Continuity mistake: When Jefferson Smith goes to talk to Senator Paine he fumbles with his hat when he meets Susan. As he bumps into the table on his way out his hat disappears.
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)
1 continuity mistake - chronological order
Directed by: Frank Capra
Starring: James Stewart, Claude Rains, Jean Arthur, Edward Arnold
Genres: Drama
Factual error: The filibuster scene gives the impression that the Senators were powerless to stop Jefferson Smith's speech. However, they can make a speaker shut up if at least 3/5 of the Senators vote to. From the Senators' reactions, a lot of them probably would have voted to silence Smith. (Clearly, if this had happened, the movie would be much less interesting).
Senator Joseph Paine: Let me go! I'm not fit to be a senator! I'm not fit to live! Expel me, not him! Willet Dam is a fraud! It's a crime against the people who sent me here - and I committed it! Every word that boy said is the truth! Every word about Taylor and me and graft and the rotten political corruption of my state! Every word of it is true! I'm not fit for office! I'm not fit for any place of honor or trust! Expel me, not that boy.
Trivia: The same actress that plays Jimmy Stewart's mother in Mr. Smith goes to Washington also plays his mother in It's a Wonderful Life. Frank Capra, the director of both movies, liked using the same actors and actresses if he liked their work.
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