the risk of being knocked back, and Jon Favreau's Mike is experiencing a crisis of confidence. Luckily for him, he has Vince Vaughn's Trent to talk him back into the game, and Alex Désert's Charles to remind him that he's so money. He's a bear! And she's a bunny! Everything is going to be fine.

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Charles Dutton’s second appearance on this list, after Rudy, sees him once again reminding lesser men (and women) to get with the programme, pull the finger out and generally stand up and be counted. But this time they’re facing unstoppable acid-blooded xenomorphs rather than American football players, so he has to be extra-emphatic.

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Pirates Of The Caribbean: At World’s End

Remarkably few women get to deliver inspirational speeches in movies – apparently they’re relegated to clapping admiringly from the sidelines. Thank goodness for Elizabeth Swan (Keira Knightley) who is elected King of the Pirates and rouses her troops into action for a last-ditch fight against the Lord Beckett’s overwhelming forces, led by the Flying Dutchman. She may not have quite the lungs of others on the list, but there’s no doubting her conviction as she calls for them to “Hoist the colours!” – the Jolly Roger – and sail out one last time.

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The Replacements

One doesn’t expect lengthy speeches from Keanu “Woah” Reeves (although he’s done his share of Shakespeare actually) but he’s rarely more succinct and to the point than in this chat with his fellow Replacements. And in fact there are few speeches more likely to be effective in motivating an exhausted team for one last effort. “Chicks dig scars” could be used by virtually every example here to drive on the listeners.

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Bill Murray at it again, and once more an unconventional speech. This time out, he's John Winger, a loser who decides that he and best pal Russell Ziskey (Harold Ramis) will join the Army. Stuck with a group of oddballs, and, after a night of partying, decides to rally his fellow troops. It works... Sort of. But Murray's typically laconic style works well for the speech itself.

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The Lord Of The Rings: Return Of The King

All seems lost for Samwise Gamgee (Sean Astin again) and Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood) as they lie, exhausted, on the slopes of Mount Doom. Frodo’s beyond endurance and raving as the influence of the Ring grows ever stronger on him, and his desperate straits drive Sam to one last push. It’s barely a speech, really – he uses his words better here – but there are few moments more inspirational.

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The Shawshank Redemption

A quiet moment between Tim Robbins' Andy Dufresne and Morgan Freeman's Red became one of the more memorable moments in Shawshank , a movie with no shortage of them. And for those who are spending more time inside than perhaps they might be used to, Andy's musing on what he would do if he got out of prison are inspirational in themselves, even before he gets to that iconic line.

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Avengers: Endgame

Steve Rogers, AKA Captain America, is not shy of breaking out speech mode when the moment calls for it. And inspiring the Avengers as they're about to embark on a trip through space and time to retrieve the Infinity Stones certainly seems like that moment. "Whatever it takes," indeed.

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The Most Inspiring Speeches In Movie History

Inspiring movie speeches can be found in so many films, it's really hard to narrow down the top ones. These, however, are some of the absolute best, most inspiring, and highly-motivational speeches in movie history. From principals trying to inspire students to reach their potential to coaches attempting to get their teams fired up to great leaders (both fictional and non-fictional) striving to prepare their troops for epic battles, these speeches are worth remembering and recognizing. 

What are the most inspiring monologues from movies ? Do you prefer inspirational sports monologues to great Disney movie speeches? Would you be ready to go into battle after hearing that iconic Braveheart monologue? See any glaring omissions? Add them. And be sure to vote on your favorites.

To Kill A Mockingbird

"Gentlemen, I shall be brief, but I would like to use my remaining time with you to remind you that the case of Mayella Ewell vs. Tom Robinson is not a difficult one. To begin with, this case should have never come to trial. The State has not produced one iota of medical evidence that shows that the crime Tom Robinson is charged with ever took place. This case is as simple as black and white. It requires no minute sifting of complicated facts, but it does require you to be sure beyond all reasonable doubt as to the guilt of the defendant.

Miss Ewell did something that in our society is unspeakable: she is white, and she tempted a Negro. The defendant is not guilty, but someone in this courtroom is. I have nothing but pity in my heart for the chief witness for the state, but my pity does not extend so far as to her putting a man's life at stake. She knew full well the enormity of her offense, but because her desires were stronger than the code she was breaking, she persisted. The state of Alabama has relied solely upon the testimony of two witnesses who's evidence has not only been called into serious question, but has been flatly contradicted by the defendant.

I need not remind you of their appearance and conduct on the stand. They have presented themselves in the cynical confidence that their testimony would not be doubted. They were confident that you, the jury, would go along with the evil assumption that all Negro's lie, and are immoral. Mr. Robinson is accused of rape, when it was she who made the advances on him. He put his word against two white people's, and now he is on trial for no apparent reason- except that he is Black.

Thomas Jefferson once said that all men are created equal, a phrase that the government is fond of hurling at us. There is a tendency in this year of grace, 1935, for certain people to use that phrase out of context, to satisfy all conditions. We know that all men are not created equal in the sense that some people would have us believe. Some people are smarter than others, some people have more opportunity because they are born with it, some men have more money than others, and some people are more gifted than others.

But there is one way in this country in which all men are created equal. An institution that makes a pauper the equal of a Rockefeller, the ignorant man the equal of any president, and the stupid man the equal of Einstein. That institution is the court. But a court is only as sound as its jury, and the jury is only as sound as the men who make it up.

I am confident that you gentlemen will review without passion the evidence you have heard, come to a decision, and restore the defendant to his family. In the name of God, do your duty. In the name of God, gentlemen, believe Tom Robinson."

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Remember the Titans

"Anybody know what this place is? This is Gettysburg. This is where they fought the battle of Gettysburg. Fifty thousand men died right here on this field, fightin' the same fight that we're still fightin' amongst ourselves today.

This green field right here, painted red, bubblin' with the blood of young boys. Smoke and hot lead pourin' right through their bodies. Listen to their souls, men. I killed my brother with malice in my heart. Hatred destroyed my family. You listen, you take a lesson from the dead.

If we don't come together right now on this hallowed ground, we too will be destroyed, just like they were. I don't care if you like each other right now, but you will respect each other. And maybe - I don't know, maybe we'll learn to play this game like men."

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Dead Poets Society

"'O Captain, my Captain.' Who knows where that comes from? Anybody? Not a clue? It's from a poem by Walt Whitman about Mr. Abraham Lincoln. Now in this class, you can either call me Mr. Keating, or if you're slightly more daring, O Captain, my Captain. Now let me dispel a few rumors so they don't fester into facts. Yes, I too attended Hell-ton and survived. And no, at that time I was not the mental giant you see before you. I was the intellectual equivalent of a ninety-eight pound weakling. I would go to the beach and people would kick copies of Byron in my face...

'Gather ye rosebuds while ye may.' The Latin term for that sentiment is Carpe Diem. Now who knows what that means?...Seize the day. Gather ye rosebuds while ye may. Why does the writer use these lines?...Because we are food for worms, lads. Because, believe it or not, each and every one of us in this room is one day gonna stop breathing, turn cold, and die.

Now I would like you to step forward over here and peruse some of the faces from the past. You've walked past them many times. I don't think you've really looked at them. They're not that different from you, are they? Same haircuts. Full of hormones, just like you. Invincible, just like you feel. The world is their oyster. They believe they're destined for great things, just like many of you. Their eyes are full of hope, just like you. Did they wait until it was too late to make from their lives even one iota of what they were capable? Because you see gentlemen, these boys are now fertilizing daffodils. But if you listen real close, you can hear them whisper their legacy to you. Go on, lean in. Listen. Do you hear it? Carpe. Hear it? Carpe. Carpe Diem. Seize the day boys. Make your lives extraordinary."

