- Errors in geography: Barrow, Alaska is exactly 201 miles from the Alaskan Pipeline.
- Factual errors: In Barrow, the sun doesn't come back above the horizon for 67 days, but it still gets somewhat light between noon and 4:00 p.m.. It does not stay pitch black, as represented in the film.
- Continuity: In the first scene where Eben walks into the sheriff's office and takes off his hat, his hair goes from sticking up to well combed to sticking up again.
- Factual errors: Alaska has no sheriffs; all law enforcement is handled by state troopers or bureau police departments.
- Factual errors: Everyone is eager to get the "last flight out" before the airport closes down for 30 days. The airport may close for occasional storms, but it never shuts down for 30 days. Alaska Airlines flies to Barrow at least once a day all year.
- Factual errors: The sign for Barrow lists a population of 563. The town actually has more than 4,000 people.
- Factual errors: In the diner, Lucy tells the stranger that no alcohol is allowed during the 30 day break. Barrow is a "damp" town all year; alcohol sales are not legal, but consumption and import are.
- Factual errors: One day in full bright sunshine and the next day in total darkness is a totally inaccurate depiction. Total darkness for many days and then suddenly a full and normal sunrise is not how it works near the poles. As the days gets shorter, sunrise comes later and sunset comes earlier. Eventually you start to get days where the sun barely peaks over the horizon with a few hours of twilight. Even when you reach the middle of this long "dark" period, you'll still have some hours twilight with the sun just under the horizon. Eventually the sun will peek out over the horizon just a little more on each new day as the sunrises come earlier and the sunsets come later.
- Factual errors: In the diner, when Stella pulls a gun on the stranger, Eben asks if the Fire Marshal's office lets her carry a pistol. In Alaska anyone over 21 years old may carry a concealed handgun.
>>> WARNING: Here Be Spoilers <<<
Goofs below here contain information that may give away important plot points. You may not want to read any further if you've not already seen this title.
- Revealing mistakes: SPOILER: During the blizzard, when the group is moving from the attic to the general store, the wind is raging, yet the power lines are not moving. No ice has accumulated on the lines, so they aren't frozen solid.
- Continuity: SPOILER: When Eben comes back from the power plant, one of the townspeople asks, "What happened up there? I heard gunshots." Eben never fired any gunshots; neither did the guy that died. (This could be from a scene that was deleted.)
- Factual errors: SPOILER: Near the end, Marlow lights the leaking oil from the pipeline by dropping a match into it. A match dropped into crude oil (or even diesel) would quickly go out and would not ignite the fuel at all.
- Factual errors: SPOILER: Despite the entire town being on fire near the end, none of the snow appears to be melting.
Related Links