block the lever on the left side,  which is rotated down 90 degrees, (counter clockwise as seen from  the left side of the pistol) in order to release the slide so that  the weapon can be stripped and cleaned. It is possible to grab the  gun, push the tab down, and pull the slide off to disarm the weapon,  but in the scene where Wah Sing Ku (Jet Li) pulls the slide off of  Riggs Beretta 92, the button has already been pushed down and the  lever partly rotated, to assist Jet Li (qv) in performing the  audience