History Film / ShootEmUp

!!!If you were looking for the VideoGame genre, go [[ShootEmUp here]].

* LawOfInverseRecoil: Hertz' Deagle should rip off his lower arm and send it flying a few feet backwards when fired one-handed, yet this HandCannon doesn't have any recoil whatsoever.

* BottomlessMagazines: Frequently hilariously averted. Well, okay, Hertz' gun has six shots when the clip of a real Desert Eagle .50 AE can only hold five.

* TakeThat: The very first gun that Smith uses in the movie, a Walther PPK, jams, and he calls it a "piece of crap." Clive Owen, the actor who plays Smith, was briefly considered to play Film/JamesBond in ''Film/CasinoRoyale''. Bond's signature weapon is a Walther PPK.

Not to be confused with ShootEmUps, the video game genre. Although they do have a lot in common.

* BloodlessCarnage: Averted, and ''HOW!''

* UsefulNotes/GunSafety: Smith knows you can never learn 'em too young.

* MissionImpossibleCableDrop: One {{Mook}} tries this during the staircase shootout. [[GoneHorriblyWrong The rope is a bit too long, though]].

* [[spoiler:CorruptPolitician: Senator Rutledge sells out to the gun lobby. Though he makes up for it in RedemptionEqualsDeath.]]

* ArtisticLicensePhysics: As the Series/MythBusters proved, shooting the merry-go-round like that would not get it to move as depicted in the film. Given that this movie runs on RuleOfCool, it can be forgiven.

-->'''Smith:''' [[BondOneLiner Aren't guns wonderful?]]

* JustKeepDriving: Smith runs a guy off the road for the unforgivable act of cutting him off without using a blinker.
* KilledMidSentence

* DisproportionateRetribution: Smith rams a guy off the road for driving aggressively without signaling. But keeping with the tone of the movie, Donna lampshades it: "You are the angriest man in the ''world''!"

* BerserkButton: A number of things can trigger this response in Mr. Smith. For example, when he steals a car for parking in the handicapped zone, or runs another car off the road for repeatedly changing lanes without a signal. Basically everyday annoyances that usually only merit a gripe or two from normal people trigger sociopathic rage in Mr. Smith. [[HeroicComedicSociopath And we love him for it]].

The film exists to show gunfights in every conceivable situation, from high-speed chases to [[CoitusUninterruptus mid-sex]] to mid-''skydiving''. Heck, it might as well be called ''Guns: The Movie'' because that's really the main focus of the film. The plot is secondary to [[AffectionateParody meta-humor]] and ''really'' over-the-top action sequences. No, we mean '''''really''''' over-the-top. RogerEbert commented: "''I may disapprove of a movie for [[WillingSuspensionOfDisbelief going too far]], and yet have a sneaky regard for a movie that goes [[CrossesTheLineTwice much, much farther than merely too far.]]''"

** DQ gets one when she points out to Smith that he's never taken in a bit of FridgeLogic:

** [[spoiler:Actually, TruthInTelevision, there is a nerve in the arm and wrist makes it twitch in the general direction done in the movie. But [[ImprobableAimingSkills hitting hit]] on purpose is next to nil Unless you're Smith.]]

* CoitusUninterruptus: Smith guns down a few mooks in the process of having sex with Donna. [[IncrediblyLamePun "Talk about shooting your load."]]

* DarkAndTroubledPast: Smith -- there's a few hints dropped, and Hertz believes he knows what it is, but Smith never confirms it.

-->'''Hertz:''' '''GOD DAMMIT, SMITH!!!'''

** Hertz spends a fair chunk of the movie as one, too, lampshading it with the explanation that getting mad causes a reduction in IQ, something he can't afford. All this, of course, [[CrowningMomentOfFunny just makes his eventual blow-up in the warehouse all the more hilarious]]:
-->'''Hertz:''' '''GOD''''''''DAMMIT,''''' '''SMITH!!!'''

* WeNeedADistraction: Donna needs to slip inside the tank, so Smith promises a distraction. He sees a woman striking her child so proceeds to SpankTheCutie.