1) Charles's death taught me the lesson of political responsibility. I used to think that I could till the soil of my own little plot of land and let the rest of the world care for its own problems. What our country did in Vietnam, what happened to people overseas, was no concern of mine. I was wrong. I now know that each of us is obligated to fight for what is right and take responsibility for what our government does. If we don't, sooner or later it will affect us all. (Thomas Hauser, qtd. in Crowdus 37)

2) Some critics, taking exception to the film's claim of being based on "a true story," have attacked Gavras for imposing his own politicized interpretation on the events portrayed, as if an objective rendering of the facts were somehow possible. Rather than get hung up in a sterile debate about whether or not the film conveyed the Truth--always a relative concept, in any case--it's more useful to ask who had more reason to misstate or distort the facts involved in Charles Horman's disappearance and death? (Gary Crowdus 37)

3) His picture is a mixture of caution and irresponsibility. He cautiously names nothing and no one precisely; he glibly implies deep guilt, making empty heroic gestures of protest without foundation and without risk. It's thus a perfect Hollywood liberal picture, playing to a gallery of trained seals and to another gallery of the gullible, for the happiest kind of Hollywood profit—big returns plus big ego-satisfactions. (Kauffmann 25)

4) What I'm sure they did to Charles Horman was do nothing to save him. Of that I'm absolutely sure. They didn't give a shit about his life, for absolute sure. And this is why there must be a trial. Not so much to punish Pinochet—he's too old for punishment to be effective—but so we can all finally get the truth about that period, to understand better why and how what happened, happened. (Costa-Gavras, qtd. in Vest 57)

5) The State Department's unusual action [denying U.S. negligence or complicity as the film opened] highlights the true value of a film such as Missing, for, whether or not the film actually convinces anyone, it has played a valuable role in stimulating debate on the U.S. role in Chile, and, by extension, our present support for military regimes elsewhere in the world. In instances like this, the cinema becomes a vast public forum, utilizing its emotional appeal and dramatic power to engage a mass audience in the consideration of important political issues. (Gary Crowdus 37)

6) Every so often a careful examination of conscience is good for the soul. It can lead to a deeper appreciation of the self and those subtle forces that influence one's relationships to the world, to other people and to God. (Blake 263)

7) Wouldn’t you think that there would be a bit of outrage over the murder of an American journalist in which CIA agents have participated, especially an American who was not alleged to have committed any criminal offense against Chile or the United States? No indictments. No congressional subpoenas. But of course, let’s not forget that we’re dealing with the CIA here. Who’s going to indict or investigate members of a super-secret, omnipotent federal agency that is at the core of the empire, one whose agents faithfully and loyally serve the empire through assassination, kidnapping, torture, rendition, and disappearances? What Justice Department lawyer or member of Congress is going to rock that boat? (Jacob Hornberger)

8) It took me quite a while to realize that Charles would never come home. The day my brother told me he was dead, it seemed very unreal. Nobody rolled drums; nobody fainted; nobody went hysterical. It was as though...You know, Charles wore a gold wedding band on his left hand. Someone stole it off his body. I wanted the ring for Joyce, but it wasn't returned....That's the type of recollection I try to avoid now. I won't destroy the memory of a whole beautiful life by dwelling on a few tragic days. Bitterness is an ill-fitting memorial. (Elizabeth Horman, qtd. in Hauser 253)

9) I tried very hard not to indulge in sorrow. Certainly, my hopes had dwindled, but I was committed to pursuing every last chance that Charles might still be alive. When the plane took off, I sat back, relaxed, and tried to think about what I could do to help. Maybe I fantasized a little about where our relationship would go if Charles were rescued and brought home alive. Fortunately, I had the satisfaction of knowing that, while we suffered the wear and tear that was normal between members of our respective generations, the bonds between us were strong. (Ed Horman, qtd. in Hauser 144)

10) The powers that be have to have an enemy. This enemy is "the culture," and, of course, the larger "the culture" is, the bigger the enemy seems. It is difficult for people to accept change from one day to another. The empire has its own myths, its machismo, its autosatisfactions. Now Americans have to learn not to be so macho, not to be the biggest, the strongest, the number one. Because you cannot stop history. (Costa-Gavras, qtd. in Kopkind 467)

11) Let me take the opportunity at the outset to restate that the United States government, the Central Intelligence Agency, had no role in the overthrow of the regime in Chile. (James Schlesinger, qtd. in Michalczyk 228)

