Continuity mistake: When Highway walks into the bar for the first time, his old friend the barmaid pulls him a pint and the beer is level with the glass handle. When he drinks from it the beer is past the top of the handle.
Factual error: During training and the invasion of Grenada scenes they show the Marines wearing PASGT Kevelar helmets. Marines did not wear PASGT helmets until 1984. The invasion of Grenada was in 1983.
Factual error: If Highway has been in the Marine Corps for 24 years, as Major Devin pointed out at the 9:45 mark, that would put Highway's entering the Marines at approximately 1959 (the beginning of the movie shows July 1983 as a timeline reference). But the Battle of Heartbreak Ridge took place in Sept-Oct of 1951. Moreover, Sargent Major Choozhoo was regaling "Stitch" Jones about the exploits in Vietnam that earned Highway the Congressional Medal of Honor. Two separate wars. (00:09:45 - 01:19:50)
Answer: It's because it's a movie. The plot could not ably handle the stories of twenty different characters while maintaining the action's pace and a cohesive story line within a two-hour time frame. It instead focuses on a few key characters.
raywest ★