Continuity mistake: After hearing noises out the window, Gandalf tells Frodo to, "Get down," and reaches for his staff leaning on the mantle. In the close-up when he grabs the staff, on the mantle there are books on the left end with a box near it, and a piece of paper leaning up against the wall between the two. In the wide shot just before this shot, there is no paper between the books and box. Also, the paper lying between the books changes from previous shots and when he starts heading for the window, behind him on the mantle the paper to the right of the candlestick changes position in the following shots. (00:42:15)
Continuity mistake: After finding Sam under the window Gandalf throws Sam on the table. In some shots Sam's shoulders are at the edge of the table and in some, it's not. Under Sam's shoulders on the table in some shots, there are assorted papers that change position and in two shots no paper at all. In the shot from the front, where Gandalf is slamming Sam down, the candle shown is much shorter than the candle shown in the other shots. (00:42:25)
Continuity mistake: When Frodo and Sam are in the field with the scarecrow, in the close up shot they're a lot closer together than in the wider shot. Nothing to do with perspective - check out the amount of green corn in front of Frodo in the two shots. The scarecrow also changes place and it's sometimes next to some corn and sometimes not. (00:42:40)
Continuity mistake: When Frodo tells Sam about the Wood Elves, they both run up the hill and crouch behind a fallen log. In the shot of their backs and the elves in the background, Frodo is on the right side and Sam on the left. In the previous shot of their faces, Frodo was also on the right and Sam on the left. Extended DVD. (00:43:35)
Continuity mistake: After leaving the Mines of Moria, the Fellowship flee toward Lothlorien. Aragorn runs through a rocky bed of water, stops and smiles looking ahead. In the shot from the front, the top of his bow is hardly seen at his shoulder, but in the shot from behind the top of the bow is way up higher than his shoulder. (00:44:00)
Continuity mistake: When Haldir says, "Welcome Legolas, son of Thranduil," the outfit that Legolas wears is not the same in these shots than in the previous and following shots. Gimli's hair/beard are not as full and his prosthetics are a bit different too. Apparently this scene was one of the first to be filmed, but they realized later that this outfit wasn't working for the role of Legolas, so they changed it. Commentary on extended DVD. (00:45:30)
Continuity mistake: When Gandalf and Saruman are talking in Orthanc, we can see a black strap around Gandalf's fingers on the hand holding his staff. In some shots it's around different fingers, in others it's disappeared completely. (00:46:20)
Continuity mistake: Haldir, Aragorn and Legolas are standing looking out in this front close-up shot, as Haldir says, "Caras Galadhon." In the next wide shot from behind, as Haldir's voice is heard saying, "The heart of Elvendom on earth," it is blatantly obvious that it is Morgan Evans's (O. Bloom's double) profile near Haldir - note his height and cheek/jaw line. (00:47:25)
Continuity mistake: When Gandalf and Saruman are about to fight, Gandalf switches his staff from his left to his right hand. When Saruman smashes him against the wall, the staff is back in the left hand. (00:48:20)
Continuity mistake: When Gandalf and Saruman are fighting, Gandalf is thrown to the ground and starts bleeding. But if you look carefully, every other shot Gandalf has blood on his face, then none, then more blood, then none. (00:48:30)
Continuity mistake: At Orthanc, after Gandalf throws the cover over the Palantir, before and during the fight the cover's length and position on different sides of the pedestal changes in many shots. It has nothing to do with the angle of the camera. (00:48:55)
Continuity mistake: As Gandalf and Saruman battle each other at Orthanc, both Saruman's and Gandalf's staffs either change position drastically or actually change hands, in consecutive shots. For example after Gandalf 'strikes' Saruman the first time, Saruman slams Gandalf to the floor, Gandalf's staff is in his right hand, yet, in the next overhead shot it's beside him, under his left hand. (00:50:15)
Continuity mistake: When the hobbits first start to run away from Farmer Maggot, they are running through the corn, which is much taller than them. Two seconds later, when the camera angle changes to the wide view (you can see all four hobbits running through the corn), their heads are even with, if not slightly above the corn. After it shows that the corn is about their height, there is the last shot of them coming out of the corn field and the stalks are again much taller than them. (00:50:20)
Continuity mistake: When Saruman and Gandalf start to battle at Orthanc, the first time Gandalf points his staff, he causes Saruman to slam onto his back. In the close-up of Saruman, the white wrap around the palm of his hand and wrist is perfectly visible on his right hand. He does not wear the wrap on his hand in the previous and most of the following shots. (00:50:25)
Continuity mistake: When Gandalf and Saruman fight at Orthanc, Gandalf causes Saruman to slam backwards into the wall and then Saruman makes Gandalf spin horizontally in mid-air. In the next shot, when Gandalf falls, the wrap around his left hand is visible, yet, he does not wear it in the previous and following shots. (00:50:35)
Continuity mistake: During the fight between Gandalf and Saruman at Orthanc, after Saruman slams backwards into the wall Saruman causes Gandalf to spin horizontally in mid-air. As Gandalf spins he loses grip of his staff, yet, in the next close-up as he hits the ground the staff is still in his hand. (00:50:35)
Continuity mistake: After the hobbits take the tumble from farmer Maggot's field, they land in a heap with twigs in their hair. Frodo stands on the road and looks down it. He says, "I think we should get off the road" and the twigs are there. He looks back down the road and the smoke and leaves come swirling at him, he yells, "Get off the road" - no twigs. They hide from the wraith, then make their escape. Merry says, "What was that?" - and they have the twigs in their hair again. (00:51:10)
Continuity mistake: In Farmer Maggot's field, when Merry and Pippin drop in on Frodo, in the first shot, as they are bending down lifting the vegetables off the ground, Merry and Pip are standing side by side, Merry on Pippin's right. Opposite them are Frodo and Sam, with Sam on Frodo's right. In the next shot, when they're upright, Frodo and Sam are across from each other, as are Merry and Pippin, with Pippin on Sam's left. In the next shot, Pippin is now on Sam's right. The change in positions has nothing to do with Merry and Pippin lifting the vegetables off the ground. (00:52:00)
Continuity mistake: In Farmer Maggot's field, when Merry places all the vegetables into Sam's arms one shot shows a cabbage with very loose leaves around it. In the next shot, the cabbage is now whole and firm, with almost no loose leaves around it and there are carrots that Merry placed on top of the cabbage. In the next shot the cabbage's look is different again and there are no carrots on top of the cabbage. When Sam turns to face Farmer Maggot's voice there are carrots on top again. In all of these shots, Sam's left collar is either under or over his jacket. (00:52:00)
Continuity mistake: In the sequence of the first 'meeting' with the Nazgul, where the four Hobbits hide under a tree root and the Black Rider is above them, sniffing the presence of the ring, the closeup of supposed Frodo's hands shows hands with 'normal' fingernails, dirty but normal. In the following scene, after the four Hobbits jump and run, Frodo's hand holding the ring is his 'real' hand, with short, bitten fingernails, as we can see in the rest of the movie when his hands are visible. (Extended DVD). (00:52:15)
Answer: The temptation of the Ring is directly proportional to the power and ambition of the bearer. To someone like Gandalf - a mighty wizard who wants to save the world - the temptation would, over time, prove to be too much, and he's realistic enough to understand that about himself. With an ordinary hobbit who only wants a nice meal and some peace and quiet, the Ring has a lot less to work with.