Are movie prop revolvers fully functional reproductions?

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Are movie prop revolvers fully functional reproductions?

I am looking for opinions about the accident in New Mexico.

 

[Whitworth]

They can be and frequently are originals. Hollywood used Winchester 92's and Colt Single Action Armies by the truck load. Spaghetti (Italian) Westerns were the first to employ modern reproductions in numbers I believe for legal and economical reasons. YMMV

 

[Ponderosaman]

It is my opinion that they are. I don’t know from any actual experience in the industry, but I suspect they range from fully functional to completely fake, depending on the shot they are trying to get. I would bet that they live fire the guns as well, to get realistic looking smoke, sound and bullet impacts. Think of the civil war re-enactments. The guns aren’t as loud, they don’t point them directly at the “enemy” and those that “die” don’t drop perfectly or prolifically enough. Much of that can be cured by cinematography, but it’s easier to suspend disbelief the more accurate the depiction. I imagine they were trying to get a shot of Alec “shooting” someone, putting the audience in the victims shoes first person or just behind the victim.

 

[NeilMacleod]

No way that was a simple accident to take out two people.

 

[MAPMFF]

could have been a malfunction, we all know how things get misreported by the media. It will all come to light eventually, but can't rule out some sort of catastrophic malfunction? Super hot blank in an old pistol or rifle?, maybe add in an obstructed barrel and could blow up a gun with some shrapnel flying.

 

[Ponderosaman]

could have been a malfunction, we all know how things get misreported by the media. It will all come to light eventually, but can't rule out some sort of catastrophic malfunction? Super hot blank in an old pistol or rifle?, maybe add in an obstructed barrel and could blow up a gun with some shrapnel flying.

Based on the info provided by @Loyalist Dave , detailing the Brandon Lee accident, I think they will find that the gun had real ammo in it and that it will be a tragic laps in attention from the guy in charge of the guns, as well bad procedures for making sure the gun/s were safe before handing it to someone who knows little or nothing about gun safety. But as you say, it’s speculation until the facts are published.

 

[SDSmlf]

Blank loads are dangerous and potentially deadly at close range. Load up a gun with a hard cardboard wad and shoot it at a close range object. You may be surprised at the damage that occurs. And no matter what a gun is loaded with, safety procedures still apply. Do not point any gun at something you do not intend to destroy.

 

[RicM]

Balwin should be criminally charged!!!
https://www.aol.com/entertainment/alec-baldwins-rust-co-star-212956266.html

 

[Brokennock]

There are no accidents.

If a gun went bang when it wasn't supposed to, and someone was injured, that wasn't supposed to be, whomever's hand was on that gun at the time of discharge failed to follow at least 2 gun safety rules. That person was negligent.
They either did something they weren't supposed to or failed to do something they were supposed to. Or, both.

 

[user 48702]

could have been a malfunction, we all know how things get misreported by the media. It will all come to light eventually, but can't rule out some sort of catastrophic malfunction? Super hot blank in an old pistol or rifle?, maybe add in an obstructed barrel and could blow up a gun with some shrapnel flying.

News reports said that he shot his cinematographer in the stomach, and the projectile passed through her striking his director in the collarbone. Must have been one hell of a blank.

 

[hawkeye2]

A lot of the actors have no knowledge of how a gun functions nor of any gun safety rules. They use what they are handed and do as they are told trusting to the prop department that everything is alright and safe. Some are very savvy but a lot aren't. In "One Eyed Jacks" Marlon Brando used a double action revolver cobbled up to look like a Peacemaker because he couldn't handle the single action and fire fast enough and if you watch close you'll see the same thing in a lot of movies. The trend today for liability reasons is to use dummy guns or actual guns with no blanks and let the special effects department add the muzzle flash, smoke and noise.

The gun Baldwin fired either had a live round in it or a barrel obstruction that became a projectile in front of the blank. I lean toward the first. I expect Baldwin has little or no knowledge of firearms and was acting a part as he and the director thought it should be and that he trusted the film company to hand him a completely safe prop.

 

[Hawken]

Details are sketchy, but I'm hearing the firearm was a shotgun. Also that it had been used off the set by crews to fire live ammunition, or somesuch. It gets better.

At some point the director wanted another take, and Baldwin, a notorious hothead said something like "Another take!? How 'bout I just shoot both yer fookin asses?" Boom!

Can't make this stuff up. Bunch of lunatic clowns.

 

[Eutycus]

The gun just went off all by itself?

 

[rshveyda]

Here is exactly how Brandon Lee died. It was a revolver and they wanted to see the bullets in the cylinder during a shot of the gun pointing towards the camera. To do so they took live ammo and removed the powder, but left the primers in place, effectively making a bunch of squib loads rather than true dummy rounds. Someone fired one and the primer went off and propelled the bullet into the barrel of the revolver where it got stuck.

The gun was then used for another scene without checking that the barrel was clear. I guess nobody wondered where one of the bullets had gone from the homemade squib rounds when they unloaded it. With the bullet still stuck in the barrel, the gun was then loaded with blanks and fired at Lee from about 15' away, which shot out the stuck bullet and killed him.

Pardon the discussion of unmentionable. My understanding these days is that many movie productions will not use any kind of blank rounds or guns capable of actually firing if the shot requires shooting at an actor or the camera. They would rather spend the money to add in the gunfire digitally than risk injuring an actor or cameraperson.

I'm not sure what happened with Alec Baldwin, but one story I read said that three guns were on a crafts cart, one was taken and given to Baldwin by someone who yelled "cold" as they did so to indicate to everyone on set that it was unloaded and safe. Apparently not.

There are also reports that some of the production crew walked off the set before the shooting ever happed for various reason, including possible safety issues with the handling of firearms on set. It gives me the willies just to think of being handed a gun and trusting that it was unloaded without verifying it personally. And doubly so if I'm going to be pointing it at someone or have it pointed at me.

How do you live with yourself knowing you killed a friend/coworker out of carelessness.

 

[RLI]

When was the last time anyone of you handled a weapon and did not check it? I bet never.

 

[smoothshooter]

Details are sketchy, but I'm hearing the firearm was a shotgun. Also that it had been used off the set by crews to fire live ammunition, or somesuch. It gets better.

At some point the director wanted another take, and Baldwin, a notorious hothead said something like "Another take!? How 'bout I just shoot both yer fookin asses?" Boom!

Can't make this stuff up. Bunch of lunatic clowns.

Baldwin has quite a reputation for being lacking in several important human qualities.
I would hazard a guess that the accident was at least 75% his fault.

 

[Brokennock]

My response to his Instagram post on the matter,



Obviously I would be Brokennock73.
I won't doubt that my response will be removed.

 

[Old Hawkeye]

Baldwin is the producer of this movie. Doesn't that make him the one ultimately responsible for this tragedy? Word is now floating about that several crew members complained of the lack of safety protocol & even walked off the set prior to this completely preventable crime of negligence. That he is posting on social media about this is despicable & speaks volumes about his character.

 

[MAPMFF]

News reports said that he shot his cinematographer in the stomach, and the projectile passed through her striking his director in the collarbone. Must have been one hell of a blank.

Well yikes. I didn't hear that. That sounds particularly awful. Having seen my fair share of abdominal gsw's and stabs, that's a pretty painful way to go.

 

[oldwood]

Baldwin is a noted looser. He tried to start his own liberal east coast "call in" radio talk show. It was advertised to be so popular as to eliminate all the other conservative outlets at the time. Many were listening and amazingly , nobody would call in to talk to the looser. There was wall-to-wall "dead air time". He failed to take the que to move to commie China , back then.