Tropescilloscope: Bad "Bad Acting"
Bad actors in a Show Within a Show don't resemble what actual bad actors are like. (read more at tvtropes.org)
More Tropes
Line-of-Sight Name
Danny Peary Cult Movies List
A Date with Rosie Palms
How We Got Here
Gorn
Action Survivor
MayDecember Romance
Driven to Suicide
Kick the Dog
Soft Glass
Developing Doomed Characters
Product Placement
Chekhov's Skill
Conspicuous CG
Honor Before Reason
Mercy Kill
Manchild
Bare Your Midriff
Bullying a Dragon
Overly Long Gag
Killed Mid-Sentence
Big-Bad Ensemble
Does Not Like Shoes
Cluster F-Bomb
Cold-Blooded Torture
Based on a True Story
Jerkass
Public Domain Feature Films
Artistic License Gun Safety
Darker and Edgier
Insult Backfire
Rule of Symbolism
Historical Hero Upgrade
Race Against the Clock
Offscreen Moment of Awesome
Fan Disservice
Wretched Hive
Motor Mouth
Stealth Pun
Lock and Load Montage
Historical Villain Upgrade
Depraved Bisexual
Dirty Cop
Ugly Guy, Hot Wife
Artistic License Biology
My Beloved Smother
Vitriolic Best Buds
Humans Are Bastards
Romantic False Lead
Artistic License Military
Spared by the Adaptation
Deconstruction
Ms. Fanservice
Ambiguous Disorder
Plot Hole
Rewatch Bonus
Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass
Crapsack World
Heel Realization
"Well Done, Son!" Guy
Translation Convention
Say My Name
The Dreaded
No OSHA Compliance
For the Evulz
Intrepid Reporter
Heroic Sacrifice
Film Noir
Never My Fault
Take a Third Option
Psychological Thriller
Butt-Monkey
Reckless Gun Usage
Bad "Bad Acting"
My God, What Have I Done?
Bloodless Carnage
Yandere
The Ditz
Your Head A-Splode
Canon Foreigner
Posthumous Character
Badass in a Nice Suit
Downer Ending
Punctuated! For! Emphasis!
It Will Never Catch On
Creepy Child
Fatal Flaw
Bury Your Gays
Homage
Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?
Kubrick Stare
Men Are the Expendable Gender
Our Zombies Are Different
The '80s
Enemy Mine
And I Must Scream
Neck Snap
Only One Name
The X of Y
Call-Forward
Girl-on-Girl Is Hot
Pay Evil unto Evil
You Killed My Father
Retirony
Stylistic Suck
Bilingual Bonus
Bittersweet Ending
Shower Scene
Bond Villain Stupidity
After the End
The Smurfette Principle
Chekhov's Gunman
As the Good Book Says...
Arc Words
Skewed Priorities
Coming-of-Age Story
Green-Eyed Monster
Blood Knight
A God Am I
Show Within a Show
Parental Abandonment
He Who Fights Monsters
Overprotective Dad
Black Dude Dies First
Sports Stories
Bland-Name Product
He Knows Too Much
Frame-Up
Deus ex Machina
Disappeared Dad
Pretty Little Headshots
Asshole Victim
The Load
Unusually Uninteresting Sight
Screw the Money, I Have Rules!
Biopic
Cloudcuckoolander
All There in the Script
Sequel Hook
The Stoner
World of Ham
Last-Name Basis
Death Glare
Not Even Bothering with the Accent
Playing Gertrude
Dual Wielding
Slap-Slap-Kiss
Hollywood Law
Match Cut
Took a Level in Badass
Important Haircut
Bolivian Army Ending
Parental Incest
Obstructive Bureaucrat
Affably Evil
Toplessness from the Back
Rape as Drama
Curse Cut Short
Shipper on Deck
Femme Fatale
Eldritch Abomination
Big Fancy House
Becoming the Mask
Unreliable Narrator
Sexy Discretion Shot
Idiot Ball
Fingore
Hidden Depths
Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas
Grey and Gray Morality
Documentary
Ambiguously Gay
Eiffel Tower Effect
Apocalypse How
Foregone Conclusion
Darkest Hour
Love at First Sight
Made of Iron
The Alleged Car
Dies Wide Open
Chewing the Scenery
Historical-Domain Character
Whole Plot Reference
Accidental Murder
Well-Intentioned Extremist
Narrator
Running Gag
Laser-Guided Karma
The Ace
Sanity Slippage
Hong Kong Films
The Cameo
Dressing as the Enemy
Affectionate Parody
Big Eater
Token Minority
Back from the Dead
Wounded Gazelle Gambit
Star-Crossed Lovers
Totally Radical
Imagine Spot
Loophole Abuse
Dark Action Girl
The Quiet One
Big Bad Duumvirate
Peek-a-Boo Corpse
Broken Aesop
The Big Guy
Sir Swears-a-Lot
Anguished Declaration of Love
Daylight Horror
Red Right Hand
Face Death with Dignity
Anti-Hero
Reasonable Authority Figure
Nice Hat
Black Comedy
Deliberate Values Dissonance
Aside Glance
Does This Remind You of Anything?
