History Main / HarpoonGun

* The final fight of ''Film/FaceOff'' involves a harpoon gun.

Sometimes, a bow and a quiver of arrows aren't big enough to finish the job; you'll need [[BladeOnAStick spear-sized]] arrows, or a more high-tech looking weapon. Thankfully, there's the Harpoon Gun for that. This is a realistic weapon for many underwater fight scenes, and may also show up elsewhere, often as a bit of an improvisation; killing an opponent with a big, barbed projectile can look either badass or horrific (or both), according to how it's presented. Harpoons can also fit the style for a heavily nautically-themed character.

** The climactic battle in ''Film/{{Thunderball}}'' is fought by at least fifty men armed with harpoon guns. The earlier use of a harpoon gun by Bond on a {{mook|s}} led to the [[BondOneLiner great line]] "I think he got the point." And the main villain is killed this way by his girlfriend.

See JavelinThrower for the stone-age equivalent.

In reality, hand-held harpoon guns used by divers generally use elastic cords to propel harpoons over fairly short distances to spear fish, a bit like an underwater crossbow. However, some firearms designed for underwater use are basically miniature harpoon guns, throwing slim darts -- normal guns simply won't work for anything further than point-blank range underwater, if at all. (Not that darts carrying much further, but they can be optimised for the job.) Whaling ships, on the other hand, may mount ''big'' harpoon guns -- basically low-power cannons firing big barbed spears. Some harpoons have cables attached so that the user can reel in anything the barbed harpoon latches onto, thus functioning like a GrapplingHookPistol.

See JavelinThrower for the stone-age equivalent. GunsFiringUnderwater excusively concerns firearms.

[[quoteright:300:[[Film/{{Thunderball}} https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Harpwn_4785.jpg]]]]
[[caption-width-right:300:[[TheCasanova And that's how you put Cupid out of his job.]]]]

See JavelinThrower for the stone-age equivalent. GunsFiringUnderwater also overlaps with this.

** A harpoon fired from the Gigahorse pins the steering wheel on the War Rig and traps Max's hand until the line is cut with bolt cutters. He looses the steering wheel in the process though so has to steer using a wrench clamped to the steering column.

* ''Film/MadMax''. In the second and third movies, compressed air-fired harpoons are a favorite [[WeaponizedCar vehicle-mounted weapon]] in a ScavengerWorld where there's a chronic shortage of ammunition.

** A harpoon fired from the Gigahorse pins the steering wheel on the War Rig and traps Max's hand until the line is cut with bolt cutters.
** In the final chase scene, harpoons are fired into the rear of the War Rig by pursuing vehicles, who then drop dragging claws into the sand to slow the War Rig down. Max has to climb out onto the rig with bolt cutters to cut the lines.

* ''Film/MadMax''
** In the second and third movies, compressed air-fired harpoons are a favorite [[WeaponizedCar vehicle-mounted weapon]] in a ScavengerWorld where there's a chronic shortage of ammunition.
** In the final chase scene of ''Film/MadMaxFuryRoad'', harpoons are fired into the rear of the War Rig by pursuing vehicles, who then drop dragging claws into the sand to slow both themselves and the War Rig down.

* ''Franchise/MadMax''

** In the final chase scene of ''Film/MadMaxFuryRoad'', harpoons are fired into the rear of the War Rig by pursing vehicles, who then drop dragging claws into the sand to slow it down.

* ''Film/MarsNeedsWomen''. For some reason the Martians are armed with harpoon guns instead of ray guns. [[NoBudget Perhaps they came with the recycled wetsuits]] they're using as SpaceClothes?