• # 11 of 115 on The 100+ Best Movies About High School
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Independence Day

"Good morning. In less than an hour, aircraft from here will join others from around the world. And you will be launching the largest aerial battle in the history of mankind. Mankind - that word should have new meaning for all of us today. We can't be consumed by our petty differences anymore.

We will be united in our common interests. Perhaps it's fate that today is the 4th of July, and you will once again be fighting for our freedom. Not from tyranny, oppression, or persecution, but from annihilation. We're fighting for our right to live, to exist.

And should we win the day, the 4th of July will no longer be known as an American holiday, but as the day when the world declared in one voice: 'We will not go quietly into the night! We will not vanish without a fight! We're going to live on!' We're going to survive!' Today we celebrate our Independence Day!"

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"Sons of Scotland! I am William Wallace....Yes, I've heard. Kills men by the hundreds. And if he were here, he'd consume the English with fireballs from his eyes, and bolts of lightning from his arse. I am William Wallace! And I see a whole army of my country men, here, in defiance of tyranny.

You've come to fight as free men, and free men you are. What will you do with that freedom? Will you fight? ...Aye, fight and you may die, run and you'll live, at least a while. And dying in your beds many years from now, would you be willing to trade all the days from this day to that for one chance, just one chance to come back here and tell our enemies that they may take our lives, but they'll never take our freedom! Alba gu bra! (Scotland forever!)"

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Rocky Balboa

"Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows. It’s a very mean and nasty place and I don’t care how tough you are it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain’t about how hard ya hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward.

That’s how winning is done! Now if you know what you’re worth then go out and get what you’re worth. But ya gotta be willing to take the hits, and not pointing fingers saying you ain’t where you wanna be because of him, or her, or anybody! Cowards do that and that ain’t you! You’re better than that!

I’m always gonna love you no matter what. No matter what happens. You’re my son and you’re my blood. You’re the best thing in my life. But until you start believing in yourself, ya ain’t gonna have a life."

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The Great Dictator

"I'm sorry, but I don't want to be an emperor. That's not my business. I don't want to rule or conquer anyone. I should like to help everyone if possible: Jew, Gentile, Black men, white. We all want to help one another. Human beings are like that. We want to live by each others' happiness, not by each other's misery. We don't want to hate and despise one another. In this world, there's room for everyone and the good earth is rich and can provide for everyone. The way of life can be free and beautiful, but we have lost the way. Greed has poisoned men's souls, has barricaded the world with hate, has goose-stepped us into misery and bloodshed.

We have developed speed, but we have shut ourselves in. Machinery that gives abundance has left us in want. Our knowledge has made us cynical, our cleverness, hard and unkind. We think too much and feel too little. More than machinery, we need humanity. More than cleverness, we need kindness and gentleness. Without these qualities, life will be violent and all will be lost. The aeroplane and the radio have brought us closer together. The very nature of these inventions cries out for the goodness in men, cries out for universal brotherhood for the unity of us all.

Even now, my voice is reaching millions throughout the world, millions of despairing men, women, and little children, victims of a system that makes men torture and imprison innocent people. To those who can hear me, I say: 'Do not despair.' The misery that is now upon us is but the passing of greed, the bitterness of men who fear the way of human progress. The hate of men will pass, and dictators die, and the power they took from the people will return to the people. And so long as men die, liberty will never perish.

Soldiers! Don't give yourselves to brutes. Men who despise you, enslave you, who regiment your lives, tell you what to do, what to think and what to feel! Who drill you, diet you, treat you like cattle, use you as cannon fodder! Don't give yourselves to these unnatural men - machine men with machine minds and machine hearts! You are not machines! You are not cattle! You are men! You have the love of humanity in your hearts! You don't hate! Only the unloved hate, the unloved and the unnatural. Soldiers! Don't fight for slavery! Fight for liberty!

In the seventeenth chapter of St. Luke, it is written the kingdom of God is within man, not one man nor a group of men, but in all men! In you! You, the people, have the power, the power to create machines, the power to create happiness! You, the people, have the power to make this life free and beautiful, to make this life a wonderful adventure. Then in the name of democracy, let us use that power. Let us all unite. Let us fight for a new world, a decent world that will give men a chance to work, that will give youth a f*ture and old age a security.

By the promise of these things, brutes have risen to power. But they lie! They do not fulfill their promise. They never will! Dictators free themselves but they enslave the people! Now let us fight to fulfill that promise! Let us fight to free the world! To do away with national barriers! To do away with greed, with hate and intolerance! Let us fight for a world of reason, a world where science and progress will lead to all men's happiness. Soldiers, in the name of democracy, let us all unite! (Cheers)

Hannah, can you hear me? Wherever you are, look up, Hannah! The clouds are lifting! The sun is breaking through! We are coming out of the darkness into the light! We are coming into a new world, a kindlier world, where men will rise above their hate, their greed and brutality.

Look up, Hannah! The soul of man has been given wings and at last he is beginning to fly. He is flying into the rainbow! Into the light of hope! Into the f*ture, the glorious f*ture that belongs to you, to me, and to all of us. Look up, Hannah! Look up!"

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Mr. Smith Goes To Washington

"Just get up off the ground, that's all I ask. Get up there with that lady that's up on top of this Capitol dome, that lady that stands for liberty. Take a look at this country through her eyes if you really want to see something.

And you won't just see scenery; you'll see the whole parade of what Man's carved out for himself, after centuries of fighting. Fighting for something better than just jungle law, fighting so as he can stand on his own two feet, free and decent, like he was created, no matter what his race, color, or creed. That's what you'd see.

There's no place out there for graft, or greed, or lies, or compromise with human liberties. And, uh, if that's what the grownups have done with this world that was given to them, then we'd better get those boys' camps started fast and see what the kids can do. And it's not too late, because this country is bigger than the Taylors, or you, or me, or anything else. Great principles don't get lost once they come to light. They're right here; you just have to see them again..."

"Alright people, here we are. In one hour, you are going to take an exam administered by the State to test your basic skills and the quality of education at East Side High. I want to tell you what the people are saying about you and what they think about your chances.

They say you're inferior! You are just a bunch of n****rs and s***s and poor...trash! Education is wasted on you! You cannot learn! You're lost! I mean ALL of you! I want all the white students to stand up. All my white students, stand up. Stand up. C'mon, stand up.

These are my white children and they're the same as all of you! They've got no place to go, if they had, they'd have abandoned us a long time ago like everybody else did. So, here they are in East Side High, just like the rest of us. You can sit down. Are you getting my point, people? Is it beginning to sink in? We sink, we swim, we rise, we fall, we meet our fate together! Now, it took the help of a good, good friend to make me know and understand that and I do understand that and I'm grateful. I'm eternally grateful.

And now, I've got a message for those people out there who've abandoned you and written you off! Can you hear me? Can you hear me? Good! You are NOT inferior! Your grades may be, your school may have been. But you can turn that around and make liars out of those bastards in exactly one hour when you take that test and pass it and win! So here's what I want you to do. When you find your thoughts wandering, I want you to knuckle back down and concentrate. Concentrate! Remember what's at stake and show them what East Side High's all about: a spirit that will not die!"

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V For Vendetta

“Good evening, London.

