True Grit

Factual error: Campbell is armed with what is described by Wayne as a "buffalo gun", a large bore rifle known for its power and substantial recoil. Campbell shoots a wild turkey with the gun and causes the meat to be severely damaged. Wayne comments, "Too much gun" emphasizing the power of the gun. However, when Campbell shoots the turkey with this "buffalo gun" there is no visible recoil.

Factual error: There are no snow-capped mountain peaks anywhere near Ft. Smith, Arkansas. They appear to have chased Ned Pepper all the way to the Rockies, 500 miles or more away.

Factual error: On the second day of the trio's journey from setting out from Ft. Smith Arkansas the scenery jumps to the landscape of the Black Mesa near Santa Fe New Mexico. The credits substantiate that indeed some scenes were shot in this area. Ft. Smith is 729 miles from Santa Fe. The terrain near Ft Smith is mostly wooded for hundreds of miles.

Factual error: LaBeouf is repeatedly said to be from El Paso, yet the crime for which he is pursuing Tom Chaney occurred in Waco - 547 miles away from El Paso.

Texijapi

Continuity mistake: In the scene when John Wayne puts his reins between his teeth and his rifle in his right hand and his pistol in his left, at one point they switch hands.

More mistakes in True Grit

Lawyer Goudy: I believe you testified that you backed away from old man Wharton?
Rooster Cogburn: Yes, sir.
Goudy: Which direction were you going?
Rooster Cogburn: Backward. I always go backward when I'm backin' away.

More quotes from True Grit
More trivia for True Grit

Answer: The mountain in the background appears to have two vertical grooves down the surface facing the camera. Those grooves are far too wide to be ski trails. They are simply a natural part of the mountain. Mountains are subjected, over hundreds of thousands of years, to a variety of natural forces, such as wind erosion, water erosion, tectonic shifts and earthquakes, just to name a few. These cause mountains to have irregular shapes, and irregular surfaces.

Michael Albert

More questions & answers from True Grit

Join the mailing list

Separate from membership, this is to get updates about mistakes in recent releases. Addresses are not passed on to any third party, and are used solely for direct communication from this site. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Check out the mistake & trivia books, on Kindle and in paperback.