Action movies are generally not perceived as elaborate works of art. The "campy" patch has undoubtedly stuck yo the genre because of the iconic and "realistic" action movies of the 1980s. Films in which the main character eliminates hordes of bandits, shooting from the hip, without changing the magazine and without suffering wounds created the image of a modern battlefield in the minds of viewers for many years. Because this is what action movies are all about - fighting and most often using firearms.
Arnold Schwarzenegger in "Commando"
For several years, we have been seeing an increasingly positive approach in Hollywood to raise the level of realism of shooting scenes. It suffice to mention movies such as "Saving Private Ryan", "Black Hawk Down", "Heat", or come parts of "Tears of the Sun". The creators are more eager to engage professional advisers, often veterans of special forces or former policemen, whose role is to eliminate the mistakes of actors when using weapons, unrealistic scenes, or inconsistencies in conducting firefights.
Eric Bana and William Fichtner practicing moving with a carbine in preparation for the "Black Hawk Down"
One of the most interesting series is the "John Wick" trilogy directed by Chad Stahelski - a former stuntman and weapon expert who collaborated with Keanu Reeves on the set of "The Matrix" (he is responsible for the "lobby scene" in the film).
John Wick (Keanu Reeves) with the Kel-Tec KSG shotgun
Thor seems that Chris Hemsworth have followed in the footsteps of John in the new Netflix's movie, "Extraction". The director of the film, Sam Hargrave, began his career in Hollywood as an actor, a stuntman, and later a stunt coordinator, as did Chad Stahelski. As in the case of the "John Wick" series (the main shooting instructor was Taran Butler - the owner of Taran Tactical Innovations), the creators of "Extraction" hired a real expert, a former Delta operator and a shooting instructor at Viking Tactics and Sig Academy, Craig "Chili" Palmer, to supervise the scenes using weapons.
"Chilli" during his tour of duty...
... and at the set of "Extraction"
The steps taken by the director seem to confirm the trend of changes towards which action movies in Hollywood are going. Hargrave himself played a small sniper role at the beginning of the movie and as you can see in the video below he was personally responsible for recording several breakneck fight and chase scenes.
Sam Hargrave - reżyser
One of the problems encountered by the creators of "Extraction" was the strict law regarding the possession and use of weapons in India, where some scenes were shot. The creators openly admit that most of the "Indian" scenes were shot using airsoft replicas and rubber dummy weapons. As Ron Licari, one of the armors working on the film recounts it: "I can tell you that everything we shot in India was an airsoft or rubber weapon because we could not import any real weapons to this country." However, it can be safely stated that "our" replicas are way batter the rubber dummies in such aspects as having working manipulators, which were clearly missing in the rubber AKMs used in one of the scenes (confirmed information - it were rubber weapons...).
Rubber AKMs
Some of the more "aware" viewers were probably impressed by a long list of weapons used in the film, which according to http: //www.imfdb.org, looks like this:
Naturally, the weapons of the main characters are the most exposed ones, therefore let's look at the arsenal of Tyler Rake (Chris Hemsworth) first. Starting with a less "complicated" weapon, the main character uses a Glock 17 pistol (held in the Safariland holster), several versions of AK rifles, and a 40 mm M79 grenade launcher. However, the the most interesting are the AR-15 carbines, which were put together very nicely.
The first is a BCM AR-15 with a KMR-A10 handguard, a EoTech EXPS sight with a G23 magnifier, a AAC M4-2000 silencer, a laser sight (probably the OTAL) and a BCM Gunfighter Vertical Grip.
The second AR-15 is a Daniel Defense M4 V1 with a Leupold Mark 4 High Accuracy Multi-Range Riflescope (HAMR), a Delta-Pro mini collimator, a Gemtech Halo silencer and a tactical flashlight, probably a Surefire M952.
It is worth noting that both carbines have a reputation of reliable and robust designs among the shooters.
The main antagonist is seen in the film with a HK MP5SD6 submachine gun with a Trijicon 1x24 Reflex sight and a HK 45 pistol.
An FN SCAR-H with a VCOG scope and a Harris bipod also looks impressive and thought out - in the hands of Nik Khan.
and an HK SL8 rifle in the hands of Colonel Rashid.
We, enthusiasts of weapons, should enjoy the multitude of designs of various manufacturers, the completeness of the weapon and the way in which actors use them in the movie. According to data from Western sources, "Extraction" is one of the most viewed Netflix productions, and the news is that the producers, the Russo brothers (yes, those known from the Avengers), have already signed a contract to develop a sequel. It remains to be seen if other directors of action films will follow in the footsteps of Sam Hargrave and Chad Stahelski and remove the patch of kitsch from the genre of action cinema.
Based on an article posted at: thefirearmblog.com
Photos: thefirearmblog.com, instagram.com/chilipalmershooting,imfdb.org, filmweb.pl, imdb.com
