Lethal Weapon 4 is the fourth installment in the Lethal Weapon film franchise. The 1998 sequel follows Riggs (Mel Gibson) and Murtaugh (Danny Glover) as they uncover a smuggling ring involving illegal Chinese immigrants. Most of the cast from the previous three films return for the sequel, which also marked the American film debut of Jet Li.
The following weapons were used in the film Lethal Weapon 4:
As in the previous two Lethal Weapon films, LAPD Detective Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson) carries a Beretta 92FS as his weapon of choice. This time, however, his Beretta is fitted with Crimson Trace grips with an integrated laser sight. At one point in the film, the pistol is rendered unusable when Wah Sing Ku (Jet Li) manages to field strip the pistol through crafty manipulation of the takedown lever (although he seems to have reassembled it afterward because he is seen wielding it in the final shootout and at the end). Lorna (Rene Russo) uses a Beretta to fire at the men who attempt to push Riggs' car into the path of an oncoming train. The Beretta is also seen carried by LAPD officers.
As in all the previous Lethal Weapon films, Detective Roger Murtaugh (Danny Glover) carries a Smith & Wesson Model 19 revolver as his standard weapon. He uses it throughout the film, including during the end fight, where he also uses his signature 'neck roll' move, shown in prior films.
When Riggs & Murtaugh reveal that the money being paid to the Chinese General is counterfeit he flips out and kills two of the 4 fathers with a Beretta Cheetah before being killed by the Triad members.
Several of the General's men use them as well.
During the encounter at Murtaugh's house, one of the Chinese triad gang members, Fan (George Cheung) can be seen with a Glock 17, Lorna Cole (Rene Russo) later manages to get the weapon away from him.
As in the previous two Lethal Weapon films, Detective Murtaugh uses a Smith & Wesson 5906 as his back-up weapon. Detective Riggs also brandishes this weapon during the encounter at Murtaugh's house.
At the film's beginning, Leo Getz (Joe Pesci) is seen carrying a Colt Commander with a custom engraved slide that he has acquired after becoming a "private detective". He is seen contemplating using the pistol to shoot the shark they caught on Murtaugh's boat. Riggs takes the pistol away and throws it overboard.
Detective Lee Butters (Chris Rock) can be seen wielding a stainless steel Gold Cup National Match M1911A1 as his standard weapon. He also has a noticeably horrible grip whenever he pulls the gun, and often has his finger on the trigger.
The LAPD motorcycle cop that pulls over Leo carries a Smith & Wesson 4506. Either the man playing the cop is a real LAPD officer, or the film-makers paid attention to detail, as the 4506 was approved for carry just one year (1997) before the film was released, after the North Hollywood Shootout.
Several members of the Chinese triad can be seen wielding what appear to be Norinco Type 59 pistols, the Chinese copy of the Makarov PM, most notably during the encounter in Murtaugh's house and the final shootout. From closer examination of the pistols, it appears that the Makarovs used by the triads were Chinese-made Norinco copies of the Makarov PM (which would make sense).
At the beginning of the film, Riggs and Murtaugh respond to a call of a "Human Tank" dressed in a suit of bulletproof armor wreaking havoc with a flamethrower and an Olympic Arms OA-93 AR-15 pistol converted to full-auto. What is interesting is that there is a small "pistol" buffer tube attached to the lower receiver of the OA-93. This feature is not part of the OA-93 design, which has a distinctive recoil assembly above the upper receiver which eliminates the need for a buffer tube with spring. Movie armorers had difficulty making the OA-93 cycle blanks, so they added the small buffer tube to the back of the gun, however the original gun doesn't have a buffer tube.
Near the end of the film, a three-way gun battle erupts between the protagonists, Chinese triad members, and the private army of a corrupt Chinese General. The General's men can be seen wielding Romanian AIMS's fitted with AKMS handguards, one of which Riggs gets a hold of to shoot Wah Sing Ku (Jet Li), firing the weapon point-blank while both of them are underwater.
The "Human Tank" at the beginning of the film is armed with a flamethrower in addition to his Olympic Arms OA-93, torching shop fronts, palm trees and anything that comes near.
Riggs is seen using the laser sight on his Beretta to do some acrobatic targeting.
Error creating thumbnail: File missingDuring the shootout on the tanker ship, Riggs uses his laser sight to target one of the bad guys.Error creating thumbnail: File missingHere, Riggs uses his laser sight to target a hiding gunman. It is doubtful that a laser would reflect off of a rusty, dull piece of metal. It's even more doubtful that a bullet would ricochet along the exact same trajectory.