Distracted by the Sexy
Pun
aka: Incredibly Lame Pun
The Vamp
Cassandra Truth
Noodle Incident
Fire-Forged Friends
Precision F-Strike
Here We Go Again!
No Antagonist
Wham Shot
Woman Scorned
Body Horror
Evil-Detecting Dog
Sassy Black Woman
"Where Are They Now?" Epilogue
Faux Affably Evil
Pretty in Mink
Meaningful Background Event
She Cleans Up Nicely
Straight Gay
Took a Level in Jerkass
'80s Hair
Meaningful Echo
Genre Shift
Action Film, Quiet Drama Scene
Beauty Is Never Tarnished
Drowning My Sorrows
My Greatest Failure
Word of God
Rule of Cool
Diabolus ex Machina
Random Events Plot
Police are Useless
Same Language Dub
All There in the Manual
Ooh, Me Accent's Slipping
Good Is Not Nice
Groin Attack
Abhorrent Admirer
For Want of a Nail
Humiliation Conga
Stepford Smiler
Chekhov's Gun
Take That!
Vomit Discretion Shot
Bloody Hilarious
Knight Templar
Car Fu
Captain Ersatz
Easily Forgiven
Gainax Ending
Rule of Funny
Psychopathic Manchild
Visual Pun
Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold
Only in It for the Money
Retired Badass
True Companions
Big "NO!"
Action Prologue
Canadian Movies
Irony
Rousing Speech
Contrived Coincidence
Manic Pixie Dream Girl
Knife Nut
Domestic Abuse
Big Brother Instinct
It Can Think
Training Montage
Storming the Castle
Only a Flesh Wound
As You Know
Hero Antagonist
Smug Snake
Vomit Indiscretion Shot
More Dakka
Chase Scene
Mistaken for Gay
As Himself
The Alcoholic
Fish out of Water
The Dog Bites Back
Eagleland
Evil Is Petty
Extremely Short Timespan
Rape Is a Special Kind of Evil
Interrupted Suicide
Lampshade Hanging
Death Seeker
Dirty Coward
Protagonist Title
The Cavalry
Evil Is Hammy
The Un-Reveal
Rated M for Manly
Comically Missing the Point
Hypocritical Humor
Shown Their Work
Expy
Screw This, I'm Outta Here!
All Men Are Perverts
Catch-Phrase
Punch-Clock Villain
Horror Comedy
Leave the Camera Running
Pre-Asskicking One-Liner
Gone Horribly Right
Roaring Rampage of Revenge
Facial Horror
Sole Survivor
Cat Scare
20 Minutes into the Future
Disproportionate Retribution
Italian Films
The Bad Guy Wins
Outrun the Fireball
Martial Arts Movie
Hair-Trigger Temper
Alas, Poor Villain
Not So Above It All
Unspoken Plan Guarantee
The Ghost
Berserk Button
Bound and Gagged
Mad Scientist
Adult Fear
Stealth Hi/Bye
Film Series
Anachronism Stew
Drives Like Crazy
Jitter Cam
Blonde, Brunette, Redhead
Genre Throwback
Double-Meaning Title
Anti-Villain
It's All About Me
"Shaggy Dog" Story
Ass Shove
Hooker with a Heart of Gold
The Film of the Book
Corpsing
Everyone Has Standards
Stalker with a Crush
Hoist by His Own Petard
Chuck Cunningham Syndrome
Obfuscating Stupidity
Spanner in the Works
Mr. Exposition
Sliding Scale of Idealism vs. Cynicism
Adaptation Name Change
Not So Different
Artistic License Physics
Fake Shemp
Tempting Fate
The Brute
Dark Reprise
Disguised in Drag
Obviously Evil
Shell-Shocked Veteran
The Hero Dies
Closed Circle
A.I. Is a Crapshoot
The Place
Roger Ebert: Great Movies List
Small Name, Big Ego
Ambiguous Ending
In Medias Res
Animal Motifs
The End... Or Is It?
