Check these Into the Woods quotes we’ve compiled for a fresh take on your favorite tales.
Into the Woods is what many would call a fractured fairy tale. This fact is precisely what makes this movie so unique. It mixes in plots from multiple stories, including Red Riding Hood, Cinderella, Rapunzel, Jack and the Beanstalk, and more!
The live-action movie was released in 2014. It stars Meryl Streep and Emily Blunt, making it a hit from the beginning! It’s an adaptation of the Broadway musical by Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine, which later had an illustrated book version, too!
Because it’s a fractured fairy tale, there is no part of Into the Woods that we can be sure of. It has many unexpected twists that’ll make you gasp! More than that, there are also many wise words we can live by.
Read on to find quotes from the movie, book, and musical!
And don’t forget to check out these The Phantom of the Opera quotes and Mamma Mia quotes.
Best Into the Woods Quotes From the Movie
1. “Isn’t it nice to know a lot and a little bit not?” – Little Red Riding Hood
2. “If life were made of moments, even now and then, a bad one. But if life were only moments, then you’d never know you had one.” – The Baker’s Wife
3. “Stay a child while you can be a child.” – The Witch
4. “My father’s house was a nightmare; your house was a dream. Now I want something in between.” – Cinderella
5. “Do not put your faith in a cape and a hood; they will not protect you the way that they should. And take extra care with strangers, even flowers have their dangers, and though scary is exciting, nice is different than good.” – Little Red Riding Hood
6. “Let the moment go. Don’t forget it for a moment, though. Just remembering you had an ‘and’ when you’re back to ‘or’ makes the ‘or’ mean more than it did before. Now I understand—and it’s time to leave the woods.” – The Baker’s Wife
7. “Careful the wish you make; wishes are children. Careful the path they take; wishes come true, not free. Careful the spell you cast, not just on children. Sometimes the spell may last past what you can see, and turn against you. Careful the tale you tell; that is the spell. Children will listen.” – The Witch
8. “You’re not good, you’re not bad, you’re just nice. I’m not good, I’m not nice, I’m just right. I’m the witch. You’re the world.” – The Witch
9. “I was raised to be charming, not sincere. I didn’t ask to be born a king, and I am not perfect. I am only human.” – Cinderella’s Prince
Into the Woods Quotes That’ll Take You Back to the Big Screen
10. “Opportunity is not a lengthy visitor.” – Cinderella
11. “Every knot was once a straight rope.” – Mysterious Man
12. “Giants don’t visit the same house twice.” – Jack’s Mother
13. “You may know what you need, but to get what you want, better see that you keep what you have.” – The Baker’s Wife
14. “If the end is right, it justifies the beans.” – The Baker’s Wife
15. “Do you know what you wish? Are you certain what you wish is what you want? If you know what you want, then make a wish.” – Cinderella’s Mother
16. “It takes care, it takes patience and fear and despair to change. Though you swear to change, who can tell if you do? It takes two.” – The Baker
17. Cinderella’s Prince: “I shall always love the maiden that ran away.”
Cinderella: “And I, the faraway Prince.”
18. Mysterious Man: “You need an objective observer to pass the story along.”
The Witch: “Some of us don’t like the way you’ve been telling it.”
19. “When first I appear, I seem mysterious, but when explained, I’m nothing serious.” – Mysterious Man
Into the Woods Quotes to Revisit the Musical and Book
20. “People make mistakes, holding to their own, thinking they’re alone.” – Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine, Composer and Playwright
21. “Sometimes people leave you halfway through the woods. Others may deceive you. You decide what’s good. You decide alone. But no one is alone.” – Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine, Composer and Playwright
22. “Best to take the moment present as a present for the moment.” – Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine, Composer and Playwright
23. “The difference between a cow and a bean is a bean can begin an adventure.” – Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine, Composer and Playwright
24. “The prettier the flower, the farther from the path.” – Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine, Composer and Playwright
25. “Though it’s fearful, though it’s deep, though it’s dark, and though you may lose the path, though you may encounter wolves, you can’t just act; you have to listen. You can’t just act, you have to think. Though it’s dark, there are always wolves, There are always spells, there are always beans, or a giant dwells there. So into the woods, you go again. You have to every now and then. Into the woods, no telling when, be ready for the journey. Into the woods, but not too fast or what you wish, you lose at last. Into the woods, but mind the past. Into the woods, but mind the future. Into the woods, but not to stray, or tempt the wolf, or steal from the giant. The way is dark, the light is dim, But now there’s you, me, her, and him. The chances look small, and the choices look grim, but everything you learn there will help when you return there. The light is getting dimmer. I think I see a glimmer. Into the woods, you have to grope, but that’s the way you learn to cope. Into the woods to find there’s hope of getting through the journey. Into the woods, each time you go, there’s more to learn of what you know. Into the woods, but not too slow. Into the woods, it’s nearing midnight. Into the woods, to mind the wolf, to heed the witch, to honor the giant. To mind, to heed, to find, to think, to teach, to join, to go to the festival! Into the woods. Into the woods. Into the woods. Then out of the woods—and happy ever after!” – Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine, Composer and Playwright
Did You Get New Insights From the Underlying Morals of Into the Woods?
Everything about Into the Woods is simply magical. It has catchy tunes, great artists, a one-of-a-kind storyline, and its own fairy-tale ending! However, more than these things, the movie symbolizes life and what we have to go through to conquer it.
The woods itself is the metaphor for life. This area is filled with lots of unknowns and many challenges, but also many sources of light. Life is very similar to this; our future is unknown, and we can face grief and loss, but we also experience lots of joy and happiness.
Also, one of the songs focuses on each character’s dreams, wishes, and goals. However, before they reach these things, they must go into the woods and face many risks. They might fall and get knocked down, but they must stand up and try again to succeed.
This is the only way we can achieve our biggest dreams. After all, life will not hand us anything we want on a silver platter. It will require us to fight for it till the very end.
So, while Into the Woods is a fun take on our classic fairy tales, let’s remember all the lessons embedded in it, too. Keep this list of quotes in your bookmarks whenever you need reminders of these life-changing morals!
