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The Ghost and the Darkness
Based on a true story. The movie takes place in 1898 in Kenya along the Savo River. Two lions are killing railroad workers and Col. Patterson (Val Kilmer) has to hunt them down and kill them. He is assisted by the professional hunter Remington (Michael Douglas). Though the movie plays fast and loose with the actual details of the hunt it is an exciting adventure movie with a well written script by William Goldman ( Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid , Marathon Man ) It is also notable for featuring multiple British firearms, some of which almost never appear in American productions such as the BSA Lee-Sporter used by Patterson (Val Kilmer). The movie was filmed in South Africa in 1995.
The following guns can be seen in The Ghost and the Darkness:
Birmingham Small Arms Lee-Speed Sporter
Used by Patterson (Val Kilmer) throughout much of the movie. It appears to have a 26" barrel and is probably chambered for .303 British though the BSA Lee-Speed Sporter rifle was available in different calibers. The Lee-Speed was popular with British officers and other hunters who wanted a fine rifle but couldn't afford the expensive double barrel rifles made by Purdy and others. The Lee-Speeds were also popular because they fired the British service round and had the same action as the Lee-Enfield bolt action rifle. In the primitve conditons of Africa in the late 19th and early 20th century the Britsh Army was often a source of supply for hunters and colonists. Which would have included spare parts and ammo. Not many Cabelas sitting around on the grasslands of Tanzania.
Farqueson rifle
Used by Doctor Hawthorne (Bernard Hill) and Patterson (Val Kilmer). Another popular design in the late 19th century with British shooters. The Farqueson design is still in use. Most notably the Ruger No. 1 single shot rifle.
Holland & Holland Double Rifle
Though it is unknown which company (or gunsmith) manufactured the double barreled rifle used by Remington (Michael Douglas) and later Patterson (Val Kilmer) it appears to be a hammerless model. Given the time it is probably supposed to be a Westley - Richards, Purdy, Rigby or Holland & Holland Double Rifle. It would likely be in 450 3.25" Nitro Express or 500/450 3.25" Nitro Express since those were the premire Nitro calibers at the end of the 19th century. For the sake of convenience I'm electing to classify it as a Holland & Holland. If anyone has more information please contribute.
Martini-Henry rifle
Used by different charcters in the movie. Most notabley by Angus Starling (Brian McCardie) when the two lions invade the camp in the daytime and kill Angus. Historically accurate. By 1898 the British Army was using the Lee - Enfield bolt action rifle in .303 British. The Martini-Henry Mk. III was a black powder rifle and was classified as obsolete. It was available on the surplus gun market and it would have been cheap and plentiful. It fired a powerful round (.577/.450 Martini-Henry) and was considered effective against lions and other dangerous game.
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Snider Enfield Mk.II* Short Rifle
Snider Enfield Mk.II* Enfield Short Rifle is used by Samuel (John Kani) during the first hunt for the lions involving Remington (Michael Douglas) in the thicket. It's a nice touch and showed that somebody was thinking. In 1898 the Snider rifles were surplus and would probably have been readily available in Colonial Africa. Samuel is a native and though trusted by the Europeans would not have been a wealthy man. A surplus Snider rifle would have met his needs and been affordable for him. The fact that the Short Rifle was used also shows a good eye for detail. Easier to carry and manuever with than the full length infantry rifle version.
Howdah Pistol
A very powerful double barrel handgun developed by the British hunters in India for close range, last ditch, defense against Tigers and other dangerous game. Though it appears that a Lancaster Howdah is used in the movie other makers produced Howdah style handguns.Howdah was the basket that hunters rode in on top of elephants in India. Tigers were known to climb up the Elephant to reach the hunters in the Howdah. At such close range a long barreled rifle was less than effective.The "Howdah" pistol was perfect. They typically had two or four barrel designs. They were massive, powerful and delievered a hell of a wallop at both ends. However it was believed that in a life and death situation heavy recoil would not be noticed.Howdahs are now very collectible. Used by both Patterson (Val Kilmer) and Remington (Michael Douglas). In a nice bit of technical realism the Howdah is used as a last ditch defense weapon in the movie. The image below is not the same gun seen in the movie.There are rumors that the Howdah pistol carried by Remington (Michael Douglas) was actually fabricated by the armorer so that Remington would have a very distinctive pistol. At this time the rumors can't be verified or repudiated.
12 Gauge Double Barreled Shotgun
It appears that Samuel (John Kani) owns both a Snider Enfield Mk.II* Short Rifle and what looks like a hammerless 12 Gauge Double Barreled Shotgun with a box lock action. The gauge or bore (as the British would call it) of the shotgun is just a guess, but dosen't appear to be as big as a 10 Gauge. In one of the screencaps it looks as if Samuel is wearing a bandolier of shotgun shells. The shells look to be red in color and could be made of paper which would be consistent with the late nineteenth century. Initally it would seem insane to go after a lion with a shotgun but many hunters over the decades have used shotguns against lions and other big cats with great success.It also makes sense that Samuel would own both a rifle and a shotgun. The two weapons would give him greater flexibilty for different game and situations.
Ghost and Darkness Trio
Examples of the three main rifles used in the movie. From top to bottom. A BSA Lee-Speed Sporter, Farqueson falling block single shot rifle and a Holland & Holland double barrel rifle. Just a neat photo from the Nitroexpress.com forum.