Alliterative Name
Brutal Honesty
Taking the Bullet
Morality Pet
Get Out!
Soundtrack Dissonance
Beta Couple
It's Personal
Police Brutality
Silence Is Golden
Evil Sounds Deep
Air-Vent Passageway
Redshirt Army
From Bad to Worse
Genre Savvy
Beard of Evil
Evil Counterpart
Trailers Always Spoil
As Long as It Sounds Foreign
Didn't Think This Through
Death of a Child
Black Comedy Rape
I Did What I Had to Do
Composite Character
Properly Paranoid
Deadpan Snarker
Aww, Look! They Really Do Love Each Other
Cool Old Guy
All for Nothing
Non-Indicative Name
No Ending
Villain Protagonist
Together in Death
Fanservice Extra
Every Car Is a Pinto
Race Lift
Paper-Thin Disguise
Dwindling Party
Real Life Writes the Plot
Arch-Enemy
Horror Doesn't Settle for Simple Tuesday
Blackmail
Fate Worse than Death
Toilet Humour
aka: Toilet Humor
The Faceless
Pyrrhic Victory
Dogged Nice Guy
The Voiceless
In Name Only
Twist Ending
Older Than They Look
Badass Boast
Rich Bitch
Corrupt Corporate Executive
Adaptation Dye-Job
Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep"
Colour-Coded for Your Convenience
aka: Color Coded For Your Convenience
Politically Incorrect Villain
Only Sane Man
The Musical
You Have Outlived Your Usefulness
Catapult Nightmare
Epic Movie
Jerkass Has a Point
Evil Brit
Film Noir Index
Guile Hero
Evil Cannot Comprehend Good
Break the Haughty
Australian Movies
Logo Joke
Ripped from the Headlines
Empathic Environment
HeelFace Turn
She's Got Legs
Off-into-the-Distance Ending
Fantastic Racism
Hypocrite
Fun with Acronyms
Reality Has No Subtitles
Manly Tears
Gold Digger
Superhero
Very Loosely Based on a True Story
One-Man Army
B-Movie
Kids Are Cruel
Scenery Gorn
Pre-Mortem One-Liner
Ax-Crazy
The Smart Guy
Eye Scream
Ragtag Bunch of Misfits
Redemption Equals Death
Children Are Innocent
Card-Carrying Villain
Camp Gay
Shoot the Shaggy Dog
This Is Gonna Suck
Red Herring
Betty and Veronica
Deal with the Devil
Too Dumb to Live
The Hero
Slashed Throat
Horror Films
Improbable Infant Survival
aka: Infant Immortality
Super Strength
Moment Killer
Nice Job Fixing It, Villain!
Heroic BSoD
Artistic License Law
British Films
La Résistance
Revenge
Action Genre
Adaptational Attractiveness
Early-Bird Cameo
Shut Up, Hannibal!
"Awesome McCool" Name
Lighter and Softer
Award-Bait Song
The Great Depression
Foil
Oh, Crap!
Cain and Abel
The Bully
timeperiod
The '70s
Not So Stoic
Dramatic Gun Cock
Better to Die than Be Killed
Spell My Name with an "S"
And the Adventure Continues
The Atoner
Cowboy Cop
A Minor Kidroduction
Jerk with a Heart of Gold
Brainless Beauty
Cat Fight
Arranged Marriage
Framing Device
Villain with Good Publicity
Crucified Hero Shot
Aluminum Christmas Trees
Adaptation Expansion
No Name Given
Bait-and-Switch
Slasher Movie
Insistent Terminology
All Girls Want Bad Boys
Serial Killer
Historical In-Joke
Made of Explodium
Cool Car
Wham Line
Make It Look Like an Accident
Sudden Sequel Death Syndrome
Fiery Redhead
Big Applesauce
Market-Based Title
The Mafia
"The Reason You Suck" Speech
Only Known by Their Nickname
Extreme Doormat
FaceHeel Turn
Sci-Fi Horror
Bloodier and Gorier
Wrong Genre Savvy
Beware the Nice Ones
Costume Porn
Those Two Guys
Red Oni, Blue Oni
Did Not Get the Girl
No Good Deed Goes Unpunished
Anyone Can Die
Five-Man Band
Eyepatch of Power
Have a Gay Old Time
Destination Defenestration
Early Installment Weirdness
Determinator
I Have Your Wife
Funny Background Event
Sadistic Choice
French Films
Pragmatic Villainy
Character Development
I Need a Freaking Drink
Adaptational Heroism
Never Trust a Trailer
aka: Trailers Always Lie
What You Are in the Dark
An Arm and a Leg
Madness Mantra
Fatal Family Photo
Age Lift
Chiaroscuro
Fourth Date Marriage
Self-Deprecation
Badass Grandpa
Throwing Your Sword Always Works
The Lost Lenore
Reality Ensues
Ungrateful Bastard
Covers Always Lie
Handicapped Badass
NO INDOOR VOICE
Truth in Television
Actor Allusion
Deliberately Monochrome
Gory Discretion Shot
Hollywood Darkness
folderlabel
Determinator
aka: The Determinator
The Starscream
Action Girl
Taking You with Me
Off with His Head!
