Not all jobs need movies about them. A salesman in a kiosk peddling prepaid cell phones might not make the best protagonist for a film, but it depends on the treatment. There’s a lot of movies about people working hard to build their careers, but not all of them are fun to watch while also being epic portrayals of the humans fighting for gainful employment. The following films are important depictions of the American worker:

5. Falling Down

The classic tale of a worker with a crisis of conscious going berserk, Michael Douglas plays a down and out defense engineer who begins to fight back against the ills of society. This is a good movie to help you blow off some steam if feel under-appreciated at work or if your life starts to feel unmanageable, especially if thinking of going on a rampage.

4. The Social Network

The Oscar-nominated tale of Mark Zuckerburg’s embattled and unlikely rise to social media supremacy is likely to inspire any and all social media and technology fanatics, as well as anyone who believes in the power of ideas. Ultimately, this film is about having faith in yourself and others equally, lest you end up alone with your gadgets.

3. Jerry Maguire

Beyond just the fact that it stars Tom Cruise and Cuba Gooding Jr., this film speaks to people because it is about moral confusion in the workplace, an issue many people deal with on a daily basis. Tom Cruise plays title character Jerry Maguire who after deciding to write a memo about reestablishing ethics in his industry, is fired and must forge his new identity in a cutthroat business. Though it’s often just seen as a romantic comedy with the famous on-liner line “show me the money,” this film has much to offer in the way of reevaluating the American business model.

2. Office Space

An anthem for anyone stuck in a dead-end cubicle job with a case of the ‘Moon-days,’ Office Space has become a cult classic and a metaphor for the American soul being strangled by corporate monotony. It’s also about taking action and finding the right job for you. In the end, the main character learns that what’s important is having a job that makes him happy.

1. Glengarry Glen Ross

With a star-studded cast of power actors including Alec Baldwin, Al Pacino, Kevin Spacey, Ed Harris, Jack Lemmon, and Alan Arkin, this masterpiece tells the story of a real estate office of working class sociopaths who must compete to keep their jobs. With the subtext of “the rich getting richer”, this film has even greater resonance now. If you work in any kind of sales industry, this movie will undoubtedly get your engines revved.

Honorable mentions: Up In The Air, Clerks, Network

There you have it, the top five movies about careers and jobs. There’s hundreds of other good ones. If you think of them, feel free to comment with your own list.