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.
Find a Trope:
openChild Holds Greedy Person as Adventure Hostage? Film
Is there a trope where a child has something a greedy person wants, so they "hold the person hostage" by not giving them the thing in exchange for them taking the child on an adventure or doing another favor? I don't even know what movie I'm thinking of, so I'll post this on the show page too.
openTrailers/posters/billings "mislead" about which actor could be considered protagonist Film
A movie showcasts actor A in the trailer as if they are the most important character/actor, and often bills them first on the poster/titles. However, when you watch the movie, it becomes clear actor B actually plays a character that has more screentime / is much more important to the plot / can be considered the protagonist. This is most often due to actor A being more popular / a hit name at the moment the movie is released.
This must be a Trope (or probably, Trivia?) but can't find it...
openPhone call interception Film
Is there a specific name or movie example of when a character, generally in a ghost movie, call another and that this other character receive a completely different message from the sender? For example, "Run, you fool!" become "Come inside, we need your help!".
openActionMovie Film
Good afternoon. Do not we have a trope for Action Movie? I wanted to write an example of Tom Hanks Syndrome about the first Action Hero role of Keanu Reeves in Point Break 1991.
Edited by LittleBusteropenWhen I say X you say Y! X! Y! X! Y! Film
An example is in the 2017 Spiderman film, where a crowd at a dance party shouts "When I say 'penis' you say 'parker'! Penis! Parker! Penis! Parker!". Is there a trope for this?
openMovie plot? Film
Do we have a trope for when an idiot follows around a Straight Man and slowly drives him mad? Specific examples would be What About Bob?, Dinner for Schmucks, or Due Date.
openMisdirected by the Merchandise Film
I guess in a reversal of Spoiled by the Merchandise, do we have a trope for when a movie's toyline seemingly spoils something, but actually turns out not be based on anything from the film?
openPandering to the Foreign Market Film
I'm putting this as Film since it's most visible there, but do we have a trope (or YMMV item) where a scene, character, or location is blatantly added for the sake of pandering to the international market (shoehorning in China is currently the most common).
openStatement of Intent Film
In a lot of general-audience movies, the protagonist will explicitly state his/her intentions, whether for the whole movie (Frodo: "I'll take the ring to Mordor") or for a more limited task (Capt America Winter Soldier: "We have to stop the launch"). The term I usually hear for this trope is Statement of Intent, but I can't find it here.
Any suggestions of where to look?
openHiding from something scary while another scary thing happens to you. Film
For example Fellowship of the Ring; Hobbits hiding underneath the roots while insects crawl on them. Also, just saw same trope in Missing in Action 2, character hides in brush from enemy while leeches crawl on him. Is there a name for this?
openSelf Worth Film
I am wanting to learn all I can about tropes of self discovery. I am writing a TV show where the protagonist's intention is 'to find herself / to take control of her life / to listen to her own voice' - the framing being that she has led a life of literal seclusion from any world outside of her own and that she has had all of her big life decisions dictated to her by other people.
All tropes that seem to exist around this topic never quite feel like the perfect fit. The 'Journey To Discover Oneself' trope listed on the site is about characters at the end of a movie still questioning after a major event, and out of Booker's 9 basic stories/plots the intention of self discovery seems to lie somewhere between a 'rebirth', 'Rebellion Against The One' and 'Tragedy'.... with a mix of twists on the 'Coming Of Age' trope.
Can anyone help by offering any clear tropes and examples of movies that follow self discovery tropes? Is it too broad of an intention to exist in the confines of a trope? I am surprised a journey to find oneself isn't one of booker's 9 plots, can anyone shed any light on this?
Thank you,
openTreats correction as addendum Film
Do we have a trope for when Alice corrects Bob and Bob acts as if the correction is an addition? Like this: "I want a bottle of Jaggermaster, Alice." "Jägermeister." "I want one of those too.
openPolice Under Fire from Press Film
On any crime drama set in Europe or the U.K., the police are always being shredded by the press for not solving a crime immediately. They spend half their time worrying about the press or getting fired. The public has no patience. Is this a trope, or is it just what the press does overseas?
Edited by calypsoh13openWait... He's mine! Film
Our Hero has been brainwashed by the bad guys. OR SO WE THINK! When they're about to kill The Sidekick, he intervenes (usually saying the above line) then the two hatch a plot to escape (starting off by killing a couple of mooks who were caught off guard).
Indiana Jones did this in Temple of Doom. Does it have a name?
openBeginning-Improvement-Crisis-Resolution Film
Is there a name for this commonly used structure for movies? It's pretty common in comedies. I'll try to explain it better. The movie starts with a character in a standard/mediocre situation, then in the first part it improves. About two/thirds through there's a big crisis (with ensuing depression/drama), to finish it all with an happy ending (mostly). Hope that's clear enough.
openDark hallway, round overhead lights coming on one by one Film
I suspect everyone's seen this before. Long, dark hallway. Character(s) walk down said hallway. At evenly spaced intervals, round overhead lights snap on, creating evenly spaced circles of light on the floor.
Edited by WadCheber

What's the trope for water suddenly pictured as deep enough to drown in, even though the characters were seen waddling in it just moments before? Usually shown with a camera positioned beneath a drowning or flailing character, light flickering above on the surface, often in slow motion. Sometimes coincidental with Dive Under the Explosion.
Newest example? Game of Thrones 07x04 ending shot. Horseback rider gallops splashing through water barely covering the hooves, gets knocked off the horse, lands in water at least 5 meters deep.
Possibly overlapping with another trope I can't place - a "bottomless puddle", often found in cartoons, in which a small puddle successfully dunks an unlucky pedestrian. For extra comedic effect, another character had just moments ago walked across the puddle with no trouble at all. The latter usually looks like this: [1]
◊
Edited by SinusPi