History Main / DeconReconSwitch

* In ''WesternAnimation/EdEddNEddysBigPictureShow'', The Eds' friendship is deconstructed with Edd questioning his friendship with Eddy and Ed after being forced to leave the cul-de-sac, his friends acting immature, not taking the situation they're in seriously, and constantly pranking him. [[RageBreakingPoint The last straw for him]] is when they pretend [[QuicksandSucks drown in quicksand]] and Double D becomes fed up and decides to end their friendship, choosing instead to face the kids' wrath then go anywhere with them. Luckily for them, Eddy has a HeelRealization about how he has been a bad friend and apologizes to Double D, this convinces him not end their friendship and he accepts the apology, and the three becomes friends again, reconstructing their friendship.

* ''Literature/SpaceAcademyDropouts'': The book seems to be treating an enlightened Federation and collection of races working together for mutual advantage would never work. Instead, it becomes clear that it mostly does but plenty of people are suspicious of it or want to destroy it for their own ends.

* ''Roleplay/TheBalladOfEdgardo'' deconstructs the common RPG fantasy plot of "superpowered heroes teaming up to protect the land from the forces of darkness", as the narrator discovers to his horror that ''the entire player base'' consists of turbo-edgelords playing [[NinetiesAntiHero brooding anti-heroes]] whose {{smug|Super}}ness and {{Jerkass}}ery is off the charts, with the most powerful among them ruling over a portion of the land like a tyrant and crushing anyone who opposes him, and the rest of them seeing absolutely no problem with this and borderline worshipping the guy. The narrator's attempt at playing a BareFistedMonk StockShonenHero gets him laughed out of the tavern for his "low-brow" character and then promptly pounded into the dirt twice over, first by another character at his same level and then by the aforementioned tyrant (who is so strong his level is an infinity symbol). Then [[GoodSamaritan an act of kindness]] from one of the only other compassionate players on the forum saves Edgardo's life, and when he gratefully joins up with the guy in question, they discover that Edgardo's [[TierInducedScrappy supposedly useless]] stats combined with a perfectly-arranged location perk turns out to be the single [[GameBreaker strongest attack]] in the entire forum, which Edgardo and his sidekick use to gloriously [[PayEvilUntoEvil take revenge on the smug creeps who abused them.]]

* The ''Machinima/RedVsBlue: The Recollection'' trilogy spends the first installment showing what happens when you incorporate [[DysfunctionJunction the world's worst soldiers]] into a relatively normal unit and a deadly serious situation... then gives them back their own base at the end to allow them to [[MildlyMilitary keep fighting their pointless battles with each other]] and wraps up by having the same RagtagBunchOfMisfits save the day at the end ''because'' [[TrueCompanions they understand each others oddities so well]].

* ''Series/GameOfThrones'' has a theme of deconstructing of HeroicFantasy, with things not turning out "like they do in the stories" being a running theme. Good characters get killed as a result of their principled actions, and villains triumph because of their ruthlessness. However, as the series goes on, the plot becomes more traditional, with the political intrigue between morally grey factions transitioning into epic heroes rising to meet an ObviouslyEvil threat.

->''"From [[Creator/RobReiner Meathead]] comes a satire of all those sappy swashbuckling medieval love stories, that happens to be the best sappy swashbuckling medieval love story ever made: Film/ThePrincessBride."''

* In ''WesternAnimation/EdEddNEddysBigPictureShow'', The Ed's Eds' friendship is deconstructed with Edd questioning his friendship with Eddy and Ed after being forced to leave the cul-de-sac, his friends acting immature, not taking the situation they're in seriously, and constantly pranking him. [[RageBreakingPoint The last straw for him]] is when they pretend [[QuicksandSucks drown in quicksand]] and Double D becomes fed up and decides to end their friendship, choosing instead to face the kids' wrath then go anywhere with them. Luckily for them, Eddy has a HeelRealization about how he has been a bad friend and apologizes to Double D, this convinces him not end their friendship and he accepts the apology, and the three becomes friends again, reconstructing their friendship.

** The season three finale tackles a question fans had been asking for years: if a pony's cutie mark determines what they'll do for the rest of their life, what happens if a pony gets one they don't want? Twilight casts a spell that accidentally switches her friends' cutie marks around, as well as giving them false memories of always having had their new ones. The result is that they're all miserable, but determined to stick with their new jobs BecauseDestinySaysSo. But then it turns out that if need be, a pony can ScrewDestiny and go after whatever else they want to do, replacing their cutie mark in the process.