12) Even though Chile is never mentioned, the film powerfully portrays the brutal, nightmarish events of the Chilean coup, the bloodiest and most barbaric coup d'etat in Latin American history. (Gary Crowdus 36)

13) I felt that the problem of disappearing people was very important to an unveiling of the increasingly vicious methods that so many governments practice. Now instead of imprisoning the opponent or killing him, they make him disappear, which brings incredible anguish to those who love him. (Costa-Gavras, qtd. in Yakir 59)

14) Imagine that: The CIA participates in the murder of an American citizen, and we don’t know why or how because U.S. officials, both in the executive and legislative branches, decided not to look too closely into the matter.
Were CIA agents just “following orders” when they participated in Horman’s murder, the same claim they’re making in the torture scandal? Alas, we just don’t know. Who actually committed the murder? Was Horman tortured, sexually abused, or raped before his execution, as so many Chileans were? Who knows? Was Horman killed because as a Harvard graduate, he might have sympathized with the Allende regime? Or was it because he had acquired too much information in interviews that he had conducted with U.S. military and intelligence officials while the coup was taking place? We just don’t know. (Jacob Hornberger)

15) Horman is the mouthpiece for the parents, wives, and children of those who disappear -- there are thirty-one countries where this is happening -- who find themselves completely alone. The despair of these people is horrible. People can accept death, because it’s irrevocable, but disappearing is an abstraction -- you can’t accept the uncertainty. The relatives of the disappeared are broken people -- the combination of hope and anguish is completely destructive. (Costa-Gavras, qtd. in Yakir 59)

16) State Department officials expressed great concern about the hostile attack in the book and film upon the Department for its alleged involvement in the death of Charles Horman. The statement emphasized that prior to the filing of the Horman lawsuit the Department had provided countless documents to assist in obtaining a full explanation of the mysterious circumstances surrounding Charles' death. (John Michalczyk 218)

17) It was indeed Nixon's responsibility -- his and Kissinger's, who lies incredibly in his book. It was his responsibility for the destruction of Chile, no less than of Cambodia. (Costa-Gavras, qtd. in Yakir 59)

18) News is a show. Performance is the event. The line between fact and fancy is the line of passion. The image is the reality. (Lewis 26)

19) ...there's no doubt in my mind, our government had no involvement in any way whatsoever in the coup itself. (President Gerald Ford, qtd. in Michalczyk 228)

20) What was the precise role that CIA officials played in Horman’s murder? We don’t know. And the reason we don’t know is that the Justice Department has never seen fit to initiate a criminal prosecution against the CIA agents who participated in Horman’s murder and Congress has never seen fit to subpoena the CIA agents who participated in the murder to testify about it in a congressional hearing. And needless to say, the CIA hasn’t volunteered the information. (Jacob Hornberger)

21) The fact that Universal Pictures has produced Costa-Gavras' Missing, which criticizes the U.S. role in the Chilean coup, is at least an indication that some studio heads are not afraid of political controversy. (Gary Crowdus 31)

22) I can say quite flatly that we did not [finance the activities that brought down the Allende government]...we had nothing to do with the political destabilization of Chile, the U.S. government had nothing to do with it. (Harry Shlaudeman, qtd. in Michalczyk 228)

23) We have no more right to accuse ourselves than to accuse others. Guilt feelings are like fear—given us for survival, not destruction. (Charles Horman, qtd. in Hauser 176)

24) I'm trying to do things as I feel. Little by little you discover that there is no one truth, no one ideology which brings you to some kind of Utopia. You become more suspicious of every kind of ideology that presents itself as the only good one. (Costa-Gavras, qtd. in Ansen 69)

25) The men who run our government are like early Oriental potentates playing chess with live figures. They sit back and manipulate the pieces without ever realizing the cost in human lives. (Elizabeth Horman, qtd. in Hauser 252)

26) If Costa-Gavras has taken up the political thriller as his own special genre, it is because he wants to show people in crisis -- but both the people and the crisis are to be real. In his past films, he admits, the crisis was perhaps more important than the people. Missing is something different, he says: “Here it’s important to stay as close as possible to the two human beings and their common problem.” (Michael Wood 41)

27) I’ll tell you, if Charles Horman had really been a radical, I would have shown him as a radical. That was one of the problems we had, to portray Charles Horman exactly the way he was. But even if he had been a radical, that doesn’t give anyone the right to kill him or make him disappear. (Costa-Gavras in Crowdus 33)

28) If you think a movie can change things, you're misguided. It's insane to think a movie can change the world. I think a movie is a short moment, just a thought, like a song or a scream or something. It cannot change the world. (Costa-Gavras)