Editing Rain Man (section)

== Legacy ==
The release of ''Rain Man'' in 1988 coincided with a tenfold increase in funding for medical research and diagnoses of individuals for autism. The latter is primarily due to autism's being more broadly defined in newer editions of the ''[[Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders]]'', particularly versions [[Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders#DSM-III-R (1987)|III-R]] and [[Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders#DSM-IV (1994)|IV]].<ref name="silber">{{cite book |last1=Silberman |first1=Steve |title=NeuroTribes |date=2015 |publisher=Avery |location=New York |isbn=978-1-58333-467-6 }}</ref>{{rp|389–401}} The movie is credited, however, with significantly increasing awareness of autism among the general public.{{r|silber|p=354-380}}

''Rain Man'' is known, in particular, for its portrayal of a man with both autism and savant skills, leading much of its viewing audience to incorrectly assume the intellectual capabilities of autistic people at large.<ref name=":24"/> Characters like Raymond Babbitt, whose characterization has been criticized for adhering to [[stereotype]]s, are portrayed as having an otherworldly intellectual ability that, rather than disable them from living a "normal" life, instead assists them in a nearly magical way. Although having savant abilities is certainly a possibility for autistic individuals, the combination is incredibly rare.<ref name="Prochnow 2014 133–149">{{Cite journal |last=Prochnow |first=Alexandria |date=2014 |title=An Analysis of Autism Through Media Representation |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/24761922 |journal=ETC: A Review of General Semantics |volume=71 |issue=2 |pages=133–149 |issn=0014-164X |jstor=24761922}}</ref> Conversely, ''Rain Man'' has also been seen as dispelling a number of other misconceptions about autism, and improving public awareness of the failure of many agencies to accommodate autistic people and make use of the abilities they do have, regardless of whether they have savant skills or not.<ref>{{cite web |last=Treffert |first=Darold |title=Rain Man, the Movie/Rain Man, Real Life |url=https://www.wisconsinmedicalsociety.org/professional/savant-syndrome/resources/articles/rain-man-the-movie-rain-man-real-life/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150827173420/https://www.wisconsinmedicalsociety.org/professional/savant-syndrome/resources/articles/rain-man-the-movie-rain-man-real-life/ |archive-date=August 27, 2015 |access-date=September 29, 2014 |website=Wisconsin Medical Society}}</ref>

Since Dustin Hoffman's 1989 [[Academy Awards|Academy Award]] win for his performance in ''Rain Man'', about half of all [[Academy Award for Best Actor|Best Actor]] trophies have been awarded for portrayals of characters who are disabled in some way; none of these recipients share their characters' disabilities in real life.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Moyer |first=Justin Wm |date=2021-10-25 |title=Welcome, Eddie Redmayne: Since 'Rain Man,' majority of Best Actor Oscar winners played sick or disabled |language=en-US |newspaper=Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/02/23/since-rain-man-majority-of-best-actor-winners-played-sick-or-disabled/ |access-date=2023-10-17 |issn=0190-8286}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Gilbert |first=Aaliya |date=2018-05-12 |title=Oscars so Abled? The Overwhelming Frequency of Non-disabled Actors Portraying Disabled Characters |url=https://www.oxfordstudent.com/2018/05/12/oscars-so-abled-the-overwhelming-frequency-of-non-disabled-actors-portraying-disabled-characters/ |access-date=2023-10-17 |website=The Oxford Student |language=en-GB}}</ref> Just one year after Hoffman's win, [[Daniel Day-Lewis]] (thus far the only actor to have won three awards in the category) garnered his first Best Actor win for his portrayal of [[cerebral palsy]] patient [[Christy Brown]] in ''[[My Left Foot]]''. The [[Oscar bait|Academy's incentivizing]] of such casting practices has drawn criticism from disabled actors and [[Self-advocacy|self-advocates]], who argue that these decisions sideline more authentic stories about disabled characters, in favor of leveraging already-established actors' prestige.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Yates |first=Jessy |date=2019-02-22 |title=Dreaming of a Hollywood Ending for Actors With Disabilities (Guest Column) |url=https://variety.com/2019/film/opinion/actors-with-disabilities-opinion-1203146408/ |access-date=2023-10-17 |website=Variety |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Stewart |first=Sophia |date=2018-01-30 |title=The Oscars Love Movies About Disability, Not Disabled Actors |url=https://filmschoolrejects.com/oscars-love-movies-disability-not-disabled-actors/ |access-date=2023-10-17 |website=Film School Rejects |language=en-US}}</ref> This pattern has even been satirized by the 2008 film ''[[Tropic Thunder]]'' (in which Tom Cruise also appears), wherein [[Robert Downey Jr.]]'s character, Kirk Lazarus, chastises a fellow actor for portraying a character whose developmental disability is deemed too alienating for a mainstream audience.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lopez |first=Kristen |date=2018-11-02 |title=Ten Years Of Missing The Point of 'Tropic Thunder's' Thoughts On Mental Disability |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/kristenlopez/2018/11/02/ten-years-of-missing-the-point-of-tropic-thunders-thoughts-on-mental-disability/ |access-date=2024-01-17 |website=[[Forbes]] |language=en}}</ref>

''Rain Man'' is also known for popularizing the misconception that [[card counting]] is illegal in the United States.<ref name="bjlaw">{{cite book |title=Blackjack and the Law |last1=Rose |first1=I. Nelson |last2=Loeb |first2=Robert A. |isbn=978-0-910575-08-9 |year=1999 |publisher=Rge Pub}}</ref>

In 2006, the film was recognized by the [[American Film Institute]] in their list of [[AFI's 100 Years...100 Cheers|100 Years...100 Cheers]] at #63.<ref>{{Cite web |title=AFI's 100 Years…100 Cheers |url=https://www.afi.com/afis-100-years-100-cheers/ |access-date=2023-02-27 |website=American Film Institute |language=en}}</ref>