The TVTropes Trope Finder is where you can come to ask questions like "Do we have this one?" and "What's the trope about...?" Trying to rediscover a long lost show or other medium but need a little help? Head to Media Finder and try your luck there. Want to propose a new trope? You should be over at the Trope Launch Pad.
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openPainting the medium? Film
When watching a movie, a heist scene is shown from security camera footage. The audience sees the heist from the perspective of the security footage. I've seen this in crime movies, spy movies, and comedies.
Maybe I can't find this because it's an editing choice that's part of a broader trope. Painting the Medium perhaps? The security camera footage is shown to the audience to highlight that they are doing something illegal.
resolved Vehicle equivalent to ObviousStuntDouble Film
A specific case of switching a car to a visibly different one (not exactly a Freeze-Frame Bonus), usually just before a costly crash or after one, causing a continuity error. It's not common enough to be a new trope, but I think it may fit an existing one.
- In Castle, a new dark grey Mercedes is crashed offscreen, the wreck being a silver, previous model.
- In Gran Turismo (2023), everytime an older GT-R is used, it gets damaged.
- In Ballerina (2025), the Chancellor gets into a current Range Rover. In the next scene, where the car gets shot at, it's a 00's one (as modern windscreens are brutally expensive to replace)
resolved Dancing on a large staircase, widely parodied Film
The performers sing and dance on a stage with a large, typically curved staircase. The men will be in top hats and coat tails, often with a cane in hand. The ladies will be in leotard and tights, sometimes with elaborate head gear. They sing and do a coordinated dance to a show tune. I have often seen this combined with synchronized swimming, such as having the ladies jump off the staircase and into a pool of water. This kind of dance is often parodied, and often a Show Stopper. It's famously used in the opening sequence of Family Guy but I've seen it elsewhere, such as Blazing Saddles and the opening song of Muppets Most Wanted just to name a couple I can think of. I tried searching the web but no help.
openMisnamed location Film
A particular park, featuring animals many of which aren't from the Jurassic, is called Jurassic Park.
openDamsel In Distress pretends to be charmed by villain Film
A Damsel in Distress is held captive in the villain's lair, and he makes lecherous advances towards her. She pretends to be charmed by his advances so he'll treat her less harshly, just to buy time for her rescue (Damsel Assist) or escape (Damsel out of Distress).
Is this just a specific application of Damsel Assist? I feel like I've seen this exact "play along with the seduction" thing play out several times, though, so I'm wondering if it's a trope that I just can't find.
openLong Opening Credits Film
In Modern Hollywood films, the title sequence is often short and may only show the name of the film or perhaps the names of the stars.
In older films, the opening title sequence was long and includes a lot of information typically shown in the closing credits, such as the name of every single actor who appears and what character they play.
Sometimes done intentionally in younger movies to give a Retraux feel.
Edited by naturalironistopenWhen the “star” isn’t actually the one in the suit Film
Is there a trope name for when a character is billed as being played by a famous actor, but really they just dub the voice over another actor who physically plays their body in a suit/under heavy makeup? Like Darth Vader or the Henson Ninja Turtles.
openFatal product placement? Film
Is there a trope for when instances of Product Placement are relevant in such a way that they cause fatalities? I just got out of Jurassic World Rebirth a couple of hours ago, and the opening involves someone dropping a Snickers wrapper in such a way that it causes a door to jam and subsequently causes them to be eaten by a dinosaur. "You're dino chow when you're hungry. Snickers Satisifies!".
resolved Overtook the (bad) Influence Film
Alex introduces Bob to something, attempting to convert Bob to something he's into. It works, maybe too well. Soon, Bob is more of a fan than Alex, in a way that alienates Alex. Can be played for comedy or drama.
For instance, if Alex gets goody-two-shoes Bob to try weed, and Bob turns into an addict who's into harder drugs, hangs out with druggies, gets into trouble, while Alex is more of a casual smoker, and eventually they fight because Bob doesn't want a square in his life.
Or, Alex converts Bob into his religion, but Bob turns into The Fundamentalist who eventually decries Alex as a sinner.
