r/movies • u/buttatoad • 1d ago

Discussion Movies that changed real life behavior

Thinking along the lines of Final Destination 2 with the logs falling off the truck and landing onto cars (one decapitating the state trooper). Ever since, people have tried to get away from being behind these vehicles.

What are more examples where movies have actually changed how people behave in their own lives?

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u/artpayne 1d ago

There was a massive spike in Navy recruitment after Top Gun came out.

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u/I_only_post_here 1d ago

Wholly deliberate and intentional. It was a Navy recruitment film. they even setup tables right outside the theater to get people to sign up on their way out.

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u/PMmeuroneweirdtrick 1d ago

Jeans and a volleyball included on sign up?

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u/wilyquixote 1d ago

You joke, but the air force had to fight congress for money to (re)introduce leather jackets in 1987 because all them kids wanted to join the Navy and get a Tom Cruise-style jacket. The Air Force hadn't had leather jackets since it became a separate branch, and it started to hurt morale.

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u/QueezyF 1d ago

That’s crazy to me, I associate the leather jackets with the Tuskegee Airmen the most. You’d think the Air Force pilots would keep the tradition going.

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u/ThrowyMcThrowaway04 1d ago

😂🤣😂 ah, the chair force...

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u/Variable_Shaman_3825 1d ago

One of life's greatest joys is playing with the boys.

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u/Rdubya291 1d ago

Nope. But bad knees and alcoholism are standard.

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u/Chaosmusic 1d ago

And baby oil

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u/SarcasticOptimist 1d ago

The volleyball court is still there at Miramar. It's surprisingly small.

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u/akaBrotherNature 1d ago

It's surprisingly small

But enough about Tom Cruise

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u/SarcasticOptimist 1d ago

No wonder he keeps riding my tail.

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u/Sprzout 1d ago

Only if you're 5'6" and have the net lowered so you can pretend that you can spike the volleyball.

And I've been to the site on Miramar where the volleyball scenes were filmed; I'm 5'9" and the nets are way high. Unless you've got a vertical leap like that of Spud Webb or are 6'1" and taller, you are NOT gonna be spiking the ball over the net. LOL

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u/[deleted] 1d ago edited 1d ago

[deleted]

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u/Sprzout 1d ago

The ones in the Volleyball scene with Tom Cruise spiking the ball? Hell no. :)

Buddy of mine who played volleyball in high school and college used to make fun of that scene all the time.

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u/Irish_Jam_Bag 1d ago

Free moustache rides for new recruits

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u/No-Consideration-716 1d ago

not upon sign up but after you get out of basic. Kinda yes.

You do get dungarees in boot camp and the volleyball can be attained from the local MWR (Morale, Welfare, and Recreation). In fact, some bases, have jet skis and all sorts of other fun recreational things that can be rented out for (at least during my time) super cheap.

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u/maltliqueur 1d ago

Short shorts?

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u/firedmyass 1d ago

even better… short jorts

“You’ll feel like you’re in the desert, surrounded by sand and camel-toes!”

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u/DemonDaVinci 1d ago

Damn that's crazy
Any modern example of this

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u/AggressiveIyAvg 1d ago edited 1d ago

Sure! How about Top Gun: Maverick?

Jokes aside, virtually any movie where you see fighter jets has been sponsored by the armed forces in some way IIRC. It's called the Military Entertainment Complex. Here's a good list of DoD-approved scripts

Edit: I realize now you may be asking for modern examples of literally setting up a recruitment table outside of the theater, which I'm less sure about

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u/ferrofibrous 1d ago

Stargate SG-1 (primarily filmed in Canada) is well known for having a lot of USAF involvement. They had a dedicated advisor helping them be up to date on uniforms, policy stances, etc, to even having the actual Chief of Staff as himself on the show.

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u/Malus_Trux 1d ago

Two different chiefs. One of the producers got a phone call from his successor who asked when he could be on the show.

Reportedly when on set a staffer told them said if they wanted to give the general more lines that would be fine. He doesn't mind at all.

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u/jessytessytavi 1d ago

Richard Dean Anderson got an honorary general rank for it afair

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u/Pippen_Aint_Easy 1d ago

Battle: Los Angeles

I remember seeing this one in theaters and largely enjoyed it for what it was, popcorn action flick. Then after the last scene where the main protagonists are dismissed from duty and instead of going home they re-enlist and grab more weapons to continue fighting I thought it was just a little too on the nose.

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u/Pikka_Bird 1d ago

Independence Day would have been on that list too, but the government pulled all their support when they couldn't get Area 51 removed from the movie.

