WORST firearm moment in a movie

[Kharn]

There is a certain Air Force training film series that has a "US servicemember" running around the woods with an AR in the following configuration for well over an hour (its a bunch of short films):
16" barrel
No bayonet lug
A2 upper
A2 stock
7.62x39 frankenmag prominently inserted into magazine well

Kharn

 

[geekWithA.45]

The PeaceMaker:


When stealing the nukes, the badguys all target the sleeping soldiers with laser sights while the traitor hides out at the rear of the car. On the count of 3, all the bad guys shoot at once.

Apparently, there's no recoil or motion at all on this train, because the laser beams suddenly lance out from the holes in the back of the train car, following the bullet's path.

Visually very cool looking, until you know better.

 

[thorn726]

POOr White TRash

cant believe i slogged thru all that on my modem connect, but nobody mentioned
Poor White Trash

oh 2 great ones= first the revlover theat fires because it is sitting in a hot frying pan for 30 sec- then the kicker, the REvolver fires again!

later, woman Racks the Slide (they make the sound very loud) on another REvolver ! love it!

tons more gun stupidity in the movie.

 

[eab]

Striker fired autos, especially the inexpensive (cheap) models or
even good ones worn or dirty, may fire when dropped since the sear
is usually free to move under inertia even with the safety applied
(most safeties only block trigger or disconnector bar movement).

A revolver with a silencer cannot be silent, but it can be partially
suppressed; the Class III dealers I have visited have silencers for
semi autos, bolt actions or single shots: I have never seen a
revolver silencer at a Class III dealer. I know they are common in
Hollywood prop departments.

The only revolver that can be truely suppresed is the Nagent revolver.

Showen here: http://world.guns.ru/handguns/hg102-e.htm

It has some special gas seal thing so that all the gasses go down the barrel and not out around the clinder so that it can be suppressed.

 

[RecoilRob]

Regarding drop fires....the stock Keltec P-11 WILL fire if dropped from 3 feet or higher on its' muzzle.

Installing a Wolff extra power FP spring takes the distance up to over 6 feet which makes the weapon pretty safe.

Not meaning to disparage the P-11. I carry one every day WITH a Wolff extra-power FP spring installed. Don't leave home without it!

 

[wolf_from_wv]

The only revolver that can be truely suppresed is the Nagent revolver.

Showen here: http://world.guns.ru/handguns/hg102-e.htm

It has some special gas seal thing so that all the gasses go down the barrel and not out around the clinder so that it can be suppressed.

The bullet is loaded down inside the brass. I think when the hammer is cocked, the cylinder moves forward, sealing the gap.

 

[X Who]

Edited to add: It really gets me when any group of soldiers/militiamen/gangsters/police or whatever all stand in a circle around their target. They would all shoot each other if anybody started shooting.

Like in Gauntlet with Clint Eastwood driving a bus between lines of cops.

There was one Rambo, where he is shooting an M-60 clearly loaded with blanks. The floor was littered with them (the kind where the case has an extension where the bullet would be and a plug in the end).

Wasn't there a Dirty Harry movie where he chooses a .458 Winchester Magnum to shoot from one building to another? If nothing else, it was a poor choice.

 

[VirgilCaine]

Wasn't there a Dirty Harry movie where he chooses a .458 Winchester Magnum to shoot from one building to another? If nothing else, it was a poor choice.

It was maybe, I dunno...50 feet? But that's one of those short-range rounds isn't it?

 

[IndianaDean]

Speaking of Rambo (not actually a gun moment but I have to mention it) he also fires a rocket launcher from inside his helicopter with rescued GI's directly behind the rocket launcher.

No 5 foot blast out the back of the launcher.....

 

[LJWebster1]

Another possible CSI bad gun moment. In the episdoe last night, a guy fires a .22 caliber pistol, misses its target, goes through one side of an aluminum can and then stays in the can! I know 22s are not that big or powerful, but I would think it could probably go all the way through a soda can.

 

[Inline_6]

Another possible CSI bad gun moment. In the episdoe last night, a guy fires a .22 caliber pistol, misses its target, goes through one side of an aluminum can and then stays in the can! I know 22s are not that big or powerful, but I would think it could probably go all the way through a soda can.

:dunno: I have seen .223 stop or disentigrate in an empty coke can. Guess it depends on a lot of factors, but water and other liquids slow bullets in a hurry.

 

[iapetus]

Of course, if we're talking about the ability of different materials to stop (or not) bullets:

Isn't it funny how car doors provide perfect protection against all bullets, but any shots fired into the engine compartment will disable the car, while any shots fired into the trunk will cause the gas tank to explode...


And that bullet-proof vests are so reliable that no-one will think twice about shooting a friend wearing one in order to help his fake his death. Similarly, no-one is ever afraid to allow an enemy to shoot them in the chest while wearing a bullet-proof vest (e.g. so they can pretend to die, then supprise them later), and never worry that the armour will fail. or that the BG will shoot them in the head.

 

[Justin]

Wasn't there a Dirty Harry movie where he chooses a .458 Winchester Magnum to shoot from one building to another? If nothing else, it was a poor choice.

It's a good storytelling move. It tells you a lot about his character.

 

[Templar223]

Does anyone else find themselves counting shots fired by a character in hokey movies?

Just re-saw "The Thing" by John Carpenter. The doc has gone mad and is shooting from the hip with his J-frame S&W. Could have sworn it was a 5-shot model. Of course, he was firing it was the other characters approach the radio room where he was going berserk. When they cut to the doctor, he's still firing... and I'm counting. three... four... five.. six.. seven. Then he runs dry.

