Tropescilloscope: Nothing Is Scarier

Emptiness used to invoke fear by leaving it to the audience's imagination. (read more at tvtropes.org)

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