Other mistake: Near the end of the film, Magneto finally kills Shaw by pushing a coin through his brain. The blood on the coin is already dry when it hits the ground, even though only seconds have passed, and since we're shown blood leaking from the entry wound later, we know that it wasn't dry to begin with.
lionhead
14th Jun 2011
X-Men: First Class (2011)
21st Sep 2020
X-Men: First Class (2011)
Question: If Magneto didn't kill Shaw, what would they have done? It seems like killing him was the only possible way to stop him.
Answer: Charles wanted to incapacitate Shaw and all he needed to do this was to get the helmet off. Once the helmet is off Charles could freeze Shaw and they could figure out a way to hold him. With no helmet Shaw is very little threat (if at all) to Charles. Erik kills a defenseless man unnecessarily.
Actually Xavier says that he can only control this man for so long. Meaning he was struggling keeping him frozen like that. They didn't have forever. An option for Xavier could have been to release Shaw once he knew what Erik was going to do but that could cause Shaw to go nuclear on the spot and kill everyone.
Yes, he could only hold him for so long but instead of taking the opportunity to incapacitate/capture him, Erik steals the helmet, gloats, and then slowly pushes a coin through his head.
I'm not sure what the actual plan was. Charles freezing was the only thing preventing Shaw from killing everyone. Even if Erik manages to wrap Shaw into something, as soon as his mind is free he will be able to use his abilities. He killed him slowly, which was unnecessary, but killing him was the only option IMHO.
Suggested correction: Xavier has frozen Shaw in place with telepathy. Thus, the reason why the blood appears dry on the coin, is because it is still Shaw's essence, and is still technically frozen in place.
Telepathy doesn't physically freeze a body. He is forcing his mind to stand still.
lionhead