Best drama movie character mistakes of all time

Please vote as you browse around to help the best rise to the top.

Swimfan picture

Character mistake: Right before Madison shoots the 2 police officers they show a close-up of the gun in its holster. The holster is unbuttoned. No police officer would leave his gun holster unbuttoned, especially while sitting next to a felon.

More Swimfan character mistakes
Silver Linings Playbook picture

Character mistake: At the scene at the dinner table where Pat and Tiffany meet, the prescription drug "Trazadone" is mispronounced with a long A as in "trayzadone." This a fairly common drug used for depression and as a sleep aid. Any nurse or pharmacist could tell you the correct pronunciation. Interestingly, the other lesser known drugs were pronounced correctly.

More Silver Linings Playbook character mistakes
Django Unchained picture

Character mistake: The check written by Sam Jackson says May 2, 1858. At this point in the movie, it should be 1859.

More Django Unchained character mistakes
Hanover Street picture

Character mistake: Before they jump off the plane Halloran should at least have checked if Sellinger has his parachute strapped on properly, knowing that the other guy has absolutely no experience. (01:05:55)

NancyFelix

More Hanover Street character mistakes
Unknown picture

Character mistake: When the EMTs are resuscitating Dr. Harris, they use a defibrillator despite their being on a wet metal dock. Not only is this highly dangerous to absolutely everyone present, it would be completely ineffective at restarting his heart as the water and the metal would dissipate the electric current too much for it to do any good. At the very least, they would have stabilized his spine then moved him to a dry surface before beginning defibrillation. (00:08:30 - 00:09:10)

Phixius

Upvote valid corrections to help move entries into the corrections section.

Suggested correction: External defibrillators are self grounded and so can be safely used on wet or metal surfaces. https://danboater.org/travel-health-and-safety/are-aeds-safe-to-use-in-wet-environments.html.

AEDs are indeed safe to use in wet areas - but in the film, it is not an AED that is used. AEDs are automated, and not operated by humans, so as to reduce risk. Your link explicitly states the rescuer must not have direct contact with the body: they just apply the pads, then move back. In the film, it is shown in detail that the medic applies the paddles and then operates them while still in contact with the body. The mistake stands: it's a traditional defibrillator, thus incorrectly used.

swordfish

More Unknown character mistakes
2 Fast 2 Furious picture

Character mistake: When Brian, Roman and the thugs are racing to get Verone's package, Verone does a little research on them. When he looks at Roman's folder there are a couple of shots where they show information about him. If you look closely, you can see that in the last shot they refer to him as Brian and later on as "she". They also talk about his relationship problems in the next paragraph of the same shot. (00:31:50)

More 2 Fast 2 Furious character mistakes
The Guardian picture The Guardian mistake picture

Character mistake: In the training room, after Randall is discussed as the record holder, the students are brought to attention. All but one is standing at attention, he is in the back on the right hand side, standing at ease.

Ian Hunt

More The Guardian character mistakes
Iron Man picture Iron Man mistake picture

Character mistake: There is a misspelling on the cover of the issue of Forbes magazine shown in the presentation about Stark's life. It reads "Tony Stark takes reigns at 21". The correct spelling of the word is "reins". Stark may "reign" at Stark Industries but he would take over the "reins" of the company.

More Iron Man character mistakes
Colombiana picture

Character mistake: The actor who played FBI agent Ross is Lennie James, who is an English actor. When they are searching for the girl in the parking garage of her building, he orders the SWAT team and other agents to search everywhere, under the cars and to "check the boots." He says this twice. Boot is the British term for trunk. He should be telling them to check the trunks of the cars, not the boots.

More Colombiana character mistakes
More The Imitation Game character mistakes
Awake picture

Character mistake: The endotracheal tube (breathing tube) was not secured to the patient. It is standard practice to secure this tube to the patient in order to keep it in place.

More Awake character mistakes
More Top Gun character mistakes
Apocalypse Now picture

Character mistake: After Captain Willard walks through the front door of the burnt out French plantation dock there's a close-up of Chief Phillips at the wheel the boat. He turns around and looks right at Chef and says, "Lance". (01:56:40)

????

More Apocalypse Now character mistakes
The Great Debaters picture

Character mistake: The definition of Satyagraha that Wilson, the butler at Harvard, gives is partially correct. Wilson defines it as "truth and fairness." A quick look at Wikipedia defines Satyagraha as "holding the truth." The definition from the online Merriam-Webster dictionary could be loosely described as "persistence of truth." (01:38:30)

More The Great Debaters character mistakes
The Abyss picture

Character mistake: When they're reviving Lindsey, Bud screams "fight" and slaps her. watch as she closes her eyes on the second slap while she is supposed to be dead.

korporal kool

More The Abyss character mistakes
Broadcast News picture

Character mistake: In a scene set in 1965, Aaron taunts his bullies by telling them that none of them would ever earn "over $19,000 a year." In 1965, a salary of $19,000 p.a. was the 2025 equivalent of over $195,000 p.a. Not much of an insult, Aaron! Perhaps he meant $1,900?

More Broadcast News character mistakes
A Few Good Men picture

Character mistake: Some of Colonel Jessup's ribbons are in the wrong order, and his Combat Action Ribbon is backwards.

More A Few Good Men character mistakes
Midway picture

Character mistake: When the Japanese attack is imminent, a soldier loads the 50 caliber machine gun rounds into the box backwards, with the rounds facing the gunner.

Robert F Baptista

More Midway character mistakes
An Officer and a Gentleman picture

Character mistake: When the candidates are sworn in, after Foley is thanked, he salutes and does an about face. He then steps off on his right foot. No Marine NCO would do this.

the woodchuck

More An Officer and a Gentleman character mistakes
Love Actually picture

Character mistake: When Jamie is first speaking to Aurelia, he says "molto bueno", which the housekeeper woman tells him is Spanish. 'Molto' is actually Italian. (00:38:30)

More Love Actually character mistakes