- Joe Morris: That's what I like about you. You are a good person. Ain't been corrupted by the world yet. Like a child. But, that's gonna change when you get rich.
- Barker: Do you think that follows normal business customs?
- Bernard Garrett: If I was following normal business customs, I'd still be a shoeshine boy in Texas.
- Joe Morris: I'm not fucking your wife.
- Bernard Garrett: You go to every table in here to reassure your patrons of that?
- Joe Morris: No. Might have to skip some of them.
- Eunice Garrett: I love you, Bernard, but how is that any different from a white man telling you you shouldn't mind some daily assault on your dignity because you're black?
- Joe Morris: When a white person screws you over, they can count on other white folks out there to look the other way. And just knowing that brings out the worst in people.
- Mrs. Cooper: You can't be here after 6 pm.
- Bernard Garrett: A contractor can't be here after 6 pm, Mrs. Cooper. I'm a resident. I'm moving in.
- Joe Morris: I don't trust white people.
- Bernard Garrett: How do you even go through life like that?
- Joe Morris: Truth be told, I don't trust black people either.
- Matt Steiner: You know I wasn't born into money. I just learnt to fake it. And you helped me. I do realize... I had to be white for that to work.
- Eunice Garrett: And a man.
- Bernard Garrett: You said this was gonna be complicated.
- Joe Morris: What I said was, "This is a bad idea."
- [Bernard scroffs]
- Joe Morris: Then I agreed to drive off the *cliff* with you and here we are. Now, we gotta buy a kid with 90 days of banking experience his own goddamn bank.
- Joe Morris: I'm not the asshole you think I am.
- Bernard Garrett: You a different kind of asshole, huh?
- Bernard Garrett: The best place to learn about the present state of the real estate market is inside of a bank. We get that building, we'll be inside 12 of 'em. And next time, they'll think *twice* about refusing to make loans to us if we're their landlords.
- Joe Morris: When I first laid eyes on you, I thought you were this uptight, square-ass negro who wouldn't know whitey's hand was 'round his neck if he was staring at it in a mirror.
- Bernard Garrett: Glad, I made such a good first impression.
- Joe Morris: Turns out, you a goddamn revolutionary.
- [First lines]
- Banking Attorney: Today, the United States Senate Committee on Government Operations begins hearings on federally insured banks. We are concerned whether existing laws are adequate to guarantee the character, experience and integrity of people who acquire such banks, which are the cornerstones of American capitalism, foundation of the American dream.
- Eunice Garrett: Do you resent me being here?
- Matt Steiner: A little.
- [Eunice chuckles]
- Matt Steiner: Do you resent me for wanting to run my own bank?
- Eunice Garrett: A little
- [nods]
- Eunice Garrett: .
- Bernard Garrett: Let's go home.
- Eunice Garrett: They took 'em all, remember?
- Bernard Garrett: Well, let's go somewhere.
- Deacon Jackson: If he's a real man, he won't let you.
- Eunice Garrett: That won't be for him to decide.
- Matt Steiner: Drive-in ice cream shop. It turns out, people don't wanna eat ice-cream while driving their cars.
- Matt Steiner: I wanna be respected for what I've done for the business.
- Eunice Garrett: Respect is a big thing. Sometimes people take big risks to chase it.
- Joe Morris: No matter what, there's always something extra going on in the relationship. It's just the way shit is. And when you accept that, you can't get caught off guard when it rears its ugly head.
- Matt Steiner: We're casting a wide net. The more loans we make, the higher our profit. Goes for your stake too.
- Robert Florance, Jr.: As long as they don't default.
- Matt Steiner: That's what collateral's for.
- Bernard Garrett: You saw things years before I did. Even about myself. Five minutes after meeting me.
- Matt Steiner: What's the equivalent of a 300-yard tee shot in negotiation?
- Bernard Garrett: A 4 course lunch.
- Donald Silverthorne: Could you tell me how a bank works in three sentences?
- Matt Steiner: A bakery makes a profit by selling bread for more than it cost to make. A bank makes a profit by selling loans for more than it costs to get the money needed to make those loans. Basically, a bank gets money from depositors at 3% and loans it out at five.
- Donald Silverthorne: Wow. That actually was three sentences.