Allow me first to apologize for this interruption. I do, like many of you, appreciate the comforts of everyday routine, the security of the familiar, the tranquility of repetition. I enjoy them as much as any bloke. But in the spirit of commemoration, thereby those important events of the past usually associated with someone’s death or the end of some awful bloody struggle, a celebration of a nice holiday, I thought we could mark this November the 5th, a day that is sadly no longer remembered, by taking some time out of our daily lives to sit down and have a little chat. There are of course those who do not want us to speak. I suspect even now, orders are being shouted into telephones, and men with guns will soon be on their way. Why? Because while the truncheon may be used in lieu of conversation, words will always retain their power. Words offer the means to meaning, and for those who will listen, the enunciation of truth. And the truth is, there is something terribly wrong with this country, isn’t there?

Cruelty and injustice, intolerance and oppression. And where once you had the freedom to object, to think and speak as you saw fit, you now have censors and systems of surveillance coercing your conformity and soliciting your submission. How did this happen? Who’s to blame? Well certainly there are those more responsible than others, and they will be held accountable, but again truth be told, if you’re looking for the guilty, you need only look into a mirror.

I know why you did it. I know you were afraid. Who wouldn’t be? War, terror, disease. There was a myriad of problems which conspired to corrupt your reason and rob you of your common sense. Fear got the best of you, and in your panic, you turned to the now high chancellor, Adam Sutler. He promised you order, he promised you peace, and all he demanded in return was your silent, obedient consent. Last night I sought to end that silence. Last night I destroyed the Old Bailey, to remind this country of what it has forgotten. More than four hundred years ago a great citizen wished to embed the fifth of November forever in our memory. His hope was to remind the world that fairness, justice, and freedom are more than words, they are perspectives.

So if you’ve seen nothing, if the crimes of this government remain unknown to you then I would suggest you allow the fifth of November to pass unmarked. But if you see what I see, if you feel as I feel, and if you would seek as I seek, then I ask you to stand beside me one year from tonight, outside the gates of Parliament, and together we shall give them a fifth of November that shall never, ever be forgot.”

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Scent Of A Woman

"...No, I'm just gettin' warmed up. I don't know who went to this place - William Howard Taft, William Jennings Bryan, William Tell, whoever. Their spirit is dead, if they ever had one. It's gone. You're buildin' a rat ship here. A vessel for sea-goin' snitches. And if you think you're preparin' these minnows for manhood, you better think again. Because I say you are killin' the very spirit this institution proclaims it instills! What a sham! What kind of a show are you guys puttin' on here today. I mean, the only class in this act is sittin' next to me. And I'm here to tell ya, this boy's soul is intact. It's non-negotiable. You know how I know? Someone here, and I'm not gonna say who, offered to buy it. Only Charlie here wasn't sellin'....

Out of order, I'll show you out of order! You don't know what out of order is, Mr.Trask! I'd show you, but I'm too old, I'm too tired, I'm too f--kin' blind. If I were the man I was five years ago, I'd take a  flame-thrower  to this place. Out of order, who the hell do you think you're talking to? I've been around, you know? There was a time I could see. And I have seen. Boys like these, younger than these, their arms torn out, their legs ripped off. But there isn't nothin' like the sight of an amputated spirit. There is no prosthetic for that. You think you're merely sending this splendid foot soldier back home to Oregon with his tail between his legs, but I say you are executin' his  soul !  And why ? Because he's not a Baird man. Baird men. You hurt this boy, you're gonna be Baird bums, the lot of ya. And Harry, Jimmy, Trent, wherever you are out there,  F--k You Too !...

I'm not finished! As I came in here, I heard those words - 'Cradle of Leadership.' Well, when the bow breaks, the cradle will fall. And it has fallen here. It has fallen. Makers of men. Creators of leaders. Be careful what kind of leaders you're producin' here. I don't know if Charlie's silence here today is right or wrong. I'm not a judge or jury. But I can tell you this. He won't sell anybody out to buy his future! And that, my friends, is called integrity! That's called courage! Now that's the stuff leaders should be made of. Now I have come to the crossroads in my life. I always knew what the right path was. Without exception, I knew. But I never took it. You know why? It was too damn hard. Now here's Charlie. He's come to the crossroads. He has chosen a path. It's the right path. It's a path made of principle that leads to character. Let him continue on his journey. You hold this boy's future in your hands, Committee. It's a valuable future. Believe me. Don't destroy it! Protect it. Embrace it. It's gonna make ya proud one day, I promise you."

"Men, all this stuff you've heard about America not wanting to fight - wanting to stay out of the war, is a lot of horse dung. Americans traditionally love to fight. All real Americans love the sting of battle. When you were kids, you all admired the champion marble shooter, the fastest runner, big league ball players, the toughest boxers. Americans love a winner and will not tolerate a loser. Americans play to win all the time. I wouldn't give a hoot in hell for a man who lost and laughed. That's why Americans have never lost and will never lose a war, because the very thought of losing is hateful to Americans.

Now, an army is a team - it lives, eats, sleeps, fights as a team. This individuality stuff is a bunch of crap. The bilious [people] who wrote that stuff about individuality for the Saturday Evening Post don't know anything more about real battle than they do about fornicating. Now, we have the finest food and equipment, the best spirit, and the best men in the world. You know, by God, I actually pity those poor [people] we're goin' up against. By God, I do. We're not just gonna shoot the [person], we're going to cut out their living guts and use them to grease the treads of our tanks. We're going to murder those lousy Hun...by the bushel.

Now there's another thing I want you to remember. I don't want to get any messages saying that we are holding our position. We're not holding anything. Let the Hun do that. We are advancing constantly and we're not interested in holding onto anything except the enemy. We're going to hold onto him by the nose and we're gonna kick him in the [behind]. We're gonna kick...him all the time and we're gonna go through him like crap through a goose.

Now, there's one thing that you men will be able to say when you get back home, and you may thank God for it. Thirty years from now when you're sitting around your fireside with your grandson on your knee, and he asks you: 'What did you do in the Great World War II?', you won't have to say: 'Well, I shoveled s--t in Louisiana.'

All right now...you know how I feel - and I will be proud to lead you wonderful guys into battle anytime, anywhere. That's all."

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"What's he that wishes so? My cousin Westmoreland? No, my fair cousin. If we are mark'd to die, we are enough to do our country loss. And if to live, the fewer men the greater share of honour. God's will! I pray thee, wish not one man more. Rather proclaim it, Westmoreland, through my host, that he which hath no stomach to this fight, let him depart. His passport shall be made and crowns for convoy put into his purse. We would not die in that man's company that fears his fellowship to die with us.

This day is called the feast of Crispian. He that outlives this day and comes safe home will stand a tip-toe when this day is named and rouse him at the name of Crispian. He that shall see this day and live old age will yearly on the vigil, feast his neighbors and say: 'To-morrow is Saint Crispin's'. Then will he strip his sleeve and show his scars, and say: 'These wounds I had on Crispin's Day.' Old men forget yet all shall be forgot but he'll remember with advantages what feats he did that day. Then shall our names familiar in their mouths as household words: Harry the king, Bedford and Exeter, Warwick and Talbot, Salisbury and Gloucester, be in their flowing cups freshly remembered. This story shall the good man teach his son. And Crispin Crispian shall ne'er go by from this day to the ending of the world, but we in it shall be remember'd.

We few, we happy few, we band of brothers. For he today that sheds his blood with me shall be my brother, be he ne'er so vile, this day shall gentle his condition. And gentlemen in England now a-bed shall think themselves accursed they were not here, and hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks that fought with us upon St. Crispin's Day."

