There Will Be Blood goofs

A scene by the fireside shows that Plainview’s boot has a waffle sole. That particular sole wasn’t invented or used until the early to mid 1970s.

The train driver who takes HW to school is wearing a baseball cap.

The otoscope design used to examine H.W.'s ears did not receive its patent until 1926.

As Daniel and J.R. Plainview drive past the train station in Little Boston, the station's windows are plainly cheap modern plastic or glass; windows from that period would have exhibited numerous imperfections.

As Daniel and H.W. Plainview drive past the Little Boston railway station, the station’s windows are clearly made of contemporary plastic or glass. Glazing from that period would have exhibited numerous imperfections, and here the panes appear unnaturally uniform in their alignment.

In the "bastard from a basket" sequence, H.W. and the interpreter depart after the latter declares "I thank God I have none of you in me". It is apparent from his lip movements that the actor originally mouthed "none of me in you."

When Daniel digs a grave to bury Henry, water can be seen in the grave, although the soil he removes appears dry.

In the final scene, set in the bowling hall, Eli Sunday knocks back one of three drinks and takes a sip from the second. He stands up, but in the next shot there are two empty glasses where previously there had been only one.

During the bowling-alley scene, Eli can clearly be seen placing Daniel's declined drink on the panelled divider above the central panel. After the cut-away to Daniel, the drink is no longer above the central panel but instead sits above the panel adjacent to it.

When Daniel and the young H.W. make their first trip to the Sunday ranch, a large white sleeping roll is secured to Daniel's rucksack. In the following shot from behind, as they walk towards the ranch, that same large white sleeping roll is seen fastened to a bag Daniel is holding in his right hand.

When Eli enters Daniel's office and moves to sit down, his hand shifts from his lap to his side, then back to his lap.

When Eli enters Daniel's office to enquire about the blessing, as he moves to take a seat his hands begin to tent together; however, when the shot cuts they are at his side, and only once he has sat down do his fingers form the tent.

In the closing sequence at the bowling alley, Eli pours drinks for himself and for Daniel Plainview. Daniel declines his, so Eli places Daniel's glass and an empty tumbler behind him. As they exchange words, Eli sips from his drink until Daniel demands that he stand and declare he is a 'false prophet'. As Eli rises he takes one last sip without finishing and sets the glass down roughly a quarter full beside the other two. However, in the subsequent shot when the glasses are visible over Eli's shoulder, Daniel's drink is seen untouched and the other two glasses appear empty, despite Eli having left his about a quarter full.

In the opening sequence, as Daniel sets off a stick of dynamite a cloud of dust hovers above the shaft; yet when the shot cuts to a view looking straight down the shaft, the dust has vanished and the shaft is entirely clear.

During the large gusher and blaze in New Boston (around an hour into the film), Daniel Plainview leaves H.W., who is now deaf, to deal with the fire. He smashes the first support cable or stake with a sledgehammer and lets the tool fall, then the camera cuts to him running back with the sledgehammer to knock out the second stake.

While the pipeline is being laid towards the ocean, the sections are being connected with the female end inserted into the male end. This is incorrect: the male end should be inserted into the female end.

After H.W. commences the ceremonial first drilling of the new well, the "walking arm" on this cable-tool rig begins to lift and drop the bit. However, a cable-tool rig's "walking arm" cannot be used to initiate a well, since the rigid "tool string" can be around forty feet long or more and the derrick must be used to drive the bit for approximately the first sixty feet. Only then can the "walking arm" be connected to the tool string's cable to continue the bore.

When the well blows out and ignites, the film shows it being extinguished with dynamite, which is accurate. However, without a blow-out preventer in place — a device that would not be invented for several years — the well would nevertheless have continued to gush oil.

The climactic sequence is set in 1927, as the on-screen title shows. When the preacher implies that God hadn’t informed him of a recent economic downturn, this is an allusion to the Wall Street Crash of October 1929.

In fact, Eli says, "…recent panic in our economy." He’s probably referring merely to the expectation or foreboding that preceded the crash.

In the opening scenes where the two miners are hauling buckets up the wells, a contemporary "bow" shackle is used to secure the bucket to the rope.

While Daniel and H.W. are out hunting, their shotguns exhibit no recoil.

In the opening sequence, numerous CGI sparks appear before the miner's pickaxe actually makes contact with the rock.