The Latest from Cactus Tactical: More Gun Fights and Films

More Gun Fights and Films

Sometimes heroes are pint sized women that come through things in life that just make 'em a little tougher for it. Today we look at two films with some incredible fight scenes and clever heroes in a both an up to date modern world and as contrast a fantasy film focused on escape from the modern world. Both films required incredible skill in filmmaking, careful choreography, intense cinematography and delivered all that and more. Let's take a look at these films and the weapons used.

1. Kick-Ass

Dave Lizewski opens the film with a narration about how superheroes came into existence. A man in a superhero costume stands on a skyscraper above a crowd ready to show the world his new flight suit. He jumps as people cheer before crashing into a taxi and dying. Dave comments that the man isn't him; just a delusional mental patient. He introduces himself as 'Kick-Ass' and begins recounting his life story.

He begins by taking us to the past six months. Dave is a bit of a social misfit;a natural-born geek, a nobody at his high school, and invisible to all the girls. He has two good friends, Todd and Marty, and they spend most of their time at the local comic book store. When Dave was 14, his mother died suddenly of an aneurysm and that's when he noticed that, even when things change, they simply stay the same. He is in love with Katie Deauxma but she barely notices him. A genuinely nice guy, he tries to reach out to people, including Chris D'Amico the spoiled but lonely son of a local mobster, however this plan fails miserably. When he attempts to casually talk to Chris, his bodyguard scares Dave away because Chris is not allowed to have friends. One day, following a conversation about superheroes at the comic book café, Dave and Todd are robbed by a pair of street gang members. This event inspires Dave to become a superhero and fight crime. He orders a green colored diving suit off the internet, fits two batons to the back, and starts training to become a crime fighter.

After a montage showing us the time spent in his physical training, Dave sees the two men who robbed him and Todd trying to break into a car. Dave dons his suit and confronts them which leads to a fight. It ends when Dave is brutally stabbed and the robbers run off. Dave stumbles away only to be hit by a car which quickly drives off. However, an ambulance shortly arrives and rushes Dave to the hospital. En route, though clinging to life, Dave begs the paramedic to hide his suit. Dave is brought to the hospital naked which starts rumors about the circumstances that led to his admittance, it's implied to be related to male prostitution.

Dave is almost as good as new after some time passes. His injuries left him with metal plating covering most of his skull and interior and he possesses a higher threshold for pain thanks to frayed nerve endings. He returns to school and is shocked when Katie begins talking to him, but Marty explains that she likes that type of guy and tells Dave that the entire school thinks he's a gay prostitute. Though he is at first horrified by this, Dave comes to accept his new social standing, seeing it as the only way to be close to Katie. Despite the setbacks his debilitating fight caused, Dave is still determined to be a superhero and sets up a MySpace account for his alter ego: Kick-Ass.

While looking for a lost cat one night, Dave notices three men viciously attacking a fourth man in front of a diner. Immediately, Dave rushes to the man's aid and successfully beats off the attackers, his metal plating and inability to feel pain providing an advantage. Some patrons from the diner record the fight along with Dave's formal introduction of his alter ego and post it on YouTube. Kick-Ass becomes an internet phenomenon and is quickly circulated throughout the media. Chris watches the latest reports with his parents, Frank D'Amico and Angie as his father criticizes Kick-Ass's apparent lack of skill.

Across town, Frank's thugs are torturing one of his associates who claims that a man resembling Batman attacked their cocaine dealers and stole all of their drugs. Thinking it far more likely that the associate stole the cocaine for a profit, Frank has him tortured and killed before taking his son Chris out to the movies. Frank surrounds himself with a posse of thugs/bodyguards wherever he goes for both intimidation and to protect himself from family members of rivals and people he's killed. Later on, Frank learns that his earlier assumption about his missing shipment was incorrect, so he sends his men to take care of a Russian mobster whom he believes is really responsible for messing with his shipments.

We next cut to a scene where ex-policeman Damon MacReady points a gun at his 11-year-old daughter, Mindy, and shoots her in the chest. Mindy stands up, shocked by the force of the bullet but impressed with how effectively her bullet-proof vest absorbed it. They watch the reports on Kick-Ass. Damon is not impressed and sees Kick-Ass as a wannabe rookie but Mindy thinks he has potential. Framed as a drug dealer by Frank D'Amico, Damon was relieved of his duty as an officer and sent to prison for five years which led to his wife's suicide and left Mindy in the care of Damon's partner, Marcus. Damon vowed revenge against Frank and began training to become a vigilante. Once his term was served, he was reunited with Mindy and began training her as well, against Marcus's wishes. Marcus finds Damon and begs with him to end his vendetta before dirty cop Detective Gigante or D'Amico finds him. He asks to see Mindy but, seeing the futility of the attempt, leaves, telling Damon he owes Mindy a real childhood. Damon colors a large, comic book-style hit list and hangs it on the wall.

As Kick-Ass, Dave continues to save people and gathers more supporters over the internet. As Katie's 'gay' best friend, he is able to get closer to her and begins to get to know her as a person. One day, she mentions that a meth addict named Rasul, who frequents the clinic she volunteers at, robbed her and smacked her around, refusing to leave her alone. Dave convinces her to message Kick-Ass. That night, Kick-Ass finds Rasul at his apartment and attempts to intimidate him, but fails. As Rasul and his gang members are about to castrate Kick-Ass, Mindy, dressed in her vigilante outfit as Hit-Girl with a purple wig and cape, shoots through the window and fights off all the gang members with knives and a long spear until they are all dead. As a surviving gang member sneaks up behind her, Mindy's father shoots him through the head with his sniper rifle from an opposite building. She introduces herself to Kick-Ass as Hit-Girl and begins stealing all of the gang members' money and guns. Kick-Ass asks what's going on and Hit-Girl tells him to come with her. They go to the roof and Hit-Girl jumps across the rooftops to join her father, dressed as his alter ego, Big Daddy. Kick-Ass is too afraid to follow and the other two leave disappointed. Dave returns home, removes his mask, and cries himself to sleep. He laments that he's just an incompetent, overgrown child and that there are other people better suited for his job as a superhero.

That same night, Big Daddy and Hit-Girl pay Dave a visit at his house. They tell him that they were able to easily back-trace his MySpace account and the three have a chat. Big Daddy tells Dave that he is doing okay but that he has potential to be better. They tell him that if he ever needs to reach them he should decorate his MySpace page with an 'On Vacation' banner and they will find a way to contact him.

Meanwhile, Frank D'Amico learns that there are actual vigilantes fighting against his organization and becomes pretty upset. Chris wants to get in on the business, but Frank pushes him aside. He becomes extremely tense and paranoid, going so far as to kill a Kick-Ass imitator in broad daylight, thinking the phony to be the real thing. He contacts Detective Gigante and tells him to 'take care' of Kick-Ass. Gigante admits that Kick-Ass is in a relatively gray area, but he'll do his best. Chris offers an alternative solution: let him don his own superhero alter ego called the Red Mist. As such, Chris will frame one of D'Amico's incompetent associates and trick Kick-Ass into trusting him before leading him into an ambush.

Chris executes his plan while Dave becomes more and more discouraged. As Red Mist, Chris makes contact with Kick-Ass and requests to become his sidekick, since Kick-Ass is the one who inspired him. Red Mist shows Kick-Ass his flashy sports car and they drive off to the D'Amico stronghold, only to see it burning to the ground. Kick-Ass rushes inside to see if he can save anyone but everyone inside is dead, horribly cut and burned. Red Mist grabs a teddy bear from the wall and runs out of the building with Kick-Ass as it explodes. The two part ways and Kick-Ass resolves to give up crime fighting. He goes to Katie's house with the intention of revealing his identity. She sprays mace in his face, calling him a pervert, until he de-masks. Dave confesses his alter ego and tells Katie that he isn't really gay and he loves her.

Meanwhile, Frank D'Amico has seen the destruction of his warehouse and worries for his son until Chris arrives and tells him that Kick-Ass isn't the real threat. He shows Frank the teddy bear which has a Nanny Cam in it. They watch footage of Big Daddy killing all of D'Amico's men and burning the warehouse to the ground. D'Amico convinces Chris to set up a trap to catch Big Daddy.

