Tag: Firearms

Firearms specialist Patrick McNamara analyzed gun technique and accuracy in 13 Hollywood action movies for Business Insider’s How Real Is It? podcast series. In the video, McNamara breaks down how movie characters handle different types of weapons, recover ammo while in action, fire two guns at once, and more. Two of Samuel L. Jackson‘s films appear in the video: 2003’s S.W.A.T., also starring Colin Farrell and Jeremy Renner, and Pulp Fiction, also starring John Travolta and Bruce Willis.

Some of Jackson’s most notable performances involve detailed action sequences, from playing Mace Windu in Star Wars and Nick Fury in Marvel, to his infamous flick, Snakes on a Plane. However, Jackson’s action wasn’t enough to save one of the films that McNamara reviewed. S.W.A.T. is a movie adaptation of the 1975 crime drama of the same name. While the film was a box office success, earning $207.7 million against a $70 million budget, it only has a 48% score with critics on Rotten Tomatoes. The firearms expert gave S.W.A.T. a scathing one-star out of 10 rating for its countless errors and lack of realism:

Observing a training sequence in S.W.A.T., McNamara said, “One of the S.W.A.T. cops, during his movement from point A to point B, does a little roll. Nonsense. The objective of moving from one point to another is to get there […] You’re not going to roll.” He is also critical of the depiction of shooting range exercises in the movie:

“You can see what’s called a failure to eject. So the round extracts, but it didn’t eject. And he keeps squeezing the trigger; trained gun owners are not going to do that. The sound and feel of that malfunction is very unique. So if you continue to fire a gun with a failure to eject, you’re going to squeeze forever. It’s not a catastrophic malfunction, but it’s a very easy one to clear.”

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You can watch the full video below.

Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction fared a little better, earning a three out of 10 rating for poor handling and other errors. McNamara gave a deserved but surprisingly high score to John Wick: Chapter 2, arguably one of the best action films of the 2010s. He praises the character’s precision, how he checks the condition of his weapon, and eliminates unpredictability. McNamara explains how Reeves looks like he understands the mechanics behind the gun and how to use it, giving the sequel an 8 out of 10 rating.

Upcoming Action Movies to Look Out for in 2025

Action movie fans should be counting the days till the new year as 2025 is already looking packed with action movies. The Marvel Cinematic Universe releases both Captain America: Brave New World and, later on in the year, Thunderbolts*, which will both obviously feature action sequences, weapons, and close combat. Speaking of combat, Mortal Combat 2 finally lands in October. The film is the direct sequel to 2021’s Mortal Combat and the fourth installment of the mixed martial arts fantasy series.

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Another direct sequel coming in 2025 is Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning, the follow-up to 2023’s Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning. Tom Cruise is a veteran in the action genre and undoubtedly has some nail-biting action sequences along with jaw-dropping stunts to amaze audiences. Another action franchise legend also returns with a comedic twist as Liam Neeson stars in The Naked Gun, a movie reboot based off the widely popular comedy franchise of the same name and television series Police Squad! Another action movie that’s set to combine humor and violence is Love Hurts, led by the one and only Ke Huy Quan, who looks both adorable and deadly as hell.

Jack Quaid stars in his own twist on Neeson’s Taken in the upcoming film Novocaine. The synopsis reads that when the girl of his dreams is kidnapped, a man incapable of feeling physical pain turns his rare condition into an unexpected advantage in the fight to rescue her. And those are just some of the action titles to look out for in 2025. It will be exciting to see which films McNamara rates highly next time.

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S.W.A.T.

Release Date

August 8, 2003

Director

Clark Johnson

Studio(s)

Original Film
, Camelot Pictures
, Chris Lee Productions
, Illusion Entertainment
, Columbia Pictures

Runtime

117 Minutes

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