Goofs

During the jump scene, several errors including failure to follow pre-jump protocol of "equipment check" and "sound off" before the jump and weapons carried In hands instead of secureD in leg bags.

A number of times John Wayne's helmet goes from major general to lieutenant general.

Colonel Marcus gives Magda his good conduct medal before he departs the first time. The good conduct medal is only awarded to enlisted soldiers. Colonel Marcus graduated from West Point and was a commissioned officer during his entire army career, and therefore would not have received this medal.

When Col. Marcus is jumping with the paratroops, the jump light inside the aircraft is blinking red; it should be green.

In a flashback scene, Colonel Marcus (Kirk Douglas) is shown parachuting into France on D-Day with the 101st Airborne. As he stands in the doorway of the aircraft before jumping, it is clearly daylight. However, the parachute drops on D-Day took place at night.

A couple of times in the movie Magda says in Hebrew that she loves Marcus. When she says it, she uses the masculine form of "you," but at the end of the movie when he says it back to her, he also uses the masculine form of the word "you" instead of the feminine form as you would say it back to a woman. Of course he would not know he has made a mistake not having a command of the Hebrew language, which ultimately gets him killed.

During a flashback, General Randolph has mixed insignia for the 101st Airborne Division on his shoulder. The lower portion with the eagle correctly has a black background. However, the upper portion with the word AIRBORNE incorrectly has a blue background which is supposed to be black as well. Blue would be appropriate for either the 11th or 82nd Airborne Divisions.

Just before the attack on the fort, Kirk Douglas complains to Yul Brenner that soon it will be light enough to "read their obituaries", but its already quite bright, in fact the shadows indicate the sun is almost directly overhead.

All the extras in the courtyard celebration are wearing 1960s fashions, not 1940s clothes.

Many of the courtyard celebration extras surrounding Kirk Douglas are looking and smiling directly into the camera.

During the courtyard celebration, three beautiful women kiss and hug Frank Sinatra and all have 1960s hairstyles.

It is clear that the majority of the extras used as 101st Airborne soldiers are of Middle-Eastern background.

It is clear that most of the background extras lack any acting experience as most stare into space or stand like statues.

When first seen, Angie Dickinson and Senta Berger are shown wearing fashions from the 1960s when the film was made, not the 1940s when the film was set.

Colonel Marcus and Magda are riding in an American convertible near the middle of the film. It is not a car prior to 1948; it is a 1954 Pontiac Star Chief convertible.

Although the film takes place between 1947 and 1948, Magda's car is a 1954 Pontiac Star Chief Convertible.

When returning home to his ailing wife, Col. Marcus arrives from the airport in a "Checker" cab that was built in the mid to late fifties. The movie takes place in 1947 and 48.

Colonel Marcus arrives in Palestine in early 1948 on a civilian Boeing Stratocruiser. The first Stratocruisers were delivered to the airlines in February 1949, nearly a year later.

In a sequence portraying a night attack of an enemy position, there is a brief cutaway from the action to a shot of Mickey, Asher Gonen, and Magda intently listening to reports from the battle. At the moment the cut to this shot occurs, the slate is visible being withdrawn from the frame, from left to right. In freeze frame, one can even see the title, "Cast A Giant Shadow" printed at the top of the slate.