Most influential movie on your life?
 

I just finished watching the movie Se7en for the third time (no, not all of them tonight), and I think I consider it one of the most influential movies in my life. It's the sort of social commentary that many, including myself, consider Fight Club to be, and yet it's very different.

Se7en seems to focus on the moral aspects of society, and how they relate to sin. Fight Club seemed to have a more specific theme, something like "money (material wealth) isn't everything, you were born with a life, live it", while the main theme that I draw from the movie Se7en is "just because it's common (in today's society) doesn't make it right."

I believe that both of these movies have influenced my views of society, and (from how most other people refer to the movie Fight Club) I would assume that many other people have been affected by it, as well.

If you have yet to watch either Fight Club or Se7en, I highly recommend you do so soon. I will warn you that it takes quite a stomach to get through either of them, but Fight Club is a lot lighter, in my humble opinion.

I wish I had the time and energy to write an essay on this subject, it could prove very interesting, but alas, I don't (right now, anyway).

If any of you have any movies you think have had some sort of permanent effect on your life, please share them with everyone else.

The Color Purple.

It is possible to go through a living he** (I edit myself) and still come out on the other side still able to love and derive some satisfaction from the journey of life. Celie was a true survivor.

Not really a single movie, but a genre, and whether or not it's a bad influence is yet to be decided. When I was 7 my parents started taking the family to the Drive-In theaters in the area. Most of the time we went to see the Friday night dusk to dawn horror movie marathons. And that's when I started having nightmares. To this day, 4 out of 5 of my dreams are still nightmares, I just don't wake up screaming like I used to. They say that kids who watch violent shows tend to be more violent, but I don't agree with that, because I am not a violent person (well, except that I kick Eric, my Other, whenever he suggests me for a Home Depot run, but that's a Pavlovian experiment in process), as a matter of fact, I can't even smash a spider even though they scare the bejeezus out of me. And then there is my dark side (insert evil laughter here). I have a really twisted sense of humor. And my writing is highly influenced by scary things, though it's not straight out horror writing, it's got a bite to it, and tends to not be chipper and cheerful. Here's an example: 100 Words

Maybe if I had grown up Disney, I would be all sugar and spice and everything nice, but I kind of like who I am, and I still like horror movies and all that.

MissInformation

<============>
It's not that I go looking for trouble... well, okay, so I do go looking for trouble, but I don't always find it!

I understand MissInformation.
I woke up screaming for years. I found that taking martial arts classes until the moves became second nature to me was a big help. I was able to spontaneuosly fight back in my dreams. The nighmares finally went away after a couple of nights of "fighting back" in my dream life. It's done wonders.

Clockwork Orange has been the most infulential movie in my life. Err...just kidding! :D I don't have a most influential movie...I don't even have a role model.

So, you're not influenced by anything? You must be either freakishly independent (that would be amazing) or dead (that would be even more amazing since you seem to be able to manipulate something somewhere to post in the CD forum threads).

No offense Mr. ish, but you seriously frighten me sometimes.......Actually it's very entertaining. Scary though.

I've probably been influenced by movies in many, many different ways. More than I'd care to count, even, since there are so many different movies that I love, and each for some interesting reasons.

The movie, though, that had the most profound, sudden, and obvious impact on me was probably Pay It Forward. Some people love it, some hate it, but I was really, really affected by it in a way that most people can't seem to understand.

I think that it spoke volumes about our culture, maybe in the same way that people perceive Fight Club and Se7en, as well as providing a wonderful blueprint for making the world a better place.

I've seen very, very little else that was as devastating and truthful, and uplifting and refreshing at the same time. I should read the novel on which the movie was based, but I haven't found the time, and I'm not certain I can withstand the emotional upheaval right now. In fact, I've never seen the movie since that first time, either. I don't own it, even.

Wonder Boys was also excellent. In a bizarre, distorted way, it made me a lot more comfortable with all of the craziness in my life - and it gave me a bit more hope for the future. That can't be all bad, right?

My most infuential movie...
other than Fight Club and se7en...

Labyrinth, because each time I watch it, I discover something new about myself...whether it be something that reminds me of taking me away from my present or showing us how you can still have younger child aspects in your life...I dunno...Its kinda hard for me to explain everything...

Another movie is Gattica...

Gosh my list goes on...

Well...I am influenced by stuff (people) but I always considered a role model the _main_ influence. I can't say that I have a main influence. Parents, teachers, friends (haha...influence by my friends...that can't be good) are my influences. I am pretty independent though...due to being outcast in school and life untill maybe 9th grade.

And...BOO! :D

Re: Most influential movie on your life?
 