* ''Literature/MeddlingKids'' by Edgar Cantero starts with Scooby Gang expies 13 years after their last case and pretty heavily messed up (alcoholic, on the run from the law, and in Arkham County Mental Hospital respectively). Once they return to their old town to reopen their last case and are confronted with real monsters the novel flips around to show that whatever life threw at them they're still brave, intelligent, and good hearted people who are more than capable of fighting off Lovecraftian Horrors. The book seems determined to take what ''Franchise/ScoobyDoo'' looks like through a {{nostalgia filter}} and turn it into a reality.

** The premiere episode uses a cynical, [[DeadpanSnarker snarky]] introvert as its protagonist in order to demonstrate how frustrating an experience it would be for [[OnlySaneMan such a person]] to be stuck in [[GenreDeconstruction a cartoon for little girls]], and how dangerous the fantasy setting that allows this SugarBowl to exist would be - especially when its [[CloudCuckoolander half-insane]] inhabitants are too carefree to pay [[SugarApocalypse the imminent threat]] any attention. The following episode makes a point of demonstrating that, for all its [[TastesLikeDiabetes quirks and annoyances]], there's ultimately a lot to be said for the optimistic camaraderie that the concept underlying ''Franchise/MyLittlePony'' represents. Twilight comes to wholeheartedly embrace her new friends, defeats and redeems the WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds via ThePowerOfFriendship, and the series [[RousseauWasRight moves forward from there]].

*** Yoda and Ahsoka look back and note that the Jedi had become corrupt in the waning years of the Republic, as shown in the Prequels.

* ''WesternAnimation/ScoobyDooMysteryIncorporated'' does this to the Scooby-Doo franchise as a whole, examining what makes a bunch of kids go out and meddle with supernatural mysteries and how it could reasonably work, as well as showing just how disturbing and dangerous such an activity would truly get. It also does this to the NonHumanSidekick trope as well, as evidenced by how Shaggy and Velma's relationship is affected by the presence of someone not human, but about as intelligent and with similarly strong feelings.

* [[DeconReconSwitch/LiveActionFilm Films — Live-Action]]

* [[DeconReconSwitch/LiveActionFilm

'''You should probably expect a lot of SPOILERS the page below, since they often detail the swerves a work makes over its run.'''

!!Examples:

* DeconReconSwitch/LiveActionFilm

[[/folder]]

* ''Literature/TheRulesOfSupervillainy'' is a book starring a somewhat offbeat fellow, Gary Karkofsky, who finds a magic cloak and decides to become a supervillain. The book Deconstructs the NinetiesAntiHero and UsefulNotes/TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks by having Gary disgusted by heroes who kill and overly psychopathic villains. It also serves as a Decon-Recon Switch because Gary, himself, is a well-written NinetiesAntiHero. The book, notably, treats LighterAndSofter superheroes significantly more sympathetically than most examples of the {{Capepunk}} genre.

** Done similarly in ''Series/StarTrekEnterprise'' "Judgement" and with the ProudWarriorRace trope in general. In "Judgment", as Archer is put on trial, [[KlingonScientistsGetNoRespect his defense attorney mournfully admits Klingon society tends to believe that being a warrior is the only way to achieve honor]]. This not only leaves a gap in other fields such as doctors, scientists and lawyers but they only care about honor as much as they can boast about who they killed (strong or weak, it doesn't matter) at the bar. The attorney suggests the culture needs a revolution every so often to stabilize it so that they can find honor in ways other than killing.

