Stagecoach (1939)
Goofs
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Anachronisms (5) |
Audio/visual unsynchronised (1) |
Character error (1) |
Continuity (10) |
Crew or equipment visible (1) |
Errors in geography (1) |
Factual errors (2) |
Miscellaneous (2) |
Plot holes (2) |
Revealing mistakes (2)
Anachronisms
Tire treads are visible in the ruts the stagecoach wheels are following.
John Wayne's famous rifle is a Winchester Model 1892, not introduced until 12 years after the movie is set.
When Plummer's poker hand (aces and eights, the dead man's hand) is shown in close-up, the ace of spades shows that the deck is a Bee brand deck of cards, first produced in 1892 by the U.S. Playing Card Co. (Hence the "92" on the ace.) The movie takes place in approximately 1880, so these cards would not yet be available.
In Henry Gatewood's rant he mentions taxes: "...we pay taxes to the government and what do we get? Not even protection from the army!" At the time of the story (1880), there was no income tax. The United States enacted the first income tax to support the Civil War effort in 1862, and this tax was eliminated in 1872. The income tax was not re-enacted until 1894, and was repealed the following year.
In the movie, set in 1880 and filmed in 1939, Hatfield is called a "tinhorn gambler." But according to Webster's Dictionary, the first use of that term was in 1885.
Audio/visual unsynchronised
As Dallas announces "It's a little girl", her lips don't move.
Character error
As the stagecoach leaves Apache Wells for the ferry, Banker Gatewood is angry for the delay, urging the driver to go faster and saying "We've got to make that ferry". The ferry only crosses a river a couple hundred feet wide. It would operate on demand. It's not like he would be missing a train.
Continuity
At the Apache Wells relay station, Chris' wife, while singing, tells the vaqueros to ride away. The guitar player leaves with them, but as she resumes singing, guitar music is still heard.
In the fight between the stagecoach's passengers and the Indians, we see the same image of one Indian, with a lance in his hand, falling with his horse two times. One time shot by Marshal Curly and another time shot by Hatfield.
In the beginning of the film, when the stagecoach is going into Tonto street, we see its shadow to one side. In the next shot the shadow is on the other side.
While the stage is at the ferry, Curly tells Buck to drive the stage into the river. The next shot shows Curly tying down one of the floats on the river bank.
The stagecoach and passengers didn't get too far on the first three legs of their journey. In each shot of their 'next' leg of the journey, they still hadn't left Monument Valley.
In one scene the stagecoach is seen moving far away from "The Mittens", and in the very next scene it is crossing in front of "The Mittens".
When Dr. Boone (Thomas Mitchell) first meets Peacock (Donald Meeks), he grabs a whiskey bottle out of his hand to "sample" it. After chugging what looks like a good portion, he hands back the bottle, which still has the same amount in it.
When the whiskey drummer Peacock is shot in the chest with an arrow, it must have been a magic arrow. In the position he was seated in the stagecoach, there is no possible trajectory for an arrow to enter a stagecoach side window and hit a man square in the chest as shown.
Shortly after Luke is told the Ringo Kid is in town, he leaves the poker table and walks to the bar. In a wide shot, there is a bartender in a white shirt serving the patrons. When he reaches the bar in a narrower shot a bartender in black coat and tall hat comes up to serve him. Despite seeing the entire bar, the black-coated bartender is not visible in the wide shot.
When the indians attack the stage 2 arrows are fired into the side but disappear in the following shots.
Crew or equipment visible
As the stagecoach crosses the river at the burnt-out ferry, the shadow of a camera is clearly visible on the driver's back.
Errors in geography
In the film, the stagecoach travels from Tonto, Arizona Territory (central Arizona), to Lordsburg, New Mexico. This is a distance of about 180 miles due southeast. But at one point they cross the Colorado River at Lee's Ferry (about nine miles south of the Utah-Arizona border). This crossing is about 200 miles north of their starting point. Tonto is already east of the Colorado River so there would be no need to cross it and certainly no need to travel 200 miles out of their way to do it.
Factual errors
It's understandable that, in 1939, pregnancy was not a subject for movies. However, it's noticeable that Lucy Mallory, who is about to have a baby, wears a tight-waisted dress and shows no sign of being pregnant.
In the initial Indian attack, Curley uses his shotgun (which is also sawed off, as was the convention to serve as a "scatter gun" to spray buckshot). He manages to kill two Indians with two shots. These Indians are extremely out of range for the weapon.
Miscellaneous
When Luke Plummer's girlfriend tosses him a rifle from the balcony, we see Luke say the word "Thanks" but his voice is not heard on the soundtrack.
Before Ringo hands his Winchester rifle to Curley after finding him stranded outdoors on the stagecoach trail, he ejects a chambered round, which after flying behind his head, can be heard as a knock as if hitting the soundstage floor. Also, it would have been unrealistic to waste a live round of ammunition with hostile Indians in the area, especially after telling Curley that he (Curley) may need his Winchester.
Plot holes
Ringo tells Dallas to go and live on his ranch, but earlier he has told her that the cabin there is "half-built."
Doc prevents the gunman from taking a shotgun to his shootout with the Ringo Kid, saying that that would make it murder. (The gunman retrieves it when Doc is out of sight.) But when Ringo appears, he is carrying a shotgun.
Revealing mistakes
At Apache Wells where Chris rushes in to wake the Marshal to say his wife has run off, the Marshal and Ringo Kid are chained together at the ankle. The Marshal delivers his line but moves his chained leg too far, jerking the chains around Ringo's ankle. Ringo yelps and grabs his ankle. As the Marshal turns toward Ringo to undo the chains, the Marshal is clearly struggling not to break up laughing as Ringo glares at him.
In the beginning sequence when the stage is coming into town you can see that the buildings are stage facades as the camera shot is at an angle and it is clear there is no structure behind the false front.
