Does the action movie shoulder hole exist?

[Donnadogsoth]

You know what I mean, someone needs to get shot in an action film but the wound can't be incapacitating, so invariably the character gets shot in the shoulder, and rather than being a gory horror of life-changing broken bones and deadly severed arteries it's just a flesh wound, a mere opportunity for him (or her--do women have shoulder holes too?) to exercise his grit. Does this exist?

[JNAProductions]

I want to say this is USUALLY action-movie exaggeration. I'm sure it's POSSIBLE to be shot in the shoulder and not have the arm crippled before extensive surgery, but I'm equally sure that the vast majority of the time (especially if the bullet hole is totally visible) you're going to get an arm that's non-functional.

[Jormengand]

The majority of bullet wounds aren't lethal, given relatively quick medical intervention. As for incapacitation, being shot in the actual shoulder would probably break said shoulder, but it's entirely possible for a bullet to skim over the shoulder or hit the armpit underneath. That said, almost all bullet wounds would be a cause for relatively imminent concern.

Consider also that it's possible for someone to be shot side-on and have the bullet skim their chest, past their heart. It's possible for someone who's shot front-on to have it skim their cheek, past their brain. There's nothing massively special about the shoulder in the regard that it's possible to shoot someone with a glancing hit that doesn't incapacitate them.

This is before any shoulder armour they're wearing complicates things, of course.

TL;DR: Actual shoulder itself, probably not. Near the shoulder, maybe.

(Disclaimer: I am not a ballistics expert, and I have limited medical training.)

[JNAProductions]

Oh yeah, I should probably include a disclaimer too that I'm no expert, and probably have even less medical experience than Jor.

So... Feel free to take this advice and use it in game, but don't try it in real life. :P

[khadgar567]

as some one who broken his shoulder first you dont feel any thing then pain starts to stack and you are kinda done unless you have bdsm caliber pain resistance so the monument you get shot its not much problem even with out adrenaline. you can think and act for good while which for combat movie its enough time to get to medic and let them tend the wound ( you have roughly one hour before pain can be unbearable so its kinda enough time to fight big bad and maybe have a chase scene)

[S@tanicoaldo]

As someone who has been shoot hit by a stray bullet (During a bank robbery by one of the criminals while they were escaping I was driving by).

it's possible to not feel pain and realise you have been shoot for a while, I'm not sure why I think it has to do with adrenaline.

[khadgar567]

As someone who has been shoot hit by a stray bullet (During a bank robbery by one of the criminals while they were escaping I was driving by).

it's possible to not feel pain and realise you have been shoot for a while, I'm not sure why I think it has to do with adrenaline.

even when you are calm you have decent time to handle what you are doing and head to hospital.

[S@tanicoaldo]

even when you are calm you have decent time to handle what you are doing and head to hospital.

I got home, made lunch and only started feel pain when someone pointed out the blood on my shirt, it was really weird.

[War_lord]

Often when people get shot, stabbed or hit by shrapnel they don't feel anything due to adrenaline. That's why it's important to visually examine yourself after an accident to make sure you really aren't hurt, because if you do have a laceration or piercing wound you might be bleeding profusely and not even realize it till you're passing out.

As for the OPs question. It depends on a lot of factors. Placement is important, if the bullet hits the fatty part of the shoulder our fictional hero could walk it off. But it might hit the center of the shoulder, if it hits a vein or an artery, they run the risk of bleeding out quite rapidly. The last thing I can think of is that the bullet might destroy muscle, making the arm difficult or impossible to use. And then of course we have to consider factors like caliber, bullet type, range and weapon.

[daniel_ream]

Ball and socket joint, major arteries, nerve clusters, major muscle groups.

It's an action movie exaggeration.