The thin blue line flag is a field of black background separated by a thin blue line. The flag symbolizes the relationship of law enforcement in the community as the protectors of. Support our law enforcement by wearing the facebook profile picture overlay with the american flag with the thin. The thin blue line is set in the police station of the fictional english town of gasforth. The thin blue line and the ambiguous truth inquiries journal. Errol morriss revolutionary film boldly investigated the truth of a murder case while. It started with the thin blue line and with the rise of professions and support for protective services and first responders the thin lines have grown.
Holland about the power of 1988 documentary the thin blue line. Ultimately, plantinga offers a less restrictive definition of documentaries that he calls asserted veridical representationmeaning, films that. A film that successfully argued that a man was wrongly convicted for murder by a corrupt justice system. Support law enforcement profile picture tool home facebook. The thin blue line where to stream and watch decider. Then there are the classics like blue velvet, the blue kite, and the thin blue line. The perfect gift 12 ounces extend your passion for law enforcement. This script is a transcript that was painstakingly transcribed using the screenplay andor viewings of the thin blue line. A journalist from the times wrote that there was nothing but a thin red streak tipped with a line of steel between the mounted russians and the camp. The queens official birthday approaches as well as raymond and patricias tenth anniversary.
Whats the significance of blue ruins title screenprism. In the economy of images in the thin red line, as in days of heaven, the visual surplus of shots of animal, bird, and plant life, of jungle, sky, water, texture, space, and light, impose metaphysical perspective and reaffirm an order and harmony in the world that makes a war pale in significance. Dec 11, 20 though that may be true, it doesnt quell the significance of cinema as a catalyst for change. When the thin blue line comes to an end, audiences are quick to believe morris version of the case and his argument for adams innocence.
His scores set a tone and a character to create a world. The thin blue line is an atypically constructed documentary with apparent production value. It is a stark and shocking look at one man behind bars and the truckloads of evidence that point toward his innocence. In the thin blue line, it was of allconsuming importance to figure out who was driving that car. Superior quality, 201ss vacuum tumbler double wall interior support law enforcement. Reexamining the trial and conviction of randall dale adams for the. Over time, this mutated into the thin red line, which came to symbolize british courage and composure. Among the most important documentaries ever made, the thin blue line, by errol morris, erases the border between art and activism. The thin blue line represents the thin line police officers walk daily between life and death. The thin blue line and the ambiguous truth inquiries.
But the thin blue line was clearly going for something bigger, implicitly addressing a much larger citizenry, both in the u. The thin blue lines place in film history would be secure had it only freed randall adams, but the film also codifies morris signature style, a hypnotic blend of talkinghead interviews. Backline is a term used to describe audio amplification equipment for bands behind the stage, such as amplifiers for guitars or synthesizers. Seriously, whats up with all the blue movie titles. Revisiting the thin blue line 1988 and its missing pieces. The thin blue line is a phrase that refers figuratively to the position of police in society as the force which holds back chaos. Beyond its practical significance, most of the notoriety of the thin blue line is attributable to morris antiverite approach to storytelling, and specifically, the controversial choice of including. The thin blue line remains a landmark in morriss oeuvre because it revealed and corrected a flawed judicial processa phenomenon that morris says could not have happened if the film were released today, as not only are supreme court deathpenalty cases notoriously more difficult to appeal, media saturation wouldnt have allowed adamss story to remain quiet for so long.