Dave, having been Kick-Ass free for a week, sees a series of emails from Red Mist requesting his help and decides to go on one last mission. He tells Katie what he is doing and leaves to meet up with Red Mist who tells him that they have a bounty on their heads. Concerned for his allies, Kick-Ass contacts Big Daddy through his MySpace page. Damon and Mindy notice the urgent message while enjoying some hot chocolate and reviewing their latest cache of weaponry. They response to Kick-Ass and instruct him to meet them at one of their safe houses. Red Mist drives Kick-Ass to the location while being followed by D'Amico's men. At the safe house, Red Mist and Kick-Ass are ushered inside by Big Daddy as Hit-Girl waits beside a window. Inside, Red Mist pulls a gun and shoots Hit-Girl twice in the chest. As she falls out of the window, Big Daddy screams and D'Amico's men rush in, beating him and Kick-Ass unconscious. As they put them in the back of a waiting van, Red Mist screams for them to let Kick-Ass go since he considers him a friend and doesn't want to see him hurt. One of the bodyguards takes Big Daddy's bazooka as a reward and drags Red Mist home to his father.

A countdown is announced for the unmasking of Kick-Ass and all of New York City bears witness. Katie is proud of Dave but watches with horror as a live video feed on the internet shows Big Daddy and Kick-Ass handcuffed to chairs awaiting their torture and execution. Marcus also watches solemnly as D'Amico's men begin to brutally beat the two. They pour gasoline over Big Daddy as Hit-Girl, very much alive, sneaks into the hideout. She attacks and kills all of the men inside but one of them manages to set Big Daddy on fire, burning him severely. Hit-Girl extinguishes her father too late and shares one last moment with him before he dies in her arms. Hit-Girl rescues Kick-Ass and takes him back to her father's apartment. There, Dave tries to tell her that it's all over now and they should give up their vigilante lifestyles but Mindy is adamant about finishing what her father started, adding her own fury to avenge her father's death. Realizing that he is responsible for all that's happened, Dave agrees to help her. He takes up a mysterious piece of weaponry that Big Daddy had bought and assembled.

At Frank D'Amico's headquarters, his men are on double alert waiting for Kick-Ass and Hit-Girl to show up. In the lobby, the first guards are standing idly on duty when Mindy knocks on the front door, dressed in a school girl outfit. The doorman and guards, having never seen Mindy's face before, open the door to let her in. She tearfully says she can't find her parents so the doorman offers her his phone to call them. As he kneels down, Mindy stuffs the barrel of a handgun into his mouth. The guards realize this too late and Mindy takes them all out with ease. She changes into her Hit-Girl guise and arrives at the penthouse, fighting with speed and stealth and killing more of D'Amico's men. When she runs out of bullets she resorts to throwing knives. A large thug runs to get the bazooka, much to the shock and disgust of both Frank and Chris, while the other thugs pin Hit-Girl behind a counter. The large thug returns with the bazooka as they all hear a mechanic sound near the windows. They look outside to see Kick-Ass hovering upwards with a jet-pack strapped to his back with attaching rapid-fire mini guns protruding over each shoulder. Kick-Ass quickly disposes of the rest of the thugs.

In Frank's office, he and Chris hear the final sounds of the fire fight and think that the thugs were successful. But Hit-Girl and Kick-Ass barge through the door, ready for the final showdown. Frank orders Chris to take on Kick-Ass. Chris is disgruntled but rushes into battle while Frank squares off against Hit Girl.

Kick-Ass and Red Mist face off in an adjacent dojo and knock each other out cold. Hit-Girl battles Frank with ferocity but finds that she has met her match since Frank is highly trained in martial arts. Frank's attacks become increasingly ruthless and he beats Hit-Girl near to a pulp and slams her through a coffee table. He retrieves his gun and prepares to kill Hit-Girl when Kick-Ass appears, suggesting he 'pick on someone his own size'. Frank redirects his gun only to see that Kick-Ass is holding the bazooka. Kick-Ass fires, sending the rocket into Frank and out the window.

Chris comes to and draws a katana, looking for a rematch, but finds Kick-Ass activating the jetpack and flying off with Hit-Girl. They land on a distant rooftop and Kick-Ass unstraps the pack and sets both Hit-Girl and the pack down. Hit-Girl thanks him for the help, saying Big Daddy would be proud of them both. Kick-Ass takes off his mask and tells her his real name, Dave Lizewski. Hit-Girl consents to the gesture and takes off her wig and mask, showing him her face, and telling him her true name, Mindy MacReady. They shake hands and look toward the horizon.

