Revealing mistake: When the castaways discover two women and a man washed up on the beach, they quickly determine that the women are still alive. The journalist, Gideon Spilitt, checks the pulse of the male and pronounces him dead; but the dead man's limp left hand very noticeably and unnaturally jerks twice just as Spilitt releases his wrist. The actor playing the dead man obviously had an anticipatory reflex action, but they chose to keep the shot in the film, anyway.
Factual error: At the beginning of the movie they are flying in the balloon for several days. The wind is constantly blowing everything around, hair, clothes etc. I've been in a balloon. Since the wind is blowing the balloon, you are moving at the same speed as the wind, therefore, you don't feel any breeze or wind, it's dead calm.
Answer: A raft would provide a bigger, flatter and more stable surface area for transporting necessary equipment and people than a smaller rowboat.
raywest ★