I suspect that a great number of our generation in the West were influenced by the characters of Spock, Kirk and McCoy, esp Spock wrt our attitude towards emotions and faith in reason. Of course the characters themselves are a reflection the era.
Popular film, esp SF, is a great metaphor for the modern age. George Lucas has been quite explicit that Star Wars was about the rebel Vietnamese against the American Empire though both sides are religious zealots who believe in different aspects of a supernatural “Force”. Dune is thinly disguised allegory about Islam and Islamic conquest. Avatar is a rant against colonialism. And while these have a Manichaean POV as to the duality of good vs. evil, Star Trek was more about pluralism.
Much of theatrical literature consists of morality plays where the author or director is preaching to the audience.