Hollywood Gun Myths - TV and Show Business Firearm Myths and Pet Peeves
Guns are popular. And although many Hollywood/television/show biz folks are leftists who wish that weren't true, those same folks often make money hand over fist by featuring guns prominently in their productions. Irony? Perhaps... but this isn't about that.
No, this is about the firearms-related mistakes - and lies - which continue to find their way into "entertainment" that features shootin' irons. These things tick me off, because with just a little bit of care and attention to detail, they could be easily avoided.
A pair of hoods (or cowboys) carry guns at the ready, knowing they might be ambushed at any moment. Then, something dramatic takes place and we find these same folks working the actions on their guns just before the shooting starts. Folks, that is not real life - it's utter BS.
Whether it's a bad guy with a semi-automatic pistol, a cop with a shotgun, or a cowboy with a lever-action rifle, all would be guilty of the same thing - being morons. Nobody - and I mean nobody - who carries a gun into a tense situation has any business doing so unless it is 100% ready to fire. The gun should also be crammed just as full of ammo as it can be - including both the chamber and the magazine. Jacking a round from the mag to the chamber creates a vacancy in the mag, which should have been filled long before walking into danger.
Oh, and ignore the myth that working a pump shotgun's slide will scare off an intruder. While you're piddling around with scare tactics, your opponent may well be taking aim at you. Ready your gun beforehand, and hope that the other guy hasn't.
Even worse than someone working a gun's action just to make a cool sound are the folks who make impossible sounds with their guns. It's Hollywood magic! I was watching an episode of the TV show "Longmire" and a fellow was surprised to hear the "chhk-chhk" of a pump shotgun's action behind him. He turned and found a guy holding a double-barrelbreak-action shotgun - a gun which is incapable of making any such noise. Fail!
This is also used often with fully-automatic guns (machineguns). Folks, machineguns work mighty fast, and will typically empty a magazine in very short order - much more quickly than most movies or TV shows portray. For that reason, many light machineguns fire bursts of three or so shots, in order to keep the magazine from drying up in less time than it takes to talk about it.
Bull pucky.
Shotguns certainly pack a lot of punch, and can cause explosive-looking results under certain conditions, but they don't send grown men flying and they don't blow up doors and such. They just don't.
The vast majority of bullets contain nothing hard enough to make a spark. Modern bullets are often lead bullets jacketed with copper, and those that don't have jackets are lead or lead alloy. These materials are pretty soft, and they don't make sparks.
And bullets certainly don't cause cars to explode. Even the jokers at Mythbusters know that.
To quote Dwight Schrute: False!
I guess it looks dramatic when a bullet hole is all ragged and the paper is torn and flopping towards the shooter, but in reality those movie holes are made with small explosive charges. Why? Because real bullets usually punch nice neat little round holes, and that's not dramatic enough for folks who are interested in everything except reality.
Come on, show-biz folks, put a little effort towards at least ensuring that the types of guns being shown in the flick actually existed at the time the story takes place... especially since you're probably going to commit at least one of the other sins listed in this article.
As I said, it's certainly possible for this to be done correctly, because not every shot on TV or the silver screen looks fake - but many of them do. The actors themselves should strive for accuracy in their movements, but when they don't care or don't know any better, the directors ought to be correcting them.
I could go the rest of my life without seeing someone move a pistol over his head or straight backwards after firing an obviously low-powered blank round. And I hope I do.
This may be the easiest thing to fix, but will probably be the last thing in the minds of folks making movies and TV shows. Why? Because so many folks get it wrong every day, including shooters and gun owners everywhere.
- Russ Chastain
No, this is about the firearms-related mistakes - and lies - which continue to find their way into "entertainment" that features shootin' irons. These things tick me off, because with just a little bit of care and attention to detail, they could be easily avoided.
1. Actions Being "Racked"
A pair of hoods (or cowboys) carry guns at the ready, knowing they might be ambushed at any moment. Then, something dramatic takes place and we find these same folks working the actions on their guns just before the shooting starts. Folks, that is not real life - it's utter BS.
Whether it's a bad guy with a semi-automatic pistol, a cop with a shotgun, or a cowboy with a lever-action rifle, all would be guilty of the same thing - being morons. Nobody - and I mean nobody - who carries a gun into a tense situation has any business doing so unless it is 100% ready to fire. The gun should also be crammed just as full of ammo as it can be - including both the chamber and the magazine. Jacking a round from the mag to the chamber creates a vacancy in the mag, which should have been filled long before walking into danger.
