The Rock (film)/YMMV

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.


  • Complete Monster: Hummel is a rare Action villain in that his reasoning is entirely sympathetic and he truly believes it is justifiable. His collaborators Frye and Darrow, however, qualify for this trope fully, showing no loyalty to anything but Themselves and perfectly willing to betray Their country and murder innocent civilians for Money.
  • Crowning Music of Awesome: Hans Zimmer's "Hummel Gets The Rockets".
  • Harsher in Hindsight: While examining a package meant for Bosnia, a child's doll was found to be a gas bomb. In fact, booty trapping of children's toys is mentioned in the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons. Mines and booty traps are governed by Protocol II, which discusses it. When we fast-forward to 2022, we learn that Russia used kiddie toys as booby traps against the Ukraine.
  • Rule of Sean Connery: It's widely considered Bay's best movie, and his only "Fresh" on Rotten Tomatoes. Considering it stars the guy who names the trope...
  • Spiritual Licensee - Play Call of Duty Black Ops and substitute "Hummel" every time someone talks to "Hudson." The character (voiced by Ed Harris), is so close to Vietnam-era Hummel that it might as well be a prequel. It even includes a plot to attack the United States with horrible, face-melting green gas and a character named Mason learning the truth about the JFK Assassination.
  • Tear Jerker: Hummel's death.
    • His men's Last Stand which can be heard over the opening credits:

Hummel: "I won't let you down. I won't let you down, son.
Marine: "They're not coming back for us, are they sir?"

    • Hummel's speech on his wife's grave:

Hummel: I miss you so much. There's something I've gotta do, Barb. Something I couldn't do while you were here. I tried. You know I tried everything, and I still don't have their attention. Let's hope this elevates their thinking. But whatever happens...(he takes Congressional Medal of Honor out of his pocket) please don't think less of me. (he sets the Medal on top of the headstone, leans over and kisses it, and then walks away).

    • The SEALs shooting it out with the Marines in the showers, and getting wiped out.

Goodspeed: Don't go!


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