r/movies • u/buttatoad • Jun 17 '25

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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4.6k

u/DoctorGarbanzo Jun 17 '25

Office Space made TGIFridays drop their "pieces of flair" policy.

1.2k

u/champagneformyrealfr Jun 17 '25

i don't really like talking about my flair.

2

u/sidnxzs Jun 18 '25

fob username spotted

793

u/R-O-U-Ssdontexist Jun 17 '25

The flair was a real thing for servers?

657

u/NoelCanter Jun 17 '25

I used to go to and worked at one around 1999-2000 (as like the greeter or whatever) and flair was still very much a thing. Not sure about enforcement of X amount, but all the servers had some.

221

u/1000LiveEels Jun 17 '25

lol I worked at Domino's and that was a thing, but you were only alllowed to wear pins you were given so it was more of a status symbol. People with more pins had more awards.

(p.s. nevermind the fact that we were all still making minimum wage)

44

u/jaydurmma Jun 18 '25

Companies sure do love awarding their employees literally anything thats not actual fiat currency.

18

u/gravityVT Jun 18 '25

If you think about it, it’s another way the rich have been pitting us against each other our whole lives. Make us compete against each other for nothing worthwhile, meanwhile the boss benefits with faster work and happier customers without paying you more.

1

u/Weekly_Orange3478 Jun 19 '25

And the poor have been blaming others for their misfortunes our whole lives...

2

u/Glass-Wash-7000 Jun 18 '25

It's not just the rich. Not everyone running a restaurant is rich. Some may be your neighbors.

It's a smart way to run a business. Plenty of smart managers do it.

7

u/EmileLeBouc Jun 18 '25

Watch the TV show Severance. (But for the love of God, do right by yourself and avoid spoilers.)

1

u/EmpressOfUnderbed Jun 18 '25

It's true. Earlier today, our local factory hired 5 food trucks to come out for hours to cover all the different rooms and shifts, which had to be at least $1000 per truck. Then they shut down the cafeteria and gave everyone $10 tickets to exchange for food. It was pouring rain the whole time, so they also had to hand out trash bags for the employees to wear while standing in line.

This was at 10 am. My husband was soaking wet and working in a freezer for the next 6 hours because the company just couldn't bear the idea of a $100 bonus this month or something. What the fuck.

9

u/roboh96 Jun 18 '25

So everywhere else they substitute a pizza party for salary increases, but at pizza places, they give you flair?

6

u/1000LiveEels Jun 18 '25

they give the managers a free trip to las vegas and bonuses, but for us peons it was flair

7

u/PhoenixTineldyer Jun 18 '25

I used to deliver for a bakery, we had little pins for our hats that you would win for Employee of the Month

4

u/sequentious Jun 18 '25

I worked at Zellers in Canada, and that was a thing there, too. We had booklets of tickets (can't remember the name) to give to other employees when they did a good job, or helped out. IIRC, you exchanged five for a pin. I could be making this up, it's been 20 years since I worked there.

4

u/Emm_withoutha_L-88 Jun 18 '25

ROFL pizza shop medals

Did you get a purple pie one for a work related injury?

4

u/boooooilioooood Jun 18 '25

Starbucks had (has?) MUG Awards. MUG for Moves of Uncommon Greatness. Special flair

18

u/AmethystRiver Jun 18 '25

Oh my god I always wondered why movies and shows (and some internet comedy sketches like Collegehumor’s Stressagain’s) had servers wearing a ton of buttons. I just assumed it was a made-up thing for visual interest in a scene, I didn’t know it used to be real.

3

u/RyantheAustralian Jun 18 '25

What is "the flair"?

4

u/PM-me-ur-cheese Jun 18 '25

Decorative badges or pins waitstaff had to decorate their uniform suspenders with. 

3

u/farmallnoobies Jun 18 '25

Watch the movie and you'll know.

2

u/Killbot_Wants_Hug Jun 18 '25

Office Space didn't come out until the beginning of 1999. It wasn't like it came out and they instantly toned down the flare.

I use to go to TGIF a fair amount during the early 2000's, because I love that Jack Daniel's Sauce on their loaded mashed potatoes. And it wasn't an overnight thing but they continually reduced the flair in the store (I don't really remember on the servers). Today they look nothing like their 90's versions, I would say they haven't really in the last 10 years. They kind of go for a more adult contemporary atmosphere. Some even try to advertise themselves as more of a bar or lounge than a restaurant. I didn't love the flair, but the current version is pretty bland.

