Silencer

Sweepy the Cat · February 2009

Do you prefer Bond to use a silenced or un-silenced gun? Personally I think that it depends entirel on the situation.

Whilst watching the scene where Bond confronts Pushkin in TLD the other day I noticed something about Bond that I'd never really noticed before. I noticed how rarely Bond, a SECRET agent uses a silencer on his gun. I remember he used one in DN when he killed Dent, one in the 'Pushkin confrontation' (although he doesn't actually use it), the GE pre-creds & all throughout CR.

Relating to his, I hate it when Bond himself gets himself too involved in big battles (like in TSWLM). He should let the army or whoever take care of the situation whilst Bond gets away/dismantles the bomb or whatever. This is why I prefer the battles in TB-OHMSS & TLD.

7289 · February 2009

A silencer is an appropriate tool for a "secret" agent, and it's hard to keep yourself secret if you go around shooting up the town - so a quiet pistol makes since.

Silencers in the real world are alot more effective these days than in years past, so they do have a value. But real secret agents don't often carry pistols so that a rather moot point.

For oo7, the silencer sure adds a "cool" factor to his image, and that brings more box office and that is the most important part of the equation.

Fleming dropped the silencer for Bond when the PPK and S&W were adopted in "Dr. No", and this helped make oo7 more "real world" since the .25 Beretta with a silencer has all the stopping power of a mud pie.

I must say that as far as the films are concerned it is my opinion that the neatest use of the silencer occurs in "Thunderball" when Bond flushs Quist out of the shower of his Hotel room. Next to that "From Russia with Love" features good use of a silencer when Grant turns Bond's own PPK on him during the ride on the Orient Express.

I also enjoyed the P99 with silencer in "CR'06", but with regard to the rest of the series all I can muster is an indifferent shrug.

Thunderpussy · February 2009

I think in one of the books it's explained that most people haven't heard a gun shot so wouldn't know what it was anyway so a silencer or (noise surperssion unit, as i think Gardner had Bond call in in his Novels.) is not needed,it also slows down the time it takes to draw the weapon.
But I do agree it just looks cool on screen.

thesecretagent · February 2009

I think the use of a silencer seems more menacing as it creates an air of dispair with the victim. You know there will be little sound, and much like a knife, seems more threatening. Any gunshot, even .22 short, in an enclosed area is hellishly loud and therefore probably a last resort, but the presence of a silencer negates any question of a bluff.
In Dr. No when Bond kills Dent, he is in a remote mountain-top location at night and would not need a silencer. However, its use is cold and professional and the scene is all the better for it.
Plenty of films have the character running around blasting hundreds of rounds from a 9mm, but Bond with a silenced weapon and just a few shots fired seems far more refined in comparision.

Napoleon Plural · February 2009

A silencer is more sinister, it's clear Bond isn't killing in cold blood as he's preparing the gun. Bond usually kills in some shootout situation, in hot blood so to speak.

Mark Hazard · February 2009

Thunderpussy wrote:

I think in one of the books it's explained that most people haven't heard a gun shot so wouldn't know what it was anyway so a silencer or (noise surperssion unit, as i think Gardner had Bond call in in his Novels.) is not needed,it also slows down the time it takes to draw the weapon.
But I do agree it just looks cool on screen.

To draw it you would have to "holster" it first and I don't think many (if any) holsters are made to take both pistol and silencer. And I don't recommend (even if they do it in films) shoving a gun down the front of your pants/trousers.

7289 · February 2009

Shoving a silenced pistol down the front of the trusers is exactly what oo7 did at the end of "From Russia with Love" - the gun got stuck and Rosa Klebb nearly killed our hero!

walther p99 · March 2009

I think it depends on the situation in which 007 utilizes a suppressor, for instance in CR in madagascar Bond didnt silence his P99 (becuase of the holster and its easier to hide) and up to the point in which he uses it he already caused enough damage so a silencer wouldnt have made a difference. but once he reaches Casino Royale hes in a crowded hotel with loads of people everywhere so it would only make sense that everytime he intends to use his weapon its silenced.

Silencer

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