History Film / UnderTheSilverLake

* ShaggyDogStory: After spending the entirety of the film trying to find Sarah and rescue her from the clutches of the conspiracy, Sam finds out that [[spoiler:she faked her own death willingly and had no idea he was even bothering to look for her, or why. Though she no longer seems particularly enthused about the situation, there would be no way to get to her (as the bunker is buried under layers of concrete) and she affirms to Sam that she's at peace with her decision, but at least he has enough closure to exchange a tearful good-bye with her.]]

* AllForNothing: At the end of the film, Sam has finally uncovered the truth about the conspiracy.[[spoiler: But he [[DidNotGetTheGirl doesn't get back together with Sarah]] (and couldn't rescue her even if either of them wanted to), still doesn't know what do to with his life, and is now technically homeless, having been evicted from his apartment, leaving him slightly worse off than he was in the beginning. ]]

''Under the Silver Lake'' is a 2019 American film written and directed by David Robert Mitchell (''Film/ItFollows''). The film premiered on May 15, 2018 at the Cannes Film Festival and got its US release on April 16, 2019 straight to VOD.

* {{Determinator}}/ImplacableMan: [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]] almost to the point of hilarity. From what we hear and see of the [[spoiler: Owl Woman]] it is reasonable to think that this will be one of the primary challenges for Sam to deal with. Instead, [[spoiler: Sam just points a gun at her which makes her immediately retreat and never be seen again.]] [[RuleOfSymbolism This lends credence to the theories that the importance of this whole plotline lies rather in the symbolic sphere.]]

* RaceAgainstTheClock: Sam is five days away from being evicted from his apartment when he meets Sarah. He's only got that much time to figure out what happened. [[spoiler: He ends up going over-time, but gets a 24-hour extension from the LA County Sheriff who hates doing evictions.]]

* KickTheDog: An early scene has Sam pummeling a pair of child vandals. While we can understand his anger, his brutality shows that Sam isn't just some harmless goofball.

* ActorAllusion: Sam is seen in one scene with a copy of ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderMan'' stuck to his hand.
* AllForNothing: At the end of the film, Sam has finally uncovered the truth about the conspiracy.[[spoiler: But he doesn't get back together with Sarah (and couldn't rescue her even if either of them wanted to), still doesn't know what do to with his life, and is now technically homeless, having been evicted from his apartment, leaving him slightly worse off than he was in the beginning. ]]

* ChekhovsGun: The disappearance [[spoiler: (and eventual discovery of the death)]] of Jefferson Sevence, and his daughter Millicent's presence in the circle of personalities Sam keeps running into. At first they seem like a parallel story in the backdrop of Sam's search for Sarah. [[spoiler: Turns out, Sarah and Jefferson's deaths were faked together so that she could become one of his harem brides.]]

** What is the parrot saying? It's given an [[TheUnReveal unreveal]] in the end.

** Sam has a number of posters on his walls of classic movies.

'''Previews:''' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwgUesU1pz4 Trailer]].

* TheNineties: The film portrays Silver Lake as obsessed with vintage culture. Sam appears particularly stuck in the 90s. He's a huge fan of Nirvana, RetroGaming, vinyl records and ''Wheel of Fortune''. He goes to a club on "old music day" and dances to rock hits from the 90s. Even the conspiracy that he investigates hides clues referencing old Hollywood and 90s nostalgia.

* PopCultureSymbology: The movie lives and breathes this trope: the protagonist, an amateur detective, attempts to solve a mystery by finding clues in pop music played backwards, video game magazines, and images on cereal boxes. Surprisingly, he succeeds in finding the answer... [[ThroughTheEyesOfMadness or does he]]?

* ThroughTheEyesOfMadness: There are some hints that Sam may be going off his rails due to his breakup with a girlfriend, and telling us a ''very'' unreliable account of the story:
** When [[spoiler:Millicent]] is killed, her body in the lake looks exactly like Sam's favourite Playboy cover, implying that he could have fantasized the whole thing.
** The conspiracy itself appears increasingly surreal and improbable, and surprisingly, all of it revolves around Sam's prized items, with the clues hidden in his favourite pop music and even his ''Nintendo Power'' magazine.
** Finally, there is the Dog Killer story, which is introduced as a part of the conspracy, but never actually resolved. If [[spoiler:Sam is really the Dog Killer, it indicates he's been having mental health problems ever since his breakup.]]

