Revealing mistake: In the early latrine scene when Privates Cowboy and Joker are mopping the floor, the mops they are using are dry. As they dip each mop into the bucket, there is no water dripping. When they move the bucket, the sound indicates it is empty, as anyone who has ever used a mop & metal bucket could validate.
Factual error: The film is set in and around 1968. In one scene, a copy of Ursula LeGuin's novel "The Word for World is Forest" is seen at Joker's bedside. This novel was not published until 1976.
Continuity mistake: When Joker is talking to the colonel about his peace badge, it is there at the beginning of the conversation, but then disappears when Joker turns his back to the camera. It then reappears in the next scene when he is walking along with Rafterman.
Factual error: At one point Joker is doing chin ups, with Hartman motivating him. Joker does three chin-ups, but not a single one of them was done properly. You're supposed to lock your elbows all the way out on the way down, and your chin needs to clear the plane of the bar. Joker never locks his arms out, barely gets over the bar. In reality Hartman would have been all over him about this, drill instructors are notoriously strict about proper technique.
Other mistake: When the sniper fires her rifle at Joker after his rifle jams, she fires at him and strangely no shell casings are ejected. A few bursts later and her rifle does eject shell casings.
Continuity mistake: When Joker goes to see Cowboy and the squad are sitting in the temple, the dead Vietnamese's face can be seen without the hat covering it. When the photo is taken by Rafterman, his hat appears and is removed.
Revealing mistake: When Joker and Raptor are in the helo heading for the front, there is a view of Vietnamese being fired at by the door gunner with an M-60 machine gun. Several seconds pass in the scene while bullets should be tearing into the ground around them, but there are no indications of bullet strikes, even as the line of fire passes over a small creek.
Continuity mistake: While Hartman is addressing the privates, who sit on the bleachers, the sky behind keeps swapping from dark grey to sunny, back and forth depending on the angle.
Continuity mistake: After Hartman punches Joker, the scene shifts to Joker's point of view with Hartman pointing his finger directly in Joker's face while berating him. After the scene changes to a distant shot, Hartman is pointing behind Joker's head.
Other mistake: During patrol before Crazy picks up the stuffed animal, you can see the bottom half of the stuffed animal move slightly up, then back down before the booby trap explodes.
Continuity mistake: After Cowboy says they are pulling back after Eightball and Doc Jay were wasted, Mother pivots to tell everyone to wait. After his pivot, his left leg stayed behind him, but the very next shot of a closer look to Mother, his left leg has moved up beside his other leg.
Continuity mistake: After Cowboy and company hook up with Mother, there are seven soldiers. When Cowboy gets shot, there are seven against the wall, not including Cowboy.
Suggested correction: Funny thing is, there are 8 whilst there should be 9. When they go to get Mother, Cowboy points out 5 to come with him, and then Joker and Rafterman volunteer to come along. That's 8. Including Mother that would be 9. But there are only 8 in later shots. I can count 8 at the 2:30 timestamp. What is even funnier is that at 2:02 there are only 6 running, not 8. And lastly, when they hook up with Mother, they are 6 in total against the wall (2:24). Maybe someone could confirm this for me so it can be edited.
Actually, he tells four to come with him: No-Doze, Scutter, Donlon, and Rock. Joker and Rafterman join, so that should be seven going to mother, but only six are shown. There was an entry for that here, but it is under corrections, saying that the viewer is one of the seven, which is totally incorrect.
Continuity mistake: After Cowboy dies, Mother comes over and states, "Are we ready for payback?" Joker says, "Yeah." He then proceeds to start bringing his arms together. Immediately, the camera switches to a wider view, and Joker is starting to bring his hands together again.
Character mistake: Hartman calls the "beds" bunks. Marines always refer to them as a rack.
Suggested correction: There's no evidence to support this claim. It's not a rule. In fact, marines use both "rack" and "bunk."
Continuity mistake: When the squad is first ambushed they take cover around the corner of a building. Around the corner the window is boarded up. The next shot the window is unblocked and wide open and it enables the sniper to shoot Cowboy.
Factual error: Most of the Marines before and during the Hue City offensive, are wearing black leather combat boots. By 1968, these would've been mostly if not completely replaced by the jungle boot for Marines and soldiers in Vietnam.
Other mistake: Private Pyle seems to be just as large in the bathroom scene with Hartman as he is in the Jelly Donut scene. In reality, it's just the same actor, but in the film's plot it implies he went through 12-22 weeks of boot camp under Hartman without ever losing any weight, even though Hartman was specifically trying to get him to.
Suggested correction: There's a simple answer: Hartman failed to get Pyle to lose weight. Technically, Hartman was trying to get Pyle to graduate, regardless of his weight, which was achieved.
Other mistake: In the first PT run if you look at their boots you see they have their trousers bloused, this doesn't happen in boot camp till week 3 or 4. In the next scene they are at drill and no bloused trousers.
Factual error: When the Marines are in Vietnam, most of them have the M-69 flak jacket. This body armor was first issued in 1969, while the rest of the film takes place in early 1968. In addition, the vest would've been largely issued to the Army, not the Marines. Their vest would've been the M-55, which is different in shape and design.
Continuity mistake: When Hartman slaps Joker, Joker's head is turned sideways by the slap. A moment later, he is looking straight down.
