Movie and TV Mistakes

Films, TV shows, and books of the 'modern' era
User avatar
movieman1957
Administrator
Posts: 5522
Joined: April 15th, 2007, 3:50 pm
Location: MD

Movie and TV Mistakes

Post by movieman1957 »

You ever see a mistake in a movie that was so obvious that you can't believe it got by someone?

Watching a "Rockford Files" episode I noticed during one car chase he was driving a 1973 (or so) Lincoln Town Car. Big, square land yacht with hideaway headlights. As the car was getting ready to go down a hillside in a crash the car was changed to an older and differnt model Lincoln. The most obvious was the substitue car had round headlights that weren't hideaway and was differently shaped that it only resemblance wasa the car was black.

I don't hink anyone would have to know anything about cars to have noticed the difference.

Any others?
Chris

"Time flies like an arrow, fruit flies like a banana."
User avatar
knitwit45
Posts: 4689
Joined: May 4th, 2007, 9:33 pm
Location: Gardner, KS

Post by knitwit45 »

My absolute favorite goof in a movie is in "A Christmas Carol" with Alistair Sim. When he wakes up and realizes he hasn't missed Christmas, he rushes to the window and shouts down to a little boy. He then turns and looks in a mirror to begin his morning "ablutions". There is a stage hand reflected in the mirror, who watches the entire scene without moving. It is so very clear, and it makes you wonder if the cost to re-shoot the scene was the overriding factor in leaving it in the finished film.

Love to find those movie goofs, thanks Chris for starting this thread!

Nancy
"Life is not the way it's supposed to be.. It's the way it is..
The way we cope with it, is what makes the difference." ~ Virginia Satir
""Most people pursue pleasure with such breathless haste that they hurry past it." ~ Soren Kierkegaard
User avatar
MissGoddess
Posts: 5072
Joined: April 17th, 2007, 10:01 am
Contact:

Post by MissGoddess »

Oh this will be a fun one, Chris. I look forward to all the responses, especially since I am the most oblivious person when it comes to noticing things like that. I'm going to try to think of one and get back to you.
"There's only one thing that can kill the movies, and that's education."
-- Will Rogers
User avatar
srowley75
Posts: 723
Joined: April 22nd, 2008, 11:04 am
Location: West Virginia

Post by srowley75 »

Not that the film in question will be to everyone's tastes, but...

Boom mike mistakes occur frequently in many types of TV shows and movies (in fact, I saw one just last night in a DYNASTY episode). But one film that's famous for its many gaffes is the 1983 Linda Blair WIP drama Chained Heat. And while in some scenes the mike itself doesn't appear, you instead see shadows moving across the background of the set.

-Stephen
Last edited by srowley75 on December 11th, 2008, 3:06 pm, edited 1 time in total.
jdb1

Post by jdb1 »

There was the much-publicized instance several years ago where the opening sequence for the NBC news showed the Earth rotating in the wrong direction.

I'm always struck by how many TV programs supposedly set in the Prairie States show outdoor shots of high mountains and/or palm trees.

One thing that really set my teeth on edge was an episode of 90210, which I normally would never bother to look at, but I happened on this one, and heard two of the pricipals, Shannen Doherty and Luke Perry, I think it was, discussing poetry (really) and in particular that decadent French poet "RIM-Bawd." I can only assume they were talking about the 19th Century poet Arthur Rimbaud, whose last name is pronounced "Ram-Beau."

I'm still not clear on whether or not they were supposed to be kidding, but because of the earnestness of the discussion, I had the impression they were not. I was waiting for them to start talking about 19th Century French music, and that great French composer, Fred Choppin.
User avatar
movieman1957
Administrator
Posts: 5522
Joined: April 15th, 2007, 3:50 pm
Location: MD

Post by movieman1957 »

Judith:

That is one of my pet peeves too. Matt Dillon was always in those Kansas mountains.

Last week I watched "They Died With Their Boots On" and the Civil War battle at Manassas that was staged was shot somehwere that didn't look anything like Manassas.
Chris

"Time flies like an arrow, fruit flies like a banana."
jdb1

Post by jdb1 »

movieman1957 wrote:Judith:

That is one of my pet peeves too. Matt Dillon was always in those Kansas mountains.
I've always thought that the surroundings on Little House on the Prairie looked suspiciously like the Ponderosa, Virginia City and environs.
User avatar
knitwit45
Posts: 4689
Joined: May 4th, 2007, 9:33 pm
Location: Gardner, KS

Post by knitwit45 »

shucks, we've got mountains....they're just so old they've flattened out.....
"Life is not the way it's supposed to be.. It's the way it is..
The way we cope with it, is what makes the difference." ~ Virginia Satir
""Most people pursue pleasure with such breathless haste that they hurry past it." ~ Soren Kierkegaard
klondike

Post by klondike »

This one always smarts, for me; ain't that it's a great film, just that the two guys are among my all-time faves, & real life chums.

