In the scene in which Eddington takes the reconnaissance plane, it is given to him with a machine gun clearly visible extending from its nose. In later shots of the plane in flight, it is gone.
During the planning for the parachute assault Colonel Gregory states that it will have to be a low level drop. When the actual drop occurs, it is clearly a high altitude drop.
Early in the movie while Liz Eddington and her lover are fleeing the Japanese attack in his Lincoln convertible, they crash into a truck and leave the road in flames and the convertible changes into a Ford.
In the opening scene at the Navy dance, a bra strap can be seen across Liz Eddington's back as her dress opens up. But as she takes her dress off at the beach, she isn't wearing a bra.
The Japanese submarine in the Pearl Harbor attack changes appearance radically between shots - different models - at 0:23:16 and 0:23:54.
During the surface battle, Torrey and his staff are all without life jackets or helmets. When at general quarters, battle stations, all topside personnel, those not in the enclosed compartments below the main deck, would be wearing life jackets. Almost all personnel would be wearing helmets.
As Nimitz reads Torrey's promotion orders, he says Torrey is being appointed to the rank of "Rear Admiral Lower Half." This is a postwar title (1947) for a one-star rank. During WWII, the correct term on Torrey's promotion order would have been "Rear Admiral."
While sitting in Torrey's office, he and Maggie have the radio on. The Japanese show comes on with the lady calling herself "Tokyo Rose". At no time during the war did Iva Toguri call herself that. She referred to herself as Ann, Orphan Ann, or Your Number One Enemy. At no time did she ever broadcast any type of propaganda. The show's producer was an Australian officer captured at Singapore and tortured. His assistants were an American officer and a Filipino officer. Toguri had been smuggling food into the POW camps before being forced to go on the air. She continued to do so afterwards.
During the Pearl Harbor attack, the fleet commander is referred to as CINCPAC (Commander in Chief Pacific Fleet) but that came later when Nimitz assumed command. At the time of the attack, the title was "Commander in Chief United States Fleet in the Pacific" or CINCUS. Since this was pronounced "Sink Us", the name was replaced as quickly as possible after the attack.
During the attack on Pearl Harbor, Admiral Kimmel (Franchot Tone) says, "Out of 9 battleships?" There were only 8 BB's in Pearl at the time. Some might consider the USS UTAH as the ninth but she'd been a radio-controlled target ship since the '30's. And actually, there was only 7 that might have gotten underway as the USS PENNSYLVANIA was in drydock.
CINCPAC I is reprimanding Torrey and relieving him of his command because "he wasn't zigzagging at the time of the torpedo attack." While this appeared incorrect due to him having given specific orders to resume zigzagging before the attack directly to Burke after having run a straight course for a time to conserve fuel, the fact is that CINCPAC I was notifying Torrey of the board of inquiry. The decision to resume the zigzag would have been brought out at the inquiry. While it may appear the Navy would never reprimand a naval captain for taking such initiative after the Pearl Harbor attack , CINCPAC I explained to Torrey that he was caught in the vacuum between the peacetime and wartime Navy.
In the beginning Torrey sends a radio message to Pearl Harbor requesting a tanker to refuel his battle group. Anyone in the Navy would call a ship that does refueling an "Oiler". Many of the audience would not understand this, hence the term "tanker". This is similar to Rock referring to the BOQ as the "bachelor officers' quarters".
When Nimitz enters Torrey's stateroom, Maggie salutes him. Navy and Marine Corps personnel do not do so indoors.
Naval mines do not sit on the surface. They sit under the waterline where their detonation could break the back of a ship, or at least cause severe flooding. However, they might be at the surface at low tide.
In the confrontation between Eddington and Jere Torrey, the former calls the latter "Lieutenant" at least twice. Jere is no longer an ensign at this point; he has been promoted to lieutenant junior grade, and was so addressed by his father at the first meeting with the staff.
The Yamato is described by Capt. Eddington as having 12 big guns; both in the view of her from the air and on the model used in the battle sequence, she has 9.
Torrey's first task force is referred to as a "bat blind" group with no radar, yet as the destroyer commanded by Mac McConnell leaves Pearl Harbor you can plainly see a radar dish on her mast.
As the Cassidy is attacking the sub in the beginning of the film, we are given what is supposed to be Eddington's viewpoint through binoculars on the cruiser. The "view" we see is, however, clearly taken from an aircraft.
When the aircraft's jump door is open, a significant wind blows inside toward the tail. Torrey is sitting next to and facing the open door, but not a wrinkle of breeze shows anywhere on his body or clothing. Then, after the parachutists jump, their static lines should be whipping in the wind toward the back, not hanging limp as they are in the film. The only movement we see is from the men touching them as they go out the door. Nor do we see any wind blowing against the men from the propeller blast as they do so.
When the boatswain's mate orders, "On deck, attention to port," the water in the background can be seen moving as if the ship (which has just anchored) is underway.
When the cruiser is struck by the torpedo and Torrey's arm is caught in the door, the upper part is crushed by the door and when he moves it, he is holding the upper part where it was hit. However, when it is being set and splinted only the lower part is placed in a splint.