The man behind the thin blue line, gates of heaven, and netflixs wormwood is unlike anyone else. Errol morriss the thin blue line 1988 is widely recognized as a. It is been selected for preservation by the library of congress in the united states national film registry for both its cultural and historical significance. Randall adams man in prison accused of murdering a police officer, david harris man who murdered police officer and then testifies that adams had done it, also prisoner on death row, edith james defense attorney for randall adams, various police officers, witnesses, and others. The thin blue line is a 1988 american documentary film by errol morris, about the trial and subsequent conviction of randall dale adams for the murder of texas police officer robert wood. With randall adams, david ray harris, gus rose, jackie johnson. The thin blue line is a symbol used by law enforcement in the united states and canada to commemorate fallen officers and to symbolize the relationship of the police in the community as the protectors of the citizenry from the criminal element. Solving this mystery is going to be murder errol morriss unique documentary dramatically reenacts the crime scene and investigation of a police officers murder in dallas. Thin blue line american flag coffee, vacuum tumbler. See more ideas about thin blue lines, blue line and police. These different views seem to bring truth each in a different perspective and seeming to be true in their own way, without resulting into confusion. A work of meticulous journalism and gripping drama, it recounts the disturbing tale of randall dale adams, a drifter who was charged with the murder of a dallas police officer and sent to death row, despite evidence that he did not commit the crime.
The most important takeaway from the thin blue line is understanding its significance to the people who find solidarity in it. No matter how the symbol of the thin blue line is being tarnished and misrepresented, to the law enforcement community and those who support the american police officer, no matter where they are in the united states or around the world, it will remain as a symbol sacrifice, honor, strength and commitment. The thin blue line itself and the investigation that went into its production is largely responsible for freeing that man. The thin blue line stands for law enforcements separation of order from chaos, or, as oxford dictionaries describes, its a reference to police, in the context of maintaining order during unrest. As parker explained, the thin blue line, representing the lapd, was the barrier between law and order and social and civil anarchy. Finally, the the thin blue line script is here for all you quotes spouting fans of the errol morris movie. On many occasions in the film, morris voices his unyielding belief that the prosecution concocted evidence by editing testimony, suppressing significant. Deemed by variety in 2008 as being, the most political work of cinema in the last 20 years, the thin blue line changed the future of the field of documentary filmmaking. A black white and cobalt blue american flag symbolic of lawenforcement. In this classic police sitcom, rowan atkinson plays inspector fowler, head of the uniformed branch of the fictional gasforth police station. The symbolic meaning of this thin blue line is representative of all law enforcement officers. Just drop us a line on the customorders page and well sort out the.
Along with 1996s paradise lost, the thin blue line should be mandatory viewing for those who believe that the criminal justice system eventually convicts only the guilty. Each thin line color was designed to represent and honor one of the many servicebased professions. At the time of its release in 1988, the thin blue line hailed as a new kind of documentary, as one type that gives a room for multiple points of view. Morris film proved that a thin blue line also existed between the truth and lies, as perjury by prosecution witnesses and malfeasance by the prosecutors. Errol morriss unique documentary dramatically reenacts the crime scene and investigation of a police officers murder in dallas, texas.
Though that may be true, it doesnt quell the significance of cinema as a. Welcome to the thin blue line official youtube channel. The black background was designed as a constant reminder of our fallen brother and sister officers. Thin blue line shop now official law enforcement products. The thin blue line discussion guide influence film club. In the opening credits of the film, the title appears and the word blue turns red. The haunting, hypnotic score by philip glass also makes a significant contribution to a film that remains as compelling as any narrative drama. We have the meanings of the most popular thin lines below. Though that idea seems oldfashioned and quaint now, from the era of john grierson, the thin blue line is proof that sometimes, though rarely, the political impact of a film can be as tangible as an innocent man being freed from prison. Just drop us a line on the customorders page and well sort out the details. Though that may be true, it doesnt quell the significance of cinema as a catalyst for change. See more ideas about thin blue lines, police life and blue line. Mar 25, 2015 but the thin blue line was clearly going for something bigger, implicitly addressing a much larger citizenry, both in the u.
Foremost it has a score courtesy composer philip glass, and previsualized cinematography morris website contains storyboards for the film. Dec 22, 2014 that said, some of the thin blue line rhetoric is less about public and personal safety than political ideology and contract negotiations. The thin blue line script transcript from the screenplay. And if youre interested in just the emblem, wed be happy to create it for you. The blue represents the officer and the courage they find deep inside when faced with unbelievable odds. The thin blue line 1988 directed by errol morