Factual error: When a young Steve Mills is struggling for conversation topics with Lisa in 1962, he comments that her black eye makes her look like the Tareyton commercial. However, those "I'd rather fight than switch" ads weren't aired until late 1964.
Factual error: When Nicholas Cage goes home he goes to a building on Wacker Drive. But when he looks out of his window and is looking at Chicago he is a few blocks away at a different building.
Factual error: Towards the beginning of the film, the Cashes receive a notice about their rent. It's the 1950's and the address has a ZIP code. ZIP codes were not introduced until 1963.
Factual error: The song "I Won't Dance" was not written until the early-'30s, at least six years after the time it was shown being used in the film. However, it is still performed in the dining room scene.
Factual error: After George and Kathy leave the Doctor's office they drive through town. When they are talking in the car there is a shot where, next to George's face, you can see the sign of the town hall where the scene was filmed, 'Village of Antioch' in Antioch, Illinois. (00:46:00)
Factual error: Justin enters a private mail box facility to mail a large "business reply" envelope which requires no postage. The sender just deposits it into any mailbox free of any cost. The PMB facility charged him $3.20, the old rate for Priority Mail.
Factual error: Bunny Yeager photographed Bettie for the January 1955 issue of Playboy, yet, when Bettie first meets Bunny, there is a 1959 Ford convertible in her driveway.
Factual error: The movie takes place during a single NFL season. In the beginning of the movie, when Brandon is still in Las Vegas, the paper he is using to pick games shows Seattle playing New Orleans. Later in the movie, still the regular season, Seattle and New Orleans are playing again. They would not play each other twice during the regular season.
Factual error: The Daily Astorian office where Rachel works has the Columbia River in the background, however the real Daily Astorian office is located well off the waterfront. (00:10:15)
Factual error: When Zach and his father give food to Raymond, a train passes in the background: this is the "Renaissance" car model, bought in the nineties by Via Rail, but the scene is set in the late seventies.
Factual error: In the scene where Swofford is playing the bugle a water tower in the background has an Air Combat Command emblem which is used by the Air Force and would not be seen on a marine base.
Suggested correction: That part of the movie was filmed at a Naval Air Facility in my hometown. That movie theater where they were watching Apocalypse Now was also in the same said NAF.
Factual error: When Hatsumomo wakes up late to torture little Chiyo again, her kimono is closed the wrong way.
Factual error: Clyde is in the shop buying batteries for his microphones. The microphones we see later, are Shure studio microphones that do not use batteries. Batteries are very rarely used in studio microphones.
Factual error: There are a couple of references throughout the movie to Ralph Fiennes' character as an "American diplomat" "of the League of Nations". The United States was not a member of the League, so there were no "American diplomats", as such, working for the League.
Factual error: In one of the scenes where the young terrorist boy is talking with his young buddies, in the background is the unmistakable image of the Burj al-Arab, a huge sail shaped hotel that is located in Dubai (where the movie was actually shot), however this is supposed to be taking place in Iran. This hotel is a well known international landmark and architectural icon.
Factual error: In an early scene, a character suggests that a man might be awarded an OBE honor if he wins the 1913 US Open. The OBE wasn't established until 1917.
Factual error: In the scene at the Miami hydroplane race, Mike McCormick spies a long haired boat pilot and naively asks one of the locals, "Is that Grizzly Adams?", to which he is answered facetiously, "Yeah, that's Dan Haggerty." The story takes place circa 1971, but actor Dan Haggerty didn't play Grizzly Adams 'til 1974.
Factual error: Owen's phone is a Nokia 3300 which is one the phones which are designed to be wider rather than taller (like an N-Gage). Throughout the film when Owen speaks on the phone he holds it the wrong way around. He holds it to his right ear with the rounded edge of the phone pointing upwards to the top of his head. Holding it this way would mean he'd have the microphone to his ear and be speaking into the speaker. I noticed this because I have the same phone, obviously the actor was not sure which end was which and guessed, getting it wrong. I noticed this during the scene where he phones the girl that got stood up at her dance.
Factual error: When Bobby turns his truck to beat up Jack you can see the license plate on the back of the truck, It is an Indiana plate, but the one used for passenger cars only. Indiana truck plates are plain white with blue numbers.
Factual error: Captain Stanley says of Australia "What fresh Hell is this?" The scene takes place in the 1880s, yet the quote is attributed to Dorothy Parker, who would not have been born yet.