Forget going to war, or joining a fight club — there's a new way for men to put their manliness to the ultimate test.
It's called Toy Story 3.
The new Pixar film, which was released across Australia on Thursday last week, is quickly being heralded as one of the saddest movies of the year, with the power to turn grown men into blubbering babies.
The effect was obvious today at George Street cinemas in Sydney, where one employee told ninemsn that he had seen several men come out of the film teary-eyed.
MOVIEFIX: Toy Story 3 reviews
"I didn't cry when I saw it though," the employee, who did not want to be named, insisted.
But Timothy Ohl, a Sydneysider who saw the film today, told ninemsn that he struggled to keep from "looking like a sook" in front of his wife and family.
"I was fully choked up ... fighting back the tears," he said.
"I didn't expect it at all — it really affected me deeply."
His wife, Kristina Ohl, said she also cried but was surprised to see her husband break down.
"I've only seen him cry twice like this in the five years we've been married," she said.
"You shouldn't see this film with your partner unless you're prepared to cry."
In fact, only one of the group of five didn't cry — Tim's nine-year-old relative Molly.
"It wasn't very sad," she said.
The film's effect on adults has sparked buzz online, with a viral infographic measuring the film's worth "in tears" and several notable reviewers admitting to being emotionally affected.
"When it comes to my reaction to Toy Story 3, I'm not just talking about shedding a tear or two," wrote Entertainment Weekly's Owen Gleiberman.
"I'm talking about that soppy, awkward thing where you make sounds."
Lou Lumenick of the New York Post wrote, "Toy Story 3... may not be a masterpiece, but it still had me in tears at the end."
Without giving away too much, the film apparently plays on the feelings parents have when their children move out from home.
A 20-year-old Sydney woman who did not want to be named said she saw the film with her 42-year-old dad, and it made him "full-on cry".
"I don't know why exactly — I think it touched his inner child," she said.
"When we got home he actually showed us a toy that he had as a kid."
The film has dominated the box office in the US, earning over A$250m dollars since it was released on June 17.
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