Friday, February 09, 2007


For Your Consideration...
As fascinating as cinematic errors (fact, continuity etc.) may be - we all love that light bulb in the gas light in Gone With the Wind - I think that some notice is taken by viewers with such a sense of literalism that they can’t think of the action on the screen as taking place in A) a fluid, not static environment or B) the language of metaphor.

Two examples from IMDB’s Goofs page for Litttle Miss Sunshine:

A) Continuity: When Sheryl is driving Frank back from the hospital, he is wearing a white t-shirt; when they arrive at the house, he's wearing a white button-up shirt. So, life isn’t only happening to the person that the camera is on. Just maybe, at some point, if this were real life, Frank changed shirts. Anyone who has spent an afternoon with a toddler could tell you that real life wardrobe continuity is an ephemeral thing.

B) Errors in geography: The movie ends with the Hoovers driving into the sunset back to New Mexico. However, the sun sets in the West, and New Mexico is east of LA. Well, duh. For one thing, driving off into the sunset is a common - even overused - metaphor. We’re not watching this film to find out where New Mexico is in relation to LA. And, in life, things aren’t always what they appear to be. As those in the midwest who have driven from Milwaukee to Chicago (straight north!) while staying on the Hwy I-94 West are quick to realize.
Not the sort of things that make movie legends. Not like when you drag your family in front of the TV just to witness that light bulb in Atlanta of the 1860’s.

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