A related trope, where the influence is more positive, is where Alex introduces Bob to a hobby or skill, Bob eventually becomes better than Alex at it, and Alex gets jealous.
open"Movie superheroes are solo" Film
Do we have a trope for comic book movies starting from the premise that the protagonist is the only superhero in that world when large casts and/or teams of superheroes exist in comic canon?
open"We are so getting sued" meta commentary Film
As a copyright nerd, this trope makes my eye twitch.
There's a sequence that's a parody of a well-known property. So someone will turn to the camera and make some meta comment like "we are so getting sued."
Or a character who's a parody of another character will point out the differences between them and the original, and say something like "our lawyers made us make these changes."
Or there'll be a vague approximate parody, and someone will remark that they couldn't afford to get closer.
It annoys me because this is not how copyright law works. All parody is protected by fair use, and th writers surely know this, or else the wouldn't do thos sorts of gags. I'm not trying to convince you to be as annoyed by as as I am, but this misunderstanding of copyright law is what all these meta comments have in common.
open2010s series Film
It was a female lead . She is fresh out of prison hellbent on revenge. Modern day with a 50s vibe old cars and motorcycles. I want to say biker gang type thing but who knows I can’t remember. I thought it was Alison Brie. But it isn’t on IM Db. Please please help. I can’t remember
openAbsurdly Long Flight Film
I was watching Karate Kid: Legends, and Mr. Han flies from Beijing to New York, which is a 15.5 hour flight. He's in New York for barely a single conversation before flying to Los Angeles to meet with Daniel La Russo (a six hour flight) for another brief conversation, and then back to New York again. That's over a full day of flight time, not to mention time spent in the airport before/after the flight for maybe five combined minutes of conversation.
So it's kind of like Writers Can't Do Math or like, No Sense of Scale (a lot of people really don't recognize how massive the US is). I looked at all the flight related tropes I could find, but I didn't see anything that fit. Really any trope where travel times are dramatically underestimated.
open"When do we start ?" Ending Film
At the ending of an Action/Spy movie, the heroes just saved the day. They get called in by the chief of the Government Agency of Fiction, who offers them a job in said agency and describes to them the kind of missions they would be working on.
The team leader looks questioningly at his/her teammates who, after a few seconds, smile and nod at him/her, and confidently asks the chief "When do we start ?". Then :
Either A) The film ends, cue the credits. Or B) We see the heroes about to begin / right in the middle of an awesome but dangerous mission, right as they go Let's Get Dangerous!.
Thanks for your replies ! ^^
openMilk bath as indicative of a person's vanity Film
Do have a trope that uses the visual of a milk bath done to a character (usually female) that is indicative of their obsession with beauty and/or their vanity?
openAPP Goofy Movie fanfic trope inquiry Film
I’m in need of assistance to determine which trope would best fit this highlight from my fanfic story “Face Off with Principal Mazur”: PM: Ah yes. Mr. Goof. And the young man who incited that little riot at the assembly last year. G: Now see here. My Max is no juvenile delinquent and did not start a riot at all. PM: And how do you know that? (Roxanne then enters.) R: Because I saw what went on at that assembly. He wasn’t trying to incite any violence. All the other students were cheering for him and his Powerline performance because they loved it. And he and his dad also got to dance alongside the real Powerline himself at his concert in LA. My friends and I were watching, and they obviously impressed Powerline with their own dance moves, and he decided to make it part of his show without any objection. (Mazur just scoffs) PM: Another hijacking. Disrespect. That’s what’s wrong with today’s kids, don’t know when to stop making things miserable for others. Basically, what this implies is that rather than acknowledge Max and Goofy’s talent and apologize for his misleading exaggeration to Goofy, he just flippantly disregards their dance as “another hijacking” and how today’s kids don’t know when to stop making others miserable.

A killer uses an Improvised Weapon that's thematically related to the motive for the killing - for instance, a sore loser will kill the victor with Trophy Violence, or a gardener who's tired of his boss' abuse with use gardening shears. Usually, not so smart on the part of the killer since it'll make him a lead suspect, but it does make revenge all that much sweeter.
Also used by monomaniacal Serial Killers who have the one choice of theme they use variations of.