Not "changed your life" in a dramatic way. More like you watched it and something shifted. The way you see people, the way you think about something, the way you feel about a specific part of your life. Could be subtle, could be massive. You just know you weren't exactly the same person after watching it. What movie did that for you and what did it change?
The combination of 1999's Fight Club + American Beauty unlocked a "who cares what people think?" side in teenage me.
1
DogloksApr 1, 2026
+1
Add on the Matrix to this.
1
mikendrixApr 1, 2026
+1
"The things you own end up owning you"
1
sunoukongApr 1, 2026
+1
The movie has a very powerful anticonsumerist message.
1
skydivingdutchApr 1, 2026
+1
Listening to The Offspring did that for me.
1
tribe_c_quest22Apr 1, 2026
+1
Love this
1
previousinnovationApr 1, 2026
+1
Arrival, specifically by getting me to ask myself if I would choose to have a child that I knew would die of cancer. I'm still not sure that I would, but just wrestling with the question changed my perspective on life a bit. I think existence is immeasurably valuable. Comparing life to nonexistence is like comparing 1 and 0 - they are different in kind, not degree.
And besides, none of us are getting out of here alive anyway.
1
morphindelApr 1, 2026
+1
Arrival was definitely one that came to mind for me, too
1
Vives_solo_una_vezApr 1, 2026
+1
My wife and I watched it again last night. Neither of us had seen it since it came out (hadn't started dating let alone had kids yet). She gave me shit for wanting to watching saying she thought it was boring...was crying by the end. It's crazy how much having kids can change your view of a piece of media.
Obviously the pain of losing a loved one, especially a child, would be awful but all the moments you share with them before that are incredible. I would never choose to know when anyone I loved died but it wouldn't make me love them any less.
1
AndNowAStoryAboutMeApr 1, 2026
+1
I raised a very troubled neighbor from 11 to 16 and it ended when he decided drugs, theft, and his shitty friends were the way to go. When he tried to swing on me, I told him, "I've been there for you as much as any neighbor possibly could but this moment just makes you a criminal and me the random stranger you attacked." I moved after that. He hasn't said a word or texted, haven't heard from his legal guardian (his parents are dead criminal drug addicts with robbery and gun convictions), in half a year. I think about this a lot, about how much I cherish those good times and the dent I made, how painful it is to see him follow his doomed destiny instead of choosing a different kind of life.
If he survives into his 20s, I expect him to try to find me. But it will definitely be too late and I won't allow someone I can't trust into my life. So it was a rough f****** choice to walk away forever, knowing that for me it will most definitely be forever, though he probably never considered that I would actually go and will just chalk me up to some weird abandonment trope he keeps putting himself through thanks to his shitty birthgivers.
1
BigEarsNYApr 1, 2026
+1
Same. The whole "there is no time" concept still stops me in my tracks.
1
Routine_Condition273Apr 1, 2026
+1
For me it's Arrival too, but for a different reason. I thought about how some things that are benevolent could appear terrifying.
1
mandu_xiiiApr 1, 2026
+1
Contact.
Im an athiest, and had a genrally dim view of religious folks.
In Contact, theres a scene where Jodie Fosters Character is rejected as the person to make first contact with aliens. The reason given is "why would we send someone who genuinely believes 80 percent of the world is delusional"
I still don't believe in a god, but that is a fantastic point that has stuck with me. I am not representative of the human race in general, whether im right or not.
1
caprica6ixxApr 1, 2026
+1
The Big Short. I sat in my car for like ten minutes after leaving the theatre just thinking about how a small group of shitty people were able to impact the life trajectories of my entire generation with their selfish actions.
1
samo_flangeApr 1, 2026
+1
And still are!
1
Comfortable_File7968Apr 1, 2026
+1
Train Dream. Settled me and gave me perspective on what it is to live a whole, full life.
1
picnic-boyApr 1, 2026
+1
Soul (2020) changed how I think about purpose in life. I saw it after I had just been arbitrarily laid off from my dream job and that movie was what got me over it.
1
Healthy_Operation327Apr 1, 2026
+1
Second this. This movie got me through something very traumatic and changed the way I view life.
1
RealCarlosSaganApr 1, 2026
+1
Chef made me try a Cubano sandwich and it's now a top three sandwich for me.
1
[deleted]Apr 1, 2026
+1
[deleted]
1
DerelictDonkeyEngineApr 1, 2026
+1
I was about to respond with this as well. Along with The Motorcycle Diaries, they made me more curious about the world and instilled a desire to travel more.
1
[deleted]Apr 1, 2026
+1
[deleted]
1
DerelictDonkeyEngineApr 1, 2026
+1
I happened to see it my freshman year of college, and took a multi leg bus route to see it in the only theater in the area that was showing it.
