Continuity mistake: Part way through the "Do-Re-Mi" sequence, when Maria and the children are walking down the steps overlooking Salzburg, the sun changes direction. At first it's behind them, so their faces are in the shade. Then suddenly the light is in front of them, and their shadows have changed direction too.
Factual error: At his wedding, Captain Von Trapp is wearing three medium-width rank rings on the cuffs of his uniform (similar to a Commander in the Royal Navy and US Navy). In the Austro-Hungarian Navy, in which he served, this rank badge did not exist. Von Trapp actually held the rank of Korvettenkapitän (Lieutenant-Commander), indicated by one medium ring and one narrow ring. Even had he held the rank of Linienschiffskapitän (Captain), he would have worn one medium and three narrow rings. The only rank which had vaguely similar insignia to that in the film was Linienschiffsleutnant (Lieutenant), with three narrow rings. Even allowing for artistic licence re Von Trapp's actual rank, the insignia he is wearing simply did not exist.
Continuity mistake: After "How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?" a nun is shown walking Maria to Mother Abess's office. She says, "You may go in now, Maria", places her hand on Maria's shoulder, and then walks away. In the next shot that's viewing them from inside the office, the nun is seen repeating the same action.
Continuity mistake: After the boat overturns on the lake, and Maria is standing on the terrace arguing with the Captain, her wet hair style changes several times.
Continuity mistake: When the Captain is asked to allow the children to sing in the festival by Max, he protests. He crosses to a table and says "Max." and picks up a glass. The shot changes, he says "My children do not sing in public", and there is now a bottle in his hand.
Continuity mistake: When Maria leaves the Abbey to go to the Von Trapps, she walks for a ways, then takes what appears to be a rather long bus ride. This shows a fair amount of distance between the Von Trapps' house and the Abbey. Yet, when Maria snuck out to return to the Abbey during the party, it was night, and she had no ride waiting. Later, after the Captain tells the children he will marry the Baroness, they walk to and from the Abbey in an unsuccessful attempt to see Maria, and in an apparently short amount of time. From the initial bus ride, the Abbey was simply too far away for those walks to be believable.
Continuity mistake: Maria goes to see Mother Abbess after they sing the song, when Maria enters the room the chair is at the end of the desk, but when Mother Abbess tells her to sit, it is clearly in the middle.
Continuity mistake: Maria sits in front of Mother Abbess's table, but when the angle changes she is several meters away.
Continuity mistake: When Liesl creeps through Maria's window there's a close-up on Maria where the lighting on the wall is totally different and all the previous shadows are gone. A frame later, from a different angle, they're back.
Factual error: The von Trapp family's eating habits do not match the time and place. eg. They cut up all of the meat on the plate into bitesize pieces, then put down the knife, take the fork in the right hand and continue eating with only the fork. This would not have happened in an Austrian family of their rank at that time in history.
Continuity mistake: When Mother Abbess tells Maria to leave the premises, the stuff on her desk changes positions.
Continuity mistake: During the storm, Gretel enters Maria's room and opens the door, which bounces back. A frame later the door is moving in the opposite direction.
Continuity mistake: In the Do-Re-Mi scene, when the children and Maria are running back and forth on the steps at the very end of the scene, when it is about to end, Kurt doesn't reach the top step, and after the song has ended, you see him stepping up to join everyone else.
Continuity mistake: When the kids fall off the boat, the Baroness's hand rests by her hip. A frame later it rests against the Captain's back.
Factual error: When the Von Trapp family is hiding in the Abbey to avoid the Nazis, they are hiding behind some headstones. In reality, these headstones are flush against the wall and no one would be able to fit behind them.
Continuity mistake: After Liesel comes into Maria's room and Maria goes to look out the window, you can see the top of the ladder Liesel climbed up. In the next shot the ladder is gone.
Other mistake: At the end of the Do-Re-Mi number, as Maria and the children are going up the stairs at the end of the song, Kurt still has his mouth open, even though the song has finished.
Revealing mistake: In the Do-Re-Mi scene, when the children and Maria are running up and down the steps, Charmian Carr (Liesl) is doing the correct choreography, but was unsure of herself. Heather Menzies (Louisa) got it wrong, but did so confidently. Carr then takes a false step in order to make her movements match Menzies'. Carr confirms this in the 40th anniversary special: she second guessed herself during the filming, and that's why she corrected herself, but upon watching the movie, she realized she'd been correct in the first place. Viewers can confirm that Carr was correct because she initially lined up (diagonally) with the other children on her side, while Menzies was out of line.
Continuity mistake: During "So Long, Farewell", the large area rug in front of the kids moves just after the "cuckoo" part of the song.
Continuity mistake: During the "My favourite things" song the coat on the chair disappears.
Answer: True, but a decorated and highly respected command officer, particularly one with proven wartime experience, is still a major asset. While he might not be directly familiar with the current equipment, naval tactics wouldn't have altered to any great degree and his ability to lead and inspire those under his command would remain the same.
Tailkinker ★