I love when someone points something odd in movies. You know, like how weird Henry Cavill’s (Superman) face looked in the new Justice League film, that ended up being a flaw in the editing room. This happened because the movie was already made but they needed the actor to make some reshooting for some scenes. However, he was already working on the next Mission Impossible film, and he had a mustache for his character. The solution: Shoot the scenes with the mustache and remove it with CGI. The result: A weird looking Superman that, more than looking like the handsome superhero, resembled the time Shrek turns into a human (not kidding, google it, the resemblance is uncanny).
There are errors related to post-production, and others that are just terrible plot mistakes or continuity flops, especially in franchises. Take for instance the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. In the last one, Dead Men Tell No Tales, it’s said that Jack Sparrow got his compass from Salazar, his former captain, while in the second movie, Dead Man’s Chest it’s said he got it from Tia Dalma, who happens to be the goddess Calypso. Now, sadly the pirate craze ended and the movie didn’t get as much attention as it had years ago, but still, diehard fans of the franchise were terribly upset with that mistake.
I just don’t get why movie producers haven’t understood that their films will be closely looked at by obsessive fans all the time. I mean, I think there’s no movie (at least mainstream) that hasn’t passed through the judging eyes of fans who’ll find even the smallest mistake. Sometimes I just think these people watch and study every single frame of the movies, since some of them are seriously quite hard to spot. So, let’s not delay the fun anymore and let’s take a look at 10 of the major movie mistakes that are seriously embarrassing for those involved.
Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (1977) – The Taller Stormtrooper
I know this one has been known for decades, but it’s so funny that it has become a classic. We all have laughed at the poor stormtrooper who is way taller than the others and bumps his head with the entrance, but the coolest thing about it isn’t the professional way in which the actor continued the scene, but how even Lucas has created a whole story around it. He once explained that originally the stormtroopers were clones of Jango Fett (Boba Fett’s “father”), so in Episode II he made Jango bump his head to show that he was a bit clumsy, and thus it was explainable why some of the troopers can be as clumsy as he was. Kind of an elaborate story and too much effort to conceal a minor yet hilarious mistake, don’t you think?
Bad Boys (1983) – Misplaced cameraman
I love this one because it just seems that the one in charge of approving the final version just said, “You know what? F**k it, let’s leave it like that.” So in one of the main fights, you can see how people stand around to witness and support their favorite, but there seems there was a huge fan who even brought his professional camera to record it and perhaps post it later? The thing is that for quite a long time you can see one of the cameramen taking another shot of the fight.
Reservoir Dogs (1992) – Elastic arms
Tarantino has always been characterized for putting way too much effort and care into every single detail of his movies. Perhaps since this one was his first feature film he hadn’t developed that much that sense of perfectionism, since there’s one continuity error not even his devoted fans have let go of. When Marvin Nash is taken to the warehouse and is forced to confess who is the snitch, in one frame you can see him with his hands cuffed at his back. They start kicking him and suddenly his hands are cuffed in the front, only to be taken back in the next frame. Honestly, for me that was imperceptible, and I’ve watched it more than 20 times.
The Wizard of Oz (1939) – Weren’t her slippers made of rubies?
To start with, in L. Frank Baum’s original Oz stories, Dorothy’s slippers were actually silver. When they started planning the movie they decided to change them to ruby, since it would be more visible on camera. Now, the slippers were handmade and took a lot of time to be made, so Judy Garland would only wear them in open shots where they were seen. Now, in this particular scene where the Scarecrow and Dorothy are fighting with the mean trees, there a slight second where you can notice she’s wearing some black school shoes. Seriously it’s just a blink of an eye around minute 1:03. Who is the idle person who noticed this?
Gladiator (2000) – Romans invented gas tanks
Where should we start? Okay, making such a huge production like this isn’t a joke, and it’s understandable that some tiny errors passed unnoticed, like the small sand pillow under Maximus’ head when he dies or the many modern boots these Romans wear. But there are others that are just huge facepalms, to be honest. One of them is a cameraman dressed in white (which makes him way more visible) just looking at the spectacle, or one of the spectators quenching his thirst with a huge plastic bottle of water. But the one that people just won’t ignore is the huge gas cylinder in the back of a chariot. They didn’t try to conceal it at all.
Braveheart (1995) – Seriously guys?
And in the same line of major historical films with huge and terrible mistakes, we can’t forget about Mel Gibson’s iconic and cheesy, Braveheart. To start with, the movie is a massive historical inaccuracy. Honestly, I won’t even go there, because we could stay here forever, but if you’re going to just portray whatever you want and pass it as a historical movie, at least take care of the details. The most famous mistake is the crew guy casually walking around while wearing a baseball cap. Then, there are the terrible props they used. In one of the moments of greatest tension, when both armies are reaching the other, you can see a rubber ax literally moving with the air. But the worst one is the white car parked just there. These for me are just a sign of disrespect for the audience.
The Dark Knight Rises (2012) – Or perhaps the Dark “Night” Rises?
We don’t have to discuss the fact that Christian Bale’s Batman is the best of them all, do we? I mean, next to other actors who have tried to do so (ahem, Clooney, Affleck), he’s Laurence Olivier. But that doesn’t mean that mistakes don’t happen, and for many grammar nazis, this one is unforgivable. So at the beginning of the film, you can see a headline in the Gotham Times in which “jewel heist” is misspelled.
Pretty Woman (1990) – I need that spell!
Okay, I really need Julia Roberts’ secret to magically change my food with the blink of an eye. If you take a look at the video you’ll realize that while she’s normally having breakfast, she starts eating a delicious croissant, then the camera turns to Richard Gere, and when he looks back at her, she’s eating a pancake. The worst part is that it happens more than once, and it’s right there in the center of the frame, so it’s basically very noticeable. Still, a pretty awesome superpower.
Titanic (1994) – Jack came from the future
Besides the fact that yes, both could’ve fit in the door (okay, I really have to let this one go), there’s a flaw in our favorite romantic nineties’ movie. In this case, it has nothing to do with editing or a matter of continuity, but a historical inaccuracy. When Rose and Jack meet at the deck of the ship, Rose is about to jump into the freezing water and Jack tries to convince her not to do so. He tells a story of how when he was a kid he once went ice fishing with his father to Lake Wissota and fell into the freezing water. Quite a story, right? Well, the issue here is that the Titanic sunk in 1912, and Lake Wissota was formed five years later. So, in order to be accurate, Jack comes from the future and he can’t be dead, since he can go back just before the terrible incident, right?
Jurassic Park (1993) – Dat raptor ass!
Last but not least we have the movie that freaked us out when we were children (well, maybe it’s just me but that’s another story). So, let’s focus please in the iconic scene of the velociraptors in the kitchen with the kids. Take a look at the video and start spotting the problems. To start with, it’s kind of unrealistic for a dinosaur to use opposable fingers to open a clearly opened door. But that’s not it, just when the first raptor is entering the kitchen, you can see a human hand grabbing the raptor’s ass.
Some may consider that these mistakes are unforgivable. However, they won’t stop us from watching our favorite movies. Instead, we can just watch them and enjoy these unintended mistakes.
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Take a look at these for more movie facts:
10 Movies That Scarred Us For Life When We Were Kids
11 Times Your Favorite Movies Had Deadly Consequences
4 Disturbing Scenes From Some Really Good But Controversial Movies
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