Silent Trigger
Encyclopedia
Silent Trigger is a 1996
film directed by Russell Mulcahy
(of Highlander
fame) starring Dolph Lundgren
and Gina Bellman
about a sniper
and his female spotter
. Lundgren plays a former hitman sent on a mission by a secretive "Agency", to assassinate a target from an abandoned skyscraper in construction. Memories and moral dilemmas resurface when a former spotter from a failed assignment shows up.
where the shooter (mentioned on movie cover as "Waxman") and spotter ("Clegg") set up a shooting platform on a top floor. The two arrive independent of each other, two of The Agency's assassins. As they meet, they both recognize each other, as they have been on a mission together before.
This mission is portrayed in a series of flashbacks. In the first flashback Waxman and Clegg were supposed to assassinate a female politician
. Waxman hesitates when the politician lifts a child, and while hesitating a helicopter
shows up, landing soldier
s in the courtyard behind the team's firing position.
The two fight down the attacking force, including the machine-gun-equipped helicopter, whose pilot and copilot are shot through the canopy
.
Returning to the main scene, we learn that the one of security personnel of the construction site is new on the job. The drug-addicted regular ("O'Hara", played by Christopher Heyerdahl
) attempts to win a statutorial position over him by scaring him. As Waxman opens a roof door, a light lights up by the security personnel, and the newcomer ("Klein", played by Conrad Dunn
) goes to look for it.
The internal lift of the building is clearly audible, and Clegg watches over Klein's movements, when he arrives. She interrupts his inspections when he is about to open the roof door. She takes him to the lift, sending him downwards. However, as she is just talking him off, she sees Waxman sitting on top of the lift car. He mounts a bomb on the lift car, and, when the car starts moving, almost falls down the shaft. He is saved by Clegg, and they both attempt keeping up the "just business"-facade, although some appreciation can be felt.
While the two on the rooftop readjust their gear, O'Hara presumably decides to rape
Clegg. However, Clegg pulls her small-caliber sidearm, and threatens O'Hara into the lift.
When O'Hara returns downstairs, he picks up his gun and puts on body armor. He then surprises Clegg while she is standing over the sink of the top-floor bathrooms. Clegg pulls her gun on him, and puts a well-placed bullet in his chest. Unsurprised by this, O'Hara attacks Clegg, but is encountered by Waxman, and a violent fight takes place in an unfinished hall between various building materials. The fight is won by Waxman, and he ties the now bloody O'Hara to a toilet.
The inevitable spark between Clegg and Waxman leads them to make love in this part of the movie, while O'Hara is tied to the toilet. Afterwards, as duty continues, Waxman heads for the bathrooms, but sees water running out under the door to the bathroom. He pulls his gun, and finds out that O'Hara is gone.
O'Hara bears the toilet with him down the stairs. When he arrives downstairs, he is furious with revenge, grabs his shotgun and is about to go upstairs to finish off Waxman. Klein, the new security guard, shoots O'Hara with his shotgun, walks to the spot where the dying O'Hara lies, and in cold blood puts a final shot into him.
Upstairs, the two are engaging the target. As before, Waxman hesitates and doesn't take the shot. As history repeats itself for the two, Clegg pulls her sidearm and threatens Waxman to do his duty. Before the situation escalates, another shooter shoots the target four times, and when done, takes aim for Clegg and Waxman. Waxman quickly throws himself and Clegg away from the shot, grabs his rifle and shoots the adversary. While Waxman reloads his rifle (that is, unmounting the bolt of the rifle, placing a new round on the bolt, and remounting this into the rifle), another adversary picks up the laid shooters rifle, takes aim and shoots. Waxman once again manages to throw himself out of harm's way.
Now, special forces
fall through the roof window of the room. Waxman reloads his rifle and quickly takes one of them out. While he reloads, Clegg takes out one of their adversaries, and the rest seek cover behind the pillars
of the room.
Waxman's next shot goes into a soldier who stands below the platform he is placed on. The shot tears up the soldier's chest, unaffected by his body armor.
A soldier has Clegg cornered, and Waxman positions himself below the metallic upper floor, on a rolling platform. He pushes off, and shoots the soldier repeatedly with his sidearm from below, while rolling underneath him.
When Waxman again is on the platform, he hears nervous footsteps from the left staircase to the platform. Unable to do much else, he feels for an available round on the gun's side, but there are none. When Waxman and the soldier see each other, a tense second goes by, and the soldier's full helmet is perforated by Clegg's shots from the opposing staircase.
