The Owen Gun - In the Movies

A brief overview of the Owen Submachine Gun (Owen Machine Carbine) and some of the few productions it's featured in.

Other Movies Featured:

The Cowra Breakout 1984
Railway man 2013
Attack Force Z 1982
Allied 2016
World of Guns: Gun Disassembly (Video Game)
Cod: Vanguard (Video Game)
Danger Close: The Battle of Long Tan 2019
Soldier of Orange 1977

#guns #ww2 #australia

[JohnnyJohnsonEsq]

Just an FYI I'm using the term ANZAC ambiguously to refer to any joint Aussie Kiwi forces. This is generally okay but ANZAC does more specifically refer to the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps.

[inductivegrunt]

The Owen Gun, an All Australian Gun. Shame it's not well known because of the Thompson and Sten. The Owen deserves more love. And this is coming from an American.

[marco]

Contrary to popular belief, the magazine on the Owen gun isn't actually on the top, it's just the normal view from an Australian perspective that makes it look that way.

[doueven]

I am an Australian and my Surname is Owen. Evelyn Owen the designer or the Owen Submachine gun was a distant relative of mine. Distant cousin of my Grandfather and Great Uncle. My Grandfather, his brother and all the cousins all fought in some capacity in WW2, funnily enough my Great Uncle used this very gun while fighting in the Solomon Islands and Bougainville, although he told me when I was a small child that he picked it up off a dead fella that didn't need it. He originally had a Lee-Enfield 303.
He said the gun was perfect, never jammed on him. And went into great detail of the damage it did to Japanese

[bagelsforbreakfast]

As a half Australian and personally being named Owen, I have to say that this gun is the best sub-machinegun out there.

[TheAKgunner]

I like the Owen. It’s as simple a design as you can make and have it still work. It’s as close to soldier proof as any gun I’ve seen.

[GrahamWKidd]

Danger Close is such an amazing movie. Fantastic record of Australian IMT (Infantry Minor Tactics), and Arty FO'ing.

[ifanramadhana]

I think this would only be interesting to Indonesians but Owen appears in a lot of 70s and 80s war film about Indonesian National Revolution. Usually it was carried by senior officer such as then Lt. Colonel Suharto (future President of Indonesia) in the movie Serangan Fajar (Attack at Dawn) about General Attack of 1 March at Yogyakarta, which is then a occupied capital of Indonesian Republic. I remember it was in several movie such as Janur Kuning (set in the same backdrop as Serangan Fajar), Kereta Api Terakhir (fictional story based on how Indonesians try to bring all the locomotive to new capital of Yogyakarta) and Pasukan Berani Mati (Suicide Troops, another fictional story on group of rebels commit suicide mission on Dutch territory). The usage of Owen is based on real life that this gun is so desirable that usually officer welds it. Shame that many old Indonesian war movie didn't have an official release since VCD era in 2000s, while story and effect might not be the best, but it's unique and I think you can tell a lot of story from it.

[vincentpadula]

There is a 1940's movie of the Owen SMG compared to the Sten, the Tomphson and German Machine Pistol being tested under sand storm, dropped into mud pool etc. The Owen was the ONLY SMG that kept firing - ALL others jammed immediatly...

[thekhoifish]

British: “why is the Sten so bad? How do we fix this?”
Australians: “lol this right side up magazine is great”

[MayumiTakezoC-chan]

my husband owns one from his time in South Africa when he showed me i thought it was Rhodesian because of its paint job Green and yellow. My husband calls it “his treasure” it nearly matches his FAL he inherited from his uncle who fought in the Rhodesian bush war.

[stefanmilisavljevic]

The Owen gun is like the ak-47 both a very reliable event in tough weather conditions as a Australian, it’s very cool the see some love for an Aussie gun

[jdelark]

The most gloriously simple, inelegant and reliable bit of metal piping to exist in the Australian armoury :)

[nandinhocunha]

Sten "who are you?"

Owen "I'm you but better"

[Garage-ujpv]

Another great video Johnny, thanks for the shout-out for "Danger Close" too. The reliability factor in close jungle fighting can't be underestimated I think. The "Digger's Darling" was the right weapon in the right place at the right time for sure.

[rikhellum]

My grandfather swore by it. Claimed it was the most indestructible gun of the war. The most reliable automatic gun in the New Guinea campain. Thats saying something.

[jurgentreue]

The Owen gun was so well loved by Australian soldiers, it was nick named 'Digger's Darling'. Digger is the term for an Australian infantryman.

[DieselMcBadass]

such an underrated gun. Some of the camp patterns they came up with were damn cool too!

[battlejitney]

FINALLY, some well deserved recognition of this unique firearm! And the film Danger Close is an excellent film!

[CranialExtractor]

Went to the Australian War Museum in Canberra. Wonderful museum. Great exhibits. Tons of amazing artifacts including some Owens. Top notch.