Track of The Cat:
Nasty, selfish rancher Curtis Bridges (Bob Mitchum) finds the mutilated body of his brother Arthur (William Hopper); after a quick tearful embrace, he swears vengeance, shrouds his brother, then lashes the body across his saddle, and dispatches the horse for home; after Curtis leads his pack horse away, the camera dwells on the funeral horse cantering away through the wintry, twilit foothills, until, just before passing out of frame, Arthur's blanketed body unmistakably slides off the headed-for-home steed, landing heavily on the snowy ground.
Several scenes later, we witness youngest brother Harold (Tab Hunter) discovering the newly returned horse in the ranch's barnyard . . with his big brother's body right back up where Curtis had originally roped it across the saddle.
Now, either that was one immensely talented cow pony, or a distracted, over-worked film editor was in bad need of one more cup of coffee!
melwalton
Posts: 503
Joined: October 14th, 2007, 5:58 pm

gaffes

Post by melwalton »

This is hard to believe but I swear it's true. Long time ago a tv program showed a baseball story where the New York Yankees first baseman, wearing number 4, batted right handed. Honest.

The movies still don't know that when you click a phone it breaks the connection. .... mel

Go,Giants, but stay away from those pesky EAGLES;
User avatar
mrsl
Posts: 4200
Joined: April 14th, 2007, 5:20 pm
Location: Chicago SW suburbs

Post by mrsl »

Melwalton:

Many years ago my girlfriend called me, I answered in the bedroom but told her to hold on while I went to the kitchen, so I hung up the phone. When I got to the kitchen and picked up the phone, she was right there waiting. If I had called her, I could not have done that. You are right that H'wood still disconnects when anybody hangs up. It's one more thing that seems like the studios are laughing at you.

Now, however, Ms. Robin Williams - long ago I watched a Williams stand up routine and had no idea what he was talking about. Most of his routine is inside jokes about L.A. and if you're not from there, his jokes were wasted. So tell me, why is it so hard to believe a TV program showed a baseball story where the New York Yankees first baseman, wearing number 4, batted right handed. Honest. I assume it must be a well known player, but since I'm a Cubs fan, I never see the Yankees play.

I love to watch the levels of drinks go up and down, or the lengths of cigarettes.

Anne
Anne


***********************************************************************
* * * * * * * * What is past is prologue. * * * * * * * *

]***********************************************************************
User avatar
mrsl
Posts: 4200
Joined: April 14th, 2007, 5:20 pm
Location: Chicago SW suburbs

Post by mrsl »

Will somebody please answer my question? I was seriously asking - I have no idea who the man is and it's driving me nuts - but that's not a drive, it's a short putt.

. . . why is it so hard to believe a TV program showed a baseball story where the New York Yankees first baseman, wearing number 4, batted right handed?

Honest. I assume it must be a well known player, but since I'm a Cubs fan, I never see the Yankees play.

Anne
Anne


***********************************************************************
* * * * * * * * What is past is prologue. * * * * * * * *

]***********************************************************************
markfp
Posts: 238
Joined: August 29th, 2007, 12:01 am
Location: Syracuse, New York

Post by markfp »

I enjoy catching these things . A favorite was in one of those Italian "sword and sandal" epics that were popular in the 1960s. The Roman officer was getting off his horse and it was very obvious that he was wearing a wristwatch.

Another one I chuckle at is an episode of M*A*S*H where Radar is talking about the night's movie being GODZILLA. Of course that wasn't possible since the Korean war ended two years before that film was made.

Then one I've seen in a number of "B" westerns, where the posse or indians or whoever are riding towards the camera and you can see the tire tracks of the camera car in front of them.

Most of these things get by either because it's too costly to reshoot the scene or in the case of tv shows, production schedules are so tight there
isn't time.

I gotta go and check A CHRISTMAS CAROL, maybe that was actually a fourth ghost.
Hollis
Posts: 687
Joined: April 15th, 2007, 4:38 pm

Post by Hollis »

Hi all,

Doesn't anyone remember the stagehand caught in the forest in the background in "The Wizard of Oz?" If memory serves it was just after Dorothy met the Scarecrow and the two of them headed down the yellow brick road. The funny thing is that it's so darned easy to see him.The editor must have been asleep at the wheel!

As always,

Hollis
Hollis
Posts: 687
Joined: April 15th, 2007, 4:38 pm

Post by Hollis »

Anne,

Lou Gehrig was number 4 for the Yankees and was in fact a leftie. He was the real "Iron Man", not Cal Ripken, who played to maintain his streak even when he was unproductive and hurting his team, the Baltimore Orioles. Sorry to hear you're a Cubs fan. Those "Lovable Losers!" My Phillies happen to be the World Series Champions! But you do have Wrigley Field and Waveland Avenue. Something is better than nothing!

Hey Mel, can you say EAGLES 20, Giants 14? it's in the book!

As always, Hollis
Post Reply