Definitely not the same thing, but it made an impression on my 18 year old self that's stuck with me.
1
girafaApr 1, 2026
+1
Watching the homeless man shave in Amores Perros taught me that it's easier to get the neck by stroking upward, not downward.
1
OenonautApr 1, 2026
+1
If you’re not prone to ingrown hairs, this is the way
1
el_crapuloApr 1, 2026
+1
The Blues Brothers. I saw it when I was 9 and I so wanted to make music like that. Got my first guitar soon after that.
1
hellodynamiteApr 1, 2026
+1
Still in my opinion the greatest musical ever produced by Hollywood
1
SirRavenNekrosApr 1, 2026
+1
Everything Everywhere All at Once
I have encountered the philosophy before, so it wasn't precisely new. The unique representation, however, which acted to reframe the banal and ordinary into something valuable and worthwhile when experienced with those you love, helped to recontextualize my own growing boredom. At the start I was totally sympathetic to Evelyn's plight, but by the end I saw things more through Waymond's eyes, and that was incredible.
1
ImLazyWithUsernamesApr 1, 2026
+1
I was tripping balls on acid when I watched it for the first time so it definitely changed something in me.
1
towcarApr 1, 2026
+1
SLC Punk
1
tribe_c_quest22Apr 1, 2026
+1
Same
1
siriansageApr 1, 2026
+1
It’s not a silver record, it’s a ✨LASERDISC✨
1
OpeningCheck6726Apr 1, 2026
+1
AKIRA , I still don't know why
1
RichieNRichApr 1, 2026
+1
Not a movie, but a TV series. Definitely worth watching!
Star Wars Andor! This isn't your father's Star Wars.
1
PippyHooliganApr 1, 2026
+1
Threads.
You're not a strong, tough, independent libertarian type. That's an illusion. When the chips are down you're just as beholden to the complex and fragile systems of infrastructure as everyone else. So be nice and care about society as a whole.
1
mikendrixApr 1, 2026
+1
Fight Club
1
LongPongJohnstonApr 1, 2026
+1
1 saw this for the first time at the end of a winter working in a bar in London, it mode me reflect on my decisions in life that far. I went home and changed my direction in life. Years later my sister found my travel journal and after reading that entry said it changed her view of me as a person and bought us together as friends rather just siblings. Can't wait for the 4k release!
1
Healthy_Operation327Apr 1, 2026
+1
Train Dreams and Aftersun
1
mediocretentApr 1, 2026
+1
Train Dreams caught me at the right time in my life. Where I was struggling with optimization and the success it comes with while trying to also slow down. It helped me slow down
1
gamersecret2Apr 1, 2026
+1
About Time did that for me. Under all the romance and time travel stuff, it really changed how I look at ordinary days. It made me appreciate boring little moments a lot more.
1
lookyloolookingatyouApr 1, 2026
+1
I used to be way overfamiliar with the customers who came into the small town Subway I worked at in my twenties. Not super major just like, if I saw a regular on the street I’d stop for a quick chit chat or I’d remember things that people said and bring it up the next time they came in or if someone was wearing a shirt with a show that I liked I’d try to get a conversation going about it and would make that “our thing” to talk about when they came in.
I wouldn’t say I considered these people my friends but I felt like I was making real connections and had a place in the community, even if it was just the “funny sandwich guy” (which is how I saw myself).
One day the movie One Hour Photo came on cable while I was really, really stoned. I was so embarrassed afterwards that I quit my job, left town, and moved back in with my parents.
1
GregTrumboldApr 1, 2026
+1
Dead Poets Society. Hit me at just the right time in my life.
1
summit-or-nuffinApr 1, 2026
+1
Quadrophenia
1
RohmlApr 1, 2026
+1
Glass.
It made me realize, as a viewer, we are there just to view the art... We can criticize it as much as we want, but the artists' vision will come first. So we either embrace the artwork or leave it behind, but no amount of "hate" we can fling at it will change it (nor should it) since it is already made.
1
HArikafulaApr 1, 2026
+1
Amélie - great soundtrack and a hommage to the beauty of the little things in life.
1
RowfApr 1, 2026
+1
My Life (1994). Saw it while I was too poor to afford a plane ticket back home when my dad had major cardiovascular surgery. It really brought into focus how we can take our lives and the people around us for granted. My dad came out of the surgery fine, but I knew I didn’t want to live 3,000 miles away and only see family every couple years.
1
zowietremendouslyApr 1, 2026
+1
People will still claim to this day that Idiocracy isn't a documentary. The entire movie is the rise of the maga party. We actually live in a worse time than Idiocracy. At least the president in Idiocracy actually cared about helping the American people.
