Stupidity: When he's using carbon monoxide to poison the corrupt detective Frank Masters, the windows in the car were operated by the key fob. Unusual, but OK. Maybe. But the detective could've simply opened the doors after McCaul left him in there. The door worked when he was forced into the car. (01:24:30)
Stupidity: The Chief Inspector wants the video cassette back because it shows him committing murder. Yet he spends the entire movie shooting and killing people in public trying to get Johnny and the cassette.
Stupidity: The villain has a couple dozen able men fully equipped with lights (plus vehicles, obviously), but instead of using them to run after the kid who has a minute tops head start on him and is running blindly in soaked mud fields on her little legs, he uses his manpower to clean up the road from blood, spikes and various other traces of the precise location of the shootout. Rather pointless move since the feds are gonna come anyway in the area because of the communication loss with the convoy, with a decent approximation of their position. It appears unbelievable that he would have his priorities so wrong and just leave the girl to run free like that.
Stupidity: Stephanie empties Emily's large closet, but when she comes back with the movers, lo and behold, all of the dead person's belongings are back. They are back though exactly as they were with superhuman inch-perfect precision. Since this movie does not have a supernatural element, that appears really silly. (01:00:30)
Stupidity: Dr. Cocteau's choice to unleash an enhanced Simon Phoenix without any way to restrain him is incredibly reckless and stupid. Even if Simon were to kill Eager Friendly, in the best case situation, you'd still have a madman with total computer access, martial arts knowledge, etc., that you would have no way to rein in. Sure, he can't kill Dr. Cocteau, but what would stop him from say, holding the city hostage or something? Why not add in a kill code or something to keep him in check?
Suggested correction: Who says he didn't? Cocteau has put in mental conditioning compelling Phoenix to kill Edgar Friendly and make him unable to kill Cocteau. Who says he hasn't put in something that makes him kill himself after the deed is done? Or perhaps paralyze him so he can be put back on ice. It's just that Cocteau didn't count on the fact that his henchmen could kill him. He doesn't care about how dangerous he is, not until he has done the deed.
Dr. Cocteau is a narcissistic egomaniac type that would see himself as a king or a god, even. And Simon is making him very angry. He even tells Simon, "you're beginning to be more trouble than you're worth..." Someone with an ego like Cocteau wouldn't stand for Simon's antics for very long. And would happily enjoy putting Simon back in his place by shocking, paralyzing, etc.
But he first needs him to kill Friendly. Until he does that, he'll let him play. He still sees no danger to himself.
Stupidity: At the start, when the bank robbers pile into the car, Frank flips a switch and the licence plate changes...out in full view of the public. Given how well-prepared Frank is demonstrated to be, that's absolutely something he would have done in private, before arriving at the bank.
Suggested correction: The plate is changed after the robbery for a reason. By allowing plate A to be seen during the robbery the information will be relayed to the police that a car with registration plate A is involved. Swapping to plate B after the robbery ensures that police will see plate B and know that the car is not involved.
But the point is he drives up to the bank with plate A on display. The robbers pile in and he switches to plate B. So any witnesses have seen both plates (plus the fact that the car switched plates, doubly suspicious). Whereas if he'd switched to plate B while out of view in the car park, he'd still have a "clean" plate to use.
Stupidity: Angela ran over to her neighbor Mr. Charlie when she heard him come home. Angela was complaining that his son and friends make too much noise, do whatever the want, are bringing property values down, act wild/crazy, draw attention to everybody, and she doesn't want the police coming. These may be legitimate complaints, but the way Angela expressed them would bring down property values! Not only was she yelling in the street, she used "m-f-ing" several times, as well as other select words. (00:02:35 - 00:03:07)
Stupidity: There is no logical reason for a bookkeeper to be present at the liquor deal on the Canadian border and even less of a reason for him to bring the primary ledger with him. This is compounded by the fact this is merely a secondary bookkeeper and the main bookkeeper is subsequently subpoenaed by the district attorney.