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"I rode the bench for two years. Thought I wasn't being played because of my color, I got filled up with a lotta attitude. So I quit. Still not a week goes by I don't regret it.

And I guarantee a week won't go by in your life you won't regret walking out, letting them get the best of ya. You hear me clear enough?:

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"There's a, uhm, tradition in tournament play to not talk about the next step until you've climbed the one in front of you. I'm sure going to the State finals is beyond your wildest dreams, so let's just keep it right there. Forget about the crowds, the size of the school, their fancy uniforms, and remember what got you here.

Focus on the fundamentals that we've gone over time and time again. And most important, don't get caught up thinking about winning or losing this game. If you put your effort and concentration into playing to your potential, to be the best that you can be, I don't care what the scoreboard says at the end of the game. In my book, we're gonna be winners! OK?!"

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Any Given Sunday

"I don't know what to say really. Three minutes to the biggest battle of our professional lives, all comes down to today. Now either we heal as a team, or we're gonna crumble. Inch by inch, play by play -- till we're finished. We're in hell right now gentleman. Believe me. And we can stay here, get the s**t kicked out of us, or we can fight our way back, into the light. We can climb out of hell, one inch at a time.

Now I can't do it for you, I'm too old. I look around I see these young faces and I think, I mean, I made every wrong choice a middle aged man can make. I, uh, I pissed away all my money, believe it or not, I chased off anyone who's ever loved me, and lately I can't even stand the face I see in the mirror.

Y'know when you get old in life things get taken from you, I mean that's that's that's part of life. But you only learn that when you start losin' stuff. You find out life's this game of inches, and so is football. Because in either game, life or football, the margin for error is so small, I mean, one half a step too late or too early and you don't quite make it, one half second to slow or to fast, you don't quite catch it. The inches we need are everywhere around us. They're in every break in the game, every minute, every second. On this team we fight for that inch. On this team we tear ourselves and everyone else around us to pieces for that inch. We claw with our fingernails for that inch. Because we know when we add up all those inches that's going to make the f**king difference between winning and losing. Between livin' and dying.

I'll tell you this in any fight it's the guy whose willing to die who's gonna win that inch , and I know that if I'm going to have any life anymore it's because I'm still willin' to fight and die for that inch. Because that's what livin is. The six inches in front of your face. Now I can't make you do it. You gotta look at the guy next to you, look into his eyes. Now, I think you're gonna see a guy who will go that inch with you. You're gonna see a guy who will sacrifice himself for this team because he knows when it comes down to it, you're going to do the same for him.

That's a team gentlemen and either we heal now as a team or we will die as individuals. That's football guys. That's all it is. Now, What are you going to do?"

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Wall Street

"America, America has become a second-rate power. Its trade deficit and its fiscal deficit are at nightmare proportions. Now, in the days of the free market, when our country was a top industrial power, there was accountability to the stockholder. The Carnegies, the Mellons, the men that built this great industrial empire, made sure of it because it was their money at stake. Today, management has no stake in the company! All together, these men sitting up here own less than three percent of the company. And where does Mr. Cromwell put his million-dollar salary? Not in Teldar stock. He owns less than one percent. You own the company. That's right - you, the stockholder. And you are all being royally screwed over by these, these bureaucrats, with their, their steak lunches, their hunting and fishing trips, their, their corporate jets and golden parachutes...

Teldar Paper, Mr. Cromwell, Teldar Paper has 33 different Vice Presidents, each earning over $200,000 a year. Now, I have spent the last two months analyzing what all these guys do, and I still can't figure it out. One thing I do know is that our paper company lost $110 million last year, and I'll bet that half of that was spent in all the paperwork going back and forth between all these Vice Presidents.

The new law of evolution in corporate America seems to be survival of the unfittest. Well, in my book, you either do it right or you get eliminated. In the last seven deals that I've been involved with, there were 2.5 million stockholders who have made a pre-tax profit of 12 billion dollars. (Thank you. I am not a destroyer of companies. I am a liberator of them!

The point is, ladies and gentleman, that greed - for lack of a better word - is good. Greed is right. Greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms - greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge - has marked the upward surge of mankind. And Greed - you mark my words - will not only save Teldar Paper but that other malfunctioning corporation called the USA. Thank you very much."

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Glengarry Glen Ross

Alec Baldwin: Let me have your attention for a moment. 'Cause you're talkin' about what...you're talkin' 'bout...[complaining] about that sale you shot....don't want to buy land, somebody don't want what you're selling, some broad you're trying to screw, so forth, let's talk about something important. Are they all here?

Kevin Spacey: All but one.

Baldwin: Well, I'm going anyway. Let's talk about something important. (sees Lemmon pouring coffee). Put that coffee down. Coffee's for closer's only. You think I'm f**kin' with you? I am not... I'm here from downtown. I'm here from Mitch and Murray. And I'm here on a mission of mercy. Your name's Levine?

Jack Lemmon: Yeah.

Baldwin: You call yourself a salesman...

Ed Harris: I don't gotta listen to this s**t.

Baldwin: You certainly don't pal 'cause the good news is you're fired. The bad news is you got all you got, just one week to regain your job, starting with tonight, starting with tonight's sits. Oh, have I got your attention now? Good. 'Cause we're adding a little something to this month's sale contest. As you all know, first prize is a Cadillac El Dorado. Anybody want to see second prize? Second prize is a set of steak knives. Third prize is your fired. You get the picture? You laughing now? You got leads. Mitch and Murray paid good money. Get their names to sell them. You can't close the leads you're given, you can't close s**t, you are s**t, hit the bricks pal and beat it 'cause you are going out.

Lemmon: The leads are weak .

Baldwin: The leads are weak. The f**kin' leads are weak? You're weak. I've been in this business 15 years...

Harris: What's your name?

Baldwin: F**k you, that's my name. You know why mister? Cause you drove a Hyundai to get here tonight, I drove an 80,000 dollar BMW. That's my name. And your name is you're wanting. You can't play in the man's game, you can't close them? Then go home and tell your wife your troubles. Because only one thing counts in this life. Get them to sign on the line which is dotted. You hear me...

ABC. A, Always, B, Be, C, Closing. Always be closing. Always be closing. AIDA. Attention. Interest. Decision. Action. Attention. Do I have your attention? Interest. Are you interested? I know you are 'cause it's f**k or walk. You close or you hit the bricks. Decision. Have you made your decision for Christ? And action. AIDA. Get out there. You got the prospects coming in, you think they came in to get out of the rain? A guy don't walk on the lot lest he wants to buy. They're sitting out there waiting to give you their money. Are you going to take it? Are you man enough to take it? What's the problem, pal?

Harris: You, boss, you're such a hero, you're so rich, how come you're coming down here and wasting your time with such a bunch of bums?

Baldwin: You see this watch? You see this watch?

Harris: Yeah.

Baldwin: That watch costs more than your car. I made 970,000 dollars last year, how much you make? You see pal, that's who I am, and you're nothing. Nice guy? I don't give a s**t. Good father. F**k you, go home and play with your kids. You want to work here, close. You think this is abuse? You think this is abuse... You can't take this, how can you take the abuse you get on a sit. If you don't like it, leave. I can go out there tonight, the materials you got, make myself 15,000 dollars. Tonight. In two hours. Can you? Can you?