[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
* ''Film/TheDarkKnightTrilogy'' does this for Franchise/{{Batman}}. Batman now operates using modern-day technology in more realistic cities and has to adjust his gear and techniques as such, but ultimately still turns out to be his usual awesome crime fighting self. It deconstructs some of the more negative aspects of Batman's character - the public backlash, the immense physical toll it takes on Bruce Wayne's body, [[SuperheroParadox the escalating superhero-supervillain arms race]], and the fact that Batman is fighting for justice in a system that may be beyond saving. The reconstruction comes from the fact that in each movie, Bruce, or even the people of Gotham itself, proves the villains wrong by standing up to the threat and firmly showing why Gotham and its people can be changed, and the trilogy ends with Batman retired by necessity, but Gotham at peace.
* According to one interpretation, ''Film/{{Adaptation}}'' deconstructs movie cliches in the first half, then reconstructs them in the second. TheHero Charlie Kaufman, while undergoing hard-core writer's block and trying to adapt an unadaptable book, spends the first half of the movie decrying a bunch of cliches (such as the PolarOppositeTwins) and insists he doesn't wants to add them to the film because he thinks they are unrealistic, and the second half then goes on to demonstrate that at least ''some'' of those cliches are a NecessaryWeasel for a reason (such as the fact that [[spoiler:Charlie's Polar Opposite Twin Donald is actually a HelpfulHallucination]] or writer guru Robert [=McKee=] unleashes a hard-core TheReasonYouSuckSpeech on Charlie while highlighting how RealityIsUnrealistic (another interpretation is that it just deconstructs these cliches in the first half and spoofs them in the second half, without any attempt at reconstruction).
-->'''Charlie Kaufman''': Sir, what if the writer is attempting to create a story where nothing much happens? Where people don't change, they don't have any epiphanies, they struggle and are frustrated and nothing is resolved. More a reflection of the real world.\\
'''Robert [=McKee=]:''' The real world?\\
'''Charlie Kaufman:''' Yes, sir.\\
'''Robert [=McKee=]:''' The real fucking world. First of all, you write a screenplay without conflict or crisis you'll bore your audience to tears. Secondly, nothing happens in the world? Are you out of your fucking mind? People are murdered every day. There's genocide, war, corruption. Every fucking day somewhere in the world somebody sacrifices his life to save somebody else. Every fucking day someone somewhere takes a conscious decision to destroy someone else. People find love, people lose it. For Christ's sake, a child watches her mother beaten to death on the steps of a church! Someone goes hungry, somebody else betrays his best friend for a woman. If you can't find that stuff in life, then you my friend don't know crap about life! And why the [[AtomicFBomb FUCK]] are you wasting my two precious hours with your movie!? I don't have any use for it! I don't have any bloody use for it!\\
'''Charlie Kaufman:''' ...Okay, thanks.
* Creator/TimBurton's 1988 hit film ''Film/{{Beetlejuice}}'' at first appeared to deconstruct the monster movie by showing that the "monsters" could be pretty decent folk, the corollary of course being that HumansAreBastards. But the movie ultimately affirms that not only are humans redeemable if they're just scared straight, but supernatural creatures can still be complete assholes.
* In the ''Franchise/KamenRider'' crossover film of OOO and W movie ''Kamen Rider x Kamen Rider OOO & W Featuring Skull: Movie Wars CORE'', Akiko thinks that the people who became Kamen Riders ruined their own personal lives including the happiness of their loved ones, however during the climax of the film as the BigBad received all the memories of every Kamen Rider thinking himself as the rider, W and OOO reject his belief because even though the riders give up their own personal lives, they will always protect everyone, even their beloved ones.
* ''Film/BehindTheMaskTheRiseOfLeslieVernon'' deconstructs the slasher genre for most of the first hour of the movie, then reconstructs it in the end. The first half is a pseudo-documentary that shows how Vernon is just a regular human man who takes great lengths to be CrazyPrepared for a single night of bloody rampaging... and then the second half has the documentary team who was recording him find out the hard way that they are his chosen victims and the aforementioned preparedness makes Vernon as nearly-unstoppable and unavoidable as a slasher is expected to be and all the knowledge that it's just smoke and mirrors doesn't really helps tone down the fact that there's a maniac killer out to get you.
* ''Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse'':
** ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheWinterSoldier'' deconstructs TheCape superhero archetype by showing that Steve Rogers' ideals don't quite fit in the modern, pragmatic world. He wonders if his morals and values mean anything in modern society or even the old days and his refusal to change them results in finding himself useless. The reconstruction kicks in when Steve [[BreakOutTheMuseumPiece retrieves his old WWII uniform from the Smithsonian]] and finds hope in the allies that believe in him (i.e. Natasha and Sam). His RousingSpeech to SHIELD agents influences them to stop [[spoiler: Project Insight]]. Finally, Steve's belief in the good in people results in [[spoiler: Bucky going against his Winter Soldier programming and saving him from drowning in the Potomac River]].