The Life Of Brian

A finer trieste of religion, politics, lost sandals, and their impact on individuals and society is hard to find. :) I consider it my ultimate guide to appropriate social behaviour.

-dave

-----------------------------------------

- There is absolutely no cannibalism in the British Navy. And when I say "none" I mean not very much. Only a little.

Teenage Munant Ninja Turtles ;)

oh, and mad props to Brandon for the cool song thing :) joy

Blade Runner - This movie has so many layers, from biblical symbolism, to concepts of reality and morality.

There are so many layer, every time I watch it, I learn something new, and what I orginally thought were inconsistances, are actually important clues to unravel a perpetual mystery of whether or not Harrison Ford is a replicant or not...

it can go both ways, and I've switched opinions several times while watching it. It is a great movie.

I also liked Black Hawk Down - i thought it was a decent replication of an outstanding book, and calls attention to an event that shaped our foreign policy for the past ten years.

Of course, that also leads me to The Abyss, which I thought was a great movie, overall. Just a good film, with a good ending, and a powerful message.

I also enjoyed Saving Private Ryan, makes you take a step back an reexamine your life - we get so caught up with things that we forget about the past. It is good to have something to remind us, even if it is a film.

Apocalyse Now is a masterpiece of film, if you havent watched it - it's a real trip, the most insane movie I have ever seen.

On a lighter note: Shrek RULES!!!!!!

Shaolin Soccer

Has there EVER been a cool soccer movie until this??

The Matrix

It's litteraly dripping with symbolism in every scene. It contains references and ideals from every major religion that exists today, from Christianity to Bhudism, and from major idea is phylosophy (Simulation and Stimulacra). The idea that there is more to life than what you see and hear every day, how limited of a perspective we really have in our lives, and what it is that we can't percieve.

Then there is the idea where "brains over braun" and "mind over matter" tend to meld together (where all the sfx come in).

Every time I watch it I just have to look around the room, and say to myself, "What is real anyway?" Any movie that can do that is just plain genius. I can't wait for the sequals (Reloaded and Revolutions), it's gonna be so awesome!!! :D:D:D

I'm gonna have to go with Oh Brother Where Art Thou? This is truly one of the best movies I've ever seen. It's truly symbolistic of man sruggle in life and nature, It was also based on the Odessy(sp?) by Homer It's a really good movie.

Full Metal Jacket, and Apocolypse Now are today, and forever will be the best movies interperting the Vietnam War.

The Adventures of PRISCILLA Queen of the Desert.
 

What a wonderful film that is! Unfortunately only ‘rocky’s horror…’ was performed in the small town in Israel where I used to live, but they did screen Priscilla few times a year. I was deeply influenced by the outfits! They are just cool.
I also liked Cube. Has a lot about society and that stuff in it.
And a French film called something like ‘life is a quiet and long river’. Unfortunately I can't remember what it is about, but I really liked it few years ago when I watched it.

The Power of One, for me. it told the story of South Africa's road to independance. it was rather graphic, but also a major tear jerker. i saw it in my freshman geography class, and i loved it. i wanted to see the whole thing without 24 hr breaks, and i also wanted my mom to see it, so i went to blockbuster and rented it. it made my geography teacher laugh when he heard i did this. heyyyy...it was really good!

Full Metal Jacket and We Were Soldiers were great Vietnam movies, showing the reality of war, along with Saving Private Ryan.

The Matrix was great also, for what Tjrage said (too lazy to type)

Grave of the Fireflies for how Japanese civilians went through in the war.

Ghost World becuase it makes me feel like there are people out there like me. ;)

Terminator 2 becuase it shows the destructive nature of humans.

And Jin-Roh cuz I like to see people get shredded up by machine gun fire. Muhahaha:D (C'mon, you gotta get that out once in a while!)

The best social commentaries I've seen (semi-influential, but I had already asked myself the questions before seeing the movies):

The Matrix: Is "reality" real? What makes something "real"? Do you exist?

Minority Report: How far is too far? How much should the government know about us? Is the future written in stone? Do our actions matter?

Gatacca: Where will science take us? How unrealistic is Huxley's Brave New World (READ THIS BOOK if you haven't already)? What will become the "poverty" of a moneyless society?

