The Dirty Dozen

Plot hole: When the Major and Wadislav walk up the stairs in the German mansion they are met by a pair of German officers who say something to them. Wadislav then tells the Major that he couldn't understand a word they said. What they actually said was 'Nice weather, wouldn't you agree?' Wouldn't you think that a man who speaks German well enough to convince the guards in a German HQ would understand such a simple phrase? Wadislav was chosen specifically for his ability to speak some German.

Factual error: The raid on the chateau takes place during the evening before the D-Day landings, in Rennes in Brittany, almost exactly halfway between Cherbourg and the Normandy beaches - both thought highly likely to be the site of the Allied landings. On the evening before the landings - the night of the raid - the area was heavily bombed by the RAF and dummy parachutists and radar-jamming devices were dropped into key areas, many close to Rennes itself. One dummy parachute drop succeeded in drawing an entire German infantry regiment away from its position just six miles from the Normandy landing beaches! The Germans knew something was happening and the landings were imminent - they just didn't know exactly where they would happen. Given all of this it is absurd to think that so many high ranking German officers would be enjoying themselves in a glorified brothel. They would be with their units preparing a counterattack, or at the very least on their way back.

More mistakes in The Dirty Dozen

Samson Posey: I reckon the folks'd be a sight happier if I died like a soldier. Can't say I would.

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Trivia: Not really a mistake, given the need for drama in a war film, but the mission takes place the evening before D-Day, meaning the Allies had complete air supremacy, and knew the exact time, date and place of the meeting of the German officers, this mission would never have taken place. The brightly lit chateau would have been flattened by a squadron of heavy bombers. Lee Marvin, an experienced combat veteran, pointed this out to the producers and was told to keep his opinions to himself.

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Question: What are the small tubes that are collected in Colonel Breed's H.Q.? General Warden seems to figure out who they are.

Answer: Detonators for explosives.

stiiggy

Answer: Rifle firing pins?

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