Selling a gun to an old confused man like that?
"The psychologists call him a psychopath. They don't know what else to call him."
I think that was the point Atom Egoyan wanted to make:
That these owners don't care.
But it was such a ridiculous scene, even too over-the-top for a comedy.
Just bad writing and lazy directing.
HIs business is selling guns, so if he can legally, he will.
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It's a canadian movie - the people are just friendly! ;)
share>>The Idaho security guard was no surprise, but still...a Glock in a handbag carried by an obviously confused gentleman?
He didn't act confused in any way that would raise suspicion. The only "confusion" was justified, in that he set off the security alarm. He clearly said, "do I look like someone would would steal something?" There was no confusion in this scene.
Agree! Selling a powerful semiautomatic handgun to an 80 yr old man with dementia.
It's ironic how the most advanced nation on the planet has the least effective gun control laws.
Japan is both the most advanced nation and has some of the strictest gun laws on the planet. After we won the war the Emperor wouldn't submit to stepping down, so the US dropped a couple atomic bombs on them, then their guns were taken. If Germany had won the war, the US would have had their guns taken. German citizens in the 1930's weren't allowed to own guns.
If Plummer hadn't been sold the gun, he would have been eaten by a Nazi's German shepherd in the second act. Would have been an odd movie if that happened.
In the United States, you're not permitted to discriminate when serving your walk-in trade. That said, FFLs (Federal Firearms Licensees) are explicitly told to refuse sales to anyone they don't feel comfortable selling a gun to, regardless of whether they pass a NICS check - and that includes signs of inability to mentally and/or physically handle the weapon safely and exercise judgement.
As a "gun guy" I found this scene to be interesting. First off, it appears that Zev is from New York and this is clearly a non-New York gun shop - I believe it's Ohio, which is far more "gun friendly." Even so, this dealer would NOT release the gun to Zev, but instead, at best would say, "OK... you can't take possession of this weapon. It needs to be sent to your local FFL."
It also occurred to me (and was pointed out in at least one other reply) that this particular dealer was recommended due to his flouting of the strict rules FFLs must follow, but I thought it odd that he even bothered with NICS. Why not have the dealer simply "go into the back" and discreetly pull something out for Zev, or otherwise make it look (in a cinematic sense) like an "off the books" transaction? FFLs have their "bound book" (record of inbound and outbound guns) audited periodically and any sign of inventory not properly accounted for can land them in big trouble - fines, pulling of their license, even criminal charges.
I would have preferred a scene in which he's simply told to go a rural area, and a man Max knows and trusts simply hands Zev a pistol, and after a bit of informal instruction and practice is sent on his way with the weapon.
Not a bad idea to set him up with a Glock - definitely pretty simply to operate, although I have my doubt as to whether Zev had the hand strength/coordination to load a new Glock mag (stiff springs) and rack the slide - although I suppose the dealer could have done that - again in contravention to how it's normally done - it's pretty rare for a legit FFL to load a mag and chamber a round for a departing customer.
The security guard scene was interesting. Remember, the man's job was to look out for stolen inventory - it's not his job to care about the other things a customer has when entering or exiting the store, unless there is a legally conforming "no guns" sign on the door. And it's not uncommon for security guards and police to get into "gun talk" with people about their guns. On various gun forums, more than a few traffic stops began with a moving violation pullover and ended with a convo about handguns and a friendly warning to "slow down and be careful."
...and Mrs. Taylor sure seems to use a lotta ice, whenever he's away