# Stupid gun tricks in the movies and on television **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** movies\ **Created:** [September 28, 2026, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-tricks-in-the-movies-and-on-television/1033459 "2026-09-28T20:53:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2026, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-tricks-in-the-movies-and-on-television/1033459/41 "2026-09-29T17:38:52Z")
> [@DesertDog](#): > > While we’re on the subject, going into a tense situation, making a statement, then cocking a hammer or racking a slide to emphasize it. My hypothesis is this was “learned” across genres from Westerns, where everyone would have single-action guns that legit _required_ manual cocking every single time, and where fixed-to-the-hammer firing pins with no transfer bar made it safer to carry on an empty chamber. So there was always some ratcheting sound and directors got used to that. … Another similar one IMO is when reloading semiautomatics _always_ pulling the slide/charging handle again even when the weapon has a bolt/slide catch that you can then just release. ---
**Author:** ![wguy123](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wguy123/32/3161_2.png) [@wguy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wguy123)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2026, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-tricks-in-the-movies-and-on-television/1033459/42 "2026-09-29T17:48:05Z")
Ha, that is very applicable here! ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2026, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-tricks-in-the-movies-and-on-television/1033459/43 "2026-09-29T18:23:53Z")
> [@peccavi](#): > > You would think so…but Well, he cheated, didn’t he. Of course, to quote Jason McCullough (_Support Your Local Sheriff_), “You beat that poor man to the draw. He’s dead and you’re alive - that’s the whole idea of the game, isn’t it?” ---
**Author:** ![ZonexandScout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zonexandscout/32/544_2.png) [@ZonexandScout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZonexandScout)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2026, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-tricks-in-the-movies-and-on-television/1033459/44 "2026-09-29T18:39:00Z")
I’ll confess that I kind of enjoy the gun-kata in _Equilibrium_ (2002). But I draw the line at the gun manipulation in _The Dark Tower_ (2017). Catching a revolver speed loader in mid air with the revolver cylinder just crosses a line for me. Can’t explain why. ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2026, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-tricks-in-the-movies-and-on-television/1033459/45 "2026-09-29T18:49:13Z")
> [@DesertDog](#): > > While we’re on the subject, going into a tense situation, making a statement, then cocking a hammer or racking a slide to emphasize it. Especially when they do it several times, which should make the already loaded bullets/shells eject from the weapon. LOL ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2026, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-tricks-in-the-movies-and-on-television/1033459/46 "2026-09-29T19:07:13Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > a character picks up that fires a solid projectile towards a target I remember being totally captivated by Otto’s metal detector pistol sneaking in A Fish Called Wanda. I think my buddies and I ‘practiced’ this maneuver in 7th grade, lol. ![](https://media.tenor.com/r03Gfv9QRcwAAAAM/a-fish-called-wanda-kevin-kline.gif "A Fish Called Wanda Kevin Kline GIF - A Fish Called Wanda Kevin Kline Otto -...") ---
**Author:** ![kitap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b9e5f3/32.png) [@kitap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kitap)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2026, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-tricks-in-the-movies-and-on-television/1033459/47 "2026-09-29T19:09:10Z")
On the other hand, on **Person of Interest** Mr. rReese points out idiotic gun handling to opponents. If I remember correctly the “looks cool” sideways style of shooting. I like **Supernatural** but the casual gun-tucking into the back waistband is idiocy. ---
**Author:** ![ricepad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b38774/32.png) [@ricepad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ricepad)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2026, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-tricks-in-the-movies-and-on-television/1033459/48 "2026-09-29T19:36:10Z")
**The Ballad of Buster Scruggs** is rife with stupid gun tricks. My favorite is when Scruggs manages to get Curly Joe to shoot himself in the head. Three times! ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2026, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-tricks-in-the-movies-and-on-television/1033459/49 "2026-09-29T19:44:14Z")
It is easier for me to just rack the slide than find the slide release and keep my fingers out of the way, ---
**Author:** ![Chelonaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9a140/32.png) [@Chelonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chelonaut)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2026, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-tricks-in-the-movies-and-on-television/1033459/50 "2026-09-29T19:44:50Z")
> [@engineer\_comp\_geek](#): > > Here’s a stupid gun trick, the Jet Li pulling the slide off of an enemy’s weapon in Lethal Weapon 4, analyzed by Forgotten Weapons on Youtube. While you aren’t going to be able to pull this off in real life, it’s surprisingly close to being possible. In Anna, a Luc Besson directed (or maybe produced) John Wick/Red Sparrow/etc-alike movie, there’s a variation. On her first very public hit, the heroine discovers she’s been given an unloaded gun. When one of the targets bodyguards starts to choke her, she takes the slide off her own gun, and use it to stab the goon in the throat. [www.youtube.com](http://www.youtube.com) /watch?v=38jatQA\_eqE ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2026, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-tricks-in-the-movies-and-on-television/1033459/51 "2026-09-29T19:48:42Z")
