Deliberate mistake: During the part of the movie where the USS Alabama is sinking deeper into the ocean a shot of the depth gauge was made showing the sub passing 1800 feet at a quick rate. About 20-30 seconds of shots were shown after this to further dramatize the peril of submarine and then the scene cut back to the depth gauge. This time however, the gauge was moving much slower and only shown the sub had sunk 15-20 more feet without any reason for the sudden slowdown in decent.

Crimson Tide (1995)
1 deliberate mistake
Directed by: Tony Scott
Starring: Denzel Washington, Gene Hackman, Viggo Mortensen, George Dzundza, Matt Craven

Continuity mistake: When the incomplete second EAM is shown in the movie for the first time, its subject line states "nuclear missile launc..." However, when this same message is finally received at the end of the movie the subject line states: "terminate launch all missiles". If the first one had been consistent with the second this would have made quite a difference. (00:55:45 - 01:45:25)
Hunter: Chief of the Boat.
Chief of the Boat: Sir?
Hunter: Thank you, COB.
Chief of the Boat: Thank you? Fuck you! Get it straight Mr Hunter, I'm not on your side. Now you could be wrong! But wrong or right, the Captain can't just replace you at will. That was completely improper! And that's why I did what I did. By the book.
Hunter: I thank you anyway.
Trivia: Quentin Tarantino did uncredited script work on this film.
Question: I know that this film was set in the 1990s but even then, was smoking permitted on US submarines? It would seem a bit odd given that the crew are relying on recycled oxygen.
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Answer: In the most technical sense ("by the book") it is against policy. But then, the Marines do not allow tattoos and look how well that's enforced. It is up to the ship's Captain to enforce such regulations, and at sea, there's no one to penalize him if he chooses to let the crew smoke at certain times, given certain conditions.
johnrosa