** ''Film/SpiderManHomecoming'' has one for teenage superheroes. Although the failings of Peter Parker's mentors certainly played a role in it as well, almost everything bad that happens in this movie can be traced back to one well-meaning but inexperienced superhero meddling in affairs way out of his league. Peter almost gets himself, his classmates and hundreds of bystanders killed ''several times'': For example, [[spoiler:he almost drowns while fighting the Vulture--after causing untold amounts of damage on his way to catch his goons, puts the Washington Monument and everyone inside in danger by leaving a dangerous piece of alien technology with his friend and causes the Ferry incident by acting before the proper authorities get a chance to]]. It's only due to the repeated interventions of actual heroes that he survives. However, by the end of the film he's able to prove his worth by [[spoiler:stopping the Vulture from making off with the Avengers' tech without any help (even using his original BetaOutfit to get the job done) and the adults realize he does have what it takes to be one of the Avengers. Peter declines because he realizes that the regular people need a superhero too and he can fill out that niche while the other heroes can't]].
* ''Film/{{Enchanted}}'' does this to princess and Disney fairytale tropes. For instance, princesses usually have cute and cuddly animal friends, right? In New York City, the only animals around are pests: rats and cockroaches etc. They still become good and helpful princess animal friends. Edward, the prince Giselle originally seems destined to be with, is a bumbling ditz who turns out to [[FalseSoulmate not be Giselle's true love after all]]. However, he's still a genuinely decent man who doesn't hesitate to step aside to let Giselle be kissed by her true love, and does get to [[PairTheSpares be a bonafide Prince Charming for another woman]].
* ''Film/EternalSunshineOfTheSpotlessMind'' deconstructs the standard RomanticComedy by detailing the break-up of a relationship... and in doing so shows why the OddCouple got together in the first place. They end up back together by the end of the film.
* ''Film/GalaxyQuest'' spends the first half of the film showing the actors from the initial ''[[ShowWithinAShow Galaxy Quest]]'' TV show to be a bunch of jaded washouts with little to their name other than adoring fans. They're then given control of an actual spaceship by some [[AliensStealCable misguided aliens who've mistaken them for heroes]] [[BigDamnHeroes who will save them]] from evil RubberForeheadAliens... and nearly get themselves and everyone else killed. Only once they finally realise their situation in the final act and start applying all of the old tropes from their TV show do they start kicking ass whilst simultaneously showing why people fell in love with shows like ''Series/{{Star Trek|TheOriginalSeries}}'' in the first place.
* ''Film/Godzilla2014'' initially plays off as a darker twist of the kaiju genre, showing horrific real-life consequences of giant monster attacks. We see the main character tragically lose his father when the Male MUTO escapes. Later we see Godzilla cause a massive tsunami in Hawaii which drowns thousands of terrified civilians, and later the main character's wife, a nurse, is seen tending to a crowded hospital filled with hundreds of wounded patients. Then comes the grand finale, where Godzilla battles the MUTO pair, and it's right back to the good old goofy-yet-awesome monster fights that we know and love. It also initially deconstructs the GentleGiant trope. Godzilla is relatively benign compared to other incarnations. However, his massive size still makes him a danger to people such as when he first arrives in Hawaii and accidentally causes a massive tsunami simply by getting out of the water. It's later reconstructed when he learns to take his time around the tiny creatures he lives with and goes out of his way to create as little damage as possible. And in the end, the world celebrates Godzilla's victory over the [=MUTOs=].
* ''Film/HotFuzz'': The first half of the movie points out that most cop movie cliches are unrealistic and silly and true police work is boring bouts of surveillance and building up trust in the community. The second half of the movie plays every single one of those cliches straight, by way of a destructive gun battle against the MilkmanConspiracy that is the town's dark secret, because they're incredibly awesome... except for the fact that such an encounter leads to a having to deal with a literal mountain of paperwork, but you can't have it all.
* ''Film/KickAss'', at least the film version, used this trope. The first half of the movie was spent hammering in the message that being a superhero in the real world is equivalent to buying a one way ticket to getting ''your'' ass kicked. However, the second half with the showdown with the BigBad takes on a much lighter tone, showing that hey, maybe you'll get your ass kicked, but at least you'll be pretty damn awesome while trying to do justice. And, by the end of the movie, [[spoiler:more competent people have been inspired by Kick-Ass's feats of Badassery]].
* ''Film/KissKissBangBang'' did this to the mystery genre by both showing the realistic consequences of an AmateurSleuth acting like he's a HardboiledDetective when the bad guys have no patience for games, but at the same time structuring the plot to mirror that of the old MysteryFiction books the characters [[DiscussedTrope themselves keep referencing]].
* ''Film/SnowWhiteATaleOfTerror'' deconstructs the original fairytale by making the new stepmother start out as quite warm and friendly to the young girl. But the girl resents her new stepmother for taking her father's attention and she grows up into a rather bratty teenager, still shying away from any attempt at making friends the stepmother makes. After the stepmother suffers a miscarriage, she then gets pushed over the edge and the fairytale plays out normally.
* A Russian film, ''Film/IfThisHappensToYou'', starts as a deconstruction of KidHero subgenre of OccupiersOutOfOurCountry. Three children are transported in time towards UsefulNotes/WorldWarII and, despite best efforts, do not seem to accomplish anything against the German occupation forces. But later on, they '''do''' manage to liberate a couple of prisoners and assist the Soviet counterattack.