Go and do likewise. AIDA. Get mad... Get mad. You know what it takes to sell real-estate? It takes brass balls to sell real estate. Go and do likewise, gents. The money's out there, you pick it up, it's yours, you don't, I got no sympathy for you. You want to go out on those sits tonight and close, close, it's yours, if not, you're going to be shining my shoes. And you know what you'll be saying. Bunch of losers sitting around in a bar: 'Oh yeah, I used to be a salesman. It's a tough racket.'

These are the new leads. These are the Glengarry leads. And to you, they're gold. And you don't get them. Why? Because to give them to you is just throwing them away. They're for closers. I'd wish you good luck, but you wouldn't know what to do with it if you got it. (To Harris) And to answer your question, pal: Why am I here? I came here because Mitch and Murray asked me to, they asked me for a favor. I said the real favor, follow my advice and fire your [behind] because a loser is a loser.

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The 20 Best Movie Monologues of All Time, Ranked

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When it comes to screenwriting, the prevailing wisdom is to show, not tell. Characters should show who they are by their actions and behavior, rather than flat-out telling the audience.

But in the right place and at the right time, an expository monologue can be powerful, illustrative, and awesome.

When a monologue is crafted by masterful screenwriters and placed in the hands of a masterful actor, the results are often legendary—and end up being iconic scenes in movie history.

Here are our picks for the best movie monologues that you have to see for yourself to truly appreciate!

20. "Fly, Fly, Fly" in The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

Ever since this iconic scene hit the big screen, it set the bar for how a movie should introduce a character like Hannibal Lecter.

The slow pacing builds toward an explosive chaotic conclusion. The camera is uncomfortably close to Anthony Hopkins's face, forcing an intimacy that you really don't want to have with someone like Hannibal Lecter.

By the time Clarice Starling runs out, you're right there with her, unable to escape the dungeon quickly enough. It's the kind of scene you can't help but return to, again and again.

19. "I Have a Competition in Me" in There Will Be Blood (2007)

There Will Be Blood's milkshake scene is its most known, but this scene is the one that defines Daniel Plainview as a character. It reveals him as a complete misanthrope who's motivated purely by greed and power.

He sees people only as obstacles and tools to manipulate, control, or do away with. As we come to learn, this applies even to his own son.

18. "One Hundred Nazi Scalps" in Inglourious Basterds (2009)

Quentin Tarantino knows how to make exposition entertaining, and this scene from Inglourious Basterds is a prime example.

This is how you introduce a character while filling the audience in on what's happening in a movie. This is "show, don't tell"—but it's also not. He just comes right out and says it, but it's wrapped in fantastic dialogue and an epic performance.

Many writers treat exposition as a necessary evil that just needs to happen so the movie can continue. Tarantino turns exposition into one of the best scenes of the movie.

17. "And It's a Beautiful Day" in Fargo (1996)

This scene really wraps up Fargo perfectly. Two opposite worlds collide, and neither can comprehend the other. It's good and evil engaging in one-sided Midwestern small talk on the way to the police station.

Frances McDormand's character can't understand how a man could do such horrible things—and on a beautiful day, no less!

Meanwhile, the concept of a "beautiful day" is probably something that doesn't exist for him.

16. "Coffee Is for Closers" in Glengarry Glen Ross (1992)

Glengarry Glen Ross only has one scene with Alec Baldwin in it, but that one scene is the most iconic scene of the entire movie—and possibly the most iconic scene of Baldwin's acting career.

Sure, he played Jack Donaghy on 30 Rock —a strong contender for his most defining acting role—which is funny because you can almost see Glengarry Glen Ross and 30 Rock existing in the same universe, with Jack Donaghy being an older version of Blake.

But Jack Donaghy would never have delivered a monologue as powerful, humiliating, and frightening as this one.

15. "You're Nothing to Me Now" in The Godfather Part II (1974)

John Cazale is the actor who plays Fredo in the first two Godfather movies. He only made five feature films in his career, yet every one of those five movies is a timeless classic.

Cazale was a fantastic actor and I can only imagine what kind of performances the world missed out on due to his death at a relatively young age.

But if you judge his batting average against his Godfather co-stars, he clearly comes out on top in the end.

14. "The Smell of Napalm in the Morning" in Apocalypse Now (1979)

No other actor appears in American Film Institute's list of Top 100 American Movies more times than Robert Duvall. He's great in everything he does—and Apocalypse Now is no exception.

Like the movie itself, this scene is often misunderstood. It has, unfortunately, excited as many people toward the idea of war as it has away from it.

In Francis Ford Coppola's own words: "An anti-war film cannot glorify war, and Apocalypse Now arguably does. Certain sequences have been used to rev up people to be war-like."

13. Group Therapy in Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997)

This isn't just one of the greatest monologues of all time—it's also one of the funniest movie monologues ever. This might be the greatest moment in Mike Myers' acting career.

This scene hasn't lost any of the mojo it had when it first came out. He had a lot of great material before this, but sadly not much after.

12. The Gold Watch in Pulp Fiction (1994)

This scene accomplishes more than just being a self-contained piece of brilliant acting and writing. It also fills out the character of Butch in an interesting way, while providing another MacGuffin to tie into Pulp Fiction's already unconventional plot.

11. Father and Son in Call Me By Your Name (2017)

Call Me By Your Name got a lot of hype when it was first released. Looking back, large portions of the film didn't live up to that initial excitement—but the final monologue by Elio's father took the cake.

A musing on life, time, and the fleeting nature of summer love, it's a an insightful monologue that would benefit any and every teenager who's wise enough to give it a listen.

10. "A Particular Set of Skills" in Taken (2008)

In Taken , Liam Neeson created a forever memeable moment with this outstanding monologue spoken into a phone.

When he realizes that his daughter is about to be abducted, he warns her kidnappers in a legendarily badass way how bad the idea is for them to continue, ending with the most chilling threat:

"I will look for you. I will find you... And I will kill you."

Liam Neeson's cadence makes it all the better, proving how great he is as an actor—as if that were ever in question.

9. "You're Terrified of What You Might Say" in Good Will Hunting (1997)

Robin Williams put on one of the greatest performances of his career in Good Will Hunting , peaking with this single scene.

Here he plays Dr. Sean Maguire, a therapist for the brilliant but troubled Will Hunting (played by Matt Damon). Faced with his irreverent behavior, Dr. Maguire tries to communicate on a deeper level.

Wrapped in a somber mood, he talks about the experience of things as distinct from knowledge. It's a showing of the old meeting the young, the wise educating the intelligent. It's a monologue that earned an Oscar.

8. "Don't Give In to Nostalgia" in Cinema Paradiso (1988)

This monologue from Cinema Paradiso will hit you surprisingly hard if you've ever had to leave home and long for past times.

Just as Salvatore is about to leave home, Alfredo—who has lost his sight in a devastating fire—warns him about the dangers of nostalgia. He tells him to chase his dreams and to never turn back for homesickness.

By refusing him the opportunity to return in failure, he gives his protégé all he needs for success. It's a touching final encounter between friends.

7. "The Tales That Really Mattered" in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)

Where would Frodo have been without Samwise Gamgee? In some ways, Sam was the real hero of The Lord of the Rings .

In this rousing monologue, we're shown just how much wisdom Sam had to share and how much support he had to offer. When Frodo asks what it's all for, Sam lays out everything they're fighting for.

When all seems lost, it's Sam's huge heart that still sees the light at the end of their dark journey. He drags victory from the jaws of defeat and he gives Frodo the strength to hope for a brighter day.

6. "What Is It You Want, Mary?" in It's a Wonderful Life (1946)

It's a Wonderful Life gave us one of the most tear-jerking monologues in cinema history, which is why it's considered a timeless classic.