The Green Mile: What is "right"? Who gets to decide what is "right"? When is it OK to disobey orders?

one movie that i remember a lot and kind of has an impact on me is called (i think) Life is Beautiful. it's an italian movie (has subtitles) about WWII, and this italian jewish man, who marries the girl that everyone wants, and basically has a great life, until WWII starts. then he's sent to a concentration camp, with his son. then the whole time, he's trying to make it into a game, and protect his son, who was supposed to be killed cause he was too young. the mother goes to a concenration camp (i forget why) and is working and i believe finds her son's clothes, and breaks down. then, at the end right before the allies, come, the father dies, but he tells the son to go and hide, and then the allies come, and liberate the camp, and find the boy. then the boy is sitting on a tank as it's driving down the road, playing with the soldiers, and then they pass his mom on the side of the road, and then i think it ends.

yeah, it's a bunch of gibberish up there, but that movie left a lasting mark on me, and it's kind of interesting, cause i didn't even plan to watch it. i wound up walking into the den, and my dad was watching it, so i sat down and watched it.

i think i'm going to go to sleep now and stop the rambling... :p

Beautiful Mind. Some people picked up about this horrable desease and some benifets of it, but I got something else. I got something about the social structure, the education system, and living life out of it's boundaries.

Lilo & Stitch- debated about this one, but hey, Go Pleakley!

The main thing is that I'm not into movies. Never saw a Indiana Jones. Barely saw Star Wars. Only seen 3 Bonds. I'm just not a movie type of person.

Yes. That movie really opened up my eyes... the book was even better. I'd have to include The Power of One on my list of movies that have affected me.

its late so the only movie i can think of right now is a french movie amelie on tape/dvd so go rent it! I guess I can really relate because its about a girl who tries to solve everyone else's problems and makes them happy instead of worrying about herself. Even though its a comedy, there was a message that really hit me: while its good to take care of other people, it shouldn't be a substitute for dealing with your own issues.

Life is Beautiful was also good...all these foreign movies of quality!

Flubber... Definately Flubber
 

Man, flubber changed my life more than anything else... I laughed, I cried, and I found my manhood. This beautiful movie even taught me about robotics! Robin Williams poured out his soul. If you haven't seen it, you must!

Eeeek!

/me falls over backward in my chair.

Life is Beautiful was an interesting study on the true and sicere love of a father for his son. He tried to put a humorous spin on everything in that awful concentration camd so that the little boy would not despair and becoma afraid. Even as he marched to his death, he made it comical so that the boy would think it was a joke and would not realize what was going on.
His father not only sacrifced his own life to distract the guards away from his son, but he attempted to save the boy's sanity by hiding the truth from him of what was really about to happen. That way the boy could function well enough to survive and escape.
I believe it is the director's own story. He played his own father in the film if my information is correct.

Star Wars, followed closely by the matrix. The force and the Jedi order are more than concepts spewed by the brilliant mind of Lucas, but a way of life. The universal concepts of good vs. evil are explored in ways of which I find new meaning in every time I watch each movie (with the exception of Episode I, since the primary movies known as "Star Wars" had been long since established with this tradition). Anyway, the Star Wars trilogy stands as the most influential movie/movie series in my life, followed closely by the Matrix, and Disney's The Lion King.

all i can say is.....















COMMANDO!!!

best arnold schwartzeneger movie ever!!!


Badjokeguy

Re: Most influential movie on your life?
 

Yup I agree. The matrix trilogy influenced me more than probably anything has (as far as philosophy and view of life). I would say the second movie with the "causality" discussion was the most influential on me. My english teacher doesn't like the movie because he "doesn't understand it", but yet he introduced us to Plato's allegory of the cave and Brave New World. I recommend everyone read the allegory of the cave, Brave New World, and Descartes' meditations (probably what the wachowski brothers got most of their influence from to make the matrix).

Re: Most influential movie on your life?
 

Nothing like bringing back a 2.5 year old thread!!!

Anyway, back to topic,.....

Shawshank Redemption - I think that the closing lines pretty much wraps it up...

"I find I am so excited I can barely sit still or hold a thought in my head. I think it's the excitement only a free man can feel, a free man at the start of a long journey whose conclusion is uncertain. 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."

Re: Most influential movie on your life?
 

Brings back some good memories (of the movie).

Beautiful mind has been most influential on me. The first time I saw it, I actually missed all of John Nash's cockiness (because I didn't watch the movie in it's entirety). Since then, I've watched over and over and over and I pseudo-tear when everybody walks up and gives Nash pens.

Re: Most influential movie on your life?
 

Here's a few I used to like:

Fearless - Jeff Bridges survives a plane crash and see's life without it's hindrances. It really made me think about risk and lifes hangups etc.

True Romance - a Tarentino movie. Generally I think this guys stuff is too far over the top. I also never liked Christian Slater. But this was a first of it's kind I guess. I thought it was the greatest movie ever after the first time. But then I watched it again a year or so ago, and now it's just OK.

Then the usual top guy movies:
Saving private Ryan - An awesome depiction of the sacrifices made.
Matrix - just a really cool movie. I bought these movies along with my first DVD player and just about burnt a hole in them with the laser.

