Hard Target (1993)

As Natalie and Chance make their way by foot through a bayou, Chance spots a six and a half foot Eastern Timber snake just above Nat’s head. He grabs the snake, punches it, and bites off its rattle. He then rigs the snake as a booby-trap for their pursuers. The trick works as the snake drops onto a man, biting him in the face and killing him. Another man shoots the snake, blowing off the snake’s head. This very potent scene was accomplished with the use of a real snake, a mechanical snake built by a special effects company, and a snake made of a papier-mache-type material. All of the violent action was accomplished with the special effects snake or the papier-mache snake, which was edited with footage of the real snake. Part of the pursuit takes place with Natalie and Chance fleeing on horseback as they are fired upon by a helicopter from above. For this fast riding scene, the ground was inspected and cleared of hazards and quarter loads were used for gunfire near the horses. Small explosions were used in this scene but were positioned away from the area where the horses worked. For a horse fall, the lead actor’s horse was substituted with Twister, a trained falling horse. The ground was properly prepared and Twister performed his speciality perfectly. A stuntman, who was an expert rider, was photo-double for the lead actor. The final confrontation takes place inside a warehouse. Pigeons are seen in different areas of the warehouse, such as on rafters. There are shots of the pigeons flying into the air in reaction to a variety of activities taking place around them. When the villain shoots into the air, a flurry of feathers fly down., but no pigeons are harmed in the scene. In other animal action a white dove flies into a room and lands on a banister and goldfish swim in a small aquarium.