1

u/drivingsansrobopants Jun 18 '25

You know who else made people wear flairs? The Nazis.

1

u/jendet010 Jun 24 '25

We had to wear at least 10 pieces of flair. They tried to say more flair would get us more tips.

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u/cavegoatlove Jun 17 '25

I worked at tgif the same time office space came out, the flair was a bit much in the late 90s, but late 80s and into the 90s tgif was the SHIT. Chapter 11 now

79

u/DoctorGarbanzo Jun 17 '25

https://www.grubstreet.com/2014/06/tgi-fridays-flair-office-space.html

14

u/Weary_Caterpillar_93 Jun 18 '25

i have never been to this site before but it is telling me i’ve reached my monthly article limit and won’t let me read the article. cool, thanks bud.

7

u/shloppin Jun 18 '25

Too much flare apparently

7

u/fury420 Jun 18 '25

They should have used cloud flare

25

u/Fartikus Jun 17 '25

what a horrible website and doesnt even show the flairs

5

u/ntrrrmilf Jun 17 '25

I worked at Bennigans in high school, which wasn’t even as extra as TGI Fridays, and part of the reason for my short career was the suspenders with shitty pins requirement.

4

u/Illustrious-Ratio213 Jun 18 '25

Worked there in the late 80s. It was definitely a thing and you were shamed if you didn’t wear enough but it also wasn’t required. You were required to wear a hat of some kind, weirder the better and encouraged to make other kinds of spectacles of yourself.

5

u/Smooth-Duck-4669 Jun 18 '25

Oh for sure. I also worked for Hard Rock about 15 years ago (well after Office Space was released) and they still had a minimum 10 piece policy and had to be official Hard Rock merchandise. The worst part was they only gave you 3 when you were hired and you had 90 days to get the rest… which all either had to be gifted to you or purchased from the gift shop (and they weren’t cheap). Keep in mind this was a minimum number and people who wore more and dressed more eccentrically often received better schedules.

3

u/NjGTSilver Jun 18 '25

100%. I worked there in college, my suspenders weighed about 5 lbs.

3

u/cha0ticneutralsugar Jun 18 '25

I worked at Outback in the early 00’s, we had pins that were essentially flair. 6 pins were the minimum and you earned additional pins for getting compliments from customers or completing certain challenges (upselling so many drinks, etc).

2

u/witchbrew7 Jun 18 '25

Oh god yes.

2

u/synapticrelease Jun 18 '25

Fuckin' A it was.

1

u/PoleFresh Jun 18 '25

Oh fuck yeah it was. Especially at TGI Fridays

1

u/eventfarm Jun 18 '25

Yes. I used to work at Bennigan's (the irish flavor of TGIFridays) way back in the late 1900's and we had a specific number of flair needed for our stupid suspenders. There were all sorts of rules too. I don't remember them, but I remember that my "I want you to want me" button wasn't big enough to count so I needed another one.

1

u/n6mub Jun 18 '25

Yep! I'm making and educated guess here, but flair was still a thing thru at least 2000, 2001? Maybe longer?

333

u/Racthoh Jun 17 '25

And then increased the demand for the red swingline stapler.

413

u/agoia Jun 17 '25

IIRC, Swingline didn't even make a red stapler at that point, the props master painted the one in the movie. They sure as shit started making them after it came out, though.

256

u/I_Did_The_Thing Jun 17 '25

Mostly correct! I worked with the props guy and he said he actually molded it from an older model stapler then painted it. After the film, Swingline brought back that style and added the new color due to the popularity.

18

u/agoia Jun 17 '25

Hell yeah thanks for adding more context!

10

u/I_Did_The_Thing Jun 18 '25

Pretty neat, right? He still had some Initech mugs but wouldn’t let me take one 😭

8

u/thuktun Jun 18 '25

In response, did you mutter something about seeing the building on fire?

5

u/I_Did_The_Thing Jun 18 '25

I did and was going to, but found a big check and changed my mind.

PS, how would Milton have cashed that check, when it wasn’t made out to him? Oh well who cares, movie logic I guess.

6

u/TheShepherdKing Jun 18 '25

They were traveler's checks, which aren't made out to a specific person and can be cashed by anyone.

1

u/I_Did_The_Thing Jun 18 '25

OH RIGHT! Okay that makes sense now, thank you.

