Factual error: When Oddjob has the Lincoln crushed at the junkyard, it is smashed into a small rectangle, and dropped into the little falcon pickup. Even though the crushed car fits into the bed of the Falcon, it still weighs at least 2 tons. That weight would have dropped the back of the truck to the ground, but the truck doesn't even squat a few inches, let alone being able to handle that load with the tyres it has. (01:16:55)
Factual error: A crushed Lincoln would be too heavy for a Ford Falcon Ranchero to haul. (01:22:05)
Factual error: When Goldfinger's pilots fly over Fort Knox to deliver the sleeping gas, they could not have done this in real life because Fort Knox is in a no fly zone. Fort Knox's airspace is a 3.5-mile radius and it goes up to 3,500 feet. They'd have been intercepted in no time. (01:29:06)
Continuity mistake: The bomb is disarmed with 007 seconds left on the conveniently placed timer with big white numbers. Then, Bond says "Three more ticks and Mr. Goldfinger would've hit the jackpot." What? Well, originally, the timer would've stopped at 003, and the line would make sense, but later the powers that be decided to stop it at 007 instead for a good old Bond joke, and apparently never forgot to delete that line in editing. [The 3 clicks mistake is an interesting one as there are still in existence cuts of the film with the original 003 on the nuclear device timer. One contributor saw the 003 version in 1970 and was puzzled when the 007 version turned up on TV years later.] (01:40:40)
Continuity mistake: The scene on the plane when Goldfinger pulls his golden gun on Bond, the side shot shows him pulling back the hammer of the revolver, then the next scene from Bonds perspective the gun isn't cocked and they show Goldfinger pulling back the hammer again. (01:42:25)
Continuity mistake: In the first shots of the golf course, you see Goldfinger's Rolls parked to the far left of the main building, with Bond's car in the lot in the background. When the scene changes to the inside of the clubhouse store, the Rolls is now very close to the front of the store. At the end of the golf game, the Rolls is back to the left of the main building, and as the camera pans back, you can see that the store is to the far right of the main building.
Continuity mistake: When Pussy Galore's Flying Circus lands at Blue Grass Field, the blonde girl we see getting out of the first Piper is not among the group of pilots who report to Pussy in the next shot.
Other mistake: In the plane, when Bond fights Goldfinger, one of the henchmen is partially visible behind Goldfinger when he appears from behind the curtain. When the fight starts, the henchman's arm is also visible. When the fight is over and just before Bond moves to the cockpit, the henchman is lying on the floor with no explanation for why he was not sucked from the plane like Goldfinger.
Continuity mistake: In Fort Knox, the dirty bomb is set to explode in four minutes. During the sequence, the amount of time between shots of the timer is inconsistent. The total time from when the timer is started to the "007" timer gag is eight minutes and twenty-five seconds.
Continuity mistake: The first time they show Johnny in the T-bird looking at the radar, you can see from the driver's window an orange 1958 Chevrolet pulling out into traffic. A few seconds later, he is talking, and you can see the same 1958 Chevrolet driving up to pull out in the street.
Continuity mistake: When Goldfinger's henchman (the one who falls victim to the ejector seat) gets into the Aston Martin with Bond, he can be seen pointing a Smith & Wesson Model 36 "Chiefs Special" at him. However, he can then be seen holding a Walther P38.
Character mistake: When Bond is being flown to Baltimore, Pussy calls her assistant Mai Lee twice on the plane: once in person, then telling the co-pilot to give her instructions. However, when they disembark, she calls her Mai Lai.
Continuity mistake: When Bond is first put in the truck, it shows both of the larger trucks as 1964 Internationals, lead by a new Jeep CJ series with curved front fenders. In the next few shots, the Jeep becomes a 1950s version with flat front fenders, and the larger trucks are now darker green 1956 Fords. When they arrive at Fort Knox, the Jeep and trucks have changed back to the newer models.
Continuity mistake: When Bond trades shots with Goldfinger's men, after the first part of the car chase at the factory, his PPK has turned into a Walther P38.
Factual error: It is impossible for Oddjob to have crushed the golf ball with his hand no matter how strong he is. For the way he crushed in his hand enclosed completly around it. It is impossible to crush even an egg that way unless you apply pressure all around. To his credit, Sean Connery wasn't blind to this. He repeatedly complained about this when he first read the script, that the golf ball scene was ridiculous.
Factual error: Contrary to popular belief, sudden cabin depressurization in a jet plane will not cause anyone to be sucked out of the plane (unless they are sitting right up against a blown-out window), nor will it cause the aircraft to go out of control or crash.
Factual error: Goldfinger's disguised henchmen are dressed in Army uniforms, however, their rank insignia is Air Force.
Other mistake: The crushed 'cube' car is not the whole Lincoln; that kind of small cube is produced in junkyards from the body only, without wheels, drive train, etc.
Factual error: When Bond is flying from Europe to Baltimore on his way to Goldfinger's studfarm in Kentucky, Pussy states that they are flying at 35,000 feet. Flying west, they would fly at an even altitude, not odd.
Factual error: When Goldfinger drives through Switzerland we see Hotel Belvedere on the Furka pass in the background. Directly after that scene, Bond locates Goldfinger's car on the radar. We see it on a map from Geneva, which is in fact nearly 250 km away from Furka pass.
Answer: Security and guest privacy was less of a concern in this era. Often someone could merely inquire at the desk which room a guest was staying in. Another ploy often used in movies was to leave a note for the guest and then watch which numbered mailbox the concierge placed it in.
raywest ★