Igor - Television Tropes & Idioms

A 2008 CGI animated film that parodies and homages various horror movies. Set in Malaria, a country that thrives on Mad Science, and where all hunchbacks have no choice but to become Igors. The main character, however, has plans to break free from his station and become a Mad Scientist himself. His attempt at creating an evil monster backfires, and he ends up creating an Ugly Cute Monster Girl who isn't evil in the slightest and would rather be an actress.

Igor's quest for glory is hampered by Dr. Schadenfreude, who has won the Evil Science Fair every year by stealing the winning invention from an actual Mad Scientist, and who sees Eva as his ticket not just to winning, but to taking control of the kingdom from King Malbert, who has a secret or two of his own. On top of that, Igor starts to develop feelings for Eva and begins to question the way the kingdom is run. Is being evil really their only option? And can a giant actress in a red dress really win the Evil Science Fair with showtunes?

This movie provides examples of:

Ambition Is Evil:
Eva: So, I have to step on people to get ahead?
Igor: Uh, yeah.
Animal Motifs: A number of characters have this: Jaclyn - snake, Dr. Glickenstein - crocodile, King Malbert - armadillo/cockroach
Attack Reflector: Eva's indestructible skin does this.
Bad Is Good and Good Is Bad
Bastard Understudy: Igor is this for Dr. Glickenstein.
Big Electric Switch
Blackmail: Malaria stays afloat by creating various evil inventions and then threatening the rest of the world to pay up, or those inventions will be unleashed.
Bigger Bad: King Malbert. None of this would have happened if he hadn't caused the cloud cover and restructured Malaria's society.
Black Comedy Rape: King Malber grabs Igor on both legs.
Blind Mistake: Used a couple of times with the blind orphans.
Scamper: No, no, no, it goes the other way! Are you bl... let me fix that.
- And right after that, the blind orphans perform a musical number, and one walks the wrong way.
Bookcase Passage: found using Shaggy Search Technique.
Brain in a Jar
Brainwash: An actual business in Malaria, the Brain Wash, where Igor takes Eva to turn her evil, and Brain gets a literal washing.
Chekhov's Gun: The mother's day card.
Conveyor Belt-O-Doom: The Igor Recycling Plant.
Crapsack World
Creator Cameo: Chris McKenna, the writer, plays a man in the crowd at the Killiseum, who says, "That's Dr. Schadenfreude's invention?"
Cue the Sun
Deadpan Snarker: Scamper.
Death Seeker: Scamper again, but he can't die.
The Ditz: Brain.
Dragon Ascendant: Dr. Schadenfreude took King Malbert's throne, though it was very brief.
Evil Versus Evil: Evil scientists compete at the science fair. Schadenfreude also wants to overthrow Malbert.
Even Evil Has Standards
Igor: Oh, god! She's killing blind orphans! That's so...evil! I mean, which is great, but—blind orphans?
- Dr. Schadenfreude is likely just as surprised as everyone else when he learns of King Malbert's lies.
Evil Tastes Good: Subverted. Dr. Glickenstein made an evil lasagna that tasted good, but it didn't kill anyone, thus making it not truly evil.
Fake Ultimate Hero: Dr. Schadenfreude wins the Evil Science Fair every year, but he does so by stealing an invention from another Mad Scientist.
Fauxtivational Poster: "Who doesn't like tortured kittens?"
Frankenstein's Monster: Eva.
Fur and Loathing: Jaclyn's baby-seal boots.
Gentle Giant: Eva.
Getting Crap Past the Radar: "You must have seen a lot of brains... mine's bigger than average... right?"
- "If she's having lady problems, it's all yours."
- While Igor is convincing Eva that she needs to smash monsters for her "role," there's a random diagram on the wall labeled "UST."
Gladiator Games: The Evil Science Fair, where Mad Scientists' inventions duke it out to be the last one standing.
Glass-Shattering Sound: Eva hitting a high note cracks Brain's jar.
Good Thing You Can Heal: Scamper occasionally takes advantage of his inability to die, chewing his legs off to escape for example.
- That's, uh...actually a thing real animals will do when trapped. They figure better stumpy than dead.
