History Film / TowerOfTerror

* DefrostingIceQueen: Jill's trust in Buzzy has been shaken ever since he got fired and constantly rejects any story he pitches whenever he pops up in her office. However, he gradually wins her back with his story on the hotel.

If the trope were to exist, this movie would be the TropeMaker for "The Film of the Ride"; a unique twist on something that's usually the other way around.

If the trope were to exist, this movie would be the TropeMaker for "The Film of the Ride"; a surprise twist on something that's usually the other way around.

* Adaptation Expansion: In the ride, the 5 passengers were just nameless characters that appeared at various points. The movie gives them names and some background along with some history of the hotel.

* HotScoop: Jill Perry.

Before ''Franchise/PiratesOfTheCaribbean,'' this MadeForTVMovie was the first film to be based on a ride from the Ride/DisneyThemeParks, in this case ''Ride/TheTwilightZoneTowerOfTerror''.

* IronicNurseryTune

* LightningCanDoAnything: Though it is magic lightning, so...

Steve Guttenberg plays a disgraced reporter named Buzzy Crocker, who is stuck doing tabloid stories, after submitting a story, that turned out to be false. He meets an old woman named Abigail, who tells him the story of The Hollywood Tower Hotel, which was closed down, back in UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfHollywood after lightning struck the elevator, and killed its five passengers. She claims that Emeline Partridge, the nanny of child actress Sally Shine, was responsible for the horrible event, which put a curse on the hotel, trapping their spirits there. She begs him to go into the hotel, and collect some items she needs, to break the curse. Along with his niece Anna, and the inheritor of the hotel, Chris "Q" Todd, Buzzy ventures into the hotel, and is surprised at what he finds.

Before ''Franchise/PiratesOfTheCaribbean,'' this MadeForTVMovie was the first film, to be based on a ride from the Ride/DisneyThemeParks, in this case ''Franchise/TheTwilightZone [[Ride/TheTwilightZoneTowerOfTerror Tower of Terror]].''

Steve Guttenberg plays the role of a disgraced reporter named Buzzy Crocker, who is stuck doing tabloid stories, after submitting a story, that turned out to be false. He meets an old woman named Abigail, who tells him the story of The Hollywood Tower Hotel, which was closed down, back in UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfHollywood after lightning struck the elevator, and killed its five passengers. She claims that Emeline Partridge, the nanny of child actress Sally Shine, was responsible for the horrible event, which put a curse on the hotel, trapping their spirits there. She begs him to go into the hotel, and collect some items she needs, to break the curse. Along with his niece Anna, and the inheritor of the hotel, Chris "Q" Todd, Buzzy ventures into the hotel, and is surprised at what he finds.

* CaliforniaDoubling: Weird, albeit justified, example. Most of the scenes involving the hotel were filmed at the actual attraction in Disney World, which was the only version of the ride in existence at the time. Thus, although the movie is set and mostly filmed in UsefulNotes/LosAngeles, it switches to Florida whenever anyone gets close to the tower. Fortunately, Florida and southern California have a similar climate and the area around the attraction was made up to look like Hollywood anyway. The Florida scenes were filmed first, in case you were wondering.

Before ''Franchise/PiratesOfTheCaribbean,'' this MadeForTVMovie was the first film, to be based on a ride from the Ride/DisneyThemeParks, in this case ''Franchise/TheTwilightZone Tower of Terror.''

Before ''PiratesOfTheCaribbean'', this MadeForTVMovie was the first film to be based on a ride from the Ride/DisneyThemeParks, in this case ''Franchise/TheTwilightZone Tower Of Terror''.

Creator/SteveGuttenberg plays the role of a disgraced reporter named Buzzy Crocker who is stuck doing tabloid stories after submitting a story that turned out to be false. He meets an old woman named Abigail who tells him the story of The Hollywood Tower Hotel, which was closed down back in UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfHollywood after lightning struck the elevator and killed its five passengers. She claims that Emeline Partridge, the nanny of child actress Sally Shine, was responsible for the horrible event, which put a curse on the hotel, trapping their spirits there. She begs him to go into the hotel and collect some items she needs to break the curse. Along with his niece Anna, and the inheritor of the hotel, Chris "Q" Todd, Buzzy ventures into the hotel, and is surprised at what he finds.

* [[spoiler:ForgottenBirthday: Played straight, aside from the birthday girl having the biggest overreaction ''ever'' in the history of this trope. She finds out sixty years later that a surprise party had been planned. Oops.]]

* [[spoiler:TheGloriousWarOfSisterlyRivalry: Abigail's whole motivation.]]

* [[spoiler: HeelFaceTurn]]

* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: Sally Shine is quite obviously ShirleyTemple.

* UnfinishedBusiness: The ghosts can't leave until [[spoiler: they reach the party on the top floor]].

Before ''PiratesOfTheCaribbean'', this MadeForTVMovie was the first film to be based on a ride from the Ride/DisneyThemeParks, in this case ''Series/TheTwilightZone Tower Of Terror''.

Before ''PiratesOfTheCaribbean'', this MadeForTVMovie was the first film to be based on a ride from the DisneyThemeParks, in this case ''Series/TheTwilightZone Tower Of Terror''.

* ActorAllusion: Of a sort. Sally Shine, an obvious parody of Shirley Temple, is played by Lindsay Ridgeway. This isn't the only time Lindsay played a Shirley Temple {{Expy}} - in fact, the same year this movie was made she was the singing voice for Darla Dimple (in which Shirley Temple meets EnfantTerrible) in ''WesternAnimation/CatsDontDance''. And a few years earlier, she was Tina Denmark-a dark twist on Shirley Temple-in the musical Ruthless.