Hate Sink
Even Evil Has Standards
Leaning on the Fourth Wall
Monumental Damage
The '90s
Four-Temperament Ensemble
Heterosexual Life-Partners
Intergenerational Friendship
Worthy Opponent
Death by Irony
Dissonant Serenity
Insane Troll Logic
Up to Eleven
Plucky Comic Relief
Naïve Newcomer
Karmic Death
No-Holds-Barred Beatdown
From Nobody to Nightmare
Fanservice
Mooks
The '60s
Freeze-Frame Bonus
The Power of Love
Thriller
Awesome, but Impractical
Jack Bauer Interrogation Technique
Hope Spot
Meaningful Name
Sir Not-Appearing-in-This-Trailer
An Axe to Grind
Major Injury Underreaction
Love Triangle
Sealed Evil in a Can
O.O.C. Is Serious Business
Daddy's Girl
Badass Normal
An Aesop
Damsel in Distress
Television Movie Index
Animal Title Index
Antagonist Title
Ascended Extra
Would Hit a Girl
Camera Abuse
Breaking the Fourth Wall
Authority Equals Asskicking
Stock Footage
Manipulative Bastard
BFG
Black Best Friend
One Steve Limit
Man on Fire
Auto Erotica
Implacable Man
Time Skip
Married to the Job
Never Trust a Trailer
Romantic Comedy
Almost Kiss
Book-Ends
Immune to Bullets
All Just a Dream
Amusing Injuries
Bavarian Fire Drill
Heroes Want Redheads
Friend to All Children
Henpecked Husband
The Casanova
Not What It Looks Like
Black and Gray Morality
The Un-Favourite
aka: The Un Favorite
German Films
What the Hell, Hero?
Despair Event Horizon
Large Ham
Reality Is Unrealistic
Freudian Excuse
Boom, Headshot!
Getting Crap Past the Radar
Guns Akimbo
Male Frontal Nudity
BrotherSister Incest
I Just Shot Marvin in the Face
Loads and Loads of Characters
Hell Is That Noise
Badass Longcoat
Adaptational Villainy
Sacrificial Lion
Novelization
Curb-Stomp Battle
Would Hurt a Child
Pimped-Out Dress
Adapted Out
Not Quite Dead
Nice Guy
Blatant Lies
Smoking Is Cool
Cool Old Lady
Defiant to the End
Our Vampires Are Different
Red Eyes, Take Warning
Alpha Bitch
In the Back
Improvised Weapon
Bad Boss
Ironic Echo
Celebrity Paradox
Badass Bookworm
Jump Scare
Bowdlerise
Shirtless Scene
Bar Brawl
Be Careful What You Wish For
One-Word Title
Nice Job Breaking It, Hero!
Silent Movie
Agony of the Feet
Bi the Way
Country Matters
Rasputinian Death
Amoral Attorney
Belligerent Sexual Tension
Eureka Moment
Scary Black Man
Failed a Spot Check
Cool Guns
What Happened to the Mouse?
Dramedy
Villainous Breakdown
I'm a Humanitarian
Mugging the Monster
Zombie Stories
The Sociopath
Demoted to Extra
Foreshadowing
Stuff Blowing Up
Mundane Made Awesome
Mood Whiplash
Gratuitous English
Malevolent Masked Men
Music Stories
Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds
Wicked Cultured
And Starring
Suspiciously Similar Substitute
MacGuffin
Papa Wolf
Fantasy Films
Psycho for Hire
Maybe Magic, Maybe Mundane
Actually Pretty Funny
Dirty Old Man
Tranquil Fury
Blood from the Mouth
Impaled with Extreme Prejudice
The Lancer
Adaptational Badass
Scenery Porn
Adorkable
Unresolved Sexual Tension
Ship Tease
The Reveal
Room Full of Crazy
Evil Laugh
Big Bad
Happily Married
Half the Man He Used to Be
Mama Bear
You Have Failed Me
Bond One-Liner
Light Is Not Good
Improbable Aiming Skills
Parental Neglect
Villain Ball
There Is No Kill Like Overkill
Parental Substitute
Instant Death Bullet
Broken Pedestal
Faking the Dead
Mexican Standoff
Let's Get Dangerous!