I laughed and turned to the GF and said, "that's a nice 7-shot revolver. I didn't know S&W made those in the 70's."

So pathetic. So typical of Hollyweird.

John

 

[akodo]

i taped that CSI last night. If you look carefully, there are multiple cans removed from that row. The show simply shows him when he finds it, does not show him looking at the through-and-through cans.

My compliant about that episode is how it implies that if the bullet were in better condition, they would be able to know exactly what gun (and from that, who) fired said bullet.

We, of course, know that such a task is absolutely bunk even if there were a database where everyone had to submit one fired bullet from each gun they own. You could only compare said bullet against other bullets used in crimes, and that is only helpful if the criminal forgets to do something like run a wire down the barrel and bang up the rifling a bit, or sell it to another criminal

 

[MrAcheson]

Watched a Custer movie a long time ago. At the final scene, Custer was using a buntline special-esque long barrel revolver. Taking careful aim, of course, by laying it over his left forearm. Powder burns, anyone.

People actually did this in the old west. There was a technical term for it ("laying down" or something like that). Yes it did hurt and was one of the reasons for wearing leather roping cuffs.

with practice you can get pretty fast with a cowboy style gun, but, IMHO never fast enough to beat someone who has you dead to rights.

Actually it isn't that hard to beat someone who has you dead to rights. Or at least get the first shot off. All you have to do is beat their reaction time. That is the key to a lot of hand-to-hand disarm techniques.

About the reaction time thing, in the Magnificent Seven Yule Brenner tests how fast the Kid's draw is. The first time he challenges the kid to draw before Yule can clap his hands. He can't do it, Then he tells the kid to try it, the kid has to clap his hands before Yule can draw. He can't do that either. The trick is that both times Yule is the first to act (he claps first and he draws first) so Yule always wins. The kid's reaction time gives Yule the edge.

 

[Texas9]

Worst I can readily recall

And this is considering that I haven't had time to read this entire post, but my shining moment of production stupidity was the (otherwise cool) remake of The Italian Job.

In the scene in the pawn shop, Edward Norton pulls his Sig to despose of the fence that's going to move the remainder of his gold. The camera goes to a close-up of the gun (from the end of the barrel roughly to Ed's elbow), where it shows Mr. Norton move the lever on the side of the Sig from Safe to Fire to Decock!!!!!!!!!!

Someone on that set had to think this foolish. Obviously not the powers that be.

c

 

[PeteRR]

Wasn't there a Dirty Harry movie where he chooses a .458 Winchester Magnum to shoot from one building to another? If nothing else, it was a poor choice.

It was in the original, Dirty Harry. He used it over iron sights to shoot from one roof top to another.

 

[KriegHund]

In the movie "Lord of War" nicholas cage does the "Brown Brown".

The powder mixed in woth the coke is finely crushed.

Should not the powder in a 7.62x39mm cartridge be little sticks? Or balls?

I recall opening up a wolf x39 and seeing little sticks of powder.

 

[Firethorn]

Should not the powder in a 7.62x39mm cartridge be little sticks? Or balls?

I recall opening up a wolf x39 and seeing little sticks of powder.

Generally yes. Unless it was a 'staged' round filled with crushed smokeless to impress people more(in movie explanation).

Compared with whole rounds flying through the air in anything but a comedy film, it's nothing. I mean, even loony toons get's it right.

 

[KriegHund]

Generally yes. Unless it was a 'staged' round filled with crushed smokeless to impress people more(in movie explanation).

Compared with whole rounds flying through the air in anything but a comedy film, it's nothing. I mean, even loony toons get's it right.

Truth on both accounts, i think

 

[North Texan]

Sooooo many choices.....

There are several things that annoy me in many movies in general. Like guns so powerful they blow people backwards about 4 feet. Or those vicious hollow points that are so much more devastating than regular bullets. And then there's always the complete lack of recoil or muzzle rise. Then there were all those westerns about gunfighters, and yet you never saw anybody clean a gun......ever. Except for maybe the one scene on the Good, Bad, and Ugly.

In El Dorado, Mississippi's shotgun seemed to shoot a pattern a mile wide at 10 feet.

North by Northwest where the kid holds his ears in the restaruant before the shooting.

 

[nyresq]

It was in the original, Dirty Harry. He used it over iron sights to shoot from one roof top to another.

... and he also missed every shot..... at least they had the recoil down pretty well... ol' Clint seemed to rock pretty far back when he fired that thing...

 

[jashobeam]

What about '24'?

In an episode of the first season of 24, an assassin is using a single-shot pistol (which I think was a Magnum Research Lone Eagle). In one scene, the gun is shown being breech loaded. A few minutes later, the assassin inserts a magazine into the pistol's grip.

 

[lucky_fool]

JesseJames already mentioned Hard Target with Van Damme, but I've got more from that one. I too was watching that in a theater full of Army buddies, on post no less, so these were met with pretty loud groans.

Not only is there enough fuse after Van Damme pulls the pin and lets the spoon fly for him to spit out a one-liner, shove the grenade down the BG's pants, kick him across the room, let the BG fumble in his pants for the grenade, and unscrew the fuse assembly before it blows. Once the BG gets the fuse assembly out and thinks he's safe a blue spark jumps from the detonator into the body of the grenade causing it to explode. :banghead:

Earlier in the movie a different BG is firing an M16 with M203 grenade launcher from a helicopter at Van Damme on horseback. The grenade explodes directly under the belly of the horse, which falls over then immediately gets up and runs away. Those grenades have a 5 meter kill radius! Can you say horseburgers, boys and girls? :banghead: again.