Gory Discretion Shot: Averted. Scamper gets a cannonball shot through his head on screen. From a Mother's Day Card.
Hoist by His Own Petard: King Malbert is crushed by a piece of his Weather Control Machine, while demanding proof of his treachery.
Homage: The first appearance of Eva is from behind, like in the original Frankenstein movie.
- The blind orphans merge two characters that the monster met.
- The Brain Wash has a reference to the movie The Fly, with the manager (Buzz Offman) and attendant (Jeff).
- In the scene in the sauna, Schadenfreude's igor has a Hawaiian shirt and a mustache, which is the animator's nod to Magnum, P.I..
- Eva standing at the top of the stairs, all dressed up, evokes Sunset Boulevard, complete with "I'm ready for my cloesup."
- Going back to Frankenstein, Mary Shelley referred to the monster being named "Adam". This one is named Eva.
Human Resources: When Igors outlive their usefulness, they're sent to the recycling plant.
I Don't Like the Sound of That Place: Malaria, Latin for "bad air". Also, you know, a horrible, horrible disease.
Incredibly Lame Fun:
Brain: Our work here is done.
Scamper: Our work? You spent the entire time playing with a piece of ribbon.
Brain proceeds to play with the ribbon some more, laughing.
I Would Say If I Could Say
The Igor
"I Know You're in There Somewhere" Fight: Igor gives this kind of speech to Eva after her evil bone is activated and she's Brainwashed and Crazy. He even reminds her of her earlier words "I'd rather be a good nobody than an evil somebody."
I Shall Taunt You: Schadenfreude does this to Eva to activate her evil bone.
Invisible Streaker: Carl Cristall, who refuses to wear pants, despite wearing other pieces of clothing.
"I'm coming to you live, invisible, and totally au naturale."
Jekyll and Hyde: Jaclyn and Heidi
Jerkass: Glickenstein, King Malbert, Malbert's royal guards, Schadenfreude & Jaclyn
Lightning Can Do Anything
Mad Scientist
Mad Scientist Laboratory
Meaningful Name: Jaclyn and Heidi are the same person.
Mismatched Eyes: Eva and Brain.
Mister Big: King Malbert.
Monster Mash
Morally Ambiguous Doctorate: All the Mad Scientists.
Names to Run Away From Really Fast: King Malbert, Dr. Schadenfreude.
The Napoleon: King Malbert.
Nightmare Fuel Station Attendant: Dr. Glickenstein & Jaclyn
Non-Human Sidekick: Scamper and Brain
Not What It Looks Like: Schadenfreude convinces Eva to come with him by showing her Igor and Heidi embracing. It turns out that while Heidi was trying to kiss Igor, he was pushing her away, about to tell her that he's in love with someone else.
Obfuscating Stupidity: Jaclyn as Heidi.
Opening Monologue
Pygmalion Plot
Ramp Jump: leading to a Slo-Mo Big Air.
Shadow Discretion Shot: Schadenfreude pulling out the shrink ray, also Jaclyn shifting into her true form.
Slap-Slap-Kiss: Schadenfreude and Jaclyn.
Sleazy Politician: King Malbert
Slippery Skid
She Cleans Up Nicely: After discovering Schadenfreude's true intentions, Igor rushes back home, intending to tell Eva the truth about the Evil Science Fair. Not seeing her when he comes in, he calls for her...and she appears at the top of the staircase, decked out in a fancy gown and practically sparkling. Igor is understandably floored.
Shipper on Deck: Scamper (and eventually Brain) for Igor and Eva, going to far as to outright force him to address his feelings for the lady. On several occasions. Brain even remarks that "our work here is done" when they think they've succeeded.
Shout Out: to Young Frankenstein. Dr Schadenfreude plays a few bars of Putting on the Ritz in the piano medley in his opening scene.
- Scamper and his repeated suicide attempts.
The Starscream: Dr. Schadenfreude.
- He could also be considered a Big Bad.
Suicide As Comedy: Scamper.
Talk Show: "Cristall Clear, with Carl Cristall."
Tiny Guy, Huge Girl: Igor and Eva
Ugly Hero, Good-Looking Villain
The Vamp: Jaclyn.
Voluntary Shapeshifting: Jaclyn, thanks to a set of pills.
Weather Control Machine
Who Would Want to Watch Us?: At one point Scamper comments, "Can you imagine a face like that on a 40-foot screen?" Cut to Extreme Close Up of Eva.
Worth Living For: Previously-suicidal and immortal Scampers gets this.