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:
resolved Stereotypical pilgrims? Film
Now the page I’m looking for isn’t the actual historical people who first came to New England in 1620, but rather the almost entirely fictional version of them seen throughout pop culture. The ones who landed on Plymouth Rock, at all times wear buckle hats and dour faces. Is there any page for that image of the pilgrims?
resolved Acting out the plan Film
A scene best seen in the Mission: Impossible Film Series (the one I remember being in Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One and other films depicting The Caper or some other operation, where a character is walking their team through the plan, usually with the characters performing their parts in the target location. It is usually a best-case scenario used as a Bait-and-Switch, often cutting back to other characters interrupting with a Didn't Think This Through and the planner then incorporating those changes in an alternative version of the scene.
Filled with Unspoken Plan Guarantee.
resolved Pacifist Objector gets killed Film
A minor character in edgier stories, usually ones where "good" people are forced to do something immoral.
Although not the hero, there's this one character who refuses to compromise his morals, and ends up facing death bravely. He's there to show that, despite how bad things are, there are still people who refuse to sell their souls to a violent system.
And, of course, the hero will eventually avenge him.
resolved It can't be that easy! Film
Does this trope have a page yet? I've tried a few searches and can't find it.
Alice and Bob need to accomplish something very important but seemingly very difficult. While scouting the situation, they notice what appears to be a very easy way to achieve their goal. One or both of them say, "It can't be that easy!" Then they try that method and learn that, yes, it really is that easy.
Examples:
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse: When trying to sneak into the Kingpin's headquarters during a black tie dinner event, the spider-crew notice the waiters are all wearing SpiderMan costumes. SpiderMan-Noir says, "It can't be that easy!" Smash cut to a few minutes later as they're all just walking right in and blending in perfectly.
WarGames: Main character David is trying to log into the WOPR computer system to undo the damage he's done, using Dr. Falken's backdoor access, but he doesn't know the password. He learns that Dr. Falken lost his son, Joshua, years ago, and says, "It can't be that easy." He still tries typing Joshua as the password, and it works.
Possibly a sub-trope of "Eureka!" Moment? But even if it is, I still can't find it.
Edited by Mr_Mathresolved Dub that is exclusively in the language the characters actually speak Film
Hello, Is there a trope for when a work offers, or exclusively features, a dub where every character speaks their canonical language? An example would be the war movie Joyeux Noël, where there is a dub where the German characters speak German, the French characters speak French and the Scottish characters speak English. Another example is Video Game/Tchia, whose only voice option is in Drehu and French. This differs from just selecting the original language as the characters really speak the languages they're supposed to speak. If you, say, watched a Mexican movie in Spanish and there was a scene taking place in the US, and its dialog between Americans was still in Spanish because it's the language of the movie, it would not be this trope. Thank you in advance!
Edited by Iyionakuresolved Ending dissonance Film
Story ends on a clearly and obviously bad note: Bob the main character, after navigating through all kinds of trouble, is found dead by a pair of gabage men. We don't even know which of his countless enemies got him. Chet, Bob's protege, becomes a full-blown The Gambling Addict, who just lost everything in a high-stake game. On top of that, Alice, Chet's wife, is to return from a trip any minute now, only to find out Chet is missing (he's on the other side of the country) and their flat sold out to the local mogul. The last scene of the film is Chet buying a pack of cards for the literal pocket change he is left with in his life, walking away into uncertain fate.
Despite of that, the ending tries to sell itself as "Ray of Hope" Ending, with music swelling in its "happy times" riff, while both director and script-writer insisting this is actually optimistic.
Is this just Allegedly Optimistic Ending (except nothing about it is optimistic nor even implies to be optimistic), or do we have some specific ending trope where audience and creators interpret the conclusion of the story differently.
Edited by Tropiarzresolved Trope name for when a work is required to watch for the rest of the sequel to make sense? (Not Cont) Film
I remember that the page quote is from someone who claimed that Ant Man fans were vindicated since it turns out Ant Man 2 is required to understand Endgame.
It isn't continuity lockout, as it doesn't have the quote that I mentioned above.
Edited by FullmetalRenkinjutsushiresolved Dragged by the freak Film
A character, unaware of danger, recieves a knock to the head by a bad guy, and, just as he's falling unconscious, with his vision blurred, he looks up to see someone with a creepy appearance, who starts dragging him to his lair. Or, he manages to see the creep while being dragged, out of focus, before falling unconscious.
This usually happens just before an act break, to allow viewers an exciting preview of the aggressor's appearance - it's too out of focus to ruin anything, but we can tell it's creepy. Also, if the darkness is supposed to keep audiences from seeing what the bad guy looks like, the blurry image allows the kidnapping scene to take place before it's dark.
resolved Trope for what I call "Contextual Acting" Film
I REALLY suck at explaining so I hope this makes some sort of sense. This is the trope for when a characters ability to emote isnt thanks to the actor but rather the context. If a neutral character isnt really making a face or reacting to anything, but audiences are able to catch the "meaning" the director intended because the context, A Hero witnessing war crimes and is appalled at the senseless loss of life... But this is because the actor's neutrality is used to convoy meaning via means outside the actor.
resolved Resurrection undoes Character Developemnt Film
I'm looking for a trope where a character dying and resurrecting undoes any Character Development and essentially resets their personality.
It shows up in the Wreck-it Ralph fanfic Filling in the Empty Spots
where Vanellope is killed in a racing accident. Despite saying outside her game she does regenerate, but the but the process essentially performed a personality factory reset on her that erased her memories of the other characters and her Character Development from her rejection at the others' hands.
resolved big dumb object Film
"big dumb object" - there's probably already a trope for this. Described in scientific and science fiction circles, objects such as Dyson Spheres, the Monolith in "2001: A Space Odyssey", the "whale caller" in Star Trek IV, etc. There is an article on Wikipedia covering this topic.
