Factual error: At the beginning of the film as the camera follows the security sergeant he taps a man on the shoulder. The man was standing next to the crossroads signs in a camouflage poncho. As he turns, you can see that he that he is wearing jeans and not a standard uniform of the era under the poncho. (00:00:35)
Continuity mistake: When Kelly asks Little Joe for the brandy to interrogate the German officer, he is handed a square bottle with a short neck. In the next shot, as they sit down for their "friendly drink" Kelly sets down a round bottle with a long neck. (00:10:05)
Continuity mistake: While Big Joe is talking down to the Captain in the boat, Joe is blocking the stairs to the upper deck with his whole body. As the Captain moves up the stairs, Joe is off to the Captain's right. When the Captain emerges from the lower deck, Joe is dead center of the Captain and then moves out of the Captain's path. (00:12:00)
Continuity mistake: When Joe is talking to the Captain about having a guide for the town, the Captain's chin strap on his helmet is twisted or untwisted depending on the shot. (00:12:30)
Continuity mistake: When Kelly visits Mulligan he is carrying a bottle of whiskey, he then visits crapgame who gives him a bottle of whiskey, which suggests that the scenes are the wrong way round and Kelly was originally meant to visit crapgame first. (00:20:05)
Continuity mistake: When Kelly comes to make a proposition to Mulligan, the sun is on Mulligan's back. When both are in the shot from Kelly's view, both are in the sunlight. Then at the, "I need an authorisation" reverse shot, they are both in the shade, these 2 scenes are obviously shot at two very different times. (00:21:30)
Revealing mistake: After Kelly tells Big Joe he's going after the gold "with ya or without ya", a soldier in the background walks past a steel tank trap weighing a quarter ton (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Czech_hedgehog). He bumps it with his backpack, and it flips up in the air. (00:24:35)
Continuity mistake: Big Joe gets out of his jeep, salutes Captain Maitland, and converses about the upcoming time off for the men. Behind Big Joe is one of his half tracks and he is on Maitland's right. The scene cuts and Maitland's "liberated" yacht is behind Big Joe and he is directly in front of Maitland. (00:25:00)
Revealing mistake: When Kelly is using the gold bars to persuade the others, he hands them over. There is obviously no weight as e.g. Crapgame's hand doesn't drop when taking it. (00:28:40)
Factual error: During the scene where Clint Eastwood is trying to convince Don Rickles to join in the heist, there is a box of Almond Joy candy bars behind Don's head. They weren't introduced until 1946. (00:28:50)
Factual error: Oddball tells Kelly their commander had been trying to get them killed ever since they landed at Omaha (beach). Oddball's tanks are part of the U.S. sixth Armored division (the Super Sixth, as the unit shoulder patch on his jacket indicates) which actually landed at Utah beach on July 18, 1944. (00:30:50)
Continuity mistake: In the scene when Kelly is shown the Oddball's tank for the very first time, the Sherman has a loudspeaker mounted on the right hand side of the turret. The loudspeaker is placed on the opposite side of the turret for the rest of the movie. Also as far as luggage and other external storage is concerned, this tank actually looks different in every scene. (00:32:50)
Continuity mistake: The scene where Crapgame is telling Oddball about Kelly being a former officer, Oddball is holding a gold bar in his hand. The front shot of Oddball has him holding the bar at a low angle with the tapered top of the bar facing upward, while the shots over Oddball's left shoulder shows him holding it higher with the wider base of the bar facing upwards, instead. (00:37:20)
Continuity mistake: When Crapgame makes a phone call after speaking to Oddball, his grip on the receiver changes between shots. (00:37:40)
Other mistake: When Telly Savalas drives into the farmhouse he leaves the chaplain in the jeep which is approx. 50 feet from where Clint Eastwood and the rest of the soldiers are planning to steal the gold. For about five minutes they are arguing quite loudly about if it is a good idea and afterwards they then agree to the heist and they all crowd around the map and are extremely jubilant. Is the chaplain still sitting in the jeep listening to all this? We never see him again. (00:38:15)
Suggested correction: This isn't a mistake; at best it's an unresolved plot point. The chaplain became irrelevant to the plot at that point so their story line ended without explanation. If anything it makes it more realistic.
Continuity mistake: As the squad are taking a break on top of a hill, just before the fighter-bomber attacks them, Corporal Job is distributing ammo and Jonesey can be seen walking past in the background with four boxes of K-rations. A moment later, Crapgame and Jonesey are sitting together sharing the contents of the boxes. After Crapgame goes to the jeep for some water, the shot cuts to Kelly sitting by a tree. Jonesey walks up to Kelly with a message from Big Joe - carrying four unopened K-rations boxes. (00:51:05)
Revealing mistake: Blank firing adaptors are visible on the bow machine guns of Oddball's Shermans as they shoot up the rail yard. (01:00:05)
Revealing mistake: When Oddball's tanks raid the train station, watch the two Germans with the MP 40s caught by the first cannon blast. When the explosive charge used for the effect goes off, they jump forward. (01:00:05)
Factual error: During Oddball's raid on the German train station, you can hear a radio playing 'All For the Love of Sunshine' by Hank Williams Jr. Hank Jr. wasn't even alive yet, let alone making records during WWII. The soundtrack to the film also contains the song, "All For the Love of Sunshine," which became the first No. 1 country hit for Hank Williams, Jr. (01:00:10)
Continuity mistake: When Oddball is shooting up the rail yard, he aims at a building with the signs "Saint Server" and "2" on the outside of the buildings. In the first shot, the "2" is damaged at the bottom. In the second shot, just as it explodes the "2" is back to normal. Note the baseline. (01:01:50)
Suggested correction: Watch closely as the captain starts climbing the steps. Joe moves to the screen right ever so slightly but still covering most of the steps. When the shot changes to outside the boat, Joe is still slightly to the side of the steps with his arm across the rest. He then moves out of the way completely. No mistake here.
Ssiscool ★