Continuity mistake: When Amelia takes the "Sorry Phone Out of Order" sticker and sticks it to Viktor's shirt, it changes position in subsequent shots. She stuck it to his shirt with the sticker centered on the buttons of his shirt. In the next shot, the sticker is has the edge of the sticker over the buttons of the shirt and is not totally stuck to his shirt. After he saves her from falling on the wet floor, the sticker is once again centered and totally stuck to his shirt. (00:48:45)
Continuity mistake: When Viktor and Amelia are talking about Napoleon in Border's Viktor is cleaning her glasses. He hands them back to her and she takes them with her right hand. A split second later in the next shot she has the glasses in her left hand and is grabbing them with her right hand. She did not have time to move them to her left hand after grabbing them. (01:02:20)
Plot hole: The Russian with the goat medicine is transferring flights from Toronto. The likelihood that he would be doing that rather than flying into Russia directly from Canada is pretty slim. However, assuming he did, there are two major errors with this scenario. First, U.S. customs is cleared in Pearson Airport in Toronto so he would not be dealing with Dixon at all in New York. Secondly, it's unlikely he would be dealing with customs at all, as it would place all transferring passengers in a holding area and send them on their plane with no opportunity to go anywhere except onto the other planes. While the U.S. reserves the right to interrogate anyone entering the U.S., the fact is it would transfer him out as quickly as possible. (01:07:15)
Suggested correction: When the movie was made, there were no direct flights to Russia from Canada. Even today, most flights change planes in either Frankfurt, London, Helsinki, etc. There are cheaper flights originating or connecting in the US, so it is very likely he that he would travel to New York to get a direct flight to Moscow. When I travel to Russia, it is cheaper for me to get a flight to Seattle, and fly directly to Moscow, than to fly out of Canada and transfer planes in Europe. Since 911, ALL passengers travelling through the US must clear customs in the US even if only transferring flights. All passengers must deplane, and all luggage is removed from the plane, checked, and loaded again. If the Russian has goat medicine in his luggage, the FDA would definitely be interested in why he has it, and what for.
This is incorrect. You only have to clear customs on a US layover if your final destination is in the US. If your point of origin and the destination are outside the US and you just have a layover in the US you just need to go through the regular transit formalities not customs.
No, you are incorrect. I've done it many times. Post 9/11, if you use the US as transit point between two countries you need to clear immigration and customs. Moreover, you need a visa (or visa waiver).
Visible crew/equipment: This mistake occurs in the scene with the crazy Russian medicine guy. In the last 3 over-the-shoulder shots of the Russian out of 4, you can see the shadow of various filming equipment on the left side of his shirt. (01:08:50 - 01:10:10)
Continuity mistake: When Viktor is asked to translate for the Russian man, he is holding the pills at one point while standing in the doorway. In shots from his left, he is holding three cases of pills in his left hand and one in his right. In shots from his right, he is holding two in each hand. This change happens several times. (01:10:20)
Continuity mistake: Right before the Russian starts begging Dixon, we see his arms and hands at his side. In the shot right after that, his hands are touching together in a praying form. There is no time for change. (01:10:25)
Continuity mistake: When Viktor explains to Dixon that he mistranslated the Russian guy, he is holding the pills and smiling. In the shot right after that, when Viktor is in the background, he is not smiling, and his hands have changed positions slightly. (01:11:55)
Visible crew/equipment: When Viktor is in Dixon's office with the stuffed fish, you can see the reflection of a crew member on the window behind him. (01:16:15)
Deliberate mistake: When Viktor is window shopping for a suit to wear on his date with Amelia, he aligns his head with the reflection on the glass to see how he would look in the suit, however, this is the view that the camera (shooting from an angle) has of him, his own view would not match up his head to the suit, it would be off to one side. Also, when he moves from the first suit to the second, he looks down to the floor, this would be to stand on a pre-placed marker which would align his head with the suit. (01:19:40)
Continuity mistake: When Amelia and Viktor are having dinner, Amelia gets three pages on her beeper. On the first page she opens her purse, looks at the page she just got puts the beeper back and snaps her purse shut with the purse sitting straight up. On her second page, her purse is laying down, open so you can see her beeper. She didn't move the purse or open it from the time she closed it, after the first page. (01:25:45 - 01:26:55)
Continuity mistake: When Viktor and Amelia are having dinner in the terminal, Enrique fills her glass very full. However, in the shots with only Amelia, the wine level changes to be significantly lower, though she never touches the glass. (01:26:00)
Factual error: When Viktor tells the story of his father collecting the jazz musicians' signatures, he shows an old Hungarian newspaper clipping with Cyrillic text. Hungarian uses the Latin alphabet and not the Cyrillic. (01:38:25)
Continuity mistake: When Viktor and his friends are celebrating the end of the war in a lounge, Amelia comes in and hands him a large envelope. In the next shot, they walk over to the bar and she hands it to him again. (01:43:05)
Factual error: Among the cabs seen at the airport when Victor exits the terminal are an early 1980s Chevrolet Caprice and a late 1980s Ford LTD Crown Victoria. In 1996 New York City passed a law requiring taxicabs to be less than six years old, therefore neither of those two cars would be in active service in 2004. (01:51:05)
Continuity mistake: As Gupta runs up to the airplane near the end, the mop changes from across his body to pointing in front of him between shots. There is no elapsed time in which to do this. (01:51:20)
Continuity mistake: Towards the end of the film when Gupta walks out onto the runway, you see Dixon sitting in front of the CCTV screens. He is seen raising his head to realise what is happening from two different angles in quick succession, never lowering his head back down in between. (01:51:25)
Continuity mistake: When everybody in the airport is saying goodbye to Viktor before he steps into New York, one shot shows Dolores and Enrique with their arms around each other. But in the next shot, Dolores is walking towards Enrique and then they put their arms around each other. (01:55:00)
Factual error: When Viktor finally leaves the airport, there is a very nice shot of the NYC skyline. Unfortunately, you cannot see the NYC skyline from JFK airport, much less midtown. (01:55:40)
Factual error: Novorski buys a small hamburger at Burger King for 74 cents. Airport fast food restaurant menus are priced higher than restaurants in the city. Even if a dollar menu was available (usually not at airport locations), you can't get a burger at an airport for 74 cents.
Continuity mistake: In the scene towards the end where Gupta stops the plane, it's clear and sunny. At this point, Viktor immediately starts walking down towards the exit. By the time he makes it, it's snowing, and it looks as if it had been for some time.
