The Gun

TV Movie
1974
1h 18m

IMDb RATING

6.8/10

102

YOUR RATING

Crime Drama

The "life" of a handgun is followed from its manufacture to its ultimate fate, and shows the effects the weapon has on its various owners.The "life" of a handgun is followed from its manufacture to its ultimate fate, and shows the effects the weapon has on its various owners.The "life" of a handgun is followed from its manufacture to its ultimate fate, and shows the effects the weapon has on its various owners.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.8/10

102

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
The date that Arthur first looks at the new gun is noted as March 3, 1971, and this was a Wednesday. The next date given is October 26, 1971, which turned out to be a Tuesday, even though the pawnbroker actually says that it is Friday. The third date was Saturday the fourth of December, 1971, and this at least looks right, as the kids are not in school. The next date was the 16th of February, 1972. This was another Wednesday - exactly fifty weeks after the first date. The following scenes with Mr. Kelsey take place over more than one day. To note, Ramon Bieri, who plays Kelsey, was in the Hawaii Five-O (1968) about a gun that travelled through many owners, as the one here does. Over two and a half years later, the 20th of September, 1974, is a Friday. The next one, 13th November, was yet another Wednesday.

Goofs
In a number of shots, the Smith and Wesson revolver used in this film is replaced with a fake prop gun that has a longer barrel and a differently shaped front sight.

Connections
Spin-off from Flesh and Fantasy (1943)

User reviews10

Review

Featured review

8/10

Possible inspiration for opening sequence in Lord of War

I recall seeing this made-for-TV movie around 1974 when it was released and being very impressed by the cold, docudrama approach used. From what I remember, it is a powerful statement against the over-prevalence of gun use, without being preachy. From what I have read in reviews so far of the just-released Nicholas Cage film, Lord of War, the opening sequence of the Cage movie (which visually traces the history of a bullet from manufacture in the U.S. to its use executing a person in Africa) seems to have been inspired by the story technique used in The Gun from beginning to end. It's sometimes a little surprising what certain directors did earlier in their careers. I would not have associated John Badham with this movie.