Here’s our second article in our movie weapons series, featuring The Matrix.

The Matrix, released in 1999 (it doesn’t seem like it’s been that long!), was the first in a trilogy of movies to be made about a futuristic dream world on earth.  Machines have become the dominant beings on earth, and humans are kept in sleep while being used to power the machines and their activities.  All but a few minds of humans are in a virtual world in which life goes along as usual.  Neo is pulled out of this virtual world by these outsiders to help humankind break free from the bond by the machines.  But part of the mission requires entering into the virtual world, and that’s when weapons come into play.  Neo and the team of humans encounter “agents” in combat on several occasions, and they use some awesome weapons to fend them off.  The first of these movie weapons we’ll look at is one Neo’s pistols.

Beretta 92FS – This pistol is currently one of the most widely used pistols in the world, as it holds the position of the U.S. military’s favored handgun.  The M9, which is the pistol’s military designation, replaced the M1911A1 in 1990.   The gun is a short recoil single action/double action gun, and can easily be used by anyone right- or left-handed.  The gun uses 9mm rounds and its magazine can hold 15 rounds.

Neo is the only character to make use of the Beretta 92FS, but he uses it on several occasions.  One of the most notable scenes is when he fires several shots at an agent on the roof of the building, but the agent is quicker than he thinks.  Another great scene is when Neo storms into the building where Morpheus is being held to attempt a rescue.  Neo uses several pairs of Berettas in this sequence, making them some of the coolest movie weapons of the century, and a great military surplus item.

MP5K – This is a variant of the Heckler & Koch MP5 submachine gun, its difference being its shorter length.  It’s used by many enforcement groups all around the world, although it originated in Germany.  One cool feature of the MP5K is its sight, making use of concentric circles (circles with the same center), which are easily aligned by the human brain.  The gun can use 9x19mm Parabellum, 40mm Auto, or .40 S&W cartridges.  It has a firing rate of 900 rounds per minute (faster than the original version).

The MP5K is one of the many movie weapons used by Neo in his mission to rescue Morpheus.  Like the Beretta, he chooses to use two MP5K’s simultaneously to clear his path of security guards.  These movie weapons gives Neo an advantage with their fast firing rate, and ease of use with their small design.

M16 – The M16 is the military’s designation of the AR-15 semi-automatic rifle made by Colt.  The M16 began its military service in the Vietnam War, and it continues to be an important rifle in the U.S. military.  Many variations of the AR-15 have been made, such as the M16A1, M16A2, and M4.  The bullets feature a hydrostatic shock and can potentially fragment in tissue, providing maximum damage.

The main users of the M16 in The Matrix are the SWAT team members engaged in combat with Neo in the lobby of the building where Morpheus is held.  The M16 is great in this situation for a skilled opponent who is proficient at dodging bullets (Neo).  But even Neo finds this gun useful, adding to the list of movie weapons he uses, as he uses an abandoned one against its owner’s team.

GE M134 Minigun – More commonly known just as the “minigun,” this is a powerful weapon with a high rate of fire.  Based on the Gatling gun, it was developed during the Vietnam War and was used for cover fire on helicopters and gunships.  The minigun uses 7.62x51mm NATO cartridges, which are also used by the M14 and M60 guns, and has a rate of fire of 4000 rounds per minute (although 6000 RPM is possible under some conditions).

Like all the other movie weapons mentioned above, this gun is also used during Neo’s attempt to free Morpheus from the agents.  Neo fires the gun at the window of the room in the office building where Morpheus is held; the gun is mounted on a Bell 212 Twin Huey piloted by Trinity.  An interesting note about the gun is that it is not being fired at its maximum rate, but only reaches a rate of 3000 RPM in the movie.  There aren’t many other guns that would work as well as the this one for Neo’s purposes, but I guess even the minigun’s excessive rate of fire wasn’t necessary.

See the Movie – Well if that didn’t get you psyched to go see The Matrix, I don’t know what would.  I encourage you to watch this action flick and see some of these awesome movie weapons in action.  You can get the DVD for yourself at Amazon by clicking here.  You can also get either of the sequels to the movie or a collection of all three here.

You can read about Transformers in the first article in this series here.

Written by Craig Kent, member of the Best Military Surplus team.