Edited by mentummikeresolved Everything Was Old in the Past Film
A Period Piece will feature props and sets appropriate to the time period, except the props already look old - the prop designer forgot that something that looks old now was once brand new.
Usually that means movies taking place in Ancient Greece assuming those temples were already ruins back in III B.C., broken statues, unpainted columns and walls, dirt everywhere, not a pillow or sheet in sight. More recent fare will feature newly-released silent movies looking damaged, phonograph cylinders sounding scratched, and newly-developed pictures looking yellowed and brittle.
resolved Takes Place In Present Day, But Lots of Anachronisms For Flavor Film
What trope is this?
SUMMARY: A horror film clearly takes place in present day, but it is peppered with anachronisms (vintage cars, paper maps) only going as far back as 1968, plays 80's-style (esp. The Thing-style) background music, and only uses practical effects (no CGI or green rooms) This is done purely for the sake of aesthetics/feel and as a form of shout-outs to other horror movies that heavily inspired it. It doesn't take place in an alternate timeline or universe, either.
LONG EXPLANATION: The setting clearly takes place in the present, because everyone has a cellphone, but there are many anachronisms, such as vintage cars (though most are modern ones), faux-vintage attire (one character has yellow-tinted aviator sunglasses, sideburns, and a fedora, but thankfully it's not a 70's-style fedora, and he doesn't wear 70's era jeans) Everyone uses the radio for news (this example is a shoutout), and several characters use paper maps or 1980's and/or 90's AM/FM radios. One character drives across a wooden covered bridge. Also uses lots of "The Thing"-like drones of dread and exclusively uses practical effects (animatronic models and makeup, no CGI or green rooms) It's a horror movie and this is clearly done intentionally for aesthetic appeal and shout-outs. The Anachronisms doesn't go back further than 1968, with the possible exception of a silent movie playing on a flatscreen TV in the background (the TV has no audio or is on mute)
I assumed it was Anachronism Stew, but that trope is about historical inaccuracy or time crash. Ambiguous Time Period doesn't work, because it's clearly the present day. I looked at Purely Aesthetic Era, but this doesn't seem to work, either, because from the sound of it, this can't take place in the present day unless it's schizo tech.
resolved Stories About Rebellion Affirming the Status Quo Film
Is there a trope for movies that start off with people who are rebelling against society or have been disenfranchised in some way as the heroes, but then the movie ends with what comes across as a tacit endorsement of the status quo? Either the rebels get killed as a result of their actions or simply just give up trying to go against the grain.
resolved fourth act Film
Many films follow a Three-Act Structure. But sometimes, after what seems to be a resolution, it looks like the protagonists are safe and can go home, and the film should be almost over.
But something new happens: a threat comes up or the protagonists remember they still have an important thing to do, causing new action scenes to follow.
resolved Accidentally causing a distressed reaction after an innocuous question Film
An example at the end of Naked Gun 33 1/3: Frank Drebin throws up into a tuba of the stage orchestra after discovering that Rocco Dillon's girlfriend Tanya Peters has a penis. His colleague Nordberg leads him away backstage and, not knowing what happened between Tanya and Frank in the dressing room, casually asks:"Frank, we we've been so worried about you! Where is Rocco, where is Tanya?" At the mention of Tanya's name Frank nearly starts vomiting again. What is the name of this trope?
resolved Enemies Playing Lovers Film
Alice and Bob are actors playing a romantic pair. But, once the director yells cut, they hate each other - either because they're Horrible Hollywood backstabbers, or, in a romantic comedy, because of all the Unresolved Sexual Tension.
Since that's a ROCEJ-heavy trope, I'm looking for in-universe examples.
resolved On The Search For A Certain Chistmas Movie That's Bugging Me Because I Googled Everywhere Film
Looking for the name of a specific Christmas movie with a little girl who is named Alexandra who I think is from the orphanage and making short bread cookies with her mom or the one she was living with was speaking Spanish and Alexandra the little girl was singing along with the song "Mamacita Dónde Esta Santa Claus" and then she went to her room to get a Christmas gift for her Mom or the one she was living with and the police show up with a warrant for her arrest and gets arrested and the little girl who is named Alexandra ends up on Main St. with a dog named Chico and looks through the dumpster and finds a blanket and sleeps by the dumpster for the night and then a woman named Chloe after ordering a Latte at a coffee shop stumbles upon the little girl and the woman calls her friend that works at Child and Family Services and gets Alexandra registered into the system and then as the movie goes on Chloe decides to take Alexandra in to be part of her family along with her new boy friend. If anyone out there could please tell me the Title name of the movie it would be sincerely greatly appreciated. Thank you very much.
resolved Successful man deprived of everything learns to appreciate the small things Film
Things he had all along but paid no attention to, had contempt for, or refused to get involved in. Examples:
- Regarding Henry: Henry loses his memory after being shot on the head and slowly discovers that he was a successful Amoral Attorney with a disastrous home life and a neglected family. In the end he resigns from his job and focuses on the latter.
- Click: Loosely the same except the main character is an architect and he has the realization after time flashes forward.
- The Simpsons: Both times with Mr. Burns. In one episode he loses his fortune and is taught to appreciate recycling by Lisa, in another he learns to take care of himself after Smithers goes on vacation.

The character is unsympathetic, but he is not important or evil enough to count as a villain. The protagonists might see him as a jerkass, but they don't concede that he's right, which rules out the "Jerkass Has A Point" trope. But, at least IMO, he does have a point. So which trope can I use? Specifically, I'm thinking of the sports official in, IIRC, one scene of the movie "Cool Runnings" who denies funding for the protagonists' project.