Rent The Thin Blue Line (1988)
3.8 of 5 from 98 ratings
1h 37min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
Evolving from an earlier project in which Morris interviewed death row inmates for a portrait of Dallas psychiatrist Dr. James Grigson, 'The Thin Blue Line' is the fascinating and controversial true story of Randall Dale Adams (Adam Goldfine). A drifter arrested and convicted for the 1976 murder of Dallas policeman Robert Wood (Ron Thornhill), Dale Adams was sentenced to death for the crime. Billed as "the first movie mystery to actually solve a murder", Morris' film pieced together fresh evidence to eventually overturn the conviction. With its use of expressionistic re-enactments, riveting interview material and moody music by Philip Glass, 'The Thin Blue Line' - whose title recalls the prosecuting judge's comment regarding the thin blue line that maintains the social fabric - pioneered a new kind of non-fiction filmmaking whose style has been copied in countless reality-based television programs and feature films. One of the most important movies of its decade, this utterly thrilling and captivating film's influence continues to reverberate. - Actors:
- Randall Adams, David Harris, Gus Rose, Jackie Johnson, Marshall Touchton, Dale Holt, Sam Kittrell, Hootie Nelson, Dennis Johnson, Floyd Jackson, Edith James, Dennis White, Don Metcalfe, Emily Miller, R.L. Miller, Elba Carr, Michael Randell, Melvyn Carson Bruder, Adam Goldfine, Derek Horton
- Directors:
- Errol Morris
- Producers:
- Mark Lipson, Gary T. McDonald
- Voiced By:
- Errol Morris
- Writers:
- Errol Morris
- Aka:
- 正義難伸
- Studio:
- Optimum
- Genres:
- Documentary, Special Interest
- Collections:
- Getting to Know..., Getting to Know: Will Ferrell
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Reviews (3) of The Thin Blue Line
Fat Dallas Detectives - The Thin Blue Line review by JD
A series of grossly obese Dallas detectives give their version of interviews of a murder suspect. The style is amateur and uninspiring presumably filmed as an information film for local detectives. If the pace were any slower it would be funny.
1 out of 3 members found this review helpful.
Justice Replayed - The Thin Blue Line review by griggs
Justice on film is hard to capture, and The Thin Blue Line was once the gold standard. Errol Morris’s documentary about Randall Adams, wrongly convicted of murder in Texas, broke ground with stylised re-enactments and a probing eye for contradictions.
At the time, it was revolutionary: a film that didn’t just observe a miscarriage of justice but played a decisive role in exposing it. Seen today, though, its impact feels dulled. The proliferation of podcasts and docu-series on wrongful convictions has made its innovations look familiar, even routine. What once seemed dangerous and urgent now plays like an extended true-crime episode. It’s still slick and persuasive, but the thrill of discovery has gone, leaving something a little mundane.
The Thin Blue Line remains historically important, but importance doesn’t always equal excitement. Sometimes a pioneer ends up looking like the first draft of everything that followed.
1 out of 1 members found this review helpful.
Southern man don’t need these guys around - The Thin Blue Line review by KN
Nothing more involving than a miscarriage of justice. Hard to believe this went to court let alone condemning an innocent man . The real killer has that dead behind the eyes look which is always unsettling. Rather it was more than mainly talking heads but I suppose this was an early version of its kind. A minor quibble about a very good film
0 out of 0 members found this review helpful.