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