Stupidity: Given Louise's character, it makes no sense at all for her to leave Thelma in charge of the money. She's known Thelma for years, and knows fully well how flaky Thelma is. And Louise is shown as a person who lives by "If you want something right, you've gotta do it yourself". She's responsible, perhaps even uptight, at that point in the movie. So it defies everything about her character that she would let Thelma guard the money - it smells like a device set up just to allow the money to be stolen.
Stupidity: After Jack is found not guilty, you would think the first thing he would do is to get rid of the typewriter he used to send the notes to Teddy to manipulate her into winning the case for him, especially when she is sleeping with him at his home. Not to even mention the fact he hid the typewriter in an unsecure manner in a closet behind a stack of towels, a place where it would very easily be found. This foolish mistake exposed the truth to Teddy and cost him his "freedom."
Stupidity: Instead of breaking into Gordo's house, covering all the furniture in one room with sheets/thin blankets, and waiting for Gordo to return home in order to kill him via a "dramatic re-enactment" (in an adjacent room which was not shown to the audience), Bill could have taken Gordo anywhere to avoid getting caught or calling the police on himself. Had Bill taken Gordo to his already-"wrapped" motel room, he had enough injuries after the fight to claim self-defense against an intruder. (01:43:20)
Stupidity: Rick tries to kill Frank at his boathouse by dumping gasoline all over the place and using Ray Coleman's lighter that Frank had. At this point, Rick has gasoline over his arm, but instead of properly cleaning it, he opens the lighter immediately and has his arm burned. Surely a criminal genius like Rick wouldn't have risked this as this is a loose end. Further mention goes to when he has the bathroom door open for no reason while medicating the burn mark, which enables his wife to see him and discover who he really is.
Stupidity: The end fell apart. It took convincing to get the police at the picnic area; however, while Jack was cracking up, they just left alone with his gun. After the stakeout was a bust, why didn't the police just question the girl: "Who told you to come here? Who was to meet you here?" Also, they police see a smashed black station-wagon. Was there no connection to the previous child's drawing?
Stupidity: Molly was being hunted and didn't know if she could trust Rayburn when he encountered her. Rayburn told Molly that he wanted to help, wouldn't hurt her, put a blanket around her, and even carried her in the woods for some distance. When he put her on the ground (along with his backpack and rifle) to go find the rope to open the pitfall doors and had his back turned, Molly got out from under the blanket and hid nearby. Rayburn quickly found Molly, and Molly made a lame attempt at attacking him with some kind of club. The next day when Rayburn and Molly were in Rayburn's house and her hunter showed up and attacked Rayburn, Molly grabbed Rayburn's rifle and fired several shots at the hunter. Molly obviously knew how to use a rifle, so it was asinine for her to have hidden from Rayburn the previously night without taking his rifle (or the blanket). (00:36:22)
Stupidity: At the end Vince fires a grappling hook at the passenger seat of the truck then attaches the other end to himself, all the truck driver has to do now is hit the brakes and Vince would be dead under the truck or dragged along the road.
Suggested correction: In point of fact, the truck driver does slam on his brakes; but, defying physics, Vince is catapulted around the right side of the truck to the passenger door.
Stupidity: In the bar scene, Jack gets into a fight with a guy he busted a few years back, then Reggie turns to the bartender and asks for a gun. The bartender hardly hesitates and hands it over. There is just simply no scenario where a bartender would hand a loaded gun to a patron they had just met.
Stupidity: Just after Ricky has beaten up Tarzan, the warden has the ceiling of the cell Ricky is trapped in lowered in an attempt to crush him. However, earlier in the scene, Tarzan made a huge hole in the wall of the cell to get into it. The hole in the wall is even visible in the background when the ceiling begins to lower. Ricky could have simply run out of the hole in the wall to get out, rather than try to hold the ceiling up with his bare hands. (01:02:48)