When Lt. Tragg sends a photographer to photograph scenes around the murder house, the photographer has a 4 x 5 press camera, and Lt. Tragg asks how soon the prints will be ready. Yet when those photos are shown in court, they are 35mm slides, not large-format prints.
When Perry and Paul are at the Mexican restaurant, after Nina gets up to handle a customer, the candle disappears from the table.
Sally Fenner jumps into the sea and is soon overtaken by a guard dog chasing her. When Paul swims to her rescue a few seconds later, the dog is no longer in sight.
When Sally Fenner first arrives at the house, she is wearing black heels. When she runs from the watchman and his dog, she is wearing flats.
When Sally Fenner is being chased by the watchman and his dog, the two initial camera shots show her to be about 4 seconds ahead. In the third shot, taken from off shore, show her to be about 8 seconds ahead. It was unlikely that she was able to gain 4 additional seconds on the man and his dog.
In the epilogue, Perry, Paul and Della dine out at Nina's restaurant. Their table is provided with a water pitcher, but no glasses.
Sometimes waiters, waitresses, or table setters forget an element of a properly set table. After all, even restaurant workers make mistakes.
Sometimes waiters, waitresses, or table setters forget an element of a properly set table. After all, even restaurant workers make mistakes.
A nighttime scene outside the Alder estate was obviously shot in the daytime.
After Sally Fenner is pulled from the water, she shows Perry the note. The paper is not wet.
When Perry and Paul arrive at Paul's Corvette, the Sherriff's car that pulls up has no markings on the door or otherwise. It is simply painted black and white.
The doctor who autopsied Mrs. Alder testified that her drowning death could not have been homicide because she had sustained no other injuries. This is an unwarranted conclusion--she could have been pushed from the deck of the ship she was aboard--but it is accepted as fact by Perry, Hamilton, and the judge.
The murder victim's body lay behind a sofa, where it could not be seen without a search of the room. It was in the best interests of the defendant for this to be established, but Perry failed to bring it up during his examination of Lt. Tragg.
After Paul Drake eats extremely spicy hot food, he drinks a lot of water to alleviate the pain. Capsaicin pain in the mouth is not alleviated by water, which only spreads the chemical around the mouth. Mexican food experts (which Paul claims to be) know the best remedy is to eat bread or another starchy food.
However, at the post-trial meal in the same restaurant Drake orders ham and eggs. He might not be as big an expert in spicy cuisine as he claims to be.
However, at the post-trial meal in the same restaurant Drake orders ham and eggs. He might not be as big an expert in spicy cuisine as he claims to be.
When Della and Sally are hiding out in Perry's apartment, someone knocks on the door, and Della opens it to see Lt. Tragg is standing there. Della knew that they were hiding out, so unless the person knocking identified himself as Perry, she should have kept quiet and not answered the door.