The Thin Blue Line
“Erases the border between art and activism.”
One night in November 1976, after his car breaks down on a road outside Dallas, Randall Dale Adams accepts a ride from teenager David Harris. Harris is driving a stolen vehicle and, later that night, when Dallas police officer Robert Wood pulls the car over to check its headlights, he is shot and killed. A jury believes Adams is the killer, but stylized reenactments and interviews with key figures, conflicting testimonies and evidence are presented to argue that Adams was framed by a corrupt justice system, ultimately leading to his exoneration.
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Cast
36 people
Errol Morris Director · Stefan Czapsky Cinematographer Robert Chappell Cinematographer
Worldwide gross $1.2M · United States release August 28, 1988 · Produced in United States
Box office
Worldwide gross
$1,209,846
Production
American Playhouse
Production
Third Floor Productions
Production
IFC Films
Studio · Production
Channel 4 Television
Production
United States
Produced in
Languages
Original language
English
Spoken on screen
English
Release dates
United States · April 30, 1988
Premiere · USA Film Festival
United States · August 28, 1988
Theatrical
Germany
July 26, 2005 · Theatrical
United Kingdom
September 20, 1989 · Theatrical
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