Defrosting Ice Queen
Kill It with Fire
Evil vs. Evil
Bottomless Magazines
Russian Films
Scare Chord
Works Set in World War II
Gilligan Cut
Dull Surprise
Break the Cutie
Title Drop
Mighty Whitey
Left the Background Music On
Sequel Escalation
Male Gaze
Exact Words
Pet the Dog
Refuge in Audacity
Spiritual Successor
Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking
Those Two Bad Guys
Suddenly SHOUTING!
Dark Is Not Evil
Even Evil Has Loved Ones
Central Theme
Disney Villain Death
Author Appeal
Evil Plan
Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right!
The Oner
Drill Sergeant Nasty
Author Avatar
Dropped a Bridge on Him
Hero of Another Story
Crazy-Prepared
Cool Shades
Adaptation Distillation
Decoy Protagonist
Shout-Out
Mr. Fanservice
Tagline
Mystery and Detective Films
Calling the Old Man Out
Recycled IN SPACE!
Tap on the Head
Mind Screw
Needs Wiki Magic Love
Undying Loyalty
Retcon
Recap /
RiffTrax
aka: Riff Trax Movies
Names to Run Away from Really Fast
Neck Lift
Death by Adaptation
Unusual Euphemism
Flipping the Bird
Drugs Are Bad
Punny Name
Those Wacky Nazis
Double Entendre
N-Word Privileges
Poor Communication Kills
Creator Cameo
Advertised Extra
Kick the Son of a Bitch
Big Damn Heroes
Sinister Minister
Why Don't You Just Shoot Him?
Continuity Nod
Department of Redundancy Department
Re-Cut
I Want My Beloved to Be Happy
Demonic Possession
Crazy Jealous Guy
Jerk Jock
Epic Fail
Anachronic Order
Due to the Dead
No-Sell
Science Fiction Films
Riddle for the Ages
Expository Hairstyle Change
Flashback
Bring My Brown Pants
Improbable Weapon User
Kill 'em All
Dramatic Irony
Gender Flip
The Mole
Accidental Misnaming
Dutch Angle
No Celebrities Were Harmed
Suspiciously Specific Denial
Really Gets Around
War Is Hell
The Stinger
Cruel and Unusual Death
Unwitting Instigator of Doom
Vacation Films
Japanese Films
Red Shirt
Naked People Are Funny
The Chessmaster
Famous Last Words
Your Cheating Heart
The Chick
Artistic License History
Not Using the "Z" Word
Imperial Stormtrooper Marksmanship Academy
Disney Death
Combat Pragmatist
Fat Bastard
Artistic License Geography
Pragmatic Adaptation
Establishing Character Moment
Victoria's Secret Compartment
Nothing Is Scarier
Greater-Scope Villain
Karma Houdini
Maybe Ever After
Villain Opening Scene
Rule of Three
Annoying Younger Sibling
The Stoic
The Dragon
Fainting
Bitch in Sheep's Clothing
Woman in White
Brick Joke
Ghost Fiction
Armor-Piercing Question
Villain Song
Screw the Rules, I Have Money!
Slasher Smile
Earn Your Happy Ending
Babies Ever After
Credits Gag
Once More, with Clarity!
Dying Moment of Awesome
Laughing Mad
Setting Update
Dumb Blonde
Funny Foreigner
Death by Sex
Real Life
Never Found the Body
Final Girl
Leitmotif
Casting Gag
Exactly What It Says on the Tin
Batman Gambit
Bunny-Ears Lawyer
Animated Credits Opening
The Remake
Spiteful Spit
Grievous Bottley Harm
You Have Got to Be Kidding Me!
Vampire Fiction
Dark and Troubled Past
The '50s
Bald of Evil
Christmas Movies Index
Informed Ability
Adults Are Useless
Broken Bird
Video Credits
Index of Film Westerns
Put on a Bus
Missing Mom
Call-Back
Meet Cute
Attempted Rape
Creative Closing Credits
A Father to His Men
Offscreen Teleportation
Mythology Gag
Abusive Parents
Serious Business
Military and Warfare Films
Captain Obvious
Ominous Latin Chanting