Deliberate mistake: Someone drives a car they've never driven before and they drive off without adjusting the driver's seat or mirror.
Common movie and TV mistakes - page 10
This is a list of mistakes, things done wrong, etc. that happen so frequently onscreen we barely notice any more. 'Movie logic', stupid behaviours, and everything related.
Factual error: Characters referring to another star system as a "Solar System." Solar System is a proper name, it refers specifically to the system that contains Earth. Our sun is called "Sol", hence "Solar System." Any time an alien from another planet uses the term Solar System to refer to an alien star system it indicates the writer or actor is making a common error.
Factual error: People can be thrown or can dive through plate glass windows without suffering so much as a scratch. In fact, any such thing would cause serious and possibly life-threatening lacerations.
Character mistake: In a lot of crime dramas, the main protagonist will often touch evidence with their bare hands. For example, in many episodes of Columbo, Columbo will often pick up a murder weapon and get his fingerprints on it. When any protagonist does this, they've contaminated evidence.
Plot hole: In situations where the protagonist is framed, they will be firmly believed to be guilty by everyone despite the lack of sufficient evidence. This is often achieved by focusing more on motive or odd circumstances that make the hero look guilty, rather than the little evidence which could establish reasonable doubt, with some evidence even being inaccurately seen as proof of a crime. It's a plot device for the hero to solve the mystery by themselves for dramatic purposes.
Deliberate mistake: During a fight no-one draws blood or has any bruises afterwards.
Other mistake: The main protagonist in a TV show or movie is being shot at by machine guns, and he somehow manages to dodge the bullets.
Other mistake: In 99% of movies, cars have their windows rolled down to avoid the filming crew from being reflected. This is even more weird when cars are parked or it's raining.
Factual error: Vehicles used in films and programmes set in past decades that have age related number plates, classic car enthusiasts spot these straight away.
Factual error: A character in hospital removes various medical monitors from their body (or someone else's) but alarms don't sound on the equipment in the room.
Factual error: Whenever there's an officer involved shooting in television or movies, the officer in question always goes about their work as though nothing has happened. In real life, this is a big deal. It's blasted all over the news and the officer is always placed on administrative leave pending an investigation to make sure the shooting was justified.
Character mistake: When someone tries to call another person's cell phone in an emergency situation and it goes to voicemail, but they just keep calling over and over (with or without leaving a message). They never try sending a text message or similar, they just repeat the same pattern despite knowing the other person isn't answering.
Factual error: Characters who have lost an enormous amount of blood who are not only still alive near the end, but sometimes they don't even display signs of shock from blood loss. In reality, these characters would have died very fast.
Factual error: Mostly in horror films, people going through prolonged periods of physical pain or torture never fall unconscious. In reality, they would pass out much quicker under so much pain.
Deliberate mistake: When someone gets into a car and drives away the doors are unlocked with the keys already in the ignition.
Factual error: In recent years, blood tends to be represented with a certain degree of realism, but in past eras especially before the 80s, the industry standard for fake blood appeared to be a much brighter red that often looks odd to a contemporary eye, and distinctly fake. In general, every movie sorta has its own 'blood' not necessarily factually accurate.
Factual error: In numerous sci-fi films and TV series, planets, moons, and other similar celestial objects always appear to have gravity equal to that of Earth regardless of the object's size or mass. For example, a moon the same size as a small planet (such as Yavin 4 or Endor's forest moon from the Star Wars films) has the same apparent gravity as larger bodies, while in reality, the smaller objects would have noticeably less gravity than larger ones.
Factual error: Police detectives working cases in which they are personally involved; such as the murder of a friend, family member, or their partner. Even though their superiors will often warn them to stay away from the investigation, the cops will continue to work the case on their own. Oftentimes films will imply that the cop should leave the investigation alone "for his own good", but in reality a cop investigating a case they are part of would seriously taint any evidence they uncover. If taken to trial, a defense attorney could easily have that evidence thrown out. Writers tend to get around this by having the villain engage in more crimes and be caught "red handed" or by simply having the villain be killed by the end. However it is still borderline insanity to see a cop investigating his wife's murder.
Other mistake: A character will be slapped in the face, but their face won't be red afterwards.
Factual error: Hotwiring any car made more recently than about 1995.
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