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