Best movie continuity mistakes of 1940

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The Great Dictator picture

Continuity mistake: During the middle of the film, a butler comes in and out of the Dictator's office several times repeatedly. The door is open and shows the corridor outside the office, casting the shadow of a window off-screen. The shadow changes from small to big bewteen shots.

Sacha

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Pinocchio picture Pinocchio mistake picture

Continuity mistake: When Pinocchio is locked up in the cage of Stromboli, Jiminy goes inside the cage lock, and he hangs his coat and hat on the outside of the lock. In the next shot, they have disappeared.

Hamster

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Fantasia picture

Continuity mistake: When Mickey walks down the stairs from the fountain, he walks down twelve steps. Later, when he tries in vain to stop the enchanted broom from coming down these stairs, there are at least fifteen steps.

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Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe picture

Continuity mistake: Chapter 2: Freezing Torture. When Dale falls from the mountain, her pick stays on the top but she still has it in her hands in the next shot.

Dr Wilson

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The Sea Hawk picture

Continuity mistake: As the crew of an English ship are crouched down on deck prior to a battle with a Spanish galleon, one of them stands up and moves to the other side. As he does so part of the background projection (ocean and sky) is shown on his back.

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Swiss Family Robinson picture

Continuity mistake: The number of pirates assaulting the hillside keeps changing. There are hundreds of them, then fewer than thirty, then hundreds again. In many scenes, in fact, there are far more pirates than could possibly fit aboard their one small ship. (01:55:30)

Jean G

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His Girl Friday picture

Continuity mistake: There is a scene when they are all in the press room when he's inside the desk. As Hildy goes to get water you can see she's wearing the black heels she's been wearing throughout the movie. In the next shot as she walks behind the table, if you look through the table legs you can see she's wearing a pair of flat white slippers/loafers.

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The Philadelphia Story picture

Continuity mistake: In the scene where a drunk Connor visits CK Dexter Haven at his home after Uncle Willie's party, Dexter's pyjamas and dressing gown change from shot to shot. First his pyjama top is done up, then it is open, then done up, then open again.

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Road to Singapore picture

Continuity mistake: In the first fight scene aboard the boat, Ace's hat falls off his head. He then breaks through a door and falls down. As he stands up, the hat reappears on his head.

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Busman's Honeymoon picture

Continuity mistake: Near the beginning Harriet Vane produces tokens for herself & Lord Peter Wimsey of miniature handcuffs with one cuff "open to symbolise we're giving up on crime". She puts hers on as a bracelet. Immediately after & several times throughout the film it's clear hers is a set of closed handcuffs.

Christopher Walters

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The Shop Around the Corner picture

Continuity mistake: As he is talking, Jimmy Stewart is writing on small boxes and placing them in a pile. He sets one down, and when the camera changes, he's suddenly got one in his hand again. (00:27:35)

Jack's Revenge

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A Kick in Time picture A Kick in Time mistake picture

Continuity mistake: The Italian peddler puts some weighted horse shoes on Spunky to inhibit his movement. As the Peddler is leaving and says he will be right back, Spunky is facing him into the building. But then it cuts back from the Peddler to Spunky and suddenly he is facing out the building the opposite direction. It's only after this when he tries to move that he discovers his feet too heavy to lift, yet somehow he got turned around in an instant. (00:03:50)

Quantom X

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Go West picture

Continuity mistake: Baxter and Beecher are riding in a horse-drawn wagon. As they go across a bridge, the train carrying the Marx Brothers approaches. Baxter and Beecher leap off the bridge, one jumping to the right and one jumping to the left, but they are side by side when they land in the river below.

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Saps at Sea picture

Continuity mistake: Stan puts the half-folded newspaper down on the boat's galley table. One shot later, the paper is completely unfolded and covering the table. (00:46:05)

Jean G

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The Mark of Zorro picture

Continuity mistake: In the plaza scene where Zorro first appears. His horse is initially followed by many wildly barking small dogs. As he rounds the final corner and confronts the soliers, the dogs have suddenly vanished.

Fgreene

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The Bear's Tale picture

Continuity mistake: When Papa Bear is drinking from the hot water tap after eating the hot porridge, the tap handle changes position between shots.

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Donald's Vacation picture

Continuity mistake: At the beginning of the cartoon, you can see the front of Donald Duck's kayak has nothing on it. But after he is soaked by a waterfall, a lever appears out of nowhere. The lever disappears in the next shot, but when he arrives at the campsite, it is back again.

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Puss Gets the Boot picture

Continuity mistake: After the mouse is revived by water from Jasper, he goes up to the cat and you can see that the mouse's left hand is under Jasper's mouth, but in the next shot his hand is now near the whisker area.

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