Making a movie can take years and cost millions of dollars, so you would think that with all the time and expense that goes into it, the designers and directors would be sure that something as small as a costume wouldn’t go unnoticed, but that’s exactly what happens sometimes.

It seems as if the little details often go unnoticed, and then we catch those little mishaps when watching the movie as it hits the big screen. Just like the “Dirty Dancing” scene above. How many different tank tops did Baby wear in this scene? Obviously at least three.

But “Dirty Dancing” isn’t the only movie to make this type of costume mishap. Check out these 24 mistakes and see how many you knew about before today.

1. Gladiator – While filming “Gladiator” Russell Crowe spends most of his time sporting a tunic which is perfect for the ancient Rome time period the movie depicts. However, during one particular fighting scene, Crowe reveals that he’s wearing bicycle shorts underneath his tunic. We’re pretty sure that ancient Romans didn’t wear bicycle shorts.

2. Wedding Singer – The romantic comedy “Wedding Singer” is set back in the 1980’s and stars Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler. While the clothing in the movie is appropriate for the time period, Barrymore’s hair isn’t. She sports a sleek short style instead of the classic 1980’s big hair.

3. American Hustle – This movie had an all-star cast that included some of Hollywood’s hottest celebrities including Bradley Cooper, Amy Adams, Jennifer Lawrence, Jeremy Renner, and Christian Bale. Even a list of all-stars didn’t keep the producers from making one noticeable mistake. In the scene below, character Stoddard Thorsen is spotted sporting a Rolex 116718 GMT Master II watch. What’s the problem with that? The film is set in the 1970’s and that particular watch didn’t hit the stores until 2010.

4. Pirates of the Caribbean – Fans have caught this popular Disney flick making several mistakes, like one cast member wearing a cowboy hat in a crowded scene. This particular blunder involves the costumes of the Royal Navy. The movie is set in the 1700’s, and so are the costumes that were chosen. The problem is that directors make a point of mentioning that the King of England is George I, who reigned from 1714-1727. The costumes, however, were those worn by the Royal Navy in 1747.

5. Alien – This 1979 sci-fi thriller had a lot going on, but that’s still no excuse not to pay attention to the little details. Kane wears a brown hood underneath his helmet through most of the movie. However, when the alien rips off his helmet, the hood has magically disappeared and is nowhere to be found.

6. My Girl – This sweet movie set in 1972 reveals Vada showing off her mood ring and explaining that Thomas J was the reason why the ring appeared black. The issues lies in the fact that mood rings weren’t invented until 1975 by two New York inventors, according to Wikipedia.

7. Star Wars Episode VI: The Empire Strikes Back – Hans Solo, played by actor Harrison Ford, appears to be wearing a white shirt in this particular scene. However, when they show him close up, he suddenly dons the brown jacket that he is seen wearing throughout most of the movie. Quick costume change anyone?

8. The Wizard of Oz – This movie classic features Dorothy wearing her ruby red slippers throughout the movie. However, in this scene where the scarecrow gets attacked by flying fruit from an angry apple tree, you’ll notice something peculiar about Dorothy’s feet. Her ruby red slippers are missing and she’s traded them for more comfortable footwear.

9. Singin’ In The Rain – This film starring Debbie Reynolds is set in the 1920’s. The pink, poofy tulle skirt her character Kathy is wearing though, looks just like something from the 1950’s. If you don’t care about making the film costumes historically accurate, at least try to be a bit more subtle with the mistakes. Finding this one wasn’t even a challenge.

10. Catch Me If You Can – Brenda Strong, played by Amy Adams, shows off her 1970’s style braces every time she flashes her big toothy grin in this movie. This particular style of braces wasn’t introduced until the 1970’s and the movie is set in the 1960’s. Oops!

11. Dirty Dancing – This may be one of the hottest movies ever, but it wasn’t big on historical accuracy. In the scene below, Baby is seen wearing 80’s era denim cutoff shorts. The problem with this is that the movie is set in the 1960’s when teenage girls didn’t view denim shorts as attractive casual attire, nor were the shorts cut in this manner.

12. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade – Remember all the Nazis that Harrison Ford’s character fought in the movie? The movie was set before World War II, and while Nazis often wore combat medals, they wouldn’t have been wearing the ones that they were because the ones in the movie came from World War II.

13. Seabiscuit – In the movie you will notice that all of the jockeys, including Tobey Maguire, are all wearing chin straps to keep their helmets on. The film is set in the 1930’s and chin straps didn’t become part of a jockey’s riding attire until the 1950’s. Someone must have forgotten to double check this costume, or they thought it just looked good.

14. The Informant – This film is set in 1992, as you can tell by the 1990’s era attire actor Matt Damon is seen sporting in this clip. However, when he goes golfing with a couple of FBI agents, he wears Nike golf shoes which is a problem because Nike didn’t start making golf shoes until 1996.

15. Schindler’s List – Have you noticed in this popular movie that the women seem to all have perfectly shaved legs and armpits? We’re pretty sure that in reality, shaving would have been the last thing these women worried about. Not to mention that European women didn’t begin shaving regularly until the 1940’s.

16. Braveheart –  History has shown that Scottish men didn’t wear kilts until around the 16th Century. They also wore bright yellow shirts that were dyed using horse urine when they went to war. Mel Gibson’s character in “Braveheart” sports a kilt and plaid shirt throughout the movie, even though it was set in the 1300’s.

17. The Color Purple –  This 1985 film starring Danny Glover shows him sporting a clip on tie. While that might have been appropriate attire in the 1980’s, it wasn’t for the time period the movie takes place in. The film is set in 1916, and clip-on ties didn’t come around until the late 1920’s.

18. Pearl Harbour – Hardly any of the women in this movie were seen wearing nylons, but this wouldn’t have been the case in the actual era the movie depicts. Women were rarely seen without nylons before World War II, so much so that when there was a shortage of nylon during the war, women were so desperate for hosiery that they drew seam marks up the back of their legs to give the appearance that they were wearing them.

19. The Other Boleyn Girl – Historical records show that Anne Boleyn preferred to wear a French hood that hid her hair. The chosen hoods covered the hair in the front and had a veil that covered the hair in the back. In this movie, however, the so-called French hoods worn by Natalie Portman and Scarlett Johansson don’t follow the look of the traditional French headpiece.

20. Django Unchained – Sunglasses didn’t become popular for the general public until the late 1920’s. Before then, they were pretty rare and used only in the medical field. However, in this Tarantino film set well before the 1900’s, Jamie Foxx’s character can be sporting shades throughout nearly the entire film.

21. Captain America: The First Avenger – While seeing a man wearing a headset underneath his hat might not have been a rare sight in 2011 when this film hit the big screen, it wouldn’t have been a normal sight in the era this film took place. The film is supposed to take place during World War II, but Kenneth Choi’s character is seen wearing a headset and it looks oddly out of place.

22. Captain America: The First Avenger – If wearing a headset wasn’t enough, this movie makes another blunder. Peggy Carter’s hair is seen worn loose and flowing past the collar of her shirt. However, in World War II, women in active duty were required to keep their hair up and off their shoulders. Peggy’s hair obviously isn’t following those rules.

23. The Ten Commandments – This 1956 movie wasn’t well received, and it could be because it’s historical inaccuracies were blatant throughout the film. For one, Nefertiti, frequently wears a bright blue gown throughout the movie, but this wouldn’t have been possible in the era the movie was set. The dye needed to make that color wasn’t available in nature, so that color wouldn’t have been found on clothing either.

24. The Doors – Jim Morrison was a huge sex symbol that influenced plenty of things during the 1960’s. However, his style wasn’t as cool as it is portrayed in the movie. In the movie, his character sports a pair of Ray Ban sunglasses that weren’t even introduced until the 1980’s.

Recommended
Join the Discussion

COMMENTS POLICY: We have no tolerance for messages of violence, racism, vulgarity, obscenity or other such discourteous behavior. Thank you for contributing to a respectful and useful online dialogue.

Subscribe
Notify of
0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
More Stuff