Movies (or other media) that changed your life?

[Aeson]

Star Trek, in the late '60s, first got me interested in STEM. Seems that I'm not alone in that.

"Chariots of the Gods", in maybe 1971, taught me critical thinking. As in how to spot BS and amplification, that someone can use to try and strengthen their very weak premise.

I've heard of Chariots of the Gods. On the radio show Coast to Coast AM, it's treated as gospel. On the skeptic podcasts I listen to, it's treated as a joke.

I think I have to go with Star Wars. As a kid, I imagined myself as a lot of things. I think Jedi was more than anything else. Superman might be a close second.

 

[Richards]

True story: I owe my marriage to Doctor Who.

Back in 1983, I was home from my freshman year of college and I volunteered to help do the summer book inventory at my little sister's middle school. The head librarian and I discovered, over the course of the week-long inventory, that we both had tickets to a Doctor Who convention in Chicago the following weekend, so we decided to car pool to save gas. And, since 1983 was the 20th anniversary of Doctor Who, there were a lot of conventions going on that summer; we hit four of them together over the next few months.

And by the end of summer, Mary had stopped being just "my little sister's middle school librarian" in my mind and somehow become "the woman I can't imagine spending the rest of my life with." We got married the following year.

This thread was good timing, too: tomorrow's our 38th wedding anniversary!

Johnathan

 

[Dioltach]

I'd like to say The Sword of Shannara, by Terry Brooks. Although I was already reading fantasy (mostly YA stuff) by the early 1980s, Shannara fanned the flames into a bonfire.

But it didn't change my life as such.

One book that did change the course of my life was Een Beytie Hollandsche, a collection of essays that James Boswell penned while he was learning Dutch. Not because of its contents, but because of its existence. I was on the team that published it at university, and because that took up so much of my time I put off applying for a room in a student dorm. I finally did apply, and was assigned to a dorm that had a room available through an oversight. Years later, one of the girls who had lived there for a while recommended me for a proofreading job, and so started my career in translating and editing. Not only that, some years and three jobs later, a new colleague joined my team. We fell in love and next month we'll have been together for 20 years.

 

[le Redoutable]

I could say it's Goldorak or Albator ( two Mangas from the 70's )
but the one film that made me soo sad was The Professional ( with Jean-Paul Belmondo and Robert Hossein, who also played Angelique's Husband in the series )

in France, they did not release " Throwing it all Away " from Genesis; instead they inexpectably throw down " In too deep ";
fortunately ( for me ) I could hear American Top 40 from a radio ( Poste Parisien, then Top 101 )

 

[Ryujin]

I could say it's Goldorak or Albator ( two Mangas from the 70's )
but the one film that made me soo sad was The Professional ( with Jean-Paul Belmondo and Robert Hossein, who also played Angelique's Husband in the series )

in France, they did not release " Throwing it all Away " from Genesis; instead they inexpectably throw down " In too deep ";
fortunately ( for me ) I could hear American Top 40 from a radio ( Poste Parisien, then Top 101 )

I watched "Albator" on a Quebec TV station, when I was a kid, though my French was spotty at best. Folks here might know it better as "Space Captain Harlock" or perhaps "Arcadia of my Youth" (the later film).

 

[HawaiiSteveO]

Clearly, some things have not aged well… that being said Tintin always seemed to put his best foot forward and actually know a little something about all the places his adventures took him. Plus, he was willing to learn something new about the people and places he visited and was polite and respectful. Reading these as a kid made me want to travel and learn for myself.
Plus, Captain Haddock is hilarious !

Also still have these books from when I was a kid …

 

[This Effin’ GM]

Th e movie Accepted with Justin Long convinced me to move to another city and restart

 

[Mad_Jack]

Then in middle school I found a book of short stories, each one about a different character in the Mos Eisley Cantina!

I still have my original copy.



There are a couple things that I can directly credit with putting parts of my life onto the track they've followed.

Dungeons & Dragons Basic Set - Holmes edition:

This was my introduction to D&D when I was eight years old. Aside from having the effect of greatly enhancing both my reading and basic math abilities, it was responsible for the realization that I could create my own stories - setting off the original spark of the creative energy that I've had all my life.
It also helped spark my interest in history and mythology.

Clash of the Titans/Jason and the Argonauts/The Dark Crystal

I saw the original CotT and JatA as a double feature at a drive-in when I was a kid, as well as the Sinbad movies from the 1970's on VHS, and Ray Harryhausen helped spark off my interest in movie FX.
Along with Jim Henson, he instilled in me a lifelong fascination with tiny things, which led to both my model-building and miniatures hobbies.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show

I started going to showings of Rocky Horror in my late 20's, and soon joined the shadow cast. I ended up spending nearly a decade of my life performing shows all over New England and traveling all over the country to national conventions. I have the movie title and lips logo tattooed on my right shoulderblade.
I met a lot of people that I respected and admired, made friends from all walks of life ranging in age from 15 to 50, and eventually ended up being a fairly well-respected member of the national Rocky Horror scene.
There were times that Rocky Horror literally saved my life - even in the deepest depths of depression and the darkest thoughts I had, I kept going because I had a show to do that weekend, and they needed me to be there.

 

[Zardnaar]

Star Wars.
Enough said.

Guns N Rose's. Got me into Rock/metal.

Labyrinth movie. More or less introduced me to fantasy.

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

The Rocky Horror Picture show is such a cultural touchstone for so many. Even places that didn't have showings, you could find it in VHS rental shops. And it was this weirdness beamed right into your home, that for many was a lifeline.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show

I started going to showings of Rocky Horror in my late 20's, and soon joined the shadow cast. I ended up spending nearly a decade of my life performing shows all over New England and traveling all over the country to national conventions. I have the movie title and lips logo tattooed on my right shoulderblade.
I met a lot of people that I respected and admired, made friends from all walks of life ranging in age from 15 to 50, and eventually ended up being a fairly well-respected member of the national Rocky Horror scene.
There were times that Rocky Horror literally saved my life - even in the deepest depths of depression and the darkest thoughts I had, I kept going because I had a show to do that weekend, and they needed me to be there.