Oh, and ignore the myth that working a pump shotgun's slide will scare off an intruder. While you're piddling around with scare tactics, your opponent may well be taking aim at you. Ready your gun beforehand, and hope that the other guy hasn't.
2. Phony Gun Noises
Even worse than someone working a gun's action just to make a cool sound are the folks who make impossible sounds with their guns. It's Hollywood magic! I was watching an episode of the TV show "Longmire" and a fellow was surprised to hear the "chhk-chhk" of a pump shotgun's action behind him. He turned and found a guy holding a double-barrelbreak-action shotgun - a gun which is incapable of making any such noise. Fail!
3. Guns That Never Run Dry
With today's semi-automatic pistols that hold lots of groceries, this is less of a problem than it used to be, but it still persists. It began with western movies - directors want long-lasting, action-filled shootouts, but everyone there is toting a six-shooter. Three or four guys with revolvers can make one heck of a racket when they never run out of ammo.This is also used often with fully-automatic guns (machineguns). Folks, machineguns work mighty fast, and will typically empty a magazine in very short order - much more quickly than most movies or TV shows portray. For that reason, many light machineguns fire bursts of three or so shots, in order to keep the magazine from drying up in less time than it takes to talk about it.
4. Shotguns Blowing Things up
KABOOM! The shotgun blast causes the door/wall/table to explode. Really explode! Another shell hits a bad guy and launches him into the air and across the room. Wow! Gee whiz!Bull pucky.
Shotguns certainly pack a lot of punch, and can cause explosive-looking results under certain conditions, but they don't send grown men flying and they don't blow up doors and such. They just don't.
5. Sparking Bullets and Exploding Cars
Picture the scene: Lots of shots are being fired, and of course they're hitting cars and buildings and other stuff. With each bullet's impact, sparks fly! How dramatic! And how wrong.The vast majority of bullets contain nothing hard enough to make a spark. Modern bullets are often lead bullets jacketed with copper, and those that don't have jackets are lead or lead alloy. These materials are pretty soft, and they don't make sparks.
And bullets certainly don't cause cars to explode. Even the jokers at Mythbusters know that.
6. Holes That Open the Wrong Way
This was more common some years ago, but I still see it these days. Someone's shooting at a target or wall, and the bullet holes cause the material to blast outward, towards the shooter.To quote Dwight Schrute: False!
I guess it looks dramatic when a bullet hole is all ragged and the paper is torn and flopping towards the shooter, but in reality those movie holes are made with small explosive charges. Why? Because real bullets usually punch nice neat little round holes, and that's not dramatic enough for folks who are interested in everything except reality.
7. Guns that Aren't Period-Correct
Oh gee, the story takes place in 1868, but the characters are toting Model 1873 Winchesters and trap-door Springfields? Hmmmm, says I... what a crock.Come on, show-biz folks, put a little effort towards at least ensuring that the types of guns being shown in the flick actually existed at the time the story takes place... especially since you're probably going to commit at least one of the other sins listed in this article.
8. Portrayals of Ridiculous Feats
Maybe it's the tiny broomhandle Mauser pistol from the movie Joe Kidd making accurate long-range shots, or maybe it's some other insane and impossible accomplishment that's only at home in a fantasy tale. Either way, the results are the same: either misleading a public that doesn't know any better, or revealing blatant ignorance to those of us who know better.9. Fake Recoil
This is a tough one, and it's probably hard on actors (who are firing blanks) to get it right, but it can obviously be done. I'm talking about the folks who fire a gun and then move the gun in an obvious attempt to make it appear as if the gun's recoil caused the movement.As I said, it's certainly possible for this to be done correctly, because not every shot on TV or the silver screen looks fake - but many of them do. The actors themselves should strive for accuracy in their movements, but when they don't care or don't know any better, the directors ought to be correcting them.
I could go the rest of my life without seeing someone move a pistol over his head or straight backwards after firing an obviously low-powered blank round. And I hope I do.
10. Incorrect Terminology
This may be the easiest thing to fix, but will probably be the last thing in the minds of folks making movies and TV shows. Why? Because so many folks get it wrong every day, including shooters and gun owners everywhere.
- "Pistol" is not a synonym for "handgun." Revolvers and pistols are both handguns, but revolvers are not pistols.
- Bullets are the projectiles, not the loaded rounds of ammunition. Those are cartridges.
- Magazines aren't clips, and vice-versa. A magazine contains ammunition, and may or may not be removable. Clips only hold ammo together until it's time to put that ammo into a magazine or a revolver cylinder.
- Semi-automatic firearms are not machineguns, nor are they assault rifles - no matter how military-like they appear.
- Russ Chastain