Revealing mistake: When Sarah attempts to cross the bridge and winds up holding onto a tree branch, Hoggle gasps, revealing the actor's face inside his mouth.
Revealing mistake: When in the oubliette, Hoggle lights one candle, and it's flame seems to be able to light up the whole of the oubliette very brightly, much like studio lighting. (00:21:25)
Continuity mistake: Depending on the angle of the shots, things on top of the changing table and its shelves behind Toby's crib change position or disappear. The string toy that hangs in Toby's crib changes and also changes position. The wicker hamper basket changes position and the clothes that hang from it change as well. (00:07:00)
Continuity mistake: When Sarah goes into Toby's room, and picks up Lancelot, she puts the teddy on her parents' bed next to her, then sits down. In the next shot, the teddy is behind her on the bed and it can be seen when she stands up. (00:07:00)
Continuity mistake: When Sarah wakes up in the junkyard, there is a wide shot, then a closeup of Sarah holding the peach. Between the two shots, the way Sarah holds the peach changes. (01:07:10)
Continuity mistake: When Ludo is hanging upside down, while the nasty little guards taunt him, the line that is tied to the tree root is seen and the knot end is different throughout these shots. (00:41:55)
Continuity mistake: When Jareth is singing "Dance Magic," he is throwing Toby into the air. In one throw, Toby's back is facing the camera, but in the very next shot, when Toby lands in one of the Goblin's arms, he is now facing the camera. (00:25:05)
Continuity mistake: When the goblins are roaming around and sneaking about in Sarah's father's bedroom, in one shot when we see a small, black, furry goblin jump out of the chest which sits at the end of the double-bed, the rocking horse, which sits next to the green chair, by the double doors, has actually disappeared. It's clearly back, once the owl has burst through the doors. (00:11:10)
Continuity mistake: When Sarah arrives home with Merlin, she talks to her mom for a while. The white straps that hang down from her flower headband alternate from hanging in front to behind her shoulders during the shots. (00:04:40)
Continuity mistake: When Sarah places Toby back in the crib, the lipped door jamb clearly has a strike plate. After she says, "I wish the goblins would come and take you away..." she shuts the light, and walks out. When Sarah turns around in the hallway to go back and check on Toby, there is no strike plate on the white door jamb - and it should be visible. (00:09:40)
Continuity mistake: When Hoggle is taking Sarah out of the oubliette, the lamp he lit goes out quickly just as they exit; yet in the shot of Sarah immediately after she comes out of the doorway, we can see behind Sarah into the oubliette and the lamp is still lit.
Visible crew/equipment: After the Goblins sing, "Slime and snails... Thunder or lightning," they all sing, "Jump, magic, jump..." and when the Goblin, with the red scarves at his waist (same one as earlier shot, also visible in later shot), lands back on the ground the wires attached to the back of his shoulders are visible. Then in the next wide shot, the wires attached to the back of the waist on the tall Goblin with the long hair, are visible. (00:25:40)
Continuity mistake: When Sarah arrives home, her hair is tied back in a barrette, with no loose hair hanging from it. As soon as she walks inside, there is suddenly a lot of loose hair which has fallen out of the barrette between shots. (00:04:55)
Continuity mistake: As Sarah runs up to the porch, her mom says "Oh, really!" and she is holding some clothes below her waist. But in the next shot, she is holding them up by her waist. (00:04:40)
Revealing mistake: When Sarah defeats Jareth, you can see levitating arches in the background. If you look closely at them, however, you can see the wires holding them up.
Visible crew/equipment: When Sarah and Hoggle slip off the ledge at the Bog of Eternal Stench, Ludo breaks their fall below. As they fall, in the wide shot, the lines holding Sarah and Hoggle are visible. (00:56:20)
Continuity mistake: When Sarah wakes up in the junkyard, she the converses with Agnes the Junk Lady, and then Agnes gives her Lancelot. During this scene between different shots, the junk which is piled behind and around Sarah noticeably changes. (01:07:50)
Continuity mistake: When Sarah is running, just before she reaches the pond Hoggle is peeing in, you get a wide shot of her running. You can see that the Fairy spray beside Hoggle's feet is not there at that point, but appears a few shots later. (00:14:25)
Continuity mistake: When the soldiers start to fall, as the rocks start rolling in the Goblin city, in one wide shot Didymus is laughing and has both hands at his chest, with no staff. Then in the following closeup of him saying "Next time surrender" his left hand his out by his side, holding his staff. (01:20:55)
Continuity mistake: When we first see the wiseman, he climbs into the chair, and Sarah runs over to him. In a wide shot the wiseman has both his arms resting on the arms of the chair, but in the next shot of him, his hands are in his lap. (00:37:25)
Answer: They are real. This is seen when Jareth turns into an owl and Sarah sees him fly out of the house. Further proof of this is when everybody that Sarah met were in her room and Jareth was looking into her room before flying off.