31 Mistakes You Never Noticed in Hit Comedies
This weekend, office comedy "Office Christmas Party" hits theaters, begging a bigger question: Are you laughing too hard to notice the little mistakes Hollywood makes every time they release a comedy? Hilarious comedies like "Groundhog Day" and "Anchorman" can easily brush off errors -- mostly because we're too busy laughing to notice them. Check out these "oops" moments from some of the funniest movies ever made. As always, all photos courtesy of MovieMistakes.com.
'Step Brothers'
Watching 'Cops' may be a good excuse for sweating while lying on the couch, but it's hard to excuse the blatant remote control hand-swapping in this scene.
'Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy'
Ben Stiller and his Spanish news team ultimately lost the street fight between rival anchors during this scene in "Anchorman." However, if they had had the seven people they started out with (see top photo), a number that quickly dwindled to six a second later (see bottom photo), perhaps they would've been the one chucking tridents.
'Blades of Glory' (2007)
When Chazz and Jimmy are talking about Chazz's shampoo (Mane 'n Tail), Jimmy puts the shampoo bottle on top of the bed post. When he turns away, however, the bottle is suddenly gone. Another one of Chazz's mind tricks? Who knows.
'Fast Times at Ridgemont High' (1982)
When Jeff Spicoli (Sean Penn) says, "People on ludes should not drive,” the background outside the driver’s side window shows a Honda dealership. Six seconds later, in a wide shot, the car is shown still passing the same dealership.
'10 Things I Hate About You'
Kat and Patrick are messing around and playing paintball on a day off from school. Just before Kat and Patrick kiss, it's clear that Patrick has only a little paint on him. As the camera cuts in close for the kiss, Patrick is now covered with paint.
'Muppets Most Wanted' (2014)
While singing a duet with Miss Piggy, Céline Dion is wearing a dress with a strap over her right shoulder. Towards the end of the song, however, the strap is magically over Dion's left shoulder. What gives Miss Piggy?
'Groundhog Day'
When the same things happen over and over again in a film, you're bound to get something wrong. In this scene, when Bill Murray's character Phil comes around the corner, you can see a woman carrying a yellow shopping bag and walking with a friend -- something that goes on for the first few days. However, on the last day, the woman is walking by herself.
'Scary Movie 2'
When Father McFeely arrives at the Hell House, the cab he's in parks right next to a light pole. Between shots, the position of the lamppost and the car noticeably move.
'Home Alone' (1990)
After slipping on the ice, Marv (Daniel Stern) attempts to hook his crowbar on the sill of the door to keep from falling. After eventually falling, it becomes clear that the crowbar is actually not fashioned to the sill, but rather is hanging and swinging by a wire.
'Animal House'
While his ridiculously high BAC level may have been enough to help him sustain a two-story fall, Bluto (or the future Senator John Blutarsky) luckily had a little help with this stunt. After climbing up a ladder to peep into a sorority house, he ended up falling backward -- right onto a carefully place grass-covered mat. Look closely in the picture; you see where the grass is clearly raised?
'Beverly Hills Cop'
Eddie Murphy was hilarious in this movie -- and so were the cars his fellow officers were driving. Last time we checked, police departments didn't paste numbers on top of their vehicles, they painted them on. As you can see in the photo, the filmmakers opted for the former method
'Road Trip' (2000)
The school bus has a license plate on the front bumper during the montage driving sequence, but later the license plate has vanished.
'Death at a Funeral' (2007)
When Peter shows Daniel the photos in the study, Daniel places the first photo down and picks up another. However, in a close-up of the desk, Daniel is now holding the first photo instead -- the same one that he presumably just put down.
'National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation'
Clark Griswold always seems to find new ways to humiliate himself, like when his ladder collapses while trying to set up his Christmas lights. However, things could have been a tad worse for old Clark if he didn't have a wire holding him up (see photo).
'Ace Ventura: Pet Detective'
When Ace is snooping around, looking for Snowflake, he leaves a room with reddish walls and a door that opens outward. As the scene cuts to him exiting, it is clear that the same room now has light-colored walls and a door that opens inwards.
'Airplane!'
In most movies, seeing a crew member accidentally show up on camera could take away from the overall feel of the film. But in a comedy like "Airplane!" it's actually pretty funny.
'Trading Places'
The greatest trick Dan Aykroyd ever pulled (well, besides convincing people that a "Ghostbusters 3" is still a possibility)? Having his hair change from one style to the next in this post-jail scene in "Trading Places."
'Ghostbusters'
To save money, sometimes filmmakers will use the same shot twice. Take, for instance, "Ghostbusters." After the guys rent the building which will serve as Ghostbusters headquarters, we see a shot of New York City from Central Park. Then at the end of the film, before the battle with Gozer, audiences see that very same shot from before, albeit with a different color sky.
'The 40 Year Old Virgin'
As the family celebrates at this hibachi-style restaurant, you can see a yellow balloon over the left shoulder of the gentleman in the blazer. In the next shot, the balloon is gone and a waitress takes its place.
'Rat Race' (2001)
When Tracy visits her boyfriend in the helicopter, she first cracks the back window of his truck. However, if you look closely, you'll notice a dent on the right side of the hood. In the following shots, Tracy has now caused damage to other parts of the vehicle, but that initial right dent has now disappeared.
'Happy Gilmore'
If Happy Gilmore is throwing you down some stairs, you better believe you're going to end up with some bruises. Perhaps that's why the actor from this moment in the film can be seen wearing what appears to be a kneepad underneath his pants.
'Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery'
When Austin and Vanessa are trapped in Dr. Evil's lair, they use dental floss to escape. Apparently, that dental floss was connected to an industrial cable screwed into the ceiling.
'There's Something About Mary' (1998)
When Puffy (the dog) drags Ted along the floor, Ted digs his fingernails into the floor and leaves visible marks. Looking closely, you can see faint marks already made in the floor.
'The Blues Brothers'
We'll let you be the judge of this mistake. During the classic 1980 comedy "The Blues Brothers," there's a chase scene where a cop car flips over and starts spinning on its roof. From the looks of this screengrab, there's a circular rotating plate directly underneath the roof.
'American Pie'
"American Pie" took place in Michigan. The problem with this scene? Those palm trees in the background, which most definitely do not grow in Michigan.
'Shaun of the Dead'
This zombie comedy was filled with zombies! And in this particular scene, a black mat with tape stuck to it -- something that definitely wasn't supposed to be there (at least the filmmakers got it out in the next shot).
'The Naked Gun'
Closing your hand in a window hurts, unless of course you have a safety block there to hold it up, as you can plainly see in the photo.
'Eurotrip' (2004)
The drunk email Scott writes is not the one Mieke actually receives. When drafting the email, it's clear that he writes "German freak," but the message Mieke reads is full of typing errors -- notably "fraek."
'Mean Girls'
Tina Fey is a comedic genius -- and according to this scene in "Mean Girls," she's a terrific magician too, as her pants miraculously change from brown to black in the same scene.
'Black Knight' (2001)
When Jamal (Lawrence) is introducing his fast food idea at the round table, the table top is clear. His paper scroll then magically appears in some shots before suddenly disappearing again. Only later does Jamal finally "reveal" the scroll and open it onto the table for the first time.
'Napoleon Dynamite' (2004)
As Napoleon yells at Rico to get off his property, the door behind him is closed in one shot and open the next. Spooky.