Best drama movie factual errors of 2012

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Flight picture

Factual error: Whenever the fire extinguisher is activated for a jet engine, that engine becomes inoperable. In the movie, the co-pilot first activates the extinguisher for the left engine, and 30 seconds later, for the right engine. At that point, both engines should be shut down. However, the engines are still operating (and revving up) and Whitaker even asks Margaret to apply full power, which is also audible. (00:23:00)

NoDouty

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Argo picture

Factual error: It's mentioned that the British and New Zealanders turned the Americans away. This is untrue - the Americans stayed with both for a time until it was decided that they would be safer with the Canadians.

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Red Tails picture

Factual error: The German fighters depicted in the film are Messerchmitt Bf 109 G-6s, and every single one of them is using the Rüstsatz VI gun pod, that is, 2 extra 20mm Mg 151 cannons. The Luftwaffe only equipped their Bf 109s with the gun pods when they were going to intercept bombers. In this movie, even on the fighter vs fighter missions, they have these gun pods, which is inaccurate, because the gun pods dramatically reduced the turning performance of the Bf 109s.

André Vinícius

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Django Unchained picture

Factual error: Dr Schultz pays with 12 $1000 bills, but $1000 bills were not created until 1861, after the time period of this movie.

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The Impossible picture

Factual error: When Henry uses someone's mobile to call home, which would be overseas, he only presses about 4 numbers, when he should have had to press about 10.

kh1616

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The Woman in Black picture

Factual error: In the scene where Arthur first enters the house and starts going through paperwork, there's a shot of Nathaniel Drablow's death certificate which shows 'body was not recovered' in the box next to his cause of death. Such a thing would not be written on death certificates of the time - that box is reserved for 'Signature, description and residence of informant', a heading which can partially be seen as the camera pans across the certificate. For the death to have been registered, an informant's signature would have to have been there. (00:20:05)

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Les Miserables picture

Factual error: In the scene where Javert commits suicide, you can see the back side of Notre Dame in the background. However the river Seine does not flow in the direction as shown in the following scenes. The river Seine flows from the east to the west in Paris, not the other way round.

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Factual error: In the beginning scene in the locker room, Taylor brings up his Glock and calls it the "Glock 19", however a shot shows the pistol's trademarks, displaying it as a Glock 22.

1HelpSw33p

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Zero Dark Thirty picture

Factual error: When the agent searches for Abu Ahmed in Peshawar, Pakistan, in one scene he gets out of his car, and a shop named Bhatia sons appear in the background, a company based in Delhi, India. In the next scene he is walking down a market, where a sign board of Jaggi sweets, (existing in Punjab, India) is seen, with words written in Hindi (only to be found in India).

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Rock of Ages picture

Factual error: When Sherrie and Drew are in Tower Records, the background song is I Remember You by Skid Row. But that album wasn't released until 1989, and the movie is set in 1987.

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Suggested correction: The movie also says that Drew wrote "Don't Stop Believin" when the song came out in 1981. They also sing Heaven and More than words which didn't come out until 1989 and 1990 respectively. It's a musical that's full of 80's music, so they pulled all sorts of 80's music. It's not a mistake to have songs show up in a year, in a completely made up timeline.

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Taken 2 picture

Factual error: Bryan tells Kim to go to the US Embassy if he doesn't return in 5 minutes, and enters "US Embassy" into the GPS. Later there is a chase scene that ends at a building with "United States Embassy" on the signage. This is impossible unless they drove about 6 hours to Ankara, the capital city. Istanbul has only a US Consulate (albeit a very impressive one).

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Jack Reacher picture

Factual error: When Reacher sees Sandy's body being loaded into the coroner's van, he's able to see her face. In reality, a dead body is zipped into a leak proof body bag for transport. And that body is put in the bag and zipped up WHERE THEY DIED, not in the van or somewhere else. Specifically, this was a murder scene and any evidence and DNA would have been secured on the body by the body bag.

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The Sapphires picture

Factual error: In the scene where Dave is playing cards with soldiers, some of the paper money being gambled is a design of U.S. money not introduced until about 30 years later.

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Silver Linings Playbook picture

Factual error: At the beginning of the film, Pat's Mother picks him up in Baltimore to return to Philly. In the scene from the car as they pass the Linc, the stadium is on the right, indicating that they are in fact traveling South on 95 towards Baltimore. Additionally, the previous scene of the city from the car could not have been shot from 95.

Eddie Gardner

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Lincoln picture

Factual error: In one of the scenes in which took place in a white room, on the door behind the character's head is a modern day "door closer". Door closers were invented in 1880 by Lewis C Norton of the the LCN Company and the first one was installed at Boston Trinity Church in 1880, was some 15 years after this film took place.

Dave G

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Moonrise Kingdom picture

Factual error: The VW Bug that the belfry falls on is a later model than 1965 when the movie is set. The larger tail light with yellow on the lens seen on the VW in the movie didn't come along until 1968. The one in the movie may even be of early 70's vintage.

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Lawless picture

Factual error: At the beginning of the film you see the car coming around a bend and see a double yellow line in the center of the road. White center lines were used as early as 1917 but weren't widely used until the early 50s and center yellow wasn't mandated until 1971.

jamesff77

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Cloud Atlas picture

Factual error: The Asian girl in the future was wearing her collar with termination charge for a very long time around her neck. When it was removed there was no mark, tan line, or indention or anything left behind, as if it had never been there. Yet all evidence points to years of endless wearing. (01:00:00)

Quantom X

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The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2 picture

Factual error: When Bella is driving back from Seattle, the speed limit signs say 80. There is no 80mph speed limit road between Seattle and Forks; the movie was filmed in Vancouver and the sign is, in fact, in kph. (01:04:55)

myaftercar

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Hitchcock picture

Factual error: When Alma and Whit drive along the coast, the road has recessed center line reflectors. These hadn't been invented yet in 1959 when the movie takes place.

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