Continuity mistake: During the late part of the Uruk-hai attack on Helm's Deep, they catapult large grappling hooks with trailing ropes over the Deeping Wall. The one that hits the Rohirrim soldier doesn't have a rope trailing it. (01:18:15)
Continuity mistake: When Brego finds Aragorn at the riverbank, he puts his head to him and the horse is only wearing a halter, with no bit in his mouth and a rope hanging from the halter. In the close up shots that follow, in particular when Aragorn views Helm's Deep, obviously the rope is being used as a rein, but we can clearly see that the horse now has a bit in his mouth, where there was none before. (00:21:15 - 00:44:50)
Continuity mistake: Gollum brings two rabbits and drops them onto Frodo's lap. When Gollum takes one from Frodo's lap, in the close-up the head of the remaining rabbit is lying on Frodo's right leg. In the wide shot when Sam takes the rabbit from Gollum and pushes him away, the second rabbit is lying on Frodo's lap differently than the close-up. Also in the close-ups of Gollum we see the structure behind Gollum that has Sam's gear lying beside it. In the wide shots some of the gear is arranged differently. (01:41:05)
Continuity mistake: In Osgiliath, when Sam suggests that Frodo should use the ring to disappear, not only has the background changed, as has already been noticed, but Sam quickly changes position when Faramir enters. He is not left of Frodo anymore but right of him (seen from the viewer). (01:49:13)
Continuity mistake: When speaking of Merry and Pippin, a certain Orc says, "What about them? They're fresh." This Orc's face has very distinctive marbled skin coloring. After Grishnak says, "What about their legs? They don't need those..." when that other Orc says, "Just a mouthful," before Uglúk cuts off his head, the skin coloring on his face is quite different. (These were shot at different times.)
Continuity mistake: In the armory at Helm's Deep, Aragorn says in the close-up, "Then I shall die as one of them." As he turns and leaves, in the wide shot, most of the people that were near him in the close-up are not in this wide shot. (00:53:30)
Continuity mistake: Faramir hits one of the Haradrim riding the Mûmak with an arrow and he falls. As he hits the ground, in the background are Frodo and Sam. Sam's cloak is not draped over his left shoulder in this shot. In the very next close-up, Sam's cloak is draped over both shoulders. (01:44:55)
Continuity mistake: Near the Black Gate, when two of the men from the marching army are walking towards Frodo and Sam, the decorative scarves at their necks change positions and are hanging differently, than when they turn and walk away from the 'rock'. It is not windblown. (01:05:05)
Continuity mistake: In Osgiliath, when Sam says, "I know. It's all wrong. By rights we shouldn't even be here," he is standing up right next to the wall. In the next shot, of Sam's back, he is standing a few feet away from the wall. In the next shot, he's next to the wall, and then starts to walk to the archway, for his 'Sam' speach. (01:34:55)
Continuity mistake: When the Uruk-hai slam into the chamber door with the battering ram, just before Theoden yells, "Forth Eorlingas!" we can see the damage done to the wood on the right door on the outside. As the Uruks start to run in, we also see some different damage to the metal trim on that door. However, as Theoden rides past that door on his horse, the damage to the door is gone! (01:28:35)
Continuity mistake: Frodo lies down to look at the Southrons. Sam and Gollum come close, and crouch alongside him. In these first two shots, the ground beneath them is uneven, has patches of green grass, bramble, and some small green leaves near Frodo's fingers. After a cutaway, in the next shot of Frodo, Sam and Gollum, they are lying on even ground with yellow dry flat grass. Then Sam says, "No one at home would believe this," and the ground is now the same as in the first shot. (01:43:00)
Continuity mistake: Frodo, Sam and Gollum are resting at the Dead Marshes. When the camera is in front of Frodo the sunlight is on Frodo's left side and on Sam's face. However, when the camera angle is behind Frodo's right shoulder the sunlight is on Frodo's right side. The right shoulder shot is shown six times and it goes back and forth between both shots. (00:44:00)
Continuity mistake: When Boromir first goes over and hugs Denethor, Boromir puts both of his arms under both of Denethor's arms for the hug, as seen from Faramir's POV. In the next shot, from behind Denethor, we now see Boromir's left arm is on Denethor's right shoulder and Boromir's right arm is under Denethor's left arm. Extended DVD. (00:33:25)
Continuity mistake: When Aragorn first arrives in Helm's Deep and is confronted by Legolas, there are three close-up shots of Legolas saying, "Le abdollen" (you're late), "You look terrible," and then smiling. The bow visible behind his right shoulder appears to be his old Mirkwood bow. It is dark golden-brown, smooth, with a black bowstring. The one Galadriel gave him is the same color as his hair, elaborately carved, and has a light-colored bowstring. (for comparison check 1:43:20, where they are in the armory, and the bow should look even darker... but the white bowstring's visible there.) Continuity is screwed up as well, because in the shots between the close-ups of this conversation, where both Aragorn and Legolas are shown, the oddly-carved ends of his Lorien-bow are visible. (01:37:15)
Continuity mistake: Gollum's hands are bound behind his back, during Sam's speech. After Sam's speech, Faramir walks over and while he's speaking to Frodo and Sam, Gollum is shown rubbing his hands. Faramir has not yet said, "Then it is forfeit. Release them." Gollum's ties would not yet have been cut. As explained on the commentary, they needed shots of Gollum for this sequence, so they pinched them from other moments, and inserted them here. (01:35:15 - 01:37:45)
Continuity mistake: When Legolas places the Evenstar into the palm of Aragorn's hand, the chain is all coiled up. Yet when Aragorn opens up his hand, the Evenstar and the chain are lying in his palm neatly and flat. Some of these shots with Aragorn and Legolas were filmed over two and half years apart. (00:45:40)
Continuity mistake: Standing in Fangorn Forest, Legolas says, "The trees are speaking to each other," and then Aragorn says, "Gimli. Lower your axe." In the wide shot as Aragorn says, "Gimli," the trees behind and to the left of Gimli are different in this first shot then in the very next shot when he continues, "Lower your axe." The trees in the second shot are also seen when Gimli first draws his axe. (00:51:20)
Continuity mistake: When Faramir and his men are looking at the map of Middle-Earth in Henneth Annûn, Minas Morgul is not shown anywhere on map. It should be at the end of the road leading east out of Osgiliath. This leads us to believe there's an non-fortified road leading straight into Mordor. (00:28:10)
Continuity mistake: Faramir captures Sam and Frodo. Faramir goes over to the dead body, and says, "His sense of duty was no less than yours, I deem," and rolls over one of the Haradrim with his foot. The dead man is lying with his face towards the ground. In the earlier shot, when he fell off the Mûmak and landed behind Frodo and Sam, the right side of his face is lying on the ground. It is the same man in both shots. (01:44:55 - 01:45:40)
Continuity mistake: When the Uruk-hai run through the rock canyon carrying Merry and Pippin, it's obviously the same rock canyon that Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli run through when Aragorn says, "Not idly do the leaves of Lorien fall." However, when the Uruks run through it, many false rock formations and extra running footage were added which not only changes the appearance of part of the canyon between the two shots, but also makes it seem like a longer distance through the same canyon. (00:14:40 - 00:18:00)
Chosen answer: "Do they give good sport" is simply a way of asking whether they're being kept alive to provide later entertainment; could they be used in some sort of organised hunt, could they serve as gladiatorial fodder in an arena fight, that sort of thing. The weird thing with the tongue really just seems to be a sort of odd tic, designed to emphasise his rather disgusting nature.
Tailkinker ★