A voice-over from Dave tells us that Marcus regains guardianship of Mindy and that she is now enrolled at Dave's school, on the promise that Dave will look out for her. An amusing scene shows two school bullies attempting to shake the 'new kid' for her lunch money but she merely smiles and cracks her knuckles. Dave relaxes with his friends at a coffee shop as his voice-over mentions that Kick-Ass has become a cultural sensation with his own comic strip. And while Dave is retired from crime fighting, there is a whole new wave of people inspired to follow in his footsteps. As the film ends we see one who is equally determined to break the new superhero wave down. Chris, as the Red Mist, sits in his father's office donning a revamped costume and mask vowing revenge against Kick-Ass, Hit-Girl, and any superhero wannabe that gets in his way.

A modern day heroes tale, let's take a look at the weapons they used.

A Beretta 92FS is used by Big Daddy (Nicolas Cage) in an early scene to shoot his daughter Hitgirl (Chloe Moretz) to show what is like to be shot with a bullet proof vest on, and later when he attacks a group of mobsters at Frank's Lumber warehouse.

"This will only hurt for a second, Sugar." Damon Macready (AKA Big Daddy) aims the Beretta 92FS at his daughter.

To see Mindy learn how to take a bullet, you can watch here:

Big Daddy (Nicolas Cage) wields a Beretta 92FS to fight thugs.

A Heckler & Koch USP Compact is wielded "akimbo"-style by Mindy Macready aka "Hit Girl" (Chloe Moretz) along side a SIG Sauer P232 (left hand). A two toned H&K USP Compact is wielded by a thug. She also uses one in the POV scene and during the rescue, with a rail mounted flashlight in tactical strobe mode.

Heckler & Koch USP Compact - 9x19mm

Heckler & Koch USP Compact with stainless slide - 9x19mm

H & K USP Compact 9x19mm with rail adapter, pictured below with an Insight Xti Procyon tactical weaponlight

Hit Girl in a different costume wielding a USP Compact with a suppressor.

Hit Girl prepares to open a can of kick-ass with a USP Compact in her right hand and a SIG-Sauer P232 in her left

There are a ton of different weapons used in this film, to see the rest of them take a look here: http://www.imfdb.org/wiki/Kick_Ass

If you're looking for more Hit-Girl and Kick-Ass, grab some popcorn and watch the sequel to Kick-Ass and settle in for some action packed superhero storylines from unexpected places.

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2. Sucker Punch

Sucker Punch is a 2011 science fiction fantasy directed by Zack Snyder that focuses on a young woman who steps into a fantasy world in order to escape her own horrifying reality. In the fantasy sequences, the mix of weaponry in the film spans several decades from the time period of the reality depicted in the film. The women in the film also underwent extensive training with former Navy SEALs in both weapons handling as well as room clearing techniques.

