Gun Related Stupid Movie Mistakes

[Smoke]

Let me preface this by saying I know that most Hollyweed types have ZERO interest in guns, and really don't know jack about them.

That said one of the most annoying (& repeated) bloopers I see is someone trying to fire a 1911 DA. I saw this mistake made at least four times in "Wind Talkers" & on one occasion the hero is trying to shoot someone, you can see the slide is locked to the rear & you can still hear the click, click, click of repeated dry fires. there used to be a cop show on TV called K-ville that had this mistake in it at least once an episode

The thing that bugs me is how could actor not know the gun in his hand will not fire DA? Surely they realize this if only because of the scenes where they've had to fire blanks.

I'm not really talking about special effects mistakes, those aren't the actors fault. I'm talking about actor stupidity like the scene in "We Were Soldiers Once..." when Sam Elliot slaps a fresh magazine into his 1911 (which is in battery & uncocked BTW) and says in his best "mean" voice "Gentlemen, prepare to defend yourselves” What's he gonna do? Throw his pistol at the NVA? Mistakes like that, which demonstrate CLEARLY that the actor hasn't a clue how the weapon in his hand works.

Another favorite is in the opening credits of "Bones" ,they show Booth (Who's supposed to be this ex-ranger, ex-sniper, ex- government assassin turned good guy cop) firing his 9mm at the range and you can see him visibly flinch before each shot. That’s the kinda stuff that bugs me

Ok rant off anybody else care to post an incredibly stupid gun mistake from a movie?

 

[ImprovedModel56Fan]

I agree that the above are incredibly stupid, but don't forget that they are a reminder of the caliber of people who are making movies, and serve as a reliable indicator of how much faith one should have in ANYTHING expressed by a motion picture.

One incredibly stupid and incredibly common Hollywood creation is that a standing man or a man moving forward is shot, and commences to fly backward through a window. All these "experts," technicians, directors, screenwriters and God knows what else, and not ONE of them took physics in high school. And they are probably teaching Newton's second law in grade school these days.

 

[zzzippper]

The one that gets me is in every western: the six shooter with limitless ammo. One of my favorite movies, Open Range, is very guilty of this.

I see more are actors taking "gun" lessons from professionals. Johnny Depp did it before Public Enemies and there is a recent example that I can't recall.

 

[Aticus]

How about racking the slide on a 1911 after the hero enters the building where the trashies are? Or the 1911 with the slide down and the hero goes click, click, click, very similar to doing it with the slide locked back. Or the silenced revolver?

My absolute favorite of all time is the John Wayne movie "The Commanceros" in which the Duke portrays a Texas Ranger in the "Republic of Texas" while he carries a Colt SAA and a Winchester Mod. 92 carbine.

 

[Smithsrevenge]

The Pilot episode of "the walking dead".

The Sheriff Rick, his partner Shane and a few other deputies have set up a roadblock for a car that is running from the state cops.

Cop extra #1 makes a stupid comment, and Sheriff Rick replies "Just make sure your gun is cocked and your safety is off!"

Cop extra #1 then looks at his GLOCK cocks it and sweeps the slide release with his thumb, and an audible "Click" is added to show that the non existent safety is coming off lmbo

CSI Miami, Heratio Kane has his Clearly Marked Sig 229 Aimed at badguys head. Badguy says "Ill kill her man! Ill kill her!" . In cool calm voice Heratio says "not when this .45 magnum kills you first.....".......45 magnum really? I know you're a terrible actor but C'MON! Gun doesnt even come in a .45 config Nevermind anything having to do with a Magnum.

Lethal weapon!.

Riggs is in a heated passionate argument with his partner about suicide. Riggs pulls out his beretta 92 and starts talking about killing himself. says "I carry a special bullet too! hollow point so I'm sure it blows my damn brains all over the wall!" or something like that. His partner then Pulls out his S&W .38 and says "use mine, more powerful! through the chin!"............since when is .38 more powerful than 9mm....thought they were about equal lol
However in the beginning of the movie he was drunk on his couch looking at a picture of his dead wife with huge hair, took out his special bullet and blew the dust off..............Its a WWB FMJ

 

[Smithsrevenge]

The one that gets me is in every western: the six shooter with limitless ammo. One of my favorite movies, Open Range, is very guilty of this.

I see more are actors taking "gun" lessons from professionals. Johnny Depp did it before Public Enemies and there is a recent example that I can't recall.

Gerald Butler in "Olympus has fallen. He spent months with the Secret Service and months training on firearms to make it as authentic as he could. "

 

[P&R Fan]

I gots lots of 'em.

I loved the show 24, but there were a bunch of gun related mistakes. You always hear a click when Jack draws down, or anybody else in the series. Kinda hard to do that with a Glock. In one episode Jack is interrogating a Woman back at headquarters. She is giving him a hard time and he slugs the guard, grabs his Glock, points it at her head and threatens to kill her. It's a close-up shot, and the slide is back about 1/2" inch. Don't know why that would be. Jack also almost always has to chamber a round when he draws.