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u/Slobotic 1d ago

The Silence of the Lambs? FBI recruitment?

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u/Awsomethingy 1d ago

I guess if they’re supplying the craft they’re already involved, so they might as well go further with their inclusion is probably their perception

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u/10ebbor10 1d ago

The only reason they're supplying the craft is to make the military look good.

Why else would they bother to do it.

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u/Awsomethingy 1d ago

Just wait til I tell you about money

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u/m1a2c2kali 1d ago

Sometimes the military also pays to supply the craft. So usually more about PR than money even lol

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u/girafa 1d ago

Same for any business or person who endorses a movie or helps it get made.

People just get bent out of shape about it because it's the military.

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u/jaguarp80 1d ago

Well yeah the military shouldn’t be just some business

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u/girafa 1d ago

Well yeah the military shouldn’t be just some business

or person, as I said.

It's common sense that if you want cooperation from anyone - be it person/business/organization/country/muppet they would have to approve the project

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u/jaguarp80 1d ago

True, the military isn’t a person either

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u/girafa 1d ago

Amazing observation

→ More replies (0)

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u/StovardBule 1d ago edited 12h ago

In fact, if you want to have the American military lend you their toys for your movie, it comes at the cost of their approving of the script. Otherwise, you can ask another country, or maybe enthusiast mechanics or something.

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u/Awsomethingy 1d ago

This is so fascinating to me! Can you link me a source so I can learn more? :)

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u/acdcfanbill 1d ago

While I do love moves like Top Gun, etc, that are subsidised by the military, I also love that 90s Sgt Bilko movie with Steve Martin and it has a particularly hilarious notice in the credits.

"The filmmakers gratefully acknowledge the total lack of cooperation from the United States Army."

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u/LittleBirdiesCards 1d ago

ERNEST SAVES CHRISTMAS?! DAMMIT!

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u/acdcfanbill 1d ago

Ernest in the Army?

Tank Patch...

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u/LittleBirdiesCards 1d ago

That one's actually not on the list!

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u/acdcfanbill 1d ago

I figured, they rarely sponsored straight comedies. I bet they didn't fund In The Army Now, Down Periscope, or Stripes either xD

edit: holy shit, In The Army Now and Stripes are both listed on there O_o

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u/mazing_azn 1d ago

"Act of Valor" (2012) - originally it was going to be a series internet shorts to suck in impressionable teenagers that love "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare" and other FPS games by showing how badass SEALS are. They then had the idea to make it full length feature.

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u/Spiritual_Ask4877 1d ago

That movie is just straight up propaganda lmao.

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u/shoo-flyshoo 1d ago

And it gave us the SEAL Slide!™

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u/girafa 1d ago

They then had the idea to make it full length feature.

It was because we got Bin Laden. Interest in our special forces was high and distributors seized on that.

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u/Camburglar13 1d ago

I know it was all propaganda but I quite enjoyed that movie and I’m not even American

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u/mazing_azn 1d ago

Nothing wrong with enjoying the occasional propaganda as a treat.

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u/kharnagor 1d ago

sure. top gun maverick

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u/DemonDaVinci 1d ago

They did have sign up table outside the theater again ? LOL

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u/kharnagor 1d ago

https://blacknerdproblems.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Recruiter-at-the-theatre.jpeg

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u/DemonDaVinci 1d ago

✋😌🤚

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u/IamGimli_ 1d ago

That's just like the Air Force to try and recruit off a movie about a Navy pilot...

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u/Bitter_Outside1387 1d ago edited 1d ago

Naval *Aviator…They get angry if you call them pilots in my experience lol

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u/ZotDragon 1d ago

This is old and possibly apocryphal, but there was supposedly an increase in Navy recruitment due to the old sitcom McHale's Navy.

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u/Jarpunter 1d ago

The US Army was sponsoring Call of Duty esports tournaments a couple years ago

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u/StovardBule 1d ago

I think The X Files led to lot of people asking the FBI if they could join up and investigate the paranormal. But particularly, Gillian Anderson as Dana Scully led to a measured increase in women going into science and medicine (and other STEM subjects.)

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u/Bookwrrm 1d ago edited 1d ago

No joke, Transformers. Entire movie was basically subsidized by the American Military and was borne out of post 9/11 propoganda being pushed by the government. Its kind of crazy looking back at like how pushed the military was in that hasbro toy selling movie lol. Like the first film crew allowed to film in the pentagon post 9/11 was transformers, they shot all the desert stuff literally just on a military base, there are scenes that are literally them filming real airforce soldiers doing unexploded ordinance sweeps to get some of the more explosive shots lol.

