Continuity mistake: When Danielle is up in the tree, Henry and the Gypsy begin to fight. That Gypsy is wearing a greenish hood/shawl over his shoulders, which suddenly disappears and then reappears between shots.
Continuity mistake: At the start of the tennis game, the black straps around Henry's right calf have fallen to his ankle, but are back up properly before he falls onto the spectators.
Continuity mistake: When Auguste leaves the manor, as he says his goodbyes to Rodmilla and Danielle, Louise's arms keep changing position from being crossed, to being clasped, to being down and so on, between consecutive shots. (Visible on fullscreen DVD.)
Continuity mistake: After Auguste tells young Danielle that he needs to leave again in a fortnight, the book's title 'Utopia' lies face up on the bed in the close-up, but face down in the previous and following shots. (Visible on fullscreen DVD.)
Continuity mistake: After Danielle leaves the ball, when Leonardo places Danielle's glass slipper on the stone ledge near Henry, its position changes between shots.
Factual error: Gabriela, the Spanish bride, cannot speak Henry's language, as shown at their wedding. This would be unrealistic in such a time period. Noble young women were taught to converse in more than one language. They socialized and entertained noble guests from other places. While she may not have learned Henry's language as a child, she would definitely begin lessons after their parents agreed on the engagement.
Factual error: Danielle is hardly as common a name in French as in English, and relatively recent (a few hundred years at the most). The following information is taken from "L'histoire de nos prénoms : 2000 ans, 20 000 prénoms", by Léo Journiaux, published in 1999 by Hachette. Ever since the Middle Ages, the clergy had forbidden Frechmen to choose first names other than those of saints. In fact, the Council of Trente turned that clergy rule into law, which means since there was no St. Daniel or Ste. Danielle, Daniel and Danielle could not be bestowed on Catholic babies. You have to wait for the French Revolution (decree from March 24, 1793) for names other than saints' to be allowed in France. In the end, French parents had to wait for 1993 (this is not a typo) to be able to name their child whatever they wanted: before that, each baby's name had first to be approved by the civil registry administration. In fact, in 1970, a man from Dijon was denied the right to call his daughter Vanessa. Now, Danielle in the movie has to be a Catholic, or else Henry (being crown prince) wouldn't have been able to marry her. As a Catholic from the 1500s, she could not possibly have had a name that isn't a saint's name. Thus, calling her Danielle is an anachronism. Here is a rough translation of the "Daniel" entry in the abovementioned book. The entry for Danielle refers us to Daniel, in which is provided all the etymological information. "Daniel--masculine. Name in use in Europe since the 4th century A.D. The Protestant Reform allowed it to spread in Germany, but especially in England. In Scotland, where it's the translation for Donald, it was the 22nd most popular name for males in 1935. In France, it was first authorised by the law instated on April 1st, 1803.
Factual error: Thomas More's book Utopia was not published until 1516, the same year that Leonardo da Vinci was invited to the French court. Danielle's father could not have obtained a copy when he did.
Continuity mistake: When Auguste and young Danielle play rock-paper-scissors to settle their argument, in the close-up Auguste's white shirt's tie-string hangs at his wrist, but is gone in the previous and following shots.
Continuity mistake: When Henry leaps from his horse onto the Gypsy's horse, attempting to retrieve Leonardo da Vinci's container, Henry's long purple cape is draped around his shoulders and down his back in all shots but one, as he rides off sitting behind the Gypsy.
Continuity mistake: When Danielle walks out of Pierre Le Pieu's residence just as Henry arrives to rescue her, the cannon is right beside the brazier, but by the time Henry spins Danielle around the cannon is farther away from the brazier.
Continuity mistake: When Danielle is about to leave the ruins at Amboise, as she and Henry kiss her arm is around his waist, but next shot when she moans in pain (from the lashes on her back) her arm is between them, then it's back around his waist. (Only visible on fullscreen DVD.)
Continuity mistake: Danielle is given a lashing on her back which results in many scars, some of which are level with her shoulder blades (scapula). The next day, when she appears at the masque in the low-backed gown, what we see of her back is completely scarless, though they cannot have already healed.
Answer: She's listed as Grande Dame in the credits and is addressed as "Your Majesty" by her servant and by Jacob Grimm. Many believe the Grande Dame may be the fictionalized version of the real Marie Therese of France, a descendant of Henry II. It's in the last scene, when the carriage is leaving with the Grimm brothers, that we see in the overhead shot the Grande Dame's chateau is the very same royal palace where Prince Henry had resided. During the first scene, as Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm enter the Grande Dame's chamber, when the camera pans slowly from right to left we see a man (behind the candles) who has been leaning over the Grande Dame at her right side, then a servant leans over at her left side announcing, "The Brothers Grimm," and just as she greets the brothers the two women dressed in black are standing nearby, one of whom is weepy. At the start of the next shot we see a man exiting in the background, and he may be the same man who had been leaning over the Grande Dame in the previous shot, so perhaps he is her doctor. After they've had tea, offscreen, we see the Grande Dame is sitting up in bed, and there are apothecary bottles on the bedside table. She herself is not dressed in black, she's wearing white/grey ruffled lace, with only one piece of black lace over her white lace cap. I don't get the impression she's in mourning; it seems reasonable to infer that the Grande Dame is ill. This is strong motivation for her to have written to the Brothers Grimm. Her desire to tell the truth of her great-great Grandparents' romance and life, so she could set the record straight about her great-great grandmother, before she herself is gone.
Super Grover ★