War of the Worlds

Continuity mistake: On his way home, when Ray's car turns the corner, in the first shot as he passes the parked cars across from Manny's, the last of which is a red pickup, but in the next shot it's a white pickup. (00:04:05)

Super Grover

Continuity mistake: When Ray speeds past Manny's there are long shadows cast, but in the next shot when he pulls into the driveway shadows are gone. When he, Mary Ann and Tim speak the shadows are back only to disappear in the next shot, and so on, all depending on camera angle. (00:04:10)

Super Grover

Continuity mistake: When Ray speeds home in his car he passes Manny's shop and directly in front of the left garage door, beside the gas pump, is a large tree surrounded by bricks at the trunk base. Later, when Ray speaks with Manny the tree and surrounding bricks are gone. (00:04:15 - 00:19:00)

Super Grover

Continuity mistake: When Ray heads home after work, he speeds past Manny's shop, and in the first shot there is a large white sign on the brick wall, to the left of the door (not the one over the door), which is seen later as well. However, in the next shot as Ray pulls into his driveway and when Mary Ann carries Rachel's backpack up the steps, Manny's is at the end of the street and that white sign is gone. (00:04:20)

Super Grover

War of the Worlds mistake picture

Continuity mistake: When Ray places the silver garbage can at the curb, he places it parallel to the other cans, but in the following shots they form a triangle. They also change position, such as the blue recycling can being directly in front of Tim's back car, yet when Robbie gets out the can is far enough away from the car to allow the back door to open freely. (00:05:00)

Super Grover

Continuity mistake: When Mary Ann carries Rachel's backpack into Ray's kitchen, she places the backpack down on the floor to her left, with her left hand and then steps away. However, in the next shot, she is still holding it and then places it down to her right, with her right hand. (00:06:00)

Super Grover

War of the Worlds mistake picture

Continuity mistake: Mary Ann pulls the cord out of the iPod and holds it with the screen facing her palm, as she explains about Robbie's Algeria report. However, in the next shot the iPod is held in her hand the opposite way. (00:06:55)

Super Grover

Continuity mistake: When Mary Ann is speaking in the kids' bedroom, her body is facing Robbie, and when she says, "It would be nice if he were doneĀ…" in the close-up of Ray her entire body is turned the opposite way, facing the TV, but in the next shot she's turned toward Robbie again. Additionally, the amount of blue sweater visible under her grey coat changes in consecutive shots, during her visit. (00:07:00)

Super Grover

Continuity mistake: When Mary Ann and Ray walk into the kids bedroom, Robbie is lying on his bed with books, etc. In the next shot his position, pillow, etc., differ, and there are different books on his bed. (00:07:00)

Super Grover

Continuity mistake: In the kids' bedroom, while Mary Ann speaks, Ray sits with the baseball cap in his hand. When the shot faces him he holds the brim with the cap facing out, but when the shot faces Mary Ann he holds the back of the cap with the brim hanging down. (00:07:05)

Super Grover

Continuity mistake: While in his bed Robbie watches TV, as he leans against the wall behind him. Yet, in the close-up of the TV when Ray clicks it off, Robbie is clearly reflected on the TV screen leaning near the window, which is a good few feet away from where he was in the previous shot. In the next shot he's back to where he was in the first shot. (00:08:30)

Super Grover

War of the Worlds mistake picture

Continuity mistake: When Ray and Robbie are throwing the ball near the start, check the wall behind Robbie. In closer shots of him there's sunlight on the wall and the shadow of a nearby satellite dish is visible, but in wider shots the whole wall's in shadow. (00:09:00)

Jon Sandys

Continuity mistake: Ray walks into the living room when Rachel watches TV, sits down, asks about the splinter while still holding a coffee mug with his outstretched arm leaning on his leg and his feet on the floor, in the shot facing him. In the next shot from behind, his leg is now on the footrest, his arm lies on the chair arm, and he's not holding the mug. Then moments later something similar happens. (00:11:40)

Super Grover

War of the Worlds mistake picture

Continuity mistake: In one of the earlier scenes where they are in the dad's house, just before Rachel tells Ray that Robbie took the car, Rachel is slouching on the couch with her left leg crossed over her right. In the next shot she is sitting up with her hands on her face, and now her right leg is crossed over her left. (00:12:25)

dizzle

Continuity mistake: Once Ray takes the piece of pita with hummus and eats some of it, the rest of the pita and the way he holds it differs in following shots. (00:12:30)

Super Grover

Continuity mistake: After Ray finds out that Robbie took the car, he runs into the street. In the first shot he stops at least 6-8 ft away from the solid double street lines to turn, yet in the next shot he's standing right on the double lines. (00:13:25)

Super Grover

Continuity mistake: When Ray runs into the street he realizes that everyone is looking behind him, towards his house, so he turns to the right and looks over his right shoulder, but in the next shot facing his house, he's turning to the left and looks over his left shoulder. (00:13:30)

Super Grover

Other mistake: When Ray pulls up to Mary Ann's home, the front exterior layout and dimensions of the house are evident, from its near center front door to the two car garage, in front of Ray's van. The side exterior wall contains two large garage doors, which are about 35-40 ft from the location of the front door, with no small basement windows at ground level; inside, beside the front door, the stairs that lead to the basement run parallel just under the stairs in the foyer. In the basement, the small windows on the far end of the furnace room they run into are only about 20 ft from the basement stairs. Not only are the small windows non-existent in the exterior shot, but it's entirely impossible for two small windows to be where they are, considering the exterior footage of the house. (00:34:30 - 00:40:20)

Super Grover

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Trivia: Gene Barry and Ann Robinson, stars of the 1953 version of this movie, make a small cameo in this movie as Mary Ann's parents. They are at the end when the whole family is reunited.

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Question: Several other answers and corrections state that the reddish liquid sprayed by the tripods was what essentially grew the red vines. However I thought I heard someone in the film say something along the lines of "using us (i.e. blood) as fertiliser". Can someone please clarify?

Answer: Since the tripods tended to spray the red fluid shortly after pulling a human into themselves, it seems a good assumption that the red fluid is essentially blood. Given this, it seems likely that the "spore" of the vines is spread in the red fluid.

scwilliam

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