Best sci-fi movie factual errors of 1996

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Independence Day picture

Factual error: There is a shot of the Imperial Valley at night with the edges of the Los Angeles destroyer spinning over the mountains. The center of the destroyer is hovering over downtown LA. Imperial Valley is over 200 miles away from downtown LA, and the destroyer is no more than 20 miles in diameter. There would be no way the edges of the destroyer would extend far enough to be seen from Imperial Valley as shown unless it was over 100 miles in radius. The ship does not even hover over Steven Hiller's house which is in LA, it can nearly be seen whole from there. The destroyer would be obscured by the mountains and from 200 miles it would appear much smaller.

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Star Trek: First Contact picture Star Trek: First Contact mistake picture

Factual error: In the scene where Picard opens a viewing port and shows Lilly that she is in a starship orbiting Earth he shows her New Guinea and Australia. New Zealand is missing. (00:42:45)

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Suggested correction: Actually when you look at Australia and New Zealand from orbit, New Zealand is a lot further away from Australia then shown on a map, also a lot more south of Australia. A map is a 2D image of a sphere, causing proportions to be off (its well known Africa is a lot smaller on maps than it is in real life). Especially the further south or north you go distances are way off. The depiction shown in the movie is actually correct, in that angle New Zealand is just outside of the frame. There are plenty of pictures from orbit to compare.

lionhead

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Mars Attacks! picture Mars Attacks! mistake picture

Factual error: Casey arrives at the desert landing in a jeep that is flagged with 4 stars (for a 4 star general) although he is only a 3 star general (as evident by the 3 stars on his shoulder boards). (00:33:30 - 00:35:25)

apcall

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Hellraiser: Bloodline picture

Factual error: A vinyl knife is present among other tools of torture during the 1700's sequence, but vinyl flooring did not come into the commercial market until the mid twentieth century.

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Escape From L.A. picture

Factual error: From the range that Snake fired his clip full of blanks at Malloy and his aide, they still would have been burned by the muzzle blasts and quite possibly deafened by the noise. They assuredly wouldn't have stood there smirking. (00:20:15)

Rooster of Doom

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Tremors 2 picture

Factual error: As Burt is driving, he is producing a video diary. He indicates it is 1900 hours (7PM) on May 14th, and yet it is pitch black outside. Nowhere in Mexico would the sun have set by 7pm in May.

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Barb Wire picture

Factual error: When Barb kills the Directorate colonel at the end, she pulls the hook release on the crane. We don't see the hook come off when it falls.

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The Arrival picture

Factual error: At the Oro Array, the breakers are turned off because the power is cut. When the alien cuts the cables to the computers, sparks fly out as if there is power.

manthabeat

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