* DivorcedInstallment: The theme park ride is based on ''TheTwilightZone'', complete with the FakeShemp being used to feature the late RodSerling hosting the pre-show introduction. The movie drops the ''Twilight Zone'' connection, probably to avoid paying royalties. (The version of the ride at Tokyo [=DisneySea=] also drops the connection to ''The Twilight Zone'', though partly because the TV show isn't well-known in Japan, and partly because of the fact that the Japanese had different beliefs and customs in regards to the occult and the supernatural.)

* RecursiveAdaptation: This is the best ever [[OverlyNarrowSuperlative TV movie based on a theme park ride based on a TV show]].

* DivorcedInstallment: The theme park ride is based on ''TheTwilightZone'', complete with the FakeShemp being used to feature the late RodSerling hosting the pre-show introduction. The movie drops the ''Twilight Zone'' connection, probably to avoid paying royalties. (The version of the ride at Tokyo Disneyland also drops the connection to ''The Twilight Zone'', though partly because the TV show isn't well-known in Japan, and partly because of the fact that the Japanese had different beliefs and customs in regards to the occult and the supernatural.)

Steve Guttenberg plays the role of a disgraced reporter named Buzzy Crocker who is stuck doing tabloid stories after submitting a story that turned out to be false. He meets an old woman named Abigail who tells him the story of The Hollywood Tower Hotel, which was closed down after lightning struck the elevator and killed its five passengers. She claims that Emeline Partridge, the nanny of child actress Sally Shine, was responsible for the horrible event, which put a curse on the hotel, trapping their spirits there. She begs him to go into the hotel and collect some items she needs to break the curse. Along with his niece Anna, and the inheritor of the hotel, Chris "Q" Todd, Buzzy ventures into the hotel, and is surprised at what he finds.

* GoldenAgeOfHollywood: When the accident took place.

* ActorAllusion: Of a sort. Sally Shine, obvious parody of Shirley Temple, is played by Lindsay Ridgeway. This isn't the only time Lindsay played a Shirley Temple {{Expy}} - in fact, the same year this movie was made she was the singing voice for Darla Dimple (in which Shirley Temple meets EnfantTerrible) in ''WesternAnimation/CatsDontDance''. And a few years earlier, she was Tina Denmark-a dark twist on Shirley Temple-in the musical Ruthless.

* ChildrenAreInnocent: Sally repeatedly shows this quality time and time again. By the end of the movie it becomes something of a plot point, and in the end [[spoiler: breaks the curse.]]
* DeadAllAlong: [[spoiler: Claire Poulet]]

** Littered all over the hotel when Buzzy is getting the book. [[spoiler: when the creepy owl laughs, before Buzzy nearly gets stabbed with a pen dropped from the ceiling, when he's looking around after that...]]
** And of course [[spoiler: there's Abigail's after Steve and Anna find out Emeline wasn't behind the curse.]]

* FriendOrIdolDecision: [[spoiler: Buzzy has to decide between helping the ghosts and getting his career back. He gets both]].

* LikeASonToMe: [[spoiler:[[GenderFlip Genderflipped]] with Sally and Emmiline. After being accused of being the one who wanted to kill Sally, Emmiline is horrified at the mere ''notion,'' and says that she loves Sally. "I couldn't love her more if she were me ''own'' daughter!"]]

* MotiveRant: [[spoiler: Abigail]] gives one at the end, about [[spoiler: how everyone loved her sister but didn't care about her, and how her perceived ForgottenBirthday was the last straw. Her rant gets derailed when the ghost of her sister, the person who loved her the most, shows up in person.]]

* RedHerring: [[spoiler: Emmiline was thought to be the culprit behind the whole curse. But when called out on it, she reveals she would ''never'' do anything like that to Sally. The other ghosts likewise vouch for her.]]

* HellHotel: [[CaptainObvious Duh]].

* ActorAllusion: Of a sort. Sally Shine, obvious parody of Shirley Temple, is played by Lindsay Ridgeway. This isn't the only time Lindsay played a Shirley Temple {{Expy}} - in fact, the same year this movie was made she was the singing voice for Darla Dimple (in which Shirley Temple meets EnfantTerrible) in ''WesternAnimation/CatsDontDance''. And a few years earlier, she was Tina Denmark-a darker twist on Shirley temple-in the musical Ruthless.

* ActorAllusion: Of a sort. Sally Shine, obvious parody of Shirley Temple, is played by Lindsay Ridgeway. This isn't the only time Lindsay played a Shirley Temple {{Expy}} - in fact, the same year this movie was made she was the singing voice for Darla Dimple (in which Shirley Temple meets EnfantTerrible) in ''WesternAnimation/CatsDontDance''.

Before ''PiratesOfTheCaribbean'', this MadeForTVMovie was the first film to be based on a ride from the DisneyThemeParks, in this case ''TheTwilightZone Tower Of Terror''.

* HappilyEverAfter: Hey, even at it's scariest, Disney is Disney.

* ChildrenAreInnocent: Sally repeatedly show's this quality time and time again. By the end of the movie it becomes something of a plot point, and in the end [[spoiler: breaks the curse.]]

* CaliforniaDoubling: Weird, albeit justified, example. Most of the scenes involving the hotel were filmed at the actual attraction in Disney World, which was the only version of the ride in existence at the time. Thus, although the movie is set and mostly filmed in LosAngeles, it switches to Florida whenever anyone gets close to the tower. Fortunately, Florida and southern California have a similar climate and the area around the attraction was made up to look like Hollywood anyway. The Florida scenes were filmed first, in case you were wondering.

* UnfinishedBusiness: The ghosts can't leave until [[spoiler: they reach the party on the top floor]].