Revealing mistake: At the end of the film in the shot from behind as Bilbo is walking towards Elrond and then up the boat ramp, we see the head of the "little person" playing the small version of him. His head is actually in a different proportion compared to the previous shots. The top of his head is considerably larger than before. (02:04:15)
Continuity mistake: When Pippin gets up from his cot in the corner, in the wide shot the fur rugs between his and Merry's cot are two light browns and a black in between and there is a black rug in front of Gimli's cot. Yet when Aragorn comes in and takes hold of the palantir, in this shot the black fur rug at the foot of Pip's cot is gone. In the next shot the black rug in front of Gimli's cot is gone and the rug that the palantir rolls onto when out of Aragorn's grasp now faces the opposite way than when Pippin first awoke and walked toward Gandalf. (00:19:40)
Continuity mistake: In Edoras, after Gandalf lifts Pippin onto Shadowfax, as Gandalf says, "Three days ride..." Pippin's left hand is seen and the fingers are very short and very chunky - NOT because his fingers are clasped - it is obviously the scale double's hand in this specific shot. Then when Merry hands Pippin the pouch of Longbottom leaf, Pippin's left hand is seen again and Billy Boyd's hand and fingers are very thin and lanky. The two hands seen in these two consecutive shots quite obviously do not look anything alike. (00:25:35)
Continuity mistake: Frodo awakens at Minas Tirith, sits up in bed and sees Gandalf. There is a silver pitcher on the dresser to his left and the pitcher's handle points away from Frodo. Yet when Gandalf, Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli look at the three Hobbits, it is a different pitcher entirely, and I might add with the handle now pointing towards Frodo. (02:49:20 - 02:50:50)
Continuity mistake: After Gandalf and Pippin have their unfortunate meeting with Denethor, they walk towards the prow of the city. As they stand there, the distance between themselves and the White Tree/guards/statues differs significantly between Gandalf's and Pippin's individual close-ups, their back shots and when Gandalf moves closer to Pip. In some of these consecutive shots soldiers walk up the ramp in front of the White Tree, yet in other shots they're non-existent. (Extended Edition) (00:48:50)
Continuity mistake: When the Rohirrim arrive at Minas Tirith, they are lined up in formation. In the first shot of Eowyn with Merry we see the rider's body to her left in line with her. In the next close-up of Merry we see the white horse's face right next to Merry, but in the next shot of Eowyn with Merry, the rider, whose horse is brown in these wide shots of Eowyn, is in line with her again. Then in another close-up of Merry, we see the horse's white face yet again. Also, in the shot from behind, that rider does not wear his helmet as in the rest of the side shots.
Audio problem: After Gollum frames Sam with the lembas, Sam starts to hit Gollum while shouting at him. When Sam yells, "Call me..." his mouth does not move. Then when Frodo pushes Sam away, Sam shouts, "I'll kill him!" but his lips are moving before we even hear those words, it is out of sync. (01:04:15)
Continuity mistake: When Gimli and Legolas are speaking to Eomer at Dunharrow, the height of Gimli's axe changes. When he is silent, the axe only reaches to his stomach, but when Gimli speaks, and the camera moves in, the axe reaches up almost to his shoulders. (01:12:35)
Continuity mistake: When the Witch King is attacking Eowyn with the spiky ball and chain, it hits the ground a few times yet not one hole or mark is visible later on in the fight.
Continuity mistake: When Gandalf is talking to Theoden about Pippin's ordeal with the Palantir, a woman walks toward the left side of the screen with a dog. A few shots later, the same woman and dog walk toward the left side of the screen again.
Continuity mistake: When Gandalf is confronted with the Witch King, Gandalf's (whose hair is over his cloak) and Pippin's hair blow wildly in shots facing them. Yet in the back shots Pippin's and Gandalf's (whose hair is tucked neatly) hair does not move. (00:23:40)
Continuity mistake: Pippin steals the palantir from Gandalf and replaces it with the water pitcher while Gandalf is sleeping. In the extreme close-up, when Gandalf refocuses his eyes the pitcher is seen at his arm. However in the next close-up, Gandalf has NOT even moved yet, but the pitcher is not at his arm in this shot. We do not see or hear the pitcher fall on the floor in this shot. (00:21:20)
Deliberate mistake: While Faramir leads the Gondorian soldiers as they ride down the path in Minas Tirith, in the wideshot just prior to when Gandalf shouts, "Faramir!" they pass particularly distinctive buildings and a statue - this wideshot is flipped, the swords are at the soldiers' right sides. Then about ten shots later, they pass the same buildings and statue as they ride towards the front gate. (01:29:40)
Continuity mistake: On the Paths of the Dead, while Legolas tells the history of the Dead Men, there is a close-up of Gimli's face, and Legolas' bow and arrows are seen too. In the next shot, the position of his blades on his back differ, as they are now slanted, with the bow and arrows seen between them. (01:23:25)
Continuity mistake: When Theoden "reforms the line" as the Mumakil approach, there are empty fields behind the horses. In the overhead shot of them charging, it is seen that there are still orcs in the background who should have been there in the previous shot.
Continuity mistake: After Denethor dies, in the side shot of Minas Tirith (its right side when facing the city) the considerable vast gap between the Citadel at the top of the city, with the bridge that leads to the Tomb of the Stewards/large cemetery, and the mountain behind is shown; however, in other side shots the Citadel is much closer to the mountain. In the many aerial and ground wideshots of the distinctive buildings of Minas Tirith as a whole, there are very significant changes in the design and position of buildings, stone railings, etc., some of which disappears then reappears. There are changes in the texture/landscape of the high center prow and the mountainsides beside the city levels as well. (This has nothing to do with damage sustained or with camera angle.) (00:45:35)
Deliberate mistake: Just before Frodo and Sam fall to the ground on the slopes of Mount Doom, there is a close-up of Sam's feet, then a shot of Frodo and Sam climbing up the rocky surface. This shot is obviously flipped, as Sting is at Sam's left side normally. (02:31:00)
Audio problem: As Gandalf and Pippin stand on the balcony at Minas Tirith, Gandalf says, "This will be the end of Gondor..." but as he audibly continues to say, "...as we know it," visually his mouth says something completely different. (Extended Edition) (00:54:15)
Continuity mistake: On the fields of Pelennor, Theoden yells, "Bring it down!" three times in succession. As Theoden yells the first, "Bring it down!" Gamling has the bow in his hand and lets loose an arrow, with particular soldiers around him. In the next shot, Theoden yells the second, "Bring it down!" Gamling now has a sword in his hand, with other people around him. (02:06:45)
Continuity mistake: While walking in Mordor, Sam yells "Frodo, get down!" and in the first wide shot Frodo turns his body towards Sauron's Eye as Sam drops down. In the next shot Sam is in the background, Frodo's arm is in the foreground and Frodo has not turned yet. Also, in the shot of him facing the Eye, Frodo's face and neck are cleaner than in the shots before and after. (02:28:55)
Answer: There are only five wizards. Saruman and Gandalf are heavily involved, as we see. Radagast, while not mentioned in the film, has a particular affinity with the birds and animals - it is he who sends the Eagles to the last battle, and to rescue Gandalf from Isengard. The final two, Alatar and Pallando, known as the Blue Wizards, went into the far eastern regions of Middle-Earth and never returned. Tolkien felt that they would ultimately have fallen from grace, much as Saruman did.
Tailkinker ★