[**Mind Over Matter?**](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGrOWjkIJck) ---
**Author:** ![f.coli](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/eada6e/32.png) [@f.coli](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/f.coli)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2026, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-tricks-in-the-movies-and-on-television/1033459/52 "2026-09-29T20:04:57Z")
I read somewhere that the actor, Duke Moore, did that as a prank to see if Ed Wood would notice and re-shoot the scene. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2026, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-tricks-in-the-movies-and-on-television/1033459/53 "2026-09-29T20:05:02Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > I love the original **Robocop** , but it drives me up the wall when he busts down the door to the drug warehouse and everyone starts shooting at him and _2/3 of the bullets are impacting the floor at his feet!_ like they all are shooting at his tootsies and missing. It’s been a minute since I watched the original, but weren’t some of the people firing from an elevated position? ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2026, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-tricks-in-the-movies-and-on-television/1033459/54 "2026-09-29T20:20:44Z")
The movie [Viva Maria (1965)](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0059956/) featured a rifle that could shoot around corners, but it was a comedy of sorts, so I guess that should get a pass. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2026, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-tricks-in-the-movies-and-on-television/1033459/55 "2026-09-29T20:57:57Z")
A few were, but I doubt they were aiming for his feet. Unless they were _extraordinarily_ bad shots. There was also, in that same sequence, the head baddie taking several rounds from a machine gun in the midsection and flying backwards into the wall (or, in this case, a wall of boxes). ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2026, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-tricks-in-the-movies-and-on-television/1033459/56 "2026-09-29T20:58:53Z")
> [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](#): > > featured a rifle that could shoot around corners, but it was a comedy of sorts, so I guess that should get a pass. That’s actually a real thing. The Germans used a rifle attachment called the “krummlauf” which was used to shoot around corners in an urban environment. It was also used to shoot enemies off of your armored vehicle. [![](https://hips.hearstapps.com/pop.h-cdn.co/assets/16/28/1468352890-krummlauf-1.jpeg) ](https://hips.hearstapps.com/pop.h-cdn.co/assets/16/28/1468352890-krummlauf-1.jpeg) [![](https://diqn32j8nouaz.cloudfront.net/stg44_krummlauff_curved_barrel_fullsize.jpg) ](https://diqn32j8nouaz.cloudfront.net/stg44_krummlauff_curved_barrel_fullsize.jpg) The bullet tended to fragment as it went around the bend, so it ended up being more of a shotgun-type effect, but it was very effective at close ranges. The krummlauf wore out quickly and was only useful in a few limited specific situations, so its use was limited. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2026, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-tricks-in-the-movies-and-on-television/1033459/57 "2026-09-29T21:03:47Z")
That seems legit, but wasn’t the Jolie movie trick that she could swing her arm around and the bullet would follow the arc of her arm as it was fired? ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2026, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-tricks-in-the-movies-and-on-television/1033459/58 "2026-09-29T21:08:22Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > A few were, but I doubt they were aiming for his feet. Unless they were _extraordinarily_ bad shots. There was also, in that same sequence, the head baddie taking several rounds from a machine gun in the midsection and flying backwards into the wall (or, in this case, a wall of boxes). Sure. I don’t believe most criminals are well trained marksman and in a stressful situation, like a shootout, they’re likely to miss their target more often than they hit it. You want to talk about stupid gun tricks in Robocob? When thwarting the robbery of a convenience store we see Robocob bend the barrel of someone’s submachine gun. You’d think that kind of force would rip it out of the guy’s hand but he’s able to hold onto it firmly enough to allow the barrel to be bent. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2026, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-tricks-in-the-movies-and-on-television/1033459/59 "2026-09-29T21:20:48Z")
A little more finesse on Robo’s part and the guy should have been able to shoot around corners, amiright? 😁 ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2026, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-tricks-in-the-movies-and-on-television/1033459/60 "2026-09-29T21:26:03Z")
> [@wguy123](#): > > Sometimes they rack the slide or pump the shotgun action multiple times You should rack it at least once, though: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/MwC7E8amrPs/maxresdefault.jpg "Raylan Puts Dewey in His Place - Scene | Justified | FX") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwC7E8amrPs) (From the first episode of the series). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-tricks-in-the-movies-and-on-television/1033459.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-gun-tricks-in-the-movies-and-on-television/1033459.md?page=4)