* ''Film/{{Hancock}}'' starts out as a deconstruction. What if Superman didn't know who or what he is, why he can live forever and finally got fed up of people repeatedly ostracising him, becoming a drunken asshole as a result? The second half of the film then acts as a reconstruction, with Hancock attempting to become a genuine costumed superhero under the tuition of Ray, a grateful PR agent who's life he'd previously saved, while exploring his true origins.
* ''Film/JamesBond'':
** ''Film/{{GoldenEye}}'', the first Bond movie to be made after the UsefulNotes/ColdWar, does a lot in deconstructing James Bond, with many characters going on about how much the world has changed and [[WhyWeAreBummedCommunismFell how he doesn't fit so well into it anymore]]. Then, we're back to nifty gadgets, {{Bond One Liner}}s and [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome a car chase with a tank]].
** ''Film/{{Skyfall}}'' does something similar. It asks us - if we don't have enemies out in the open anymore in the form of countries wearing symbols, does society still need secret agents operating in the shadows? Cue a bad guy who operates in the shadows and is brought down not via high tech, but by holing up and making a last stand armed with shotguns. The answer seems to be, "Yes, you damn well need people like James Bond." The film also deconstructs/reconstructs some of the iconic James Bond symbols: Q makes fun of the idea of exploding pens and M has some choice commentary about the classic Aston-Martin. Then the car gets its SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome by demonstrating that machine gun headlights can be more than a gimmick.
** Likewise, its sequel ''Film/{{Spectre}}'' even questions whether {{Attack Drones}} and BigBrotherIsWatching can do the job of spies like 007, and whether the data that's being gathered by C's Joint Intelligence/"Nine Eyes" Program might actually end up in the wrong hands. [[spoiler:''Spectre'' does prove that yes, Bond is still relevant in an era of digital surveillance and drones, while also critiquing the Joint Intelligence/"Nine Eyes" program's flaws, especially if backdoor access is handed over to a NebulousEvilOrganisation like SPECTRE, who can then blackmail countries into doing their bidding even if they don't like it.]]
* ''Film/DemolitionMan'' does this to the CowboyCop. LAPD cop John Spartan is so bold and reckless in stopping criminals that his superiors hate him (bestowing upon him the titular nickname). As he finally takes down psychotic criminal Simon Phoenix in such a destructive manner that led to the deaths of dozens of hostages, he gets a life sentence in prison alongside Phoenix. Decades later, Phoenix is released into a violence-free society where police officers are so by-the-book that they are absolutely unable to think for themselves, and Phoenix easily outclasses them. The police decide to release Spartan to stop Phoenix, accepting that a less by-the-book, more intuitive policeman would do better in bringing down an AxCrazy criminal like Phoenix. [[YourApprovalFillsMeWithShame Spartan, however, is uncomfortable with how cops like Lenina Huxley are enthralled by his cavalier behavior]] and eventually does acknowledge that the world of impossibly low crime that ''created'' such inept cops is far more peaceful than his own time, which produced a CowboyCop like him.
* As [[https://www.escapistmagazine.com/v2/man-of-steel-batman-v-superman-deconstructed-superheroes-justice-league-reconstructs-them/ this article]] points out, Creator/ZackSnyder's three movies for the Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse follow this road, with ''Film/ManOfSteel'' and ''Film/BatmanVSupermanDawnOfJustice'' being the deconstructions and ''Film/ZackSnydersJusticeLeague'' as the reconstruction.
** With Franchise/{{Superman}}, Clark's alien powers initially alienate him from the rest of the world (as is shown with how [[AllOfTheOtherReindeer his classmates bullied him]] as a child and treated him like "the weird kid") and give him a great deal of grief as he grew up due to having no one to teach him how to deal with them. Furthermore, his MuggleFosterParents are paranoid and frightened that [[TheyWouldCutYouUp terrible things]] could happen if their adopted son's secret were to get out and make him swear to lay low. However, he can't ''not'' help people in some way, putting himself in danger or risk of exposure even before he puts on the suit, and when faced with the choice of bringing Krypton back at the expense of letting every human be killed in the process, Clark chooses his adopted home world without a second thought.
** ''Batman v Superman'' does it for both title characters - Superman has to deal with humanity's divided opinions over him (especially given the destructive aftermath of his battle against General Zod in the last movie) while Batman has been fighting crime in Gotham for nearly ''twenty years'' by the events of this movie, is clearly suffering from burnout and PTSD (not helped by how he'd lost a sidekick to the Joker), and is consumed with paranoia that Superman's power makes him a threat to humanity to the point that he doesn't see/realize that an even worse threat (that being Lex Luthor) is hiding in the shadows, and it all ends on [[DownerEnding a pretty depressing note]] with [[spoiler:Superman sacrificing himself to stop Luthor's monstrous creation from killing everyone]] while Batman and Wonder Woman see that Earth is vulnerable to new threats from beyond.
** ''Zack Snyder's Justice League'', by contrast, rebuild the heroes, being much lighter in tone (while still being serious) and focusing more on the fantastical elements. After the events of [=BvS=], Batman has rediscovered his sense of purpose and is determined to [[spoiler:honor Superman's sacrifice]] by putting together a league of superheroes to face these bigger threats Luthor warned him of. Each of the heroes start off hurt or broken in some way, but through finding each other and supporting one another on and off the battlefield, they become [[FamilyOfChoice a surrogate family]]. In a direct contrast to the hostility and paranoia he demonstrated in the previous movie, Batman has a conversation with Alfred where he expresses the need to rely on faith that others will do the right thing. Furthermore, as the article notes, superheroes can't just punch their way out of tough and morally grey questions with no easy answers like how to solve societal issues and whatnot. However, here, they are essential for protecting Earth from threats like [[Characters/NewGodsDarkseid Darkseid]].
* ''Film/StarTrekIntoDarkness'': The movie starts out with Captain Kirk [[WhatTheHellHero getting utterly reamed by Admiral Pike]] for his ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight methods and demoted to first officer. By the time the movie is over, he's back in command of the ''Enterprise'' and those same methods led to the villains' plots being foiled.