* ThroughTheEyesOfMadness: Due to Sam's increasingly unstable mental state, it becomes difficult to discern what is real and which parts of the narrative only happen in his imagination.

* MenActWomenAre: Sam is interested in Sarah just...because, and while [[spoiler:she did choose to disappear, she ultimately didn't get to choose the circumstances and was merely instructed to act as a harem member for a wealthy, influential man.]] In fact, this is one of the main criticisms levelled at the movie: that only men (the Hobo King, the Comic Man) have agency, while the women are either symbols, ciphers, or totally shallow.

* UnwantedRescue: It is eventually revealed that [[spoiler:Sarah was not kidnapped, but joined the cult voluntarily, and thus never needed to be saved]].

* {{Determinator}}/TheJuggernaut: [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]] almost to the point of hilarity. From what we hear and see of the [[spoiler: Owl Woman]] it is reasonable to think that this will be one of the primary challenges for Sam to deal with. Instead, [[spoiler: Sam just points a gun at her which makes her immediately retreat and never be seen again.]] [[RuleOfSymbolism This lends credence to the theories that the importance of this whole plotline lies rather in the symbolic sphere.]]

* {{Determinator}}/TheJuggernaut: [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]] almost to the point of hilarity. From what we hear and see of the [[spoiler: Owl Woman]] it is reasonable to think that this will be one of the primary challenges for Sam to deal with. Instead, [[spoiler: Sam just points a gun at her which makes her immediately retreat and literally disappear from the movie.]] [[RuleOfSymbolism This lends credence to the theories that the importance of this whole plotline lies rather in the symbolic sphere.]]

* UncannyValley: The Songwriter is clearly a younger actor wearing pounds of old age makeup and looks kind of ''off'' as a result, [[TropesAreNotBad though this adds to his low-key menace rather than detracts from it]].

* SociopathicHero: Sam is this to a T, and even the "hero" part is debatable. If his voyeuristic ogling of Sarah and his older topless neighbor isn't a hint, he utterly clobbers two preteen vandals. [[spoiler:To say nothing of how he annihilates the Songwriter's head, or how he might be the infamous dog killer.]]

* AllForNothing: At the end of the film, Sam has finally uncovered the truth about the conspiracy.[[spoiler: But he doesn't get back together with Sarah, still doesn't know what do to with his life, and is now technically homeless, having been evicted from his apartment, leaving him slightly worse off than he was in the beginning. ]]

* TheDulcineaEffect: Sam only spent one night with Sarah, and that's enough for him to go on a quest to find her.

** The Owl's Kiss stalks toward Sam with a knife, but when he turns and points a gun at her, she squeaks in surprise and runs away.
* ShaggyDogStory: After spending the entirety of the film trying to find Sarah and rescue her from the clutches of the conspiracy, Sam finds out that [[spoiler:she left him of her own volition and has neither the means nor the desire to come back to him]].

''Under the Silver Lake'' is a 2019 American film written and directed by David Robert Mitchell. The film premiered on May 15, 2018 at the Cannes Film Festival and got its US release on April 16, 2019 straight to VOD.

** Sam meets the prostitute/actresses beside a grave reading "[[Creator/AlfredHitchcock's Hitchcock]]," (which is not actually the director's grave in real life).

* NoNameGiven: Most of the characters in this film lack a name, and are only credited as Comic Man, the Actress, the Songwriter etc.
** Also extends to Sam as well: while he is named "Sam" in the script, no character actually says his name at any point in the film.

** Sam meets the prostitute/actresses beside Creator/AlfredHitchcock's grave.
*** Actually NOT the director's grave, but that of a doctor with the same last name. The creators said spotting the headstone at Hollywood Forever Cemetery was too good to pass up including it in the shot, since the film shares so many similarities with Alfred Hitchcock movies.