1
BromogeeksualApr 1, 2026
+1
Go away, I'm batin!
1
Square-Fox-2948Apr 1, 2026
+1
The Peanut Butter Falcon
1
Ok_Doughnut549Apr 1, 2026
+1
The Iron Claw. I don’t know what it did but death felt all that more real because of that movie…
1
Moppo_Apr 1, 2026
+1
I'm glad I Googled that, because I could've sworn that was the name of that B-movie about the titanic bird attacking planes, but now your comment makes more sense.
1
PleasantThoughtsApr 1, 2026
+1
50/50 made me re-evaluate my friendships. How would the people in my life react to something like cancer happening so suddenly? How would I react if it happened to a friend? It felt so real in a way that's kind of hard to explain, like everyone in the movie was someone who thought "oh this kinda thing doesn't happen to somebody I know". Made me work to be a little more empathetic in my day to day.
1
Salt-Insurance9136Apr 1, 2026
+1
Hellraiser....sex.....
1
tisdueApr 1, 2026
+1
That movie is absolute art.
1
jordanjohnston2017Apr 1, 2026
+1
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. Watched it before my first trip outside the contiguous US and made me not only want to explore and experience the world but realize you should enjoy these moments instead of pulling out your camera to snap a photo
1
zkemp08Apr 1, 2026
+1
If you could see your whole life from start to finish, would you change things?
1
AccidentalMechanicApr 1, 2026
+1
Watched both Memento and Fight Club back to back, for the first time, during the pandemic, that kinda messed me up a little
1
Jebus-XmasApr 1, 2026
+1
American Beauty, Blade Runner, Parenthood. Three completely different film at three different parts of my life that just wrecked me.
1
TheOfficeoholicApr 1, 2026
+1
- The Matrix
- Dog Day Afternoon
- Full Metal Jacket
- Falling Down
1
Autogen84Apr 1, 2026
+1
Asteroid City.
1
tisdueApr 1, 2026
+1
Care to elaborate?
1
Autogen84Apr 1, 2026
+1
I think I'd struggle to put it in to words, I enjoyed the blurred boundaries between film, play, narrative and the actors playing the part and inhabiting the roles. Perhaps it was where my head was at, at the time, but it resonated with identity and ego, and choosing to relinquish control (or accepting that we have little control) and finding balance. I found it to be very introspective without being too self indulgent.
1
Patof888Apr 1, 2026
+1
The movie Lili, 1953. Yes I'm that old. The movie defined what Love could be and I wanted that. And you know, Mel Ferrer...
1
jmencelApr 1, 2026
+1
The 2021 Dune movie kicked off a love of reading for me. I read quite a bit as a kid, but hadn’t read for fun in a long time. After seeing the movie I wanted to know more about that world, so I read several of the dune books, and then wanting to know what’s out there I started reading some of the other sci fi greats. Now I read every day as my primary form of entertainment and get through a new book every week. Shifting from doomscrolling to reading has had a huge impact on my attention span and overall wellbeing. So while it wasn’t exactly something specific about the movie it sparked an interest that has stuck with me
1
DerelictDonkeyEngineApr 1, 2026
+1
That's awesome. Dune was one of the first books that made my younger self actually stop and think.
1
xRoyalewithCheeseApr 1, 2026
+1
The Whale
1
tribe_c_quest22Apr 1, 2026
+1
"I'm Thinking of Ending Things" Motivated me to step out of my comfort zone and take more chances. Honestly a better person from watching that movie.
1
MEDIATIMApr 1, 2026
+1
First Reformed
1
DaftpoolApr 1, 2026
+1
Perfect Days (2023)
1
maxpgotzApr 1, 2026
+1
About Time... the secret told by Bill Nighy.
1
Ok_Letterhead7661Apr 1, 2026
+1
Happens quite often. Most recently - Avatar 3. Realized we have a deeper connection to nature that we take for granted. It also somehow helped me realize that I push my emotions aside and try to only logically think things through, which isn't exactly healthy.
1
morphindelApr 1, 2026
+1
I think there are 2 that i can honestly say changed me.
The first was Chain Reaction with Keanu Reeves - because it was the first film i ever saw that i didn't actually like. That was when i went from watching films as a kid and just being happy to have something on, to genuinely just thinking "i am not enjoying this".
Second one that comes to mind is 8mm. It made me sick to my stomach and i guess kind of opened my eyes to things that happen in the dark side of society. The type of things that are so fucked up and evil that i couldn't even have imagined them happening. (I believe the sequel is called The Epstein Files).