Lastly, Waxman and Clegg are surprised by Klein, who has stealthily entered the room. He shoots Waxman in the chest with his shotgun, but is threatened by Clegg who has picked up an MP5 submachinegun. He takes the lift car and leaves when the planted bomb explodes.
Clegg flees the skyscraper (in the assumption that Waxman is dead). As she walks away from the building, the top of a nearby fire hydrant is shot off. She looks up, and sees Waxman throwing his sniper rifle
off the building. She then smilingly walks away.
1996 in film
Major releases this year included Scream, Independence Day, Fargo, Trainspotting, The English Patient, Twister, Mars Attacks!, Jerry Maguire and a version of Evita starring Madonna.-Events:...
film directed by Russell Mulcahy
Russell Mulcahy
Russell Mulcahy is an Australian film director. His work is easily recognized by his use of fast cuts, tracking shots and use of glowing lights.- Music videos :...
(of Highlander
Highlander
-In regional cultures:* Highlander, a person from the Scottish Highlands* Highlander, person from the Scottish Gaelic culture of Gàidhealtachd in the Scottish highlands and islands* The Górale, lit. "Highlanders", a culture in southern Poland and northern Slovakia...
fame) starring Dolph Lundgren
Dolph Lundgren
Dolph Lundgren is a Swedish actor, director, and martial artist. He belongs to a generation of film actors who epitomise the movie action hero stereotype including Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bruce Willis, Chuck Norris, Steven Seagal and Jean-Claude Van Damme.A graduate in chemical...
and Gina Bellman
Gina Bellman
Gina Bellman is a New Zealand-born British actress currently starring in the series Leverage as Sophie Devereaux for which she was nominated for a Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress in Television.-Personal life:...
about a sniper
Sniper
A sniper is a marksman who shoots targets from concealed positions or distances exceeding the capabilities of regular personnel. Snipers typically have specialized training and distinct high-precision rifles....
and his female spotter
Spotter
A spotter is someone trained to look for something. The term has the following special meanings.*Weather spotter, an individual who observes the weather to inform other groups.*Storm spotter, a weather spotter who observes specific weather events....
. Lundgren plays a former hitman sent on a mission by a secretive "Agency", to assassinate a target from an abandoned skyscraper in construction. Memories and moral dilemmas resurface when a former spotter from a failed assignment shows up.
Plot synopsis
The movie takes place in and around an unfinished city skyscraperSkyscraper
A skyscraper is a tall, continuously habitable building of many stories, often designed for office and commercial use. There is no official definition or height above which a building may be classified as a skyscraper...
where the shooter (mentioned on movie cover as "Waxman") and spotter ("Clegg") set up a shooting platform on a top floor. The two arrive independent of each other, two of The Agency's assassins. As they meet, they both recognize each other, as they have been on a mission together before.
This mission is portrayed in a series of flashbacks. In the first flashback Waxman and Clegg were supposed to assassinate a female politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
. Waxman hesitates when the politician lifts a child, and while hesitating a helicopter
Helicopter
A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...
shows up, landing soldier
Soldier
A soldier is a member of the land component of national armed forces; whereas a soldier hired for service in a foreign army would be termed a mercenary...
s in the courtyard behind the team's firing position.
The two fight down the attacking force, including the machine-gun-equipped helicopter, whose pilot and copilot are shot through the canopy
Canopy (aircraft)
An aircraft canopy is the transparent enclosure over the cockpit of some types of aircraft. The function of the canopy is to provide a weatherproof and reasonably quiet environment for the aircraft's occupants. The canopy will be as aerodynamically shaped as possible to minimize drag.-History:Very...
.
Returning to the main scene, we learn that the one of security personnel of the construction site is new on the job. The drug-addicted regular ("O'Hara", played by Christopher Heyerdahl
Christopher Heyerdahl
Christopher Heyerdahl is a Canadian actor who has had roles in many prominent television shows and movies. He is tall.-Biography:Heyerdahl was born in the mountains of British Columbia and is of Norwegian and Scottish descent...
) attempts to win a statutorial position over him by scaring him. As Waxman opens a roof door, a light lights up by the security personnel, and the newcomer ("Klein", played by Conrad Dunn
Conrad Dunn
Conrad Dunn is an American actor. He began his screen career with the role of Francis "Psycho" Soyer in Stripes . Working for some ten years under the name George Jenesky, he achieved soap-opera stardom in Days of our Lives as Nick Corelli, a misogynistic pimp who evolved from bad guy to romantic...
