Factual error: In the scene where Tom and O'Malley are talking in O'Malley's flat, the chessboard in between them is set up the wrong way round.
Factual error: If they used Liquid Nitrogen to freeze the safe door and crack it open, they would certainly not have opened the door by pulling on it with bare hands/flimsy leather gloves, without leaving half of the skin on their hands behind. (00:09:30 - 00:10:40)
Factual error: During the first mall robbery, when Marcus is sliding down the middle of the escalator, both sides of it are running. They would have been turned off as the mall was closed.
Factual error: The film is set in the 1950s. In the scene where Ewan McGregor and Peter Mullan are waiting for a load of coal (the morning after they discover the body), there is a close-up shot of Ewan McGregor's head and shoulders. In the background is a huge container ship, slightly out of focus. Containers were not introduced to Europe until 1966 and the ship in this film was probably built in the 1980s.
Factual error: Moments before Hank sees Charlie get shot, he tries to shoot through a window to get to him. The bullets have no effect, so he says, "It's bullet proof! I'm coming in!" He tries the door, and it's locked, so shoots the window again, having absolutely no effect. The glass would have at least cracked and shown signs of where the bullets were hitting. Even bullet proof glass is damaged by bullets. This glass was in perfect condition the whole time. (00:04:35)
Factual error: Sean is tailing his victim, taking photos with an old Polaroid camera (the kind that prints instant photos). In one scene, he is sitting on a bench and takes several shots. When he shows these pictures later, some are zoomed in on the subjects, when it would not be possible to zoom with this camera. He would have had to get up and walk toward them, thus giving himself away.
Factual error: Near the end of the movie, in the scene on the cliff, Charlie, Jessie and Louis are saved from impending murder when Senior Sergeant Jimmy appears, flying up in a helicopter and announcing he is from Australian Police. There is no police department in Australia called "Australian Police" - police departments in Australia are named after the state they are based in. As they are apparently near Alice Springs, Jimmy should have yelled out that he was from "Northern Territory Police."
Factual error: In the scene where Brian, Rome and the other guys are racing to the impound lot, Brian whips his Evo around and starts driving backwards. He would be going pretty slow in reverse so the other guys should have past him do to the fact that they where doing over 100 mph beforehand according to the FBI's GPS. (00:30:55)
Factual error: The prisoner is described as carrying an "Axis IV Dissociative Disorder"; that is complete nonsense - dissociative disorders are placed on Axis I in psychiatric diagnoses (Axis I is clinically treatable disorders; Axis II is mental retardation/personality disorders; Axis III is concomitant health problems (e.g., hypertension, diabetes mellitus, CABG, etc.); Axis IV is a list of psychosocial stressors and their severity (e.g., "Moderate - Health problems, financial problems"); Axis V is the GAF score (Global Assessment of Function, scored from 0 - 100). *Any* clinical professional with psychiatric experience would put dissociative disorder on Axis I except for the psychiatrist in the film, who apparently doesn't know any better. (00:54:00)
Factual error: The movie takes place in Des Plaines, Illinois, with a couple of scenes from downtown Chicago. However, throughout the movie you can see both palm trees and mountains in the background, none of which actually exist in Illinois. The producers also point this out on the DVD commentary.
Factual error: At the beginning of the movie, which is supposed to be taking place in 1974 at this point, there is an exterior shot of a police building, with two police cars out front (one with an officer exiting the car) that are about 20 years newer than 1974. (00:07:30)
Factual error: When the Chinese enter the Pink nightclub at the start and shoot everyone, they fire their weapons for a constant minute. Not one of them reloads their weapon once.
Factual error: In the movie, Cristina declines to press charges so Jack goes free, but it's the District Attorney who decides whether charges are pressed on behalf of the state.
Factual error: Before the Wonderland Ave. killings a bottle of Jack Daniels whiskey is displayed on the coffee table. The label shows, "Jack Daniels Kentucky whiskey" which should be" Tennessee whiskey".
Factual error: As the bus crashes, the destinations spewed out from the destination panel are towns from Devon (England). These include: Newton Abbot, Paignton zoo and Torquay. (00:25:10)
Factual error: The Los Angeles Police Department no longer has an Internal Affairs division. The division is known as the Bureau of Professional Standards and is subject to civilian oversight - meaning the roughshod treatment Gavilan was receiving at their hands would have been checked at minimum by a civilian review board. That having been said, Gavilan's behavior should have gotten him in trouble regardless of whether or not someone in the department was out to get him.