Very popular in the United States, sales of cult film objects are more discreet in France, especially when it comes to cinema weapons. The Caen Enchères auction house is an exception to the rule with a truly “hot” sale this Saturday, June 19, 2021 near Strasbourg, where we find Tom Cruise’s gun in Mission Impossible 6, that of Dujardin in OSS 117, the famous Delon submachine gun in Borsalino…
–
The helmet of Tom Cruise in Top Gun, the mask of Darth Vader, the boxing gloves of Rocky… Americans are crazy about « Props », these cult cinema accessories. At Uncle Sam’s, “A John Wayne hat flies under the hammer at € 400,000”, underlines Xavier Aïolfi, expert of one of the rare auctions of its kind in France, scheduled for this Saturday, June 19 at the MM Park France military museum in La Wantzenau, near Strasbourg.
Special feature of this sale, organized by the Caen Enchères auction house: they are real weapons, from the collection of military objects from Maratier, a benchmark gunsmith in France for cinema. Second character trait: among this arsenal of 197 lots, about fifteen nuggets that burst the screen, like Depardieu’s Python 357 revolver in Headquarters, the « gun » by Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible 6, a MAS rifle of The 7e Company, the famous Delon submachine gun in Borsalino…
“The Maratier collection is a real Ali Baba’s cave, enthuses the expert. However, there is no real cinema accessories market in France. Except in a few museums like Gaumont or Gabin, we haven’t kept much of cult films. It’s a brilliant test! Especially since behind each weapon is often hidden an anecdote. “
Typical example: Delon’s famous Thompson in Borsalino. “There were forty of the same model, but only twelve were used for filming. A problem prevented firing in a burst. So the guns were cut, then welded. The weapon presented has this particularity. “
“All weapons are neutralized”
Among the lots, we also find more funny things like the helmets of Depardieu and Cornillac in Asterix, a pair of knitted gloves by Jean Reno in Visitors… Attention, the ” Props “, it’s clean.
“All weapons are neutralized”, says Mr.e Rivola, auctioneer in Caen (Calvados) who will hold the hammer for this sale. Six months after having sold € 1.21 million a Soulages painting that belonged to Léopold Sédar Senghor, Caen Enchères is taking advantage of its number 1 position in sales of military objects of the 20th century.e s. to drive this rare sale.
Is owning a weapon of this type legal? Yes, under certain conditions: hunting or shooting license, medical certificate of less than one month attesting to good mental health, non-registration in the file of “Prohibited weapons” (Finiada), declaration of the acquisition in the prefecture.
On paper, the prices don’t seem crazy: 450 € for the so-called “fetish” pistol by Bernard Blier, 650 € for a rifle used in Dunkerque, At least € 1,200 for Dujardin’s pistol in OSS 117. After, depending on who brandished the weapon and the aura of the film, the hammer can go up in bursts: 2,800 € a priori for the “toys” of Delon and Tom Cruise, 3,800 € for the GIS of De Niro in Ronin, or even € 4,800 for Brad Pitt’s MP43 in Fury.
–
