MFF Special: How Many Bullets Missed John Matrix During the Climatic Battle in ‘Commando’

If you ever become an exiled dictator make sure to train your private army.

If you are a fan of action movies you are probably familiar with the sight of Arnold Schwarzenegger vanquishing 70+ people during the climatic gunfight in Commando. The scene is 80s action personified because it features a larger-than-life hero defeating mass quantities of somewhat suicidal villains with a gun that never needs reloading. I love how absurd the scene is, and after watching it again, I wanted to know how many bullets flew past Arnold during the melee.

In order to figure out the number of bullets that missed, I rewatched the movie, scoured through various “kill count” videos, researched the weapons, and analyzed every gun-burst to ensure my guess was somewhat plausible. I know there is no way to know the exact number, but, if you’ve read my stuff before you know I do my best to be credibly wrong and almost right.

Here is what I know:

1. John Matrix (Arnold) comes to Arius’s (AKA jerky former dictator) compound to rescue his daughter and kill many people. To his credit he catches the private army by surprise and has the upper hand. Also the weapons and bullets he has are capable of lifting grown men off the ground when he shoots them. This means they’ve been altered in some way for optimal destruction.
2. The guards are obviously second rate and very unorganized. During the gunfight they show zero tactical awareness and are not prepared for any type of “code-red” situation. Thus, when sh*t hits the fan they run around like the untrained army they are.
3. Some of the soldiers are so terrified and ill-trained they can be seen shooting in the opposite direction of where Matrix is.
4. The exiled dictator didn’t have enough money to hire hundreds of guards so he bought dummies and placed them in front of the barracks (think WWII spy tactics)
5. Several types of guns were used: HK94, M16, SPAs 12, M60, Colt AR-15, Steyr AUG, Ruger Mini 14, M19911A1.
6. Arnold wiped out 74 people during the final battle (72 soldiers + Arius + Bennett = 74).
7. The only wound Matrix received was from grenade shrapnel. No bullets hit him.

The grenade guy needs a pay raise.

Here is what I’m assuming

1. The majority of the guns had 30-round magazines; the ranges vary but I like this assumption. Also, several of the soldiers had hand guns which I made sure to research.
2. The weapons were bought from a shady third party vendor who was looking to unload a cache of faulty/rusty/malfunctioning weapons. I’m guessing Arius needed weapons fast and these were available. This could lead to potential jamming and inaccuracy.
3. Arius used a third party vendor because he was in exile and doesn’t have access to legit weaponry because of limited cash flow. He likely had to buy wholesale. I’d love it if Vern from Free Fire was the seller. You need to watch Free Fire.
4. Due to lack of training and discipline, the guns weren’t cleaned or properly inspected for flaws.
5. The private militia spent zero time at a range.
6. During the gunfight many soldiers were “Arnied” before they were able to fire off entire clips. I counted them as shooting 10 bullets (1/3 magazine) or 20 bullets (2/3 magazine). I watched each kill multiple times and I’m happy with my assumptions that are in no way correct.
7. The two M60’s shot 340 bullets.

Never hire dummies to secure your compound.

How many bullets flew past John Matrix during the final battle?

After watching each kill and calculating the amount of bullets shot, I think that at least 3,007 bullets flew past Matrix. This means each soldier shot an average of 41 bullets at Matrix and missed. Which is kind of awesome because it seems like Matrix is capable of dodging bullets (John Matrix > Neo).

I’m happy with the 41 bullet average because half of the soldiers (36) were “Arnied” before they could unload their magazine or even shoot a single bullet (estimated 664 bullets). The M60 bullets added greatly to the total (340 bullets) and I think the four soldiers who had the high ground shot three magazines each (90 bullets per roof shooter – 360). The rest of the “soldiers” were able to unload at least one clip (840 bullets) and I’m guessing the five soldiers who surrounded the shed unleashed 190 rounds (The M60 played a big part in this). Arius shoots a 40-round magazine at Matrix and it’s safe to assume there were 19 additional shooters who were able to unload an extra magazine at Matrix (573). This leads us to 3,007 missed bullets. I think that is as close as you can get to the actual totals.

There you have it! The soldiers in Commando were ill-trained and were most likely shooting malfunctioning weapons which couldn’t have helped them during the battle.

If you like this dumb data make sure to check out my other stuff.

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10. How Long Did it Take The Joker to Setup the Weapon Circle in Suicide Squad?
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24. The Fast & Furious & Corona
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