In the early '80s movie 48 Hours Nick Noltes character carries a 4" M29 S&W. He is forced to give it up to the bad guys in a hotel lobby. BG looks at it, smirks and says "nice gun" and shoots his partner and takes several shots at Nick, EIGHT times.

Guess we should just enjoy the flicks and not pay too much attention.
Jim

 

[A10]

To paraphrase Hitchcock, actors are cattle. They do what they are told.

I was impressed with the newer A Team movie though....they still couldn't hit anything and the movie was silly, but the gun handling was OK and they even showed them changing magazines and transitioning from rifles to handguns.

 

[wbraswell]

And how many times have we seen someone on the screen, thumb back the hammer on a 1911?

 

[Bkreutz]

The main problem is that movies are full of all kind of technical errors. It only bothers the people that are experts in that field. This forum is populated by firearm people who can pick out errors immediately while most of the audience is enjoying the movie. I restore old Jeeps so when I watch war movies they almost never have the appropriate Jeep for the period (just about every movie gets taken apart on various antique Jeep forums) "John Wayne in a Korean War Jeep in In Harms Way, a WWII movie) I can only imagine what other enthusiasts say about other topics. I've mellowed over the years and try to watch the story telling myself "it's probably the only piece of equipment they could find that was semi close". Sometimes it works, but my wife still has to tell me to shut up and watch the movie.

 

[Alpo]

And how many times have we seen someone on the screen, thumb back the hammer on a 1911?

Lots of people carry Condition 2. If you do, and you want to shoot it, you kinda GOTTA thumb the hammer back.

 

[DCWilson]

Movies with guns are almost always disappointing to me in some respect. I gave up on the never-reloaded-never-empty SAA concept before I was 12, but I was disappointed whenever I saw a semiauto used or presented in some nonsensical way. One that almost ruined the flick for me was at the end of The Ipcress File (almost half a century ago!) when Michael Caine threatens Nigel Green with a Luger whose toggle is locked in the up position.

Maybe I'm too judgmental. Maybe the director and actors thought it was an adjustable sight for long distance accuracy. Green was standing several yards away from Caine, after all.

 

[finesse_r]

What is silly to me is the constant racking of slides on pistols. Guy fires one or two rounds and then racks the gun before firing the second or third round. Duh It is a semi-auto. You don't have to rack the slide back by hand after every shot or two just for emphasis. I guess they think it looks cool and makes nice sound effects.

Almost as bad is the gun that racks his pump shotgun fires one shell, racks it again and walks for s few steps, then racks it a third time before firing the second shell. I guess is like the movie Dune and the racking noise is a killing sound or something.

I know one thing, if I am knowingly going into harm’s way, I would have already put a shell in the chamber and replaced it in the magazine and be ready to fire when I get there.

Better yet are the silencers on revolvers, especially a .357 Magnum. Yeah like that noise coming out around the cylinder will really be muffled. Also that .357 is not going to break the sound barrier and give a nice loud crack, with or without a silencer.

Still if they did things correctly what would we have to feel superior about? LOL

 

[Smoke]

Or the silenced revolver?

You actually can suppress a Nagant revolver

 

[radar1972]

Love the Walking Dead, but....

... how is it the characters can shoot a zombie in the middle of the forehead with every shot, regardless of firearm in use, but can't hit anything when shooting at bad guys??

Let's not forget the old TV show detectives hitting a bad guy on top of a four-story building with a snub-nose .38 .... every time.

 

[amazingflapjack]

"Aunauld" in his dotage recently made one where he was dressed as a LEO, and the "Villan" had a black powder revolver that not only shot modern ammo, but never ran out as well.

 

[feralmerril]

On westerns what does bug me even more is the actors wearing clean pressed cloths in the middle of the dessert two months from the nearest town. I especially hate to see them wearing hats like the ones you could buy or win at the carnival in the 1950s. Why do we expect more when the entire story lines are fabricated unless its a historical documentary? What bugs me the most is the rotten language. Anymore you cant surf the channels without hearing the swearing, dirty talk and sex stuff. I worked and rubbed shoulders on rough jobs with rough men that didn't talk a fraction like hollywood trys to portray them. I also did a short stint working security for universal studios back in the 1960s. It was a interesting place.

 

[Smithsrevenge]

I hate how every 1911 has 12 shots or more in the movies. Duh.......9 max bub, and thats with an extension lol

Nash bridges was terrible with this. He carried a 1911 and could always kill like 15 people without reloading it. while mid-air none the less

 

[zzzippper]

I loved watching the movie Heat with my wife, "I've got that, I have that, I had one of those, I have two of those..."

 

[steamloco76]

The hammer clicks added to Glocks kill me. Criminal Minds does this all the time. Also, the rattling 'gun" noise when semi-auto pistols are drawn from a holster. Man even a worn-out GI Spec 1911 doesn't rattle like a spray paint can when drawn for its holster.

A final good one for thought. Firing a gun in a car never seems to bother anybody's hearing, even a .357 Magnum causes no loss of hearing. Do it in real life and you'll be saying huh? a lot.