We're first shown George Bailey talk about all of his hopes and dreams. That's shortly followed by him telling Mary all of the things he can give to her—most of all, the moon itself.

"What is it you want, Mary? You want the moon? Just say the word and I'll throw a lasso around it and pull it down."

It's a charming scene with a monologue that reveals to us how George is too giving and too kind. He truly belongs with Mary, and by the end of the film, he comes to realize and accept that.

5. "You Can Shoot Me, But You Can't Kill Me" in Training Day (2001)

Denzel Washington is one of the most underrated actors of his era, proven by his immense performance as Alonzo Harris.

In this climactic scene, he's finally turned on by the hood from which he claims to hail. It causes him to break down, resulting in a monologue that's breathtaking as Washington enunciates every syllable.

As a bonus, it also gave us the now iconic line: "King Kong ain't got shit on me!" Legendary.

4. The U.S.S. Indianapolis Speech in Jaws (1975)

Talk about character development! Quint's dramatic turn from drunken sailor regaling old fishing stories to divulging the horrific origins of one of his scars is the stuff that cinema is made of.

On the U.S.S. Indianapolis, a torpedo puts all of his men into the water. It isn't long before a shiver of sharks appears and starts picking off his men, one by one, down into the depths.

Between screams in the dark and blood in the water, it isn't long before people start wondering if they'll survive the night of horror. It's all dramatically recounted in this spectacular monologue.

3. "I Don't Have Anything Big to Say" in Manchester By the Sea (2016)

Carey Mulligan isn't in Manchester By the Sea for long, but she does an amazing job stealing the show with this powerful portrayal of grief.

When Randi bumps into Lee on a walk, it stirs up old feelings. She knows that she has things to say, but can't quite verbalize them.

"I don't have anything big to say."

Then, of course, it all tumbles out into one of the best written and exquisitely performed movie monologues of all time. Her voice choked with emotion, sure to reduce anyone watching to tears.

2. Tears in Rain Monologue in Blade Runner (1982)

The ending scene from Blade Runner —of the lead Replicant bad guy waxing philosophical in the rain—is still one of the most iconic scenes in movie history, let alone among sci-fi movies.

Apparently, Rutger Hauer wrote this speech on the fly in his trailer. He convinced director Ridley Scott, who wanted nothing to do with it, to sit down and give it a listen. Ridley Scott was, of course, blown away... and the rest is history.

1. "Here's Looking at You, Kid" in Casablanca (1942)

How could there be any other choice for best movie monologue than Rick Blaine's iconic monologue in Casablanca ?

Rick and Ilsa may have been desperately in love with each other, but that doesn't amount to a hill of beans in this crazy world. After Rick realizes this, he tells her that they can never be.

It's one of the most heartbreaking monologues ever put to film, and it ends with one of the most classic lines ever uttered:

"Here's looking at you, kid."

Though it inspired countless imitators, there has never been—nor will there ever be—a monologue as moving as the one in Casablanca . It's a clear winner for best movie monologue of all time.

Movies & TV

Performed by the most

Dramatic onscreen monologues aren’t just catnip for the Oscars . Whether they appear in emotional dramas, comedies, or even action films, they can be the defining moment of a character’s arc — especially when that character is a woman.

Many of the greatest actors of our time have had the chance to show their impressive chops with a well-placed speech — and stuck the landing. Here, we’ve compiled a list of the most memorable monologues, from the few classics you’re probably familiar with (it doesn’t get more iconic than Princess Leia begging Obi-Wan for help in the first Star Wars , setting off an entire franchise in the process), to some lesser-known speeches to impress and devastate you, too. Amy Adams and Ellen Burnstyn ’s monologues, in particular, will be sure to blow your mind if you haven’t seen them before. So sit back, relax, and let these performances wash over you. Spoiler alert, you will absolutely need tissues to make your way down the list, though they’re not all sad; more humorous speeches have also been included, to ensure you don't start sobbing at your desk. Happy watching!

Saoirse Ronan — ‘Little Women’

Jo (Saoirse Ronan), who’s basically the heroine of Little Woman , struggles with her creative passions, societal pressure, and longing to be loved. All of her emotions come pouring out in this monologue, making it one of the reasons this film feels so relevant to a modern audience. In Ronan’s brilliant hands, it’s not whining — it’s a revelation about the world and her place in it.

Watch On Amazon Prime

Laura Dern — ‘Marriage Story’

Marriage Story is the story about a union that’s ended, and it talks a lot about the roles that a husband and wife/dad and mom are supposed to take on. Leave it to divorce lawyer Nora (Laura Dern) to offer a scathing takedown of our “our Judeo-Christian whatever” society, and our deeply hypocritical treatment of women and mothers, all while wearing a fabulous dress. It’s deeply witty and true all at once.

Watch On Netflix

Frances McDormand — ‘Something’s Gotta Give’

This sweet Nancy Meyer rom-com embraces the middle-aged woman as a hot, sexual being. But it’s also a supremely smart takedown of social constructs that limit women as they get older. Here, Zoe (Frances McDormand) brilliantly takes Harry (Jack Nicholson), and society at large, to task for overlooking successful 60-something women. They deserve love too, dammit.

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Julia Roberts — 'Erin Brockovich'

There are a lot of terrific monologues in this movie, but the infamous "Numbers" speech is truly unforgettable — largely because of Roberts' no-nonsense delivery. It also offers Roberts’ character the chance to live out a fantasy that every woman has had: being able to tell off a guy who’s hitting on you when you're really just trying to live your life in peace.

Julia Stiles — '10 Things I Hate About You'

Kat Stratford's poem in 10 Things I Hate About You was notorious for making all '90s girls cry — chances are most of us felt exactly like this at some point during high school. It's also a great, universally relevant monologue about love and loss, perfectly delivered by Julia Stiles. (And bonus points for how it cements the movie’s brilliant inversion of Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew .)

America Ferrera — 'Sisterhood Of The Traveling Pants'

Even if you’re not a child of divorce, just thinking about the scene in Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants when Carmen (American Ferrera) calls her dad, Al (Bradley Whitford), to confront him for leaving her is enough to break your heart. Ferrara plays Carmen as fierce and independent, so to watch her be so vulnerable is also a masterclass in acting.

Rosamund Pike — ‘Gone Girl’

It seems impossible to feel sorry for a sociopath — until you watch this monologue. Amy Dunne (Rosamund Pike) is enacting a plan to frame her husband Nick (Ben Affleck) for her murder, and she tells us exactly why. Underneath her quest for vengeance is an endless black hole of hurt and frustration. As horrified as we are by her, we can totally relate.

Carrie Fisher — 'A New Hope'

Carrie Fisher famously never forgot the lines to this Princess Leia monologue from A New Hope , and many fans haven't either. Four decades and two trilogies later, there isn't a Star Wars speech more iconic than Princess Leia's message to Obi-Wan Kenobi; these days, it’s also a tribute to the late Fisher’s immense talent. “You’re my only hope.”

Viola Davis — 'Fences'

There's no way that Viola Davis' monologue in Fences won't be taught in acting schools until the end of time. Davis took home the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in 2017 for her performance as Rose — a devoted, unfulfilled housewife who, in a single monologue, sums up her life of joy, pain, and disappointment. Like Troy (Denzel Washington), all we can do is watch in awe.

Ellen Burstyn — ‘Requiem for a Dream’

Requiem for a Dream is a tough movie to watch, but this scene is particularly wrenching. Ellen Burnstyn’s Sara makes an emotional plea to her son (Jared Leto), telling him that she needs amphetamines to lose weight, be on her favorite game show, and really just have a reason to live. “It makes tomorrow all right,” she says tearfully.