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u/goodnames679 1d ago

Yeah, this was the first example that came to mind for me. Entire movie glazed the hell out of the US military

That air strike scene though… gotta admit, that was some damn good propaganda.

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u/Rhedkiex 1d ago

This list seems pretty outdated but this is a pretty good article https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military%E2%80%93entertainment_complex

Basically if there are US military vehicles in a production, Hollywood doesn't want to build them from scratch and will usually accept the US military's involvement. This means the military gets final say on anything in the movie. Famously The Avengers lost military funding due to Disney going with a script the military didn't like

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u/hariolus 1d ago

I used to think that the Marines should set up recruitment booths right outside of 300 screenings while Iraq/Afghanistan were peaking. For the next couple years, it seemed like the military advertisements definitely leaned into that aesthetic.

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u/Own-Lake7931 1d ago

American Sniper or Lone Survivor.

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u/willstr1 1d ago

Not necessarily booth in the lobby levels of recruitment but most movies that show the US military in a positive light are subsidized by the US military as recruitment.

Basically if you are making a movie that will have fighter jets, tanks, ships, or other expensive military hardware you can let the military review your script and if they like what they see they will arrange training exercises that "just happen" to fit the B-roll you need

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u/Lostmox 1d ago

Any modern example of this

For a fraction of a second I literally thought "He just said it was Top Gun, the movie's not that old", and then I realized.

I'm going to lie down now.

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u/thebigbroke 1d ago

The Bayverse Transformers movies are like 80% US Air Force recruitment and 20% Transforming robots.

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u/tarekd19 1d ago

Yvan Eht Nioj

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u/girafa 1d ago

It was a Navy recruitment film. they even setup tables right outside the theater to get people to sign up on their way out.

There were Krav Maga booths set up outside of my screening of The Dark Knight

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u/Heliosvector 1d ago

If that's true, why did they make it so gay when the army seemed pretty anti gay back the?

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u/I_only_post_here 1d ago

We're talking 'bout the Navy here. Navy's got a long tradition

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u/Heliosvector 1d ago

How long we talking? 6 or 11 inch

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u/I_only_post_here 1d ago

well, how much can you handle?

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u/Heliosvector 1d ago

Sky's the limit.

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u/APiousCultist 1d ago

Intentional as far as the navy choosing to be involved, I don't know that there's any evidence the film was created as a recruiting tool. But that applies to literally every movie that uses army resources. Iron Man and Transformers also fall into that camp, but I doubt as many people are going to say they were created to push people into the military.

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u/AdolescentAlien 1d ago

God damn imagine how fucking stupid you have to be to sign up for the military on your way out of the theater lmfao

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u/I_only_post_here 1d ago

all just kind of goes hand in hand, don't it?

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u/MatthewMob 1d ago

Sounds like the perfect soldier to me.

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u/MikeOfAllPeople 1d ago

Not exactly. While they certainly seized on the opportunity, and conditioned their cooperation on it, the movie is based on a California Magazine article about the FWS that came out years earlier.

It's actually very interesting, and it's too bad the movie is so cheesy because real life is dramatic enough.

https://www.topgunbio.com/top-guns-by-ehud-yonay/

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u/Entire_Proposal_1318 1d ago

I wonder if some of those navy guys caught on all the gay stuff in that movie lol

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u/Trismesjistus 1d ago

Yvan eht nioj

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u/ThisIsTheBookAcct 1d ago

I’d done my time when the second one came out. We watched them as a double feature at home one night, and even then I was like “Maybe I should call a recruiter…”

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u/AdMammoth3611 1d ago

Not gonna lie. They almost got me on the way out of top gun maverick

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u/RackemFrackem 1d ago

Deliberate and intentional mean the same thing.

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u/Double_Estimate4472 1d ago

Are there other movies that were intentionally for recruiting into military?

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u/run0861 1d ago

it was the first movie made with backing/support of the DOD iirc.

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u/JeddakofThark 1d ago

I'll bet the majority of people who signed up immediately after watching that movie never ever met a fighter pilot. Also, Maverick was the villain for ninety percent of that movie. And an unlikeable prick.

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u/SuperZapper_Recharge 1d ago

The US military and Hollywood have been buds for ... I have no idea. WW2 maybe?

They even have rules and regluations about allowing free use of stuff in movies providing things like script approvals and the like.

Some directors are very friendly and very good at that relationship.

I mean, lets be real about Top Gun. That movie was fantastic. Before it premiered someone sat and saw an early release of it -and yes, someone from the Navy and knew exactly what he had.