War of the Worlds

Continuity mistake: When the asphalt quakes in front of the church in the overhead shot, just as the huge gush of water shoots up from the ground, in the foreground a person is leaning way out their window aghast at the goings on. In the next shot that person is gone and the window is shut. (00:22:45)

Super Grover

Continuity mistake: When the intersection moves, a van is parked five feet away. When the intersection is destroyed forming a hole, the van is parked closer to the hole, allowing it to be thrown in. (00:23:10)

rockmandrum

Continuity mistake: After the tripod appears from the hole in the ground, it bellows and pulls out its rays. In the next shot in the window's reflection, the tripod is seen pulling it out again. (00:26:00)

rockmandrum

Continuity mistake: When Ray looks at the tripod, he stands beside a car that's plain and labeled Maxium. But when Ray runs away, that car is now covered with droplets of water. (00:26:05)

rockmandrum

War of the Worlds mistake picture

Continuity mistake: When Ray steals the van and speeds away there is a registration sticker at the corner of the windshield, on the driver's side. The sticker is gone when Ray starts shouting, "You saw! We're under attack!" when they're on the freeway. (00:30:10 - 00:32:15)

Super Grover

Continuity mistake: When Ray steals the van the front windshield is dirty and has water spots all over. Then in the following shots, it alternates between being entirely clean, or clean only in the area that wipers swipe clean. (00:30:10)

Super Grover

Continuity mistake: In the van, when Ray says to Manny "Get in, or you're gonna die," the next shot shows Rachel's face with tears in her eyes saying "What do you mean?" with a very distressed look. In next shot from the left side of the van, you can see Rachel on the right side of the screen with a different expression on her face, looking more calm, yet, in the next shot the look on her face is distressed with the look of crying again. (00:31:00)

Continuity mistake: When Ray is taking the van he's having a heated exchange with Manny, and Robbie's window is closed. However, just as Ray anxiously speeds away Robbie's window is wide open, for the dramatic close-up on Robbie's side view mirror, showing Manny's vaporizing demise, and when Robbie ducks his window is closed again. (00:31:10)

Super Grover

Continuity mistake: As Ray speeds away when Manny's shop blows up, Robbie shouts, "Holy s**t!!" and ducks. The rearview mirror on the van's windshield, in this close-up, is entirely different to the one seen a few shots later, when they're on the freeway. The mirror changes yet again later. (00:31:30 - 00:32:15)

Super Grover

Continuity mistake: In the exterior shot of Mary Ann's house, there are three large windows of the same size over the front door, and large bay widows on both sides of the door. In the interior shot, when Ray remarks, "They're never here," the window over the door is visible and it is one large center window with very small windows on each side. In the dining room there are two windows with wall in between, certainly not a large bay window. (Additionally, in the living room there is a fireplace, where there were two windows in the exterior shot - but some could say that those windows were boarded up and a fireplace was built in front of it.) (00:34:30)

Super Grover

Continuity mistake: When Ray, Robbie and Rachel arrive at Mary Ann's house, as the kids shout for their mom and Tim, the door to the basement under the stairs, as well as the den further up (beside the kitchen), are all perfectly visible. Later, after the house is destroyed, when Ray walks through the basement doorway, the walls, moldings, and so on are entirely different, and now there is an extra wall (perpendicular to the camera) to the left (viewer's) where there was none before. (00:35:10 - 00:41:40)

Super Grover

Continuity mistake: Ray places the box of groceries down on the island counter in Mary Ann's kitchen. In the following shots the box (and goods inside), ceramic pitcher with utensils, tray of napkins, peanut butter, bread and bag, repeatedly, and very noticeably, change positions. (00:35:50)

Super Grover

Continuity mistake: When Ray empties the bag of bread, nine of its slices fall out, and he drops the plastic bag (the rest don't fall out). In the next shot there are seven slices total (not nine), and Ray tosses one of them near the box, since he needs only six. But a few shots later two slices appear near the box, together with the six that Ray uses to prepare for sandwiches, totaling eight. (00:36:25)

Super Grover

Continuity mistake: When Ray throws the bread with peanut butter at the window it lands dead center. However, in the next close-up it's off to the side of the glass, in order for Ray's and Rachel's reflections to be seen clearly. The slice of bread differs as well. (00:37:15)

Super Grover

Continuity mistake: In Mary Ann's basement, when Ray and Robbie are looking out the small window, as the aliens begin their attack, Rachel runs over and Robbie hugs her tightly. However, in the next shot of Robbie and Ray, Rachel is gone, yet in the very next close-up Robbie is still hugging Rachel. (The shot of Ray and Robbie without Rachel is cut from a previous shot, before she runs to them.) (00:39:30)

Super Grover

Continuity mistake: As Mary Ann's house shakes during the alien attack, when Ray shouts, "Where do we go? Robbie, this is your house. Where do we go?" Robbie is hugging Rachel. In this shot Rachel's hair is extremely curly, whereas in previous and following shots it's barely even wavy. (Most likely she's the body double.) (00:40:15)

Super Grover

Continuity mistake: When Ray and the kids are hiding out in the mom's basement, they take cover in a small utility room that goes pitch black when Ray shuts the door - even though there are windows above the girl's head that emit light before he shuts the door and after he opens it to leave. (00:40:35)

Kristal

Continuity mistake: When Ray heads upstairs from Mary Ann's wrecked basement, there is a mess beside the stairs. However, in the next shot looking down, there's no mess near the stairs, furniture differs, and now there's a wicker hamper that appears out of nowhere. (00:41:35)

Super Grover

Continuity mistake: When the ferry casts off in the wideshot, there are only six people hanging off the outer edge of the ramp as it's being raised. When Robbie and another gentleman help these people over, in the close-up one of them wears tan pants, a long blue coat and knit hat, but this person was not amongst the six in the previous shot. (01:01:55)

Super Grover

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Trivia: When a group of aliens are exploring in the cellar, one of them spins the wheel of an overturned bicycle, and all are startled when the bicycle falls, making for a moment of comic relief. There's more to it, though. The H.G.Wells book mentions that the aliens probably had no concept of the wheel, as not a single rotating part was found inside the captured tripods. So an upside-down bicycle must have puzzled them a great deal.

More trivia for War of the Worlds

Question: I'm still a bit confused on the tripods' actual height. I can't find it anywhere and I just wanted to make sure how tall the tripods are. Preferably in meters but any measurement is fine.

Answer: They're reported to be about 100 feet tall.

Which is about 30.5 meters.

lionhead

They definitely seemed a lot taller than 100ft in the movies though that's for sure. I would have guessed maybe a few hundred feet.

Answer: In this film, their height is about 150 feet.

Bishop73

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