This film opens darkly with a scene of abuse and death. Eerie and frightening, it unpleasant and meant to leave the viewer disturbed. In the 1950s, a 20-year-old woman nicknamed Babydoll is institutionalized by her widowed stepfather at the Lennox House for the Mentally Insane after she is blamed for the death of her younger sister. The stepfather easily bribes Blue Jones, who is one of the asylum's orderlies, into forging the signature of the asylum's psychiatrist, Dr. Vera Gorski , to have Babydoll lobotomized so she cannot inform the authorities of the true circumstances behind her sister's death. During her admission to the institution, Babydoll takes note of four items that she would need to attempt an escape in the future. As the orderly leads the stepfather and Babydoll through the hospital they stop in what's known as "The Theatre", Babydoll carefully yet blindly takes in her surroundings. As she does this the two men in charge of her fate haggle prices and when the Doctor that performs the lobotomy will be there. The time passes in a montage of torment and clues. We see the lobotomy about to take place but we click over to opening with the tool over another characters head. Babydoll has slipped into a fantasy world in which she is newly arrived in a brothel owned by Blue, whom she envisions as a dapper but sinister mobster. She befriends four other dancers Amber , Blondie , Rocket, and Rocket's sister and Sweet Pea. Sweet Pea is the proclaimed "star of the show". Dr. Gorski is given her role in the parallel but imagined world as the girls' tough love dance instructor. Blue informs Babydoll that her virginity will be sold to a client known as the High Roller, who is actually the doctor scheduled to perform the lobotomy. Gorski encourages Babydoll to perform an erotic dance, and we are delivered to yet another world in Babydoll's mind. She finds herself in feudal Japan, and meets another character named simply the Wise Man. During the dancing she is able to transport herself to other lands and the Wise Man offers her answers how she can escape her true prison. Upon finishing her dance Babydoll expresses her desire to "escape" to other girls and tells them she's been instructed by the Wise Man. He instructs Babydoll that she'll need the following items to escape: a map, fire, a knife, a key, and the fifth is shrouded in mystery as it will require sacrifice and bring the victory they require. Babydoll convinces her friends, including the dubious Sweet Pea, to join her in preparing an escape. She plans to use her dances as a distraction while the other girls obtain the necessary tools. During her dances, she imports herself into fantastic adventures that mirror the escape efforts. These adventures include infiltrating a bunker protected by steampunk-inspired World War I German soldiers to gain a map (mirrored by Sweet Pea copying a map of the brothel/institution from Blue's office); storming an Orc-infested castle to retrieve two fire-producing crystals from inside a baby dragon (mirrored by Amber stealing a lighter from the mayor's pocket); and boarding a train and combating robotic guards to disarm a bomb (mirrored by Rocket stealing a kitchen knife from the Cook's belt). During the last fantasy, Rocket sacrifices herself to save Sweet Pea and is killed when the bomb detonates, which is paralleled by the Cook fatally stabbing Rocket while she tries to protect her sister. Blue overhears Blondie relaying Babydoll's plan to Madam Gorski, confirming his suspicions that something is amiss. He has Sweet Pea locked in a utility closet and confronts the other girls backstage. He shoots Amber and Blondie and attempts to rape Babydoll, but she stabs him with the kitchen knife and steals his master key. Babydoll frees Sweet Pea and starts a fire to keep the orderlies occupied while they look for an exit. They escape into the courtyard, where they find a throng of men blocking their way. Babydoll realizes that the fifth item needed for the escape is in fact her own sacrifice. Despite Sweet Pea's protests, she insists on revealing herself to the visitors, thus distracting them long enough to allow her friend to slip away unnoticed. Back in the asylum, the surgeon has just performed Babydoll's lobotomy. The surgeon is baffled by Babydoll's expression, and asks Dr. Gorski why she authorized the procedure. Gorski realizes that Blue has forged her signature and summons the police, who apprehend Blue as he attempts to sexually assault a lobotomized Babydoll. While being led away, Blue also incriminates the stepfather. Babydoll is shown smiling serenely, having apparently found freedom within her own inner "Paradise". It is revealed her dream is actually a fantasy flashback paralleling events that really happened in the hospital. At a bus station, Sweet Pea is stopped by police as she tries to get on a bus to Fort Wayne, but she is rescued by the bus driver (the Wise Man), who misleads the police and allows her to board.

Now then, let's take a look at the weapons used in this film.

In the third-tier 'dream world', the Wise Man (Scott Glenn) presents Baby Doll with her weapons, one of which is a nickel plated engraved M1911A1 pistol with spare magazines (and small jewelry attachments).

Screen used custom M1911 used by Baby Doll

The custom M1911A1 seen in Baby Doll's holster.

Some of the actresses were seen with M1911A1's during their firearms training.

During the trench battle with the World War One German Zombie Soldiers, Rocket (Jena Malone) uses a combination of bayonet and single shot Flintlock Pistol. She uses the pistol as a club in hand to hand combat, which is probably the most practical use for the antiquated weapon in that battle. Later, she uses it for shooting the cable from the bomb in the "distant planet" world.

Rocket prepares to slam a Zombie German soldier with her Flintlock Pistol.

Jena Malone trains with a Flintlock Pistol during a rehearsal for the trench warfare scene.

In the battle with armed automatons, Sweet Pea (Abbie Cornish) uses a tactical Remington 870 Shotgun with ghost-ring sights, Surefire dedicated forend weaponlight, door breaching muzzle brake, and Knoxx Spec Ops stock. Production stills clearly show "Knoxx" written on it.

Remington 870 Police "Entry Gun" with a Surefire dedicated forend weaponlight a KNOXX Spec Ops stock - 12 gauge

Sweet Pea (Abbie Cornish) gets ready to engage an army of robots with her Remington 870 shotgun

Abbie Cornish firing the Remington 870 at a firing range. Note the absence of the Knoxx stock.

To watch the Zombie Fight scene you can do so here:

This film has a ton of weapons, for a full listing you can go here: http://www.imfdb.org/wiki/Sucker_Punch

If you're in the mood for a dark but powerful film, pour a strong glass of whiskey and buckle in because Sucker Punch is a wild ride between three realms.

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Labels: action films, adventure, babydoll, cinema, fantasy, films, girl power, gun fights, guns, hit girl, kick ass, movies, nicholas cage, steampunk, sucker punch, weapons