Traditional slipjoints in movies?

mnblade

mnblade

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Feb 7, 2000
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I've read numerous threads here at bladeforums about this knife or that knife making an appearance in a movie. But what about traditional slipjoints in movies? Can you think of any flicks where old school folders show up?

Off hand, I thought of:

"Cinderella Man," the story of boxer James Braddock, starring Russell Crowe. At the very beginning as he's getting dressed you see what looks like an old canoe.

"Seabiscuit," about the legendary race horse. At one point, Seabiscuit's trainer whittles with a large folder, and there's a close up of a newsboy cutting the twine off a stack of papers with a slippie.

"Nurse Betty," a black comedy starring Renée Zellweger, Morgan Freeman and Chris Rock. There's a lot of grizzly knife action in this movie, but at the end, a traditional slipjoint makes an appearance as Morgan Freeman's character uses what looks like an Old Timer in a decidedly non violent manner. :thumbup:

"Radio," starring Ed Harris and Cuba Gooding Jr. Ed Harris' character uses a small slippie to free Radio, who has been tied up in a prank.
 
Miami vice crocket, "what is his name" Jonsson made film in the 80ties called something like hot summer about the great depression where he used a big traditional knife. Made an impression on me.

Bosse
 
Shawshank Redemption.
James Whitmore as Brooks Hatlen: prison librarian/trustee and one of the oldest convicts at Shawshank. Upon his release, he finds himself unable to cope with life on the outside. He uses a Barlow knife to carve a suicide note into the wooden beam that he hangs himself from.
 
Bruce Willis in last man standing - he uses a pocket knife when he's waiting on the porch.

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The Outlaw Josey Wales - Clint uses a traditional to cut off a piece of jerkey.

Shawshank Redemption - Red (Morgan Freeman) and Brooks (James Whitmore) use slipjoint knives to carve their names at the half way house. One was a Barlow IIRC.

(Slow on the Submit button - Coop beat me to it :p )

Seven - Morgan Freeman uses a traditional Italian style Stiletto switchblade to open the box.
 
There was a move The Spanish Prisoner about some sort of con game where one of the characters uses a stunning old swell center folding hunter with bone handles...it actually was an antique slipjoint not a new knife or a prop.
 
Lot's of tradtitonal slippys in the Steve McQueem movie Papillon. On board the ship Papillon used what looks like a spear blade of an old scout knife or such,(You never get a real good look as he's griping it pretty well covering the handle) to slash up some con's who are going to do in Dustan Hoffmen's character. Later a guard takes out a large slippy to skin an alligator with what looks something lioke a large Mercator. At the dock when they land in Guanna, McQueen has what looks like a wood handle soddie, like an old Herters.

The Maltese Falcon, Gutman, ( Sidney Greenstreet) goes ape with a small slippy when he finds out the statue is a fake. So much for the things dreams are made of.

In The Magnificent Seven, Charles Bronson is using what looks like a daddy barlow to whittle a flute out of a reed, and gives it to a little girl of the village.

In the WW2 movie The Guns Of Naverone, David Nivin's character uses what looks like a normal slippy pocket knife to start cutting off some pieces of a large balogna or salami he gets off somebody they just knocked out.

In Bridge On the River Kwai, actor Jack Hawkens uses what looks like a single blade trapper or maybe a farmers knife, to cut off his boot from the foot he got shot in. It looks very slim and has a clip point. Deffinatly a slip joint from the way he takes it out and pulls it open.

If you like navaja's, Frank Sinatra in The Pride And The Passion, has a lot of knife action, including a pretty well done fight between one of the Spanish partisans and Cary Grant, using said navaja's.




Old TV series have lots. I've been watching old reruns of Gunsmoke, and very often a slippy is used to cut something. It's very interesting on how the knife is used on those old shows. No fanfair, no flurishing, jist reach into pocket, open and use, and close and put away. James Arness and Ken Curtis both looked so natural, and it was done so smoothly, they must have been slippy users for real. In a couple of episodes, Ken Curtis (As Festus Hagan) and James Arness (As Matt Dillon) use what looks an awfully lot like a medium Texas Jack with some kind of jigged handle.
 
"Backdraft" - Robert De Niro uses a Buck 303 to take scrapings at one of the arson scenes. Kind of neat to see a 300 series in a movie.
 
This one has been shown before - Raiders of the Lost Ark.

On the other hand it is probably a lockback and not a slipjoint.

HarrisonFordRaidersKnife.jpg
 
eswartz said:
This one has been shown before - Raiders of the Lost Ark.

On the other hand it is probably a lockback and not a slipjoint.

HarrisonFordRaidersKnife.jpg
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I forgot all about that one. His knife is seen for a couple seconds during the movie, maybe when he is packing his bags to go to Nepal?

Also, check out Chinatown. The guy that cuts Jack Nicholsons nose, played by the director, uses a swingguard. I always thought it was a switchblade.

thugs-chinatown.jpg
 
Duke must have carried a peanut. You can just make it out in his right hand. If it's good enough for Duke, it's good enough for me.
Greg

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Knifemaker Bryan Lyttle made a knife for Anthony Hopkings character in the movie "The Edge" Anthony Hopkins played a character named Charles Morse.

edgcm6.jpg
 
In The Wild Bunch, Edmond O'Brien (Freddie Sykes) uses a large slippie to "cut the fuse" when they have the guns dynamited for protection. Big clip blade, looks like a large barlow. Near the end, when Borgnine (Dutch) is waiting for the others to come out, he is whittling a large stick with the same kind of knife, a large clip blade.
 
black mamba said:
In The Wild Bunch, Edmond O'Brien (Freddie Sykes) uses a large slippie to "cut the fuse" when they have the guns dynamited for protection. Big clip blade, looks like a large barlow. Near the end, when Borgnine (Dutch) is waiting for the others to come out, he is whittling a large stick with the same kind of knife, a large clip blade.
Click to expand...

That bit looked like grand daddy barlow. I need to see closer from DVD I have...
 
navihawk said:
Knifemaker Bryan Lyttle made a knife for Anthony Hopkings character in the movie "The Edge" Anthony Hopkins played a character named Charles Morse.

edgcm6.jpg
Click to expand...

Steve, I watched this movie the other night and I tried to pause the DVD,
when He was opening it, to see what kind it was!
I'm glad You put this on here!! Thanks!! It was driving
me crazy trying to figure it out!!

Jason
 
For you Stephen Hunter fans out there, of Bob Lee Swagger fame, Bob the Nailer carried a Case Stockman in the books. I have watched the Shooter a couple of times and have not detected a slipjoint. Anybody see what I have missed?
 
ptradeco said:
For you Stephen Hunter fans out there, of Bob Lee Swagger fame, Bob the Nailer carried a Case Stockman in the books. I have watched the Shooter a couple of times and have not detected a slipjoint. Anybody see what I have missed?
Click to expand...

I'm glad you mentioned this. I've loved the books but I've avoided the movie. Compared to the book, is it worth seeing?
 
I have read all the Bob Lee and Earl Swagger books. I would put Shooter as a must see for fans of Bob Lee. It is based on the book, Point of Impact. You will find inaccuracies of course but take the movie at face value as though you had not read the book and you will be entertained.
 
protourist said:
I'm glad you mentioned this. I've loved the books but I've avoided the movie. Compared to the book, is it worth seeing?
Click to expand...

Having read the book, then seeing the movie, I wish I hadn't wasted an hour and a half of my life.

Now I hate to see a movie if I've read the book.

Carl.
 
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