Tropescilloscope: Central Theme

A philosophy, message, idea, or question at a story's core. (read more at tvtropes.org)

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