Continuity mistake: In the hospital, Jackie goes to give Simon her mirror so he can look at himself, and her green purse is scrunched up under her arm. As the shot changes to a wider angle, the purse is now hanging over her stomach.
Continuity mistake: When the movie ends and Melvin kisses Carol, his hand changes position between one frame and another.
Continuity mistake: After Simon does his imitation of Melvin, he apologizes to Verdell and we see him put his right hand to his forehead - and the same shot from behind him a split second later shows his hand to his mouth.
Continuity mistake: On the way to Baltimore in the car while Jack Nicholson is discussing noodle salad the convertible top is both up and down during different shots of the scene.
Continuity mistake: On the trip to Baltimore when Carol tells Simon to wait to tell his story until she pulls over, the top of the car is down. When she's pulling over, the top is up.
Continuity mistake: When Frank forces Melvin to take in Verdell the dog (just after Simon has been beaten up), the camera follows Verdell as he explores Melvin's apartment alone. Melvin's grand piano at this stage has the lid open, but does not have the music rest up. Shortly afterwards, Melvin re-enters the apartment, prepares food for the dog, places the bowl on the floor in the sitting room, then walks over to sit down at the piano. Suddenly the piano's music rest is up. There is no way Melvin has had the time or opportunity to do this during this sequence.
Continuity mistake: When the car pulls over on the way to Baltimore, and Simon talks about his life, Carol's hair swaps from messy to brushed between frames.
Continuity mistake: When the movie ends, the curb is drenched in water, but when the couple starts walking it's completely dry.
Answer: It has everything to do with his mental illness. His OCD condition has kept him isolated with anti-social tendencies. He just finds it difficult to directly interact with people.
raywest