It seems that almost every time a valuable natural resource is discovered in the world-whether it be diamonds, rubber, gold, oil, whatever-often what results is a tragedy for the country in which they are found. Making matters worse, the resulting riches from these resources rarely benefit the people of the country from which they come.

Those of my generation who grew up in the midst of the Cold War had a very, very strong awareness and very much were sort of influenced by the demonization of the Soviet Union, whether that was through the Cuban Missile Crisis or duck-and-cover, or any of those things that so affected us then.

I think it's easier to be cynical. I think the temptation, often, among writers is to write about anything other than real, true, deep feelings.

The thing that has always interested me - amidst the scale, the historical spectacle, or the social significance or the political resonance - has been the relationships.

Adolescence is a time in which you experience everything more intensely.

Sometimes when we weep in the movies we weep for ourselves or for a life unlived. Or we even go to the movies because we want to resist the emotion that's there in front of us. I think there is always a catharsis that I look for and that makes the movie experience worthwhile.

I always liked movies like 'American Graffiti' and 'Gregory's Girl.' 'Gregory's Girl' is particularly perfect because it really captures that summer holiday bubble of teenage utopia. Even though it's got a happy ending, there's a feeling that these characters may never see each other again.

The worst thing you can do after a test screening is slash it for the lowest common denominator.

Television was essentially my college.

I was at art school that had quite a celebrated film course as well. I tried for that film course when I was 18, but they said I was too young. I tried this audio and visual design course instead. Two years later, I reapplied for that higher course, but they said I was still too young and to try in five years.

When I did 'Hot Fuzz,' I tried to get Barbara Steele in the movie, but I was told she had retired.

'The Driver' wasn't commercially successful at the time, but when I was a teenager, I had no knowledge of that.

I first saw Walter Hill's second film, 'The Driver,' as a teenager, late at night on the BBC, quite possibly sitting too close to the telly. Given that this 1978 slice of neo-noir takes place almost entirely in the dark streets of a deserted downtown L.A., it's really a perfect midnight movie.

Comics have years to explain this stuff, and in a movie, you have to focus on one thing. So it's about kind of streamlining, I think. Some of the most successful origin films actually have a narrower focus.

You cannot put 50 years of the Marvel universe into a movie. It's impossible.

When I was younger, I used to love Tim Burton's 'Batman.' I was, like, 15, and even then, I was aware, 'This is really the Joker's film.' It's like, the Joker just takes over, and Batman, you really don't learn too much about him.

I grew up on 'Battle of the Planets.'

I find just in terms of free time I'm always envious of people I know who... listen to music, watch films, play games, read books. I have to pick. And I find frequently that if I've got Sophie's Choice, I'll try to keep up with music and keep up with films. So my book reading and comic reading and game playing is terrible and infrequent.

I grew up on Marvel and, like, '2000 AD.'

There are lots of films I wish stopped at installment number one. I like 'Back to the Future Part II' and 'Part III' enough, but I still like the ending of the first one better.

We got offers to make sequels to both 'Shaun of the Dead' and 'Hot Fuzz,' and they never really interested us because we like having these endings where it seems very final but could hint at some kind of future adventure that you'll never see.

When you're struggling to get a feature film off the ground, there's no big overarching tenure plan or anything like that.

When we made 'Shaun of the Dead,' it was our first feature, and we were just lucky to make a film, full stop.

Not everybody fantasizes about robbing a bank, but I think most people have that fantasy of being in a high speed chase.