Also There's something about Mary - I love slapstick, I'm glad somebody out there still makes it.

When I was younger it was Superman, Starwars, Caddy shack, Meatballs and Airplane

Re: Most influential movie on your life?
 

Million Dollar Baby has been a great influential movie on my life and on other people that are in sports with me etc that have seen it. I also think that Legally Blonde and Blue Crush are very influential on my life too. yes there all like chick flicks but i think those movies have all the same moral or just a great moral to it.

Re: Most influential movie on your life?
 

Lord of the Rings.

The picture itself is unparalleled, but whats even more amazing is that the guy who directed it was making splatter films(really really really bad movies) all his life before this. I'm just astounded that Peter Jackson can pull something like this off. It really makes you think what a bit of passion and perseverance can do.

Re: Most influential movie on your life?
 

Friday night lights is my influentail movie...

Its such a great movie because it depicts the thrill of winning and the agony of defeat. But in the end, the greatest award of all is the notion that you came out of it stronger and ready for the next hurdle life throws at you. We all dont win "state championship" but when you come out of it stronger, you have won all the respect in yourself you need

Re: Most influential movie on your life?
 

The Corporation

Noam Chomsky and the Media

Re: Most influential movie on your life?
 

Garden State and the original Star Wars Trilogy changed my life forever.

Re: Most influential movie on your life?
 

SLC PUNK it is shows how someone can grow up no matter what they were like as a teenager/young adult. And that not all punks are stupid.

Re: Most influential movie on your life?
 

The Color of Friendship--yes, I know it's a Disney movie, but it opened my eyes and made me look outside of the plastic bubble I had sort of been living in and made things real for me. Now, I look at events that occur in other countries and hope to focus on that in my reporting.

And yes, I'm really going to say it

Legally Blonde--There was a lot of junk in this movie, that I'll admit. But what made a difference to me was the message behind it. A pretty face who was intellegent and forced people to accept her as an equal, while still keeping her femininity and personality. You can have your cake and eat it too. :D

Re: Most influential movie on your life?
 

Identity: about multiple personality disorders I really really liked it and I opened my eyes up that there are people that existl like that.

Re: Most influential movie on your life?
 

Apocalypse Now.

I am trying to base my entire life on the philosophy of Colonel Kurtz.

Thank you.

Re: Most influential movie on your life?
 

Re: Most influential movie on your life?
 

Haha, yea, that chomsky sure is good at hating America and complaining about elitsts while being one himself.

Re: Most influential movie on your life?
 

Ferris Bueler's day off. The standard guide to enjoying highschool and how to skip school successfully. It reminds me alot when I watch it that I still can have fun amoungst the dreads of High school.

Re: Most influential movie on your life?
 

Ive thought about this all day on and off before replying.

Most movies are fiction, made up stories. In that catigory I cant think of a single one that had any real effect on my life. You cant base your life on fiction, because the situations and results are contrived for entertainment purposes, and they do not correlate to reality.

But there have been several excellent movies that were more or less documentaries, and some of these have affected me deeply:

Private Ryan is said to be an accurate protrayal of what it was like to be a soldier in WW2. My father was in Pattons 3rd army, and fought in the battle of the buldge. He never talked about it much, and when he did it upset him deeply. I gained a lot of insite into my father's life after seeing Saving Private Ryan.

In a similar way the movie Gettysburg portrayed the insanity of the civil war. Ive been to the town recently, and its very depressing to contemplate the loss of life that happened there in only 3 days, and to come to terms with the war as a whole. I know we say now the war freed the slaves and saved the union, but I think we could have accomplished those things without hundreds of thousands of americans blasting each other into hamburger with grape-shot from cannons, musket balls, and hacking each other to death with bayonets and swords.

The movies Apollo 13 and The Right Stuff gave a wonderfull insite into the lives of the people who made our space program possible, and gave me great inspiration as an engineer.

And I have to include Shindler's List. We dont like to face the dark side of our human nature, but its there. If we dont accept who we are as a species, we will continue to repeat the horrors of our history.

Re: Most influential movie on your life?
 

Battle Royale, its pretty sad and kinda cheesy, but really good

Re: Most influential movie on your life?
 

Philadelphia,The Girl in the Cafe',Coach Carter, There is plenty more but cant think right now

Re: Most influential movie on your life?
 

I'd have to say Equilibrium and The Boondock Saints (bonus points if anyone's actually seen Boondock Saints!). Both make comments on society, Equilibrium on -- at least as I see it -- conformity, government, and control; Boondock Saints on morality. I know Donnie Darko is profound on some level, just I haven't figured it out yet.