Unstoppable: Difference between revisions

* [[Everybody Lives]]: Almost. Only one person in the movie dies: {{spoiler|Judd, when his engine blows up after failing to slow down Triple 7.}}

* [[The Everyman]]: Frank and Will.

* [[Extremely Short Timespan]]: The entire film happens over the course of a few hours.

* [[Failsafe Failure]]: The failure to hook up the air brakes on the rest of the train means that when the "dead man's switch" kicks on, only the locomotive brakes would be active, and that's not enough to stop the train. {{spoiler|Like the rescue engine's brakes burning up shortly after it coupled and tried to slow the runaway.}}

* [[Just Train Wrong]]: The producers apply [[Artistic License]] and alter the locomotive's road name, cab number and model.

* [[Lampshade Hanging]]: The Kids in Peril subplot at the beginning of the movie. It was mostly played for laughs, though there were a few scary moments when the kid's train was approaching the siding, with the runaway in sight and bearing down rapidly on them.

* [[Lucky Seven]]: Horribly, horribly subverted. {{spoiler|While it's far from a source of good luck, it's stopped and there's a [[Happy Ending]].}}

* [[Made of Explodium]]: Justified: The train itself, thanks to the content of some of its railcars. Somewhat less justified: {{spoiler|The first attempt to slow the runaway put two engines in front of it, to try and force the whole megillah onto a siding. The runaway jumped the switch, the uncoupled rescue engines didn't; the resulting impact derailed the rescue engines, which '''exploded''', killing the engineer aboard. While the tanks are filled with volatile diesel fuel and rupturing them can cause fires and explosions, locomotives normally don't go up like Roman Candles when they heel over.}}

** Surely that was a badger?

* [[Mission Control]]: Connie and the FRA guy back at the master yard tower wind up being this for Barnes and Colson.

* [[Nitro Express]]: Although here the heroes are attempting to stop a vehicle full of explosives, rather than transport it safely.

* [["No Respect" Guy]]: Averted in the film but the real life people were given t-shirts and gift vouchers.

* [[Reasonable Authority Figure]]: Connie does everything she can to help Will and Frank slow 777 down, [[Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right|even against Galvin's orders]].

* [[Retirony]]: Frank {{spoiler|was being forced into early retirement by the train company; he'd received his 90-day warning notice 72 days ago. [[Subverted Trope|He lives, though.]]}}

* [[Say My Name]]: Connie and Will's wife, during some of the tenser moments when things are entirely in the hands of the men on the ground. There's really nothing else they can do.

* [[Sacrificial Lamb]]: {{spoiler|Judd}}; also known as the {{spoiler|only person}} to die in the whole movie.

* [[Unspoken Plan Guarantee]]: Averted.

* [[Very Loosely Based on a True Story]]: The trailers hype the connection to [[wikipedia:CSX 8888 incident|a 2001 runaway train]]; the actual runaway train went through northwest Ohio, and there were no casualties. And the actual train went no where near 70 mph, more like 45 at the most. Two of the film's failed attempts to stop it were also tried in real life (using derailers, and shooting the exterior stop button). The ultimate solution was similar, albeit not effected so dramatically close to a populated area. The train that did the job was driven by an engineer with 31 years' experience (28 in the film) and a conductor with a year's worth (in the movie, it's his first day). The guy who actually got in and stopped it {{spoiler|was not the young conductor, and he}} only had to catch up with a train slowed down (by the coupled engine) to 11 MPH. So yeah, real life ignores the [[Rule of Drama]] repeatedly.

* [[Where Are They Now? Epilogue]]: {{spoiler|Frank is able to retire with full benefits and pension, Will reunites with his estranged wife and has a second kid on the way, Connie gets promoted to Galvin's old position, the Marine dangling from the helicopter who got injured went on to make a full recovery, and Dewey got fired for [[Idiot Ball|his blunder]] and is now working in [[Burger Fool|fast food]]. So, they all lived [[Happily Ever After]] (except Dewey and Galvin).}}