r/TopCharacterTropes • u/MammothPenguin69 • 16d ago

Hated Tropes Stupid Contrived Survival Stories

  1. 12 Feet Deep - Two idiots decide they absolutely positively MUST go swimming in a pool after it's closed. An incredibly contrived sequence of events happens so they get stuck in a pool. So the movie can happen.

  2. Frozen (not that one) - Three idiots decide they absolutely positively MUST get on a ski-lift after it's closed. To the point of bribing the operator who for some stupid reason doesn't say anything. Do the movie can happen. Also, Wolves are not that aggressive. They are typically shy and avoid humans.

  3. 47 Meters Down- Arguably the most believable scenario on this list. It's still really stupid.

  4. Fall- Two idiots decide to climb an abandoned radio tower without proper equipment that would make escaping their predicament trivially easy. Stop me if you've heard this one before

so the movie can happen.

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u/DUH455T 16d ago

They're called "idiot plots." If just one person wasn't a complete idiot all the issues presented could be overcome or avoided.

8

u/Ok_You_5448 16d ago

One person being an idiot is believable sometimes. When everyone involved makes the worst decisions possible it gets ridiculous.

7

u/matijoss 16d ago

So who the fuck has been the writer for the last couple seasons of Earth!? We have to lynch them

1

u/DUH455T 16d ago

The Walking Dead.

1

u/Startled_Pancakes 11d ago

The frozen plot is completely plausible & similiar things have happened in real life (minus the wolves perhaps).

In September 2024, a group of hikers entered a strictly closed area around the Pyramid Lake region of Jasper National Park. After venturing deep into the prohibited zone after hours, they became too exhausted to complete the trip out. A Parks Canada visitor safety team had to launch a helicopter rescue to airlift them to safety. Because they ignored explicit closure signage, they were subsequently met by Park Wardens and criminally charged.

In a separate incident in December 2023, a driver bypassed a locked U.S. Forest Service trail gate in the Lockwood Valley wilderness area. The Forest Service systematically locks these remote gates for the winter to prevent motorists from getting stranded during heavy winter storms.

The driver became hopelessly stuck in a secluded area with zero cell service. He spent four days stranded in the wilderness and was only found by sheer luck. Sheriffs were in the area unlocking the gate for a different motorist who had managed to call for help, and they noticed a faint light 10 miles off the highway.