The Final Option (1982) (Note that the SAS trooper is shown with a Demro XF-7 Wasp carbine, which does not appear in the film.)
The Final Option (Original British Title: Who Dares Wins) is a 1982 action film directed by Ian Sharp (The Professionals) and starring Lewis Collins, Judy Davis, with Edward Woodward and Richard Widmark. Producer Euan Lloyd (The Wild Geese, Shalako) was so inspired by the storming of the Iranian embassy by Britain's Special Air Service in 1980 (an event Lloyd watched live in person and was later dramatized in the 2017 film 6 Days), he immediately got the ball rolling on a film about the SAS. Filming was done with the full cooperation of the SAS and the British Army and several sequences closely model the embassy operation. Lewis Collins, who stars as Captain Skellen, had actually passed SAS selection at one point, but was ultimately rejected due to his fame.
The following weapons were used in the film The Final Option:
Handguns
Browning Hi-Power
SAS troopers are shown using Browning Hi-Power pistols.
Browning Hi-Power "Type 73" - 9x19mm. These Hi-Powers feature elongated bushings different from Hi-Powers Made before 1973 and after the MK II Series.
An SAS trooper begins to dissemble a Hi-Power under the instruction of Trooper Neil (Stephen Bent).
An SAS trooper loads his Hi-Power before breaching Skellen's Mews.
Now with a round chambered.
Smith & Wesson Model 10
Helga uses a snub-nosed Smith & Wesson Model 10 during the kidnapping of Skellen's family.
Smith & Wesson Model 10 snub nose revolver - .38 Special.
Helga with her S&W Model 10.
The S&W Model 10 on the table.
Tokagypt 58
Rod Walker and Mac (Mark Ryan) are armed with Tokagypt 58 pistols.
FEG Tokagypt 58 - 9x19mm parabellum.
Rod shoots a Marine guard.
The Tokagypt grips can be seen in this shot. Note that the hammer is down, despite having just been fired.
Submachine Guns
Beretta M12
Frankie Leith (Judy Davis) and Rod Walker (John Duttine) are armed with Beretta M12 submachine guns.
A Beretta M12 at the left.
Rod Walker (John Duttine) is armed with
Beretta M12 submachine gun.
Heckler & Koch MP5A3
SAS troopers are armed with Heckler & Koch MP5A3 submachine guns. All of the MP5s seen are fitted with "slimline" handguards and the original straight "waffle" magazines (during the actual embassy operation, photos of the real-life incident show that the SAS troopers' MP5s were fitted with the curved 30-round magazine that is now standard). This is one of the earliest appearances of the MP5 in popular media.
Heckler & Koch MP5A3 with original "slimline" handguard and straight "waffle"-style magazine - 9x19mm
An SAS trooper standing guard at the entrance to Stirling Lines.
SAS troopers practice assaulting a building.
Captains Freund and Hagen are armed with MP5s as they talk to Major Andy Steele (
Maurice Roeves).
SAS troopers storm a rail car during a training exercise.
SAS troopers storm the U.S. Ambassador's residency
Armed with MP5A3s, SAS troopers clear rooms with flashbang grenades
MAC-10
Most of the terrorists are armed with MAC-10 submachine guns. Some of them are fitted with suppressors. In the dialogue, they are described as being chambered in "9mm".
Ingram MAC-10 open bolt submachine gun - .45 ACP
The trainees fire their MAC-10s.
Skellen (
Lewis Collins) performing what may be a cinematic first: firing a MAC-10 using the iron sights.
Skellen (
Lewis Collins) holds the MAC-10 as he searches the embassy.
Skellen (
Lewis Collins) actually doing on film what video games had long depicted: taking ammo from a dropped gun. Being an open-bolt weapon, the MAC-10 only needs to have its magazine removed to completely unload the weapon- the chamber does not need to be checked and emptied as with a closed-bolt weapon.
MAC-10 submachine gun with Sionics Two-Stage Sound Suppressor - .45 ACP
A suppressed MAC-10 is held by one of the terrorists.
Shotguns
Remington 870
An SAS trooper uses a Remington 870 shotgun to breach a door.
Remington 870 Police Folder with extended magazine tube - stock extended - 12 Gauge
The Remington 870 slung on the back of an SAS trooper as they board their Westland Scout helicopters.
An SAS breacher shoots out the hinges of the strong front door. The long magazine pouches on his belt suggest that he's also carrying an MP5.
Rifles
L1A1 SLR
SAS troopers and Captains Hagen (Bob Sherman) and Freund (Albert Fortell) carry L1A1 SLR rifles during their field exercise in Wales.
British Inch Pattern L1A1 SLR (Self Loading Rifle) chambered in 7.62x51mm NATO - Variation of the FN FAL rifle. British & New Zealand SLRs were later fitted with black fibreglass furniture as seen here.
SAS troopers with SLRs before the training exercise in Wales.
XM177
Trooper Baker (Ziggy Byfield) uses an XM177 during a training exercise.
Colt Model 609 aka U.S. Army's XM177E1- 5.56x45mm. This Carbine utilized the partial magazine fence, the tear drop forward assist, but kept the 10" barrel and Flash hider/Suppressor that did not have a grenade ring (a later feature on the E2 model).
"Live bastards! Dead soldiers!"
Machine Guns
L7 Machine Gun
An L7 Machine Gun machine gun is seen mounted on a Land Rover at the SAS training facility.
British L7A2 General Purpose Machine Gun - 7.62x51mm NATO
Launchers
Federal Gas Riot Gun
Two SAS troopers suspended from a helicopter fire grenades from a Federal Gas Riot Gun.
Federal M201-Z - 37mm. Upgrade from the L-5, the M201Z has a secondary ladder sight behind the latch and the barrel is ringed for a sling swivel. The L-5 has a plain smooth barrel.
It may look a little silly, but they swing straight into the building right after blowing out the windows with the grenade launcher.
Other
Schermuly Training Grenade
The SAS troopers have Schermuly Training Grenades on their webbing. The body of the grenade is plastic with an open bottom with the interior filled with a paper wrapped pyrotechnic charge. Once the lever was released there was a two second delay before this charge was propelled out the base of the grenade and exploded about half a second later. Although, as the name implies, it was originally intended as a training grenade, but it was later found that it could also be used as a stun grenade, so its appearance on an SAS troopers webbing, particularly in the early 80s, is legitimate.
Schermuly Training Grenade
An SAS trooper with a Schermuly Training Grenade on his webbing as the Westland Scouts fly them to the American Embassy.
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