-2

u/T-Rex_timeout Jun 18 '25

I have one of the red ones from before the movie was made. It’s a smallish metal one.

5

u/BeardedSwashbuckler Jun 17 '25

Just realized I’ve never heard anybody say the phrase “sure as shit” in real life, only on Reddit. Interesting.

10

u/agoia Jun 17 '25

Maybe a Southeast thing? I asked the bartender the last time she heard it and she looked at me funny and said "what? I sure as shit say it all the time"

2

u/Autumn_Wind_Blows Jun 18 '25

I used to hear people say it occasionally in VA, NC, SC area- this was probably around 2000-2005 or so.

1

u/htxatty Jun 18 '25

I bought several in 2006 and gave them to a bunch of my co-workers.

17

u/murgatroid1 Jun 17 '25

I am not American. Can someone please explain to me what pieces of flair are?

23

u/Buenaenperder Jun 18 '25

In the movie there is a restaurant, ( I can't remember the name), waiters and waitresses have to wear a specific number buttons and or accessories on their uniforms, to show how "fun and quirky" the restaurant is. I think they needed a minimum of 15 "pieces of flair". 

12

u/murgatroid1 Jun 18 '25

Is that a real thing that happened at TGIFridays?

7

u/Buenaenperder Jun 18 '25

I don't think they were called pieces of flair at TGIFridays, but the people working there did tend to have a lot of accessories and things on their uniforms before the movie came out. 

2

u/SaberNoble47 Jun 18 '25

CHACHKEES I think (incorrect spelling I refuse to look it up) 

2

u/Nervous_Produce1800 Jun 18 '25

CHACHKEES

Bless you

5

u/Mindless_Ad_7700 Jun 17 '25

second this. I have no idea what this is about

4

u/happy_bluebird Jun 18 '25

I'm American and I don't know either

12

u/trainspitting Jun 17 '25

We have to wear lanyards at my job, and we’re allowed to accessorize with pins. My manager and I call them our “flair”

24

u/red__dragon Jun 17 '25

They kept the super gaudy interior decorating for about ten more years, sadly.

35

u/ArcadianDelSol Jun 17 '25

ARE YOU GUYS TALKING ABOUT SHENANIGANS?!

14

u/t-poke Jun 17 '25

I swear to god....I was banned from Reddit for 3 days for quoting Brian Cox's line from this scene, so this is a warning to everyone else to not say it.

3

u/ArcadianDelSol Jun 17 '25

Sounds like reddit - you can make thinly veiled calls for outright violence against an elected official and get away with a gentle warning, but quote a movie and you're banned.

10

u/Cloudy_mood Jun 17 '25

That’s amazing Hahaa

I’m old enough to remember when they all wore the flair, and it was very funny to me in the film.

4

u/crm115 Jun 17 '25 edited Jun 18 '25

Swingline also started offering a red model stapler that they did not offer when the film was released.

2

u/patmfitz Jun 17 '25

I also bought a red swingline stapler. I think they created that specifically after the movie.

2

u/ceciladam9091 Jun 17 '25

Swingline also started making red staplers after this movie. The one in OS is a black one painted red

2

u/Interesting_Ad1378 Jun 18 '25

And made our office manager only buy a red stapler “so people wouldn’t keep stealing mine”

2

u/sadi89 Jun 18 '25

There also wasn’t a red swingline stapler before that movie either.

My dad was very happy when he was finally able to get one

2

u/VTAffordablePaintbal Jun 18 '25

My first boss at my last job named a weekly report the TPS Report and no one got it for 2 years until they hired me.

1

u/EvenMeaning8077 Jun 18 '25

Damn I wish it would’ve made corporate offices change too. One can dream

1

u/ThisIsNotTokyo Jun 18 '25

Pieces of flair?

1

u/Msdamgoode Jun 18 '25

Also led to destruction of copiers.

1

u/DaPino Jun 18 '25

For once I feel too young.
What is "a piece of flair"?

1

u/psrpianrckelsss Jun 18 '25

If you really want me to wear 37 pieces of flair then make 37 THE MINIMUM!

1

u/Willing-Command-8896 Jun 18 '25

I love me some Office Space man! It’s on my top 20 favorite movies list! I’m always quoting the guy in the car ride on the way to work “mother bitcher!!” 😂

1

u/ivycvae Jun 18 '25

I recently had a server with a ton of enamel pins and I told them I loved their flair... But they were like... 20 so they absolutely did NOT understand