Continuity: When the drug tester gets done with testing the heroin, he blows out the lit candle on the bottom. But when there is a far shot of him talking, the candle is still burning.
Great sites
Mistakes
When Popeye's being shot at by the sniper, he's hiding behind a tree and rolls towards a wall that's relatively well-lit by sunshine. The angle changes and it's now completely in shadow. See more...
Trivia
The casting of Fernando Rey was an accident. William Friedkin had wanted to cast Francisco Rabal, whom he had seen in Belle de jour (1967), but at the time didn't know his name. Only after actor and director met did Friedkin realize Rey wasn't the actor he had wanted. Friedkin ended up keeping Rey after learning that Rabal spoke neither English nor French. See more...
The French Connection (1971)
Directed by William Friedkin, starring Gene Hackman, Roy Scheider (add more)
The French Connection mistakes
Continuity: During the car chase scene under the "B" Elevated Train in Brooklyn (86th St.), Popeye passes the same curve at least 3 or 4 times. Look closely, you'll probably see the same movie theatre over and over again. Apparently, they rerun the same chase clip to increase the length of this scene.
Factual error: The "B" train which he is chasing normally runs on the right most track (there are 3 tracks on this particular line). The middle one is never used except for out of service trains. Most of the train stations on that line service the right or left track, not the middle one.
The French Connection trivia
Eddie Egan, the real police detective who inspired the character Popeye Doyle, plays Doyle's superior in the movie.
The casting of Fernando Rey was an accident. William Friedkin had wanted to cast Francisco Rabal, whom he had seen in Belle de jour (1967), but at the time didn't know his name. Only after actor and director met did Friedkin realize Rey wasn't the actor he had wanted. Friedkin ended up keeping Rey after learning that Rabal spoke neither English nor French.
During the subway chase scene Hackman collides with another vehicle. This wasn't supposed to happen and the vehicle wasn't even supposed to be on the set. The crash looked cool, so it was kept.