The car in which the Army Air Corps Officer and Liz Eddington had an apparent head-on collision with a truck, causing it to burst into flames. However, when it goes over the embankment engulfed in flames, there is no apparent collision damage to its front.
When Torrey returns home and finds Powell on the couch, Powell has a copy of PHOTOPLAY on his chest. As they discuss Vickie Marlowe and wave it around, one can see where the name was just pasted at the top of the cover (note curled edges on either side and marked line at the bottom of the name).
During the Pearl Harbor attack sequence, smoke is seen being carried away in the opposite direction from the actual wind direction that morning.
Liz's lover left the driver's door ajar on the Lincoln parked on the beach. When he tried to start the car the next morning, the battery would have been run down from the courtesy lamp burning all night.
Nearly all female characters in the film wear popular and current 1965 clothing and hairstyles.
Mrs. MacConnell tells her husband, "Mac, you've got that brainwashed look again." The term "brainwashing" wasn't used until the POW scandals of the Korean War.
In the scene in which the motor launch bearing Harding and his exec (bow# 3) is trying to catch up with the USS Cassiday, there is a 50-star U.S. flag flying from her stern (only 48 stars in 1941). The launch is also shown as being far closer than it was in real life.
Powell drives a 1946 Ford convertible in 1941.
This movie features a US Navy Albatross, which was not built until after the end of WW II.
When Torrey is leaving Maggie's house, he says, "Thank you, Maggie," but his lips don't move.
At about 1:17:55, as Torrey is giving his toast, Egin's chair moves out of frame by itself, no doubt by a stage hand (lower right corner of the screen).
When Torrey says goodbye to his son, one of the 1952 GMC trucks belonging to the production company can be seen in the background.
When Torrey walks Eddington from the brig to the duty launch, the stick being used to manipulate the bobbing leaf can be clearly seen above the leaf shadow.
When the Cassidy goes to full speed ahead, the bow anchor robe is still connected.
When Torrey visits his son on the PT Boat, there is a "gun crew" in the background, but neither the gun nor any of the "men" ever move at all. The exact same "crew" is seen actually moving in the Torrey/Eddington scene after leaving the brig.
When the car driven by the Air Corps Major and Liz Eddington goes off the side of the road the passenger compartment is clearly fully engulfed in flames and the "occupants"(dummies) are burning, yet Eddington has no difficulty in providing positive identification of Liz's body at the morgue.
Given the amount flames shown on the bodies and following the impact with the beach rocks there would be very little of Liz identifiable to anyone.
In the scene in the quonset hut when Admiral Torrey receives the phone call from Powell about Eddington's reconnaissance flight, the shadow of a mike boom can be seen on the wall to Torrey's left.
(01:53:20) When Dorne and Eddington break away from the beach party she goes over a short rise in the beach, as he pursues her and calls out to her, "Hey Dorn!", you can see a boom mic's shadow in the sand.
In the very opening scene at the dance, a boom mic's shadow is clearly visible panning over the officers' hats.
When Eddington takes the PBJ to scout the Japanese fleet, he sits in the right hand seat. The pilot of a fixed wing aircraft always sits in the left hand seat when the seats are side by side. This even applies to student pilots. The instructor will fly right seat.
After Eddington identifies the IJN Yamato, Mac refers to her as an 80,000-ton vessel. At this point in the war, U.S. intelligence had only suspicions of her existence; even when her presence in the Pacific was confirmed, she was believed to be a 40,000-ton ship and her actual full load was just shy of 73,000 tons. Furthermore, Eddington counts twelve guns aboard her. In actuality, she mounted nine 18-inch ones.
On the Cassidy's bridge early in the Pearl Harbor attack, an officer answers an intercom phone saying, "Bridge Aye Aye." Only a rube of a landlubber would say this. The correct acknowledgment would be "Bridge Aye." "Aye Aye" is reserved for accepting an order.
When McConnell first arrives aboard the Cassidy, the other officers are playing cribbage. One officer counts his hand and then says, "Your crib" whereupon the other player counts the crib. This is incorrect cribbage play. The crib belongs to the dealer who counts his hand second after the non-dealer, or "pone." The count would not go from counting the pone's hand directly to counting the crib. The correct sequence of these things is very strictly observed in cribbage.
When Captain Torrey returns to his quarters after the X-Rays and cast removal, he finds the radio of Commander Powell's car still on. He reaches in, shuts it off and then walks up the walkway to the front door.
As he does so he passes the signs that indicate the residents in On Base Housing it, it reads
Captain - R.W. Torrey USN
Commander - E.T. Powell USNR
According to Torrey's sign it would indicate that his name is Rock. Well. Torrey. when, according to both the movie and the original book, Rockwell Torrey had no middle name, his name was Rockwell, one word. According to the book, Torrey's father had no use for middle names.
According to Torrey's sign it would indicate that his name is Rock. Well. Torrey. when, according to both the movie and the original book, Rockwell Torrey had no middle name, his name was Rockwell, one word. According to the book, Torrey's father had no use for middle names.