* ''Film/TransformersAgeOfExtinction'' applies this to Optimus Prime's IdealHero status. The [[Film/{{Transformers}} first]] [[Film/TransformersRevengeOfTheFallen three]] [[Film/TransformersDarkOfTheMoon movies]] portray Optimus as having faith in humanity's potential for good but ''Age of Extinction'' sees the Autobots being betrayed and hunted down by the humans they swore to protect. Needless to say, Optimus is heartbroken by this betrayal and considers leaving Earth permanently. It is only after Cade reasons with him that Optimus regains his idealism. In the climax Optimus says that evil comes from both humanity and Cybertronians alike, and it is [[WhatYouAreInTheDark their responsibility to do the right thing regardless of the circumstances]].
* ''Film/KingsmanTheSecretService''. Of the TuxedoAndMartini SpyFiction of early ''Film/JamesBond'' films. It begins by deconstructing it, including [[TrainingFromHell the sheer amount of trauma that comes with becoming such an operative even in the training stages]] and having a truly cunning villain who refuses to abide by [[spoiler:DeathTrap creation]] and other BondVillainStupidity, but comes back to a {{Reconstruction}} when the team of [[spoiler:Merlin, Roxy, and Eggsy]] work together and use the tactics of many of this type to fight back anyway.
* The ''Franchise/StarWars'' series as a whole does this to TheChosenOne. In the prequel trilogy, Anakin Skywalker is told at a young age that he is the chosen one with great powers. But eventually, he becomes completely arrogant, and he loses his friends and lover in his attempts to assert that power, eventually falling to the Dark Side of the Force and becoming Darth Vader. In the original trilogy, his son Luke is told about his potential at a later age when he's more emotionally mature, and thus avoids falling to the Dark Side, even getting Anakin/Vader to the Light Side once again.
** The sequel trilogy, especially [[Film/TheLastJedi Episode VIII]], does it too, regarding some aspects of the Jedi religion. More than any other installment in the series so far, it stresses the fact that the Jedi Order was a wordly institution led by fallible sentient beings, and was indirectly responsible for its own destruction, in part because of an overemphasis on practical aspects of Force mastery (lifting up rocks, etc...). Though, as long as people use the dark side of the Force, there is a need to use the light side to oppose them. Oh, [[spoiler: and lifting up rocks can be useful, too]].
** Firmly driven home with the [[RuleOfSymbolism last few images]] of Luke in ''Film/TheLastJedi'': [[spoiler: Luke [[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence becomes one with the Force]] while looking at a [[BookEnds double sunset]], linking the beginning and ending of his journey together and, by reminding us where he started, that for all his failings, he truly was the greatest Jedi of all time]]. The first words we see in the movie are "THE FIRST ORDER REIGNS", and the image that ends the movie is [[spoiler:a Force-sensitive child holding a broom [[LeaningOnTheFourthWall like a kid playing with a toy lightsaber]], looking up at the stars and dreaming of something better]]. Like all of us when we watch the movies.
** ''Film/RogueOne'' deconstructs the image of the Rebellion by giving us a Rebel Alliance that is desperate, outgunned, [[WeAreStrugglingTogether can't agree on what to do]] and is willing to kill innocent people to further its own goals. Some factions of the Rebellion, like Saw Gerrera's partisans, are dangerously close to jihadist terrorism, and most people in the galaxy, like Jyn Erso, care only about keeping their heads down and not attracting Imperial attention. The effort that the first half puts into reminding us how impossible the odds are for our heroes ultimately makes it that much more inspiring when they fight back [[ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight against their orders]] and successfully steal the Death Star plans [[spoiler: [[HeroicSacrifice at the cost of]] [[KillEmAll all their lives]]]]. Showing how much blood, sweat, and human life went into retrieving those plans makes the ultimate [[ForegoneConclusion inevitable victory]] that much more meaningful. By the end of the film, the transition from cynical realism to heroic idealism is complete, and the ''Rogue One'' crew passes the baton up to ''Film/ANewHope'' by ending with [[spoiler: the plans being delivered to the living symbol of Rebellion heroism, Princess Leia]].
*** ''Film/RogueOne'' also specifically takes apart before rebuilding the concept of belief in the Force as a religion with the characters of Chirrut Imwe and Baze Malbus. With their temple destroyed and their church outlawed, Baze has become an embittered cynic with no faith in the Force, and while Chirrut remains pious, even his best friend thinks he's delusional and misguided. Yet throughout the film, Chirrut's trust in the Force remains unshakeable and drives him to perform some [[BadassNormal incredibly badass]] feats of strength and skill. In the final battle, [[spoiler: Chirrut literally walks unharmed through a hail of gunfire [[MaybeMagicMaybeMundane possibly]] through the power of the Force while chanting his SurvivalMantra, and Baze's faith has been restored to such a degree that he [[MeaningfulEcho repeats the mantra]] as Chirrut lies dying in his arms, before pulling an epic LastStand of his own]].