Vivien Leigh — 'Gone With The Wind'

Despite its many faults, Gone With the Wind is probably one of the most quotable movies in Hollywood history, and this monologue performed by Vivien Leigh is a big reason why. Her character can be deeply unlikeable, but this is the exact moment you come to empathize with her. It also gave way too many people the burning need to say "as God as my witness" a whole bunch.

Amy Adams — 'Junebug'

Amy Adams earned her first Oscar nomination for Junebug , and after watching this monologue, you’ll understand why the critics couldn’t get enough of her performance. In this scene, Ashley (Adams) is desperately trying to put on a brave face after giving birth to a stillborn baby. She goes through every emotion: anger, fear, sadness, and finally a tiny bit of acceIt's as heartbreaking as it is impressive.

Alicia Silverstone — 'Clueless'

The fact that Cher's Clueless (1995) speech was everywhere in the Women's March of 2017 — "It does not say RSVP on the Statue of Liberty" signs galore — is proof enough of the lasting power of this monologue. But the most hilarious part of it might be that on some crazy, meta level... what she says kind of makes sense?

Michelle Williams — 'Manchester By The Sea'

In this heartbreaking monologue, Michelle Williams shows exactly why she was nominated for an Oscar for her turn in Manchester By The Sea . This scene shows Williams’ character, Randy, reaching out to her ex, Lee, who accidentally allowed their house to catch on fire, resulting in the passing of their young children. Through tears, she begs him to forgive her for her cruelty in blaming him.

Sally Field — 'Steel Magnolias'

Another tearjerker, Sally Field's devastated and furious monologue at the end of Steel Magnolias is as honest a representation of grief as one can find in a Hollywood production. Not long after having her second child, Shelby (Julia Roberts) loses her life. Her mom M'Lynn (Field) has to bury her daughter, and there’s nothing okay about it. And then, in the very last second, there’s a moment of lightness.

Hilary Duff — 'A Cinderella Story'

Millennials the world over will remember this movie as the modern-day fairy tale we all kind of needed growing up. Hilary Duff's monologue might not be known the world over, and it’s honestly a bit silly. But it's also a glorious moment of catharsis: a girl standing up to her former crush for his bad behavior and getting a bit of closure. It deserves a place on the list for that reason alone.

Lupita Nyong'o — 'Us'

Us is a terrifying look at how the suffering of some often underpins others’ joy and success. And in this monologue, Lupita Nyong'o's Red (the actor’s tethered character) explains in disturbing detail exactly how that works. It's a stunning performance from Nyong'o, featuring an altered voice and a slow delivery that just gets under your skin. Equally impressive? She’s acting against herself.

Jennifer Lopez — 'Hustlers'

It's hard not to cheer when Jennifer Lopez's Ramona goes off on the Wall Street corruption responsible for 2008’s economic crash. Lopez is a veteran actor, but here, she delivers a career-defining performance. In this one moment, she explains why Wall Street guys who come into the strip club deserve to be conned. It's enough to have even the most upstanding citizen ready to do some crimes.

Taraji P. Henson — 'Hidden Figures'

Taraji P. Henson's exasperated monologue in Hidden Figures is really the most memorable scene in the film, and the moment the audience has been waiting for. In this pivotal scene, Katherine (Henson), tired of being forced to live like a second class citizen at work, finally unloads on her boss about the struggles of working in a segregated office.

This article was originally published on April 13, 2017

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Home / Features / The best Disney+ movies of 2024 so far

The best Disney+ movies of 2024 so far

There's more to Disney's streaming service than Marvel and Mickey Mouse. Here are 15 of the best films on Disney+

Looking for the best Disney+ movies? Then you’ve come to the right place.

Despite not being around for as long as Netflix or Prime Video, Disney+ has fully established itself as one of the best streaming services around. With hundreds of millions of users worldwide and a cavernous library of content created by some of the biggest studios in the world (Lucasfilm, Marvel, Fox, Pixar and, of course, Disney itself), it’s certainly not short of triple-A movies.

• Read: The best 4K TVs for every budget

From beloved Disney classics to the latest indie gems from Searchlight Pictures, there’s something here for everybody. So much so, in fact, that it can be a tough task picking out a film to watch. That’s where this list comes in. Our square-eyed experts have spent hours poring over the Disney+ library, picking out the very best films for this crème-de-la-crème selection.

Poor Things

Emma Stone’s Oscar-winning performance as Bella – an infant mind in the body of a fully-grown woman – is the beating heart of Yorgos Lanthimos’ winsome, wicked and wild comic fantasy fable.

Despite some critics seeing it as exploitative and sexist, Poor Things seems to us a sharp and very funny critique of societal mores surrounding sex and gender roles. Meanwhile, its idiosyncratic visual style and Stone’s performance, as well as the excellent supporting performances, from Mark Ruffalo and Willem Dafoe make it a joy to watch. But perhaps not one to see with your elderly aunt Dottie.

Watch Poor Things on Disney+

L.A. Confidential

This adaptation of James Ellroy’s novel of the same name is a gripping journey into the dark underbelly of 1950s Los Angeles. It’s a time and place where Tinseltown, police corruption and the mob intersect – and fertile ground for a brilliantly noir-inflected tale of crooked cops, high-class hookers and grimy gossip rags.

Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce and Kevin Spacey all deliver memorable performances as three LAPD detectives with very different personalities, and L.A. Confidential ’s labyrinthine plot, its beautifully realised recreation of the tarnished dream of post-Golden Age Hollywood, and its sheer attention to detail all work together to make this one of the defining movies of the late 1990s.

Watch L.A. Confidential on Disney+

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny

Is Dial of Destiny a triumphant return to the glorious, rollicking and rip-roaring Indy movies of the 1980s? Not even close, but neither does it sink to the nadir of 2008’s daft Kingdom of the Crystal Skull . All in all, this latest (and last) movie in the series ends up as a reasonably fitting send-off for Harrison Ford’s swashbuckling archaeologist, now an old lonely man living in 1960s New York City and wallowing in grief. What can drag him out of this malaise? An adventure, of course – and one that features ruthless Nazis, mystical maguffins and time travel.

Watch Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny on Disney+

Forget the tedious argument about whether Die Hard is or is not “a Christmas film”. What’s not up for debate is its place in the action movie canon, thanks to a killer combo of charismatic, relatable hero (Bruce Willis in a career-defining role and a career-defining vest), memorable villain (the sorely missed Alan Rickman in scenery-chewing beast mode), quotable script and assured, non-showy direction by John McTiernan.

For sub-rock dwellers out there who don’t already know, the setup is simple: Willis’ New York cop flies to Los Angeles to visit his estranged wife for Christmas, rocking up at her work party in a swanky hi-tech hi-rise right as the building is hijacked by Rickman and his gang of terrorists. Cut off from the outside world, outmanned and outgunned, Willis must use his wiles to save the day. Gripping stuff to watch – at any time of the year.

Watch Die Hard on Disney+

No One Will Save You

A home invasion thriller with a twist, No One Will Save You eschews expository dialogue (in fact, there are just five decipherable words uttered in the entire movie) but succeeds in crafting a suspenseful, tension-filled tale of one young woman’s struggle against an unearthly menace.

That’s mostly down to the tour de force lead performance of Kaitlyn Dever, who brings depth and nuance to a character who might otherwise have come across as flat and boring. For the viewer, discovering the details of this character’s past as she battles for her future is a huge part of what makes this film feel fresh for its genre.

