The Court Jester (1955)

2 deliberate mistakes - chronological order

★★★☆☆

Directed by: Melvin Frank, Norman Panama

Starring: Angela Lansbury, Basil Rathbone, Cecil Parker, Danny Kaye, Glynis Johns

Genres: Adventure, Comedy, Family, Musical

Deliberate mistake: Foils, rapiers and other fencing weapons did not appear before around the 16th/17th century, yet the main characters (in an approximate 8th to 10th century setting) use them extensively. I know that back in the days when the movie was made, the swashbuckling genre was quite popular, but it still is a reality error.

Deliberate mistake: When Hawkins mocks Ravenhurst by pouring himself some wine and then drinking it while fending off Ravenhurst's, Danny Kaye repeatedly uses the same fencing movements.

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Mistakes

Other mistake: Before the joust, Griselda tells Hawkins that she has put a pellet of poison in the vessel with the pestle; the chalice from the palace remains unpoisoned. Later, she tells him that the chalice has been broken, and replaced with a flagon with the dragon, in which she has put a pellet of poison. Both cups are poisoned.

Cubs Fan ★

Upvote valid corrections to help move entries into the corrections section.

Suggested correction: That might be a deliberate joke by the filmmakers, a reflection of just how far the confusion had gone.

dizzyd

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Quotes

Princess Gwendolyn: Marry Griswold? Never.
King Roderick: What was that?
Princess Gwendolyn: He's a brute and a lout.
King Roderick: Brute or not, lout or not, if it pleases me you will marry Griswold.
Princess Gwendolyn: If it pleases you so much, you marry Griswold.

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Trivia

Trivia: For the rest of his life, according to his daughter Dena, if someone recognized Danny Kaye in public, they would approach him and recite the film's "pellet with the poison" rhyme.

Cubs Fan ★

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Questions

Question: When Griswald knocks the helmet off Hawkins and it appears his head is knocked off, you can actually see a face in the helmet on the ground. But why? Hawkins is supposed to be hiding his head in the armor. So why did the filmmaker put a face in the helmet after it was knocked off?

Answer: I watched the clip on YouTube, stopping and rewinding it, but I cannot see what looks like a face inside the helmet. Maybe it's just the way light and shadows are reflecting on the metal.

raywest ★

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