* ''Film/{{Spy}}'': The film first acts a deconstruction of James Bond films and the idea of a fully capable secret agent. We see from the outset that the primary reason why Bond-like agents are one man armies is because they have hardworking desk agents who not only monitor their every action, scope the surrounding areas for Mooks, and tell the agent when to duck mid-fight, they also can [[spoiler: call for a freaking drone strike to help an agent get out of a sticky situation]]. This is reconstructed later in the film when Susan goes out into the field and we learn that [[spoiler: she always had the chops to be a ''top'' agent, getting the top marks at the academy and literally decimating the field test. Fine knew this and persuaded her to be his assistant rather than a field agent so she wouldn't be the best spy in the game, leaving room for himself to take that title. However, this ultimately backfires; Susan's 10 years as an analyst has provided her with the tech skills and knowledge of targets to make her a one man "two-man team," combining brains and brawn, and thus making her a Bond-level super spy]].
* ''Film/TheManFromUNCLE2015'' deconstructs the Bond-esque spy thriller by turning the two leads into antiheroes. The suave sophistication of Solo is balanced by the fact that he's a greedy BoxedCrook who is only doing this work because he has to. The action-oriented Kurykin is a brooding, emotionally damaged ball of rage. However, they eventually manage to put aside their grievances toward each other and participate in a straight spy action-adventure.
* Creator/ClintEastwood's ''{{Film/Unforgiven}}'' deconstructs TheGunslinger tropes and Eastwood's career as those types of characters. Eastwood's Will Munny admits that as a gunslinger he was a drunken, damaged monster who survived his many shootouts mostly through luck. An author looking for dime-novel biographies of Wild West gunslingers is perpetually disappointed to find that all of the frontier legends he investigates are lies or gross embellishments. However, Munny's quest for vengeance, both to avenge the prostitutes and his slain friend, ultimately plays out like a classic western.
* ''Film/TheMuppetsTakeManhattan'' is one for ''Film/TheMuppetMovie''. In both films, the Muppets come to the big city expecting to become stars. Only this time, they find out it's not so simple as just showing up and asking, especially for a bunch of nobodies fresh out of college. Instead of giving them a contract, producer after producer rejects them, thinking ItWillNeverCatchOn, until the Muppets run out of money and end up taking less-than-stellar jobs. Afterwards, the movie shows that even though it's not easy, you can still make your dreams come true if you keep trying and find the right opening. The Empire State Building scene is basically Kermit's resolve to find the second half of this trope.
* The big hook of ''Film/Scream1996'' was that its characters knew all the tropes and cliches of {{slasher movie}}s, and tried to avoid making silly mistakes that got people like them killed in such movies. The thing was, the same was true of the killer, who was far craftier than the usual masked maniacs of the genre and knew how to subvert the subversions of the people he was trying to kill. (The film's {{tagline}} was even "someone has taken their love of scary movies one step too far.") This is best illustrated by a scene where the FinalGirl Sidney snarks about TooDumbToLive slasher victims who run upstairs when they should be running out the front door... only to find herself forced to run upstairs no more than five minutes later because she had locked the front door and couldn't get it open in time to escape from Ghostface.
* ''Film/TheLastExorcism'' does this to DemonicPossession movies. Not only does it avert ChristianityIsCatholic by having the exorcist Cotton Marcus be an evangelical minister, it also portrays him as a charlatan who has grown disillusioned with the faith, recognizing that the "possessed" people he is treating are suffering from mental illness that, due to their religious upbringing, manifests as a belief that they are possessed by demons. His main goal in the film isn't to drive a demon from Nell, but to convince her family that what she needs is a psychiatrist once he realizes what's really up with her. That said, while the possession is psychosomatic, so is the exorcism, and Marcus recognizes that it can help people overcome their belief that they are possessed. [[spoiler:And as it turns out, Nell really ''was'' possessed -- and what's more, a [[HollywoodSatanism Satanic cult]] had been misleading Marcus the whole time as to what was really going on. The BolivianArmyEnding sees Marcus recover his faith for one last battle with the forces of Satan.]]
* ''Film/TheGreenKnight'' spends much of its runtime breaking down the idea of chivalry, with Gawain's quest being shown as an absurd endeavor driven by HonorBeforeReason that will almost undoubtedly result in his death, and Gawain himself is deeply flawed in his beliefs that these deeds will make him noble. His feats are held up as heroic by other characters [[CouldHaveAvoidedThisPlot despite them being reckless and foolhardy]], and his actual knightly prowess is suspect at best. However, the end of the movie has Gawain [[DreamingOfThingsToCome go through a vision]] that reveals that if he ''does'' give up on his knightly honor and abandon the quest, then it will leave him a broken and miserable man and bring Camelot to ruin. Essentially, it comes to the conclusion that what wasn't wrong was the idea of chivalry; what was wrong was Gawain's immature understanding of it, and his obsession with the trappings of valor over its true meaning.
* ''Film/DestinationWedding'': Frank and Lindsay tear apart romance tropes while they commiserate on being stuck together at a wedding, but over the course of the film develop a sincere romance of their own.
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->''"With no power comes no responsibility. Except that's not true."''
-->-- ''Film/KickAss''