Watch No One Will Save You on Disney+

The Revenant

Bagging a trio of Oscars, this mud-caked adventure stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Hugh Glass, a 19 th -century trapper and tracker left for dead by a double-crossing companion (a gruff, mumbling and memorable Tom Hardy) after being mauled by a grizzly bear.

After crawling out of a shallow grave, Glass sets out on the long, cold journey towards revenge, evading marauding Native Americans, hunting for food and performing gruesome self-surgery in a series of incredible sequences. Alejandro González Iñárritu’s direction – ever impressive, never showy – and the flawless camera work help the viewer live every moment of Glass’ struggle for survival.

Despite uttering just a handful of lines during the film’s nigh-on three hours of running time, DiCaprio received his first Best Actor Oscar for The Revenant . Watching what he goes through here, it’s not difficult to see why the Academy was so impressed. As a pure physical performance, it’s remarkable – and just one great aspect in a movie packed with them.

Watch The Revenant on Disney+

In Mark Mylod’s devilishly enjoyable satire, Ralph Fiennes glowers as world-renowned chef Jeremy Slowik, a culinary perfectionist who makes Gordon Ramsay look like Tinkerbell.

When a young couple (Anya Taylor-Joy and Nicholas Hoult) travel to Slowik’s hyper-exclusive private island restaurant alongside a host of wealthy luminaries, the multi-course meal on offer isn’t quite what they expected: the dishes come with a side-order of terror, bloodshed and righteous score-settling. Will anyone survive Slowik’s culinary masterpiece, or is this a last supper for the whole party?

Watch The Menu on Disney+

Michael Mann’s iconic 90s thriller is probably best known for cramming movie legends Robert De Niro and Al Pacino into a scene together for the first time. That being said, it’s also a stylish, shrewd and culturally significant movie that everybody should watch at least once. Oh, and it features arguably the best heist scene ever captured on celluloid.

De Niro plays it low-key as a stoic but highly driven master thief seeking out one final big bank job with his crew, while Pacino soars in full scenery-munching mode as the veteran cop trying to stop him. It’s a simple setup, but the two leads’ performances, the grudging respect between their characters and the film’s exceptional action sequences add depth aplenty.

Watch Heat on Disney+

The Banshees of Inisherin

What happens when your best friend decides they no longer like you? Martin McDonagh’s pitch-black tragicomedy reunites the In Bruges pairing of Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson as two former pals on the fictional Irish island of Inisherin. Farrell’s wide-eyed Padraig is abruptly ‘dumped’ by Gleeson’s gloomy Colm; even when eventually given the reason he refuses to accept this situation, leading the duo down a darker and darker path.

Set in 1923 against the backdrop of the Irish Civil War (which some have claimed the film is an allegory for – far too simplistic a take for us), this is a beautifully written, shot and acted film that might be McDonagh’s most accomplished yet. The critics certainly think so, with the film attracting glowing reviews and armfuls of award nominations (including nine Oscar nods). It might well deserve them all.

Watch The Banshees of Inisherin on Disney+

The latest film in the somewhat patchy Predator series takes things back to basics, and it’s all the better for it. Skipping cinemas and landing straight on Disney+, Prey is set in 18 th Century America and its lead is a young Comanche woman determined to prove her worth as a hunter. She’s about to come up against one of the best in the galaxy though: a two-metre tall alien with an array of lethal gadgets, the ability to all but disappear and a hankering for trophies.

What follows is arguably the best Predator film since the Arnie-starring 1987 original, as our heroine must use all her wiles and cunning to avoid becoming the next prize skull in the monster’s cabinet.

Watch Prey on Disney+

The best horror sci-fi movie ever made (not to mention one of the best horror movies full stop) and one that spawned a sprawling franchise based around its iconic titular “xenomorph”, Alien is a masterpiece of tension and visuals.

When the crew of commercial deep space vessel the Nostromo (a fantastic cast of “normal”, highly relatable working joe characters rather than exaggerated, OTT personalities) detect a transmission from an unexplored moon, they land to investigate and discover a strange derelict craft full of large eggs. When one of these hatches, it sparks off a deadly sequence of events. It’s fantastic cat-and-mouse stuff, and – courtesy of director Ridley Scott’s mastery of lighting and the stellar production design, looks so, so good for a 40 year-old movie.

Watch Alien on Disney+

Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World

Based on three novels from Patrick O’Brian’s beloved Aubrey-Maturin series, this rollicking Napoleonic Wars epic is probably one of the most historically accurate depictions of early 19th century naval life (and death) ever put on screen. You can practically smell the sea salt, boiled cabbage, unwashed bodies and gunpowder as the HMS Surprise’s crew, led by Captain “Lucky” Jack Aubrey (Russell Crowe) and his faithful physician friend Stephen Maturin (Paul Bettany), pursue a French privateer across the South Atlantic and Pacific.

From tense evasive manoeuvres to ship’s dinners to battles filled with smoke, flame and splintered wood, this movie’s authenticity and attention to detail shines through – and almost all of it achieved without CGI chicanery, too. It’s a real pity no more Aubrey-Maturin movies followed – with 21 books in O’Brian’s series, there’d have been no shortage of source material.

Watch Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World on Disney+

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Writer and director Martin McDonagh’s follow-up to In Bruges offers a similar mix of pathos, violence and pitch-black comedy, as Frances McDormand’s grieving mother challenges the cops of her small southern US town to step up and catch her daughter’s murderer.

Such direct action – she purchases space on the three advertising billboards to publicly shame the police – brings her into conflict with Woody Harrelson’s respected chief and his bigoted, immature and angry deputy Sam Rockwell, sparking off an unpredictable sequence of events and an unforgettable conclusion. We won’t spoil any of that, but suffice to say the Oscars won by McDormand and Rockwell for their roles were well-earned, and this movie will likely stay in your head for a long time after the credits roll.

Watch Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri on Disney+

Star Wars: A New Hope

The original (and probably second-best) Star Wars movie, A New Hope is now well over 40 years old. There are few signs of a mid-life crisis here: it still looks and sounds fantastic (partly due to director George Lucas’s inability to stop tinkering with it years after its release), but this trailblazing space opera adventure is beloved for more than just the spectacle of zero-g dog fights and light saber duels. Star Wars’ enduring characters and mythology are introduced and established in this movie, but it also serves as a fantastic self-contained adventure story about a simple farm boy who becomes the heroic figurehead of a revolution. It’s simple stuff at its core, but done so brilliantly that you can’t help but be sold.

Watch Star Wars: A New Hope on Disney+

Captivating and terrifying in equal measure, this remarkable film documents the ever-so-slightly bonkers free solo climber Alex Honnold, whose lifelong dream is to scale the 3,200-foot El Capitan in Yosemite National Park without any ropes or equipment. Those who aren’t keen on heights are advised to watch from behind the sofa, but for everyone else, the Oscar-winning Free Solo is a thrill ride that not even Star Wars and the MCU can compete with. But thanks to Disney’s ownership of National Geographic, Disney+ subscribers can have all three.

Watch Free Solo on Disney+

• Read: Best streaming services 2022: Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+ and Apple TV+

Tech journalism's answer to The Littlest Hobo, I've written for a host of titles and lived in three different countries in my 15 years-plus as a freelancer. But I've always come back home to Stuff eventually, where I specialise in writing about cameras, streaming services and being tragically addicted to Destiny.

Areas of expertise

Cameras, drones, video games, film and TV

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