) goes to look for it.
The internal lift of the building is clearly audible, and Clegg watches over Klein's movements, when he arrives. She interrupts his inspections when he is about to open the roof door. She takes him to the lift, sending him downwards. However, as she is just talking him off, she sees Waxman sitting on top of the lift car. He mounts a bomb on the lift car, and, when the car starts moving, almost falls down the shaft. He is saved by Clegg, and they both attempt keeping up the "just business"-facade, although some appreciation can be felt.
While the two on the rooftop readjust their gear, O'Hara presumably decides to rape
Rape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...
Clegg. However, Clegg pulls her small-caliber sidearm, and threatens O'Hara into the lift.
When O'Hara returns downstairs, he picks up his gun and puts on body armor. He then surprises Clegg while she is standing over the sink of the top-floor bathrooms. Clegg pulls her gun on him, and puts a well-placed bullet in his chest. Unsurprised by this, O'Hara attacks Clegg, but is encountered by Waxman, and a violent fight takes place in an unfinished hall between various building materials. The fight is won by Waxman, and he ties the now bloody O'Hara to a toilet.
The inevitable spark between Clegg and Waxman leads them to make love in this part of the movie, while O'Hara is tied to the toilet. Afterwards, as duty continues, Waxman heads for the bathrooms, but sees water running out under the door to the bathroom. He pulls his gun, and finds out that O'Hara is gone.
O'Hara bears the toilet with him down the stairs. When he arrives downstairs, he is furious with revenge, grabs his shotgun and is about to go upstairs to finish off Waxman. Klein, the new security guard, shoots O'Hara with his shotgun, walks to the spot where the dying O'Hara lies, and in cold blood puts a final shot into him.
Upstairs, the two are engaging the target. As before, Waxman hesitates and doesn't take the shot. As history repeats itself for the two, Clegg pulls her sidearm and threatens Waxman to do his duty. Before the situation escalates, another shooter shoots the target four times, and when done, takes aim for Clegg and Waxman. Waxman quickly throws himself and Clegg away from the shot, grabs his rifle and shoots the adversary. While Waxman reloads his rifle (that is, unmounting the bolt of the rifle, placing a new round on the bolt, and remounting this into the rifle), another adversary picks up the laid shooters rifle, takes aim and shoots. Waxman once again manages to throw himself out of harm's way.
Now, special forces
Special forces
Special forces, or special operations forces are terms used to describe elite military tactical teams trained to perform high-risk dangerous missions that conventional units cannot perform...
fall through the roof window of the room. Waxman reloads his rifle and quickly takes one of them out. While he reloads, Clegg takes out one of their adversaries, and the rest seek cover behind the pillars
Column
A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a vertical structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. For the purpose of wind or earthquake engineering, columns may be designed to resist lateral forces...
of the room.
Waxman's next shot goes into a soldier who stands below the platform he is placed on. The shot tears up the soldier's chest, unaffected by his body armor.
A soldier has Clegg cornered, and Waxman positions himself below the metallic upper floor, on a rolling platform. He pushes off, and shoots the soldier repeatedly with his sidearm from below, while rolling underneath him.
When Waxman again is on the platform, he hears nervous footsteps from the left staircase to the platform. Unable to do much else, he feels for an available round on the gun's side, but there are none. When Waxman and the soldier see each other, a tense second goes by, and the soldier's full helmet is perforated by Clegg's shots from the opposing staircase.
Lastly, Waxman and Clegg are surprised by Klein, who has stealthily entered the room. He shoots Waxman in the chest with his shotgun, but is threatened by Clegg who has picked up an MP5 submachinegun. He takes the lift car and leaves when the planted bomb explodes.
Clegg flees the skyscraper (in the assumption that Waxman is dead). As she walks away from the building, the top of a nearby fire hydrant is shot off. She looks up, and sees Waxman throwing his sniper rifle
Sniper rifle
In military and law enforcement terminology, a sniper rifle is a precision-rifle used to ensure more accurate placement of bullets at longer ranges than other small arms. A typical sniper rifle is built for optimal levels of accuracy, fitted with a telescopic sight and chambered for a military...
off the building. She then smilingly walks away.