CrimeDocumentary
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.
Directed by Errol Morris, Lindsay Law
77
User score
431 votes
Stream on
Status
Released
Released
August 28, 1988
Runtime
1h 43m
Language
English
Top cast
Randall Adams
Self
David Harris
Self
Gus Rose
Self - Homicide Detective in Dallas
Jackie Johnson
Self - Homicide Detective in Dallas
Marshall Touchton
Self - Homicide Detective in Dallas
Dale Holt
Self - Internal Affairs Investigator in Dallas
Sam Kittrell
Self - Police Detective in Vidor
Hootie Nelson
Self - Friend of David Harris in Vidor
Dennis Johnson
Self - Friend of David Harris in Vidor
Floyd Jackson
Self - Friend of David Harris in Vidor
Edith James
Self - Defense Attorney
Dennis White
Self - Defense Attorney
Don Metcalfe
Self - The Judge
Emily Miller
Self - Surprise Eyewitness
R.L. Miller
Self - Surprise Eyewitness
Elba Carr
Self - Employee at Fas-Gas
Michael Randell
Self - Third Surprise Eyewitness
Melvyn Carson Bruder
Self - Appellate Attorney
Ron Adams
Self - Randall Adams' Brother (archive footage)
John Dillinger
Self - Gangster (archive footage)
