10 Insane Ways Movies Have Influenced Real Life

We all go to the movies to be entertained and to escape to another world for 100-or-so minutes - that is the allure of cinema (especially blockbuster cinema), to show us things that typically aren't possible in real life, while allowing us to safely return to our cushy lives once the lights go up and the credits roll. However, some movies have managed to have a far more pervasive effect either on society or particular individuals, permeating beyond the cinema screen and lodging so firmly in our minds that it affects our waking behaviour. From the innocuous to the fatal, here are 10 cases in which movies perpetuated scandals and fascinating social trends, proving beyond any doubt the power of the medium to do both good and bad when shone in the eyes of right (or wrong) minded individuals...

10. Fight Club Causes Real Fight Clubs To Start Up

Fight ClubThe Movie: David Fincher's modern masterpiece features a young man (Edward Norton) joining an underground fight club to vent his middle-class, white male frustrations. The Reality: The movie clearly resonated with a lot of angry young men, and the result was that, just as fight clubs began to bloom by the dozen in the movie, so too did they in real life. Reports online detail fight clubs being organised on Craigslist in San Francisco that follow precisely the same rules as the one in the movie; there's no spectators beyond those waiting for their own fight, and if you turn up to a fight club, you have to fight. Other Californian fight clubs have their own rules that splinter away from Tyler Durden's philosophy; some allow spectators, some allow weapons, and the more illegal kinds involve teenagers, who are not able to consent to such harm. However, the injuries that are likely to occur from even adult fighters will still draw attention from the cops, which is exactly what a secret underground fighting organisation doesn't want, so fighters will reportedly often nurse their own wounds, as is not to be advised.
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Contributor

Frequently sleep-deprived film addict and video game obsessive who spends more time than is healthy in darkened London screening rooms. Follow his twitter on @ShaunMunroFilm or e-mail him at shaneo632 [at] gmail.com.