1
CulturalDefinition27Apr 1, 2026
+1
Yes Man. I was in a really sad place after a break up and shut my self off from the world, and I realized my life wouldn't change unless I started saying yes to opportunities and putting myself in new situations, as uncomfortable as they might be. I'd look at things in two perspectives, what would be the worst case scenario, in that it would be id probably hate it and wouldn't do it again, lesson learned. Best case I love it and meet cool people, and it almost always worked out. I never did anything dangerous, but I tried new things, and was usually solo when I did. I recommend it to people all the time to just try saying yes to something different when an opportunity presents itself and see what happens, change can be good. I still watch that movie as a pick me up and remind myself to take chances when im in a rut.
1
futureformerteacherApr 1, 2026
+1
Death of Stalin got me really interested in Soviet history.
It's bad. Real bad.
1
AltDaddyApr 1, 2026
+1
All of Us Strangers... it was like therapy for the pain of loneliness and trauma. Beautiful, if heartbreaking film.
1
alwaysinstarlightApr 1, 2026
+1
Natural Born Killers and Fight Club both shifted how I viewed other people's view of the world. Essentially they both made me realize that there are people out there who see the world in a way wildly different from what I see, but in a way that makes sense to them based on their background, perceptions, experiences. I knew other people were different from me, but before that I didn't really think about how people GOT to that point. Both films also made me realize the potential my own experiences had to limit me, or not, depending on how I chose to view them in the greater narrative of my life.
1
tartaros94Apr 1, 2026
+1
The Matrix. I watch it every year, and I discover new meanings and interpretations in it every single time.
1
tisdueApr 1, 2026
+1
They even fed more into all that in the 2nd one, which i initially loved. Then it all ended being kind of a nothing burger.
1
JimmyB2016Apr 1, 2026
+1
Zone of Interest
1
Rexoc40Apr 1, 2026
+1
Cinema Paradiso. I will not elaborate, anyone that doesn’t understand needs to watch it.
1
WasteCalligrapher891Apr 1, 2026
+1
Requiem for a Dream. Watched it as a teenager, horrified and scared the shit out of me to ever try drugs in my life. Watched it only once, almost 20 years ago, still remember the how I’ve felt after it.
1
ZipzorpzapApr 1, 2026
+1
Office Space. I watched it the first time during its release and loved it but I was a teenager. Re-watching it in my mid-30s while being extremely stressed out over my corporate office job hit very different and was the catalyst for me to quit my job. I now look beyond job title and salary and focus on things that facilitates my actual life with family, friends and my own well being. It was a MASSIVE shift. Thank you Mike Judge!
1
DarkNafs83Apr 1, 2026
+1
fight club... we need a revolution to win our war.... situation is getting worse day by day. rich are getting richer all the rest poorer. the system is broken
1
Hyperdyne-120-A2Apr 1, 2026
+1
Terminator 2: Judgement Day.
It was my birthday, I received a p****** copy in August 1992 in Saudi Arabia and it altered my mind and my life.
I didn’t fully understand everything but, at the same time, I did. California had a lot of American compounds that were similar in architecture. California was a desert, big trucks and motorcycles were my dad’s thing. My dad even looked like Arnold, though not a body builder. The gulf war forced us to evacuate so I knew how adults behaved around war.
The p****** copy didn’t last long as a result. Felt like film made just for me.
I’ve gone back to the film every year and made it a routine to rewatch it. That film has always been a bedrock in my life, a connection to a time that’s very acute. It inspired my career choices and aspects of my education and most of my true friends had the same shared connection through the film.
From a technical standpoint it’s a masterclass in storytelling, a visual spectacular and a technical achievement so high it’s still uncanny.
I was awestruck as a 7 year old, I remain so as a soon to be 40 year old.
Hasta la vista, baby!
1
Cordova-StumpApr 1, 2026
+1
Schindler's List
1
No_transistoryApr 1, 2026
+1
Gattaca.
1
TheMelvins66Apr 1, 2026
+1
The movie Rudy convinced me I had what it took to be a below average 40yr old bowler.
1
AndNowAStoryAboutMeApr 1, 2026
+1
I think about the speech Stanley gives in Magnolia a lot. A child speaking for his agency, for not being disrespected or toy-ified because he's little and cute. Something in that moment always devastated me.
1
Alive_Ice7937Apr 1, 2026
+1
Midsommar. Made me want to be more engaged as a partner.
1
throwaway_dlcdApr 1, 2026
+1
Eyes Wide Shut. Gestures broadly
1
vnnh_brollApr 1, 2026
+1
A série KIDDING, do Jim Carrey. Me fez pensar um pouco sobre os YouTubers de canal infantil, e que nem todos são pessoas más apenas visando monetizar de alguma forma, e que alguns tem conteúdos bons e ajudam de alguma forma as crianças a se desconectarem do ambiente hostil de suas realidades. Acho que entenderá se assistir, e também é ótimo para saúde mental.
91 Comments