Continuity mistake: When Hector says goodbye to Andromache, before his duel with Achilles, in the shots facing Hector as they embrace his face is pressed onto Andromache's shoulder, but in the shots facing Andromache his face is higher up, beside her head. (01:55:15)
Continuity mistake: Just before Hector fights Achilles, he hugs his wife, and son. The boy is rather big in his wife's arms. A moment later, we see a wider shot of the family looking on, and the wife hands the boy to someone to hold for her. The bundle we see in her hands is very tiny compared to the baby she'd just had in the previous scene. (01:55:35 - 01:57:30)
Continuity mistake: When Helen is standing behind Hector before he goes out the gates to fight Achilles, she's very much on his left side (he turns and looks over his left shoulder at her.) But when he starts walking out and she's seen behind him, she's suddenly on his right. (01:56:30)
Continuity mistake: When Hector comes through the gate and confronts Achilles, the area around the two chariot wheels is clear. In subsequent shots large clumps of dirt and grass are in front and back of the two chariot wheels, which changes significantly throughout the rest of the scene, as well as the position of the wheel spokes. (01:57:10)
Revealing mistake: When Hector and Achilles stand outside the gates of Troy, they each remove their helmets. As Hector lifts his from the bottom it actually bends, like rubber, in his left hand, though the entire helmet is one solid piece of metal - there is no other material attached. (01:58:05)
Revealing mistake: Many of the spear tips and swords bend like rubber, some at almost a 90° angle and are fine in the following shots! Such as when Achilles' spear tip bends as it makes contact with Hector's shield, once when Achilles does his leap into the air at the start of the duel and then just after slicing Hector's spear with his shield. (Although weapons were made of bronze in those days, and were likely to bend, the fact that the weapons in the film bend to such a degree and then right themselves is impossible.) (01:59:10)
Visible crew/equipment: As Hector and Achilles duel, Achilles slices Hector's spear with his shield. Two shots later, just as Hector throws the remaining spear to the ground, the large distinctive shadow of equipment, which leans or stands beside the wall, is visible on the gate behind Hector. (01:59:15)
Revealing mistake: When Achilles slices Hector's spear the two wood ends are jagged and the broken spear end that Hector later carries shows a jagged end on the wood. However when Achilles stabs Hector, as the spear protrudes from Hector's shoulder the wood end is perfectly even. (01:59:15 - 02:01:30)
Visible crew/equipment: While Hector and Achilles duel, there is a wide shot just before Hector breaks Achilles' spear. At the start of this shot, as Achilles begins to thrust the spear towards Hector, an equipment shadow (an upside down V) is visible on the ground behind Hector's feet. (The equipment that casts this shadow is seen on DVD 2, it glides above the camera on a suspended wire.) (01:59:20)
Continuity mistake: During Achilles and Hector's duel, in the wide shot Hector uses his shield to shove Achilles' spear tip down to the ground, beside his right foot while his left foot is way behind him. However, in the next close-up as the spear tip is still on the ground right behind Hector's left foot, his right foot comes forward to snap Achilles' spear. (01:59:20)
Revealing mistake: Just after Achilles slices Hector's spear, Achilles spins his shield then positions himself behind it. In the next shot facing Achilles, as he starts to walk toward Hector, he does not hold the usual handle on the underside of his shield, instead he holds a small solid handle (used for spinning shield) which is beside the normal handle. Also notice the hilt of the sword is the wrong direction near his elbow, whereas in the following shot when he holds the normal shield handle, the hilt of the sword is properly positioned. (01:59:20)
Revealing mistake: After Hector pulls his sword from his shield, Achilles spins around and pulls his own from the underside of his shield. The sword is unsecured above his hand, not where it should have been, below his left hand on the handle of the shield, which was obviously done deliberately to ready the sword for the shot. (01:59:25)
Revealing mistake: Hector's sword is secured to the underside, from hilt to point, entirely under the shield, perpendicular to the handle he always holds. While Achilles and Hector duel, Hector snaps Achilles' spear with his leg. At the start of the next shot, Hector holds the grip of his sword and pulls it from the shield, above and parallel to the handle, not from where it should have been, obviously deliberately done to ready the sword for the shot. (01:59:25)
Revealing mistake: When the spear handle is protruding from Hector's shoulder, the area of the armor around the circular wound is clearly visible and it is in perfect condition. There is no tear in the armor whatsoever, around the wood, which would have been necessary to allow the wide spear tip to penetrate the armor and actually enter Hector's body as it did. (02:01:20)
Continuity mistake: After Achilles stabs Hector with the spear, as Hector falls to his knees in the close-up, his greaves and shoes are entirely dusty/dirty - causing the dark sandals to be very light. However, as Achilles ties the rope around Hector's ankles in the close-up, Hector's greaves and sandals are now relatively clean and note the interesting pin-dot tread on the rubber soles of Hector's sandals. (02:01:20 - 02:02:00)
Continuity mistake: When Achilles spears Hector the blood on the spear handle differs in the consecutive shots as he stands, drops down to his knees, then falls over and when Achilles walks over with the rope. (02:01:20)
Continuity mistake: After Hector is speared, when Achilles thrusts forward with the sword, the tip of the blade makes contact on Hector's torso, under the large center medallion of the armor. However in Hector's close-up the blade is above the center medallion. (02:01:30)
Visible crew/equipment: When Hector is on his knees, at the start of the first shot as Achilles leans forward to plunge the sword into Hector, there are shadows on Achilles' skirt, knee, etc., that are not caused by either Achilles or Hector, but are obviously cast by crew and equipment. (02:01:30)
Visible crew/equipment: In the shot of Hector as he lies dying, there are shadows on his chest plate that are not his own, nor do they belong to Achilles - must be the camera. (02:01:35)
Continuity mistake: When Achilles pulls the sword out of Hector, the ground area is visible as he falls to the side, directly onto patchy dry grass. Yet when Achilles goes to tie the rope around his ankles, Hector now lies entirely on dirt. (02:01:45)
Answer: They didn't know the Greeks weren't bringing cavalry. The Greeks did use them and sometimes brought them by sea. It was there to stop a cavalry charge and to break up fighting formations.
LorgSkyegon