* ''Roleplay/TheBalladOfEdgardo'' deconstructs the common RPG fantasy plot of "superpowered heroes teaming up to protect the land from the forces of darkness" by showing that the "[[SmugSuper heroes]]" in question have become little more than [[DrunkWithPower power-mad]] bullies who abuse their abilities to rule the land like tyrants and crush anyone who opposes him. The narrator's attempt at playing a BareFistedMonk StockShonenHero gets him laughed out of the tavern and then promptly pounded into the dirt by the worst of their number. Then [[GoodSamaritan an act of kindness]] from one of the only other compassionate players on the forum saves Edgardo's life, and when he gratefully joins up with the guy in question, they discover that Edgardo's [[TierInducedScrappy supposedly useless]] stats combined with a perfectly-arranged location perk turns out to be the single [[GameBreaker strongest attack]] in the entire forum, which Edgardo and his sidekick use to gloriously [[PayEvilUntoEvil take revenge on the smug creeps who abused them.]]

** A similar process, but taken several steps further occurs in the finale, this time with ThouShaltNotKill. Aang refuses to kill Ozai despite the guy's BigBad status but leaving him alive means he can continue his EvilPlan: [[spoiler: Aang takes a third option by removing Ozai's bending and placing the reformed Zuko on his throne. This way Aang can neutralize the threat without killing anyone (other than the crew of his airship, but [[WhatMeasureIsAMook they don't count]])]].

* In the ''Franchise/KamenRider'' crossover film of OOO and W movie ''Kamen Rider x Kamen Rider OOO & W Featuring Skull: Movie Wars CORE'', Akiko thinks that the people who became Kamen Riders ruined their own personal lives including the happiness of their loved ones, however during the climax of the film as the BigBad received all the memories of every Kamen Rider thinking himself as the rider, W and OOO reject his belief because even though the riders give up their own personal lives, they will always protect everyone, even their beloved ones .