September 21st, 2021
10minute read
The 1980s wasthedecade for action movies.
A lot of people say thatFirst Bloodmarks the beginning of the modern action movie.
But the 80s action movie was different.
To fill all that action, these movies needed guns.
Some cutting-edge weapons of the day became the darlings of Hollywood, showing up constantly.
Other movies opted to sandwich existing firearms together tomake all-new prop guns of varying functionality.
Here are some of the coolest to ever hit the screen.
The most memorable is undoubtedly the fictional standard issue rifle for the USCM: the M41A Pulse Rifle.
We can assume its not a 100-round mag because they only had two numbers on the panel.
Additionally, there is a pump-action 30mm grenade launcher mounted under the barrel.
Its shells looks like suspiciously like dressed up 12-gauge shotgun shells, and theres a good reason.
The prop guns for the movie were anything but futuristic.
They were built on WWII-era M1A1 Thompson submachine guns.
Only one M41A Pulse Rifle had a functioning shotgun.
Sometimes they were what the bad guys were outfitted with, sometimes they were the heros gun.
Several of Arnolds teammates carry MP5s inPredator(1987),either as a primary or back-up weapon.
Theres a really easy way to tell.
Plus, its just plain intimidating on screen.
Just watch him use full-size M16A1s like pistols inCommandoand thats all the proof youll need.
But, the movies werent made by the same production team.
ThenMissing in Action 2: The Beginningwas released as a prequel in 1985.
Naturally, it is only ever fired from the hip.
That revolving grenade launcher is a thing of fiction and is actually a customized AN/M5 Pyrotechnic Discharger.
At the time, the E3 was brand new, having just been adopted by the U.S. Marine Corps.
Mac (Bill Duke) also carries an M60E3 as his primary weapon inPredator.
The fact that it could never have really functioned didnt matter at all.
Normally, an M134 fires at a blistering 6,000 RPM.
It was also controlled by a technician off-screen the trigger didnt actually work.
Conclusion
So there you have it, a round-up of some of the 1980s coolest movie guns.
Which one is your favorite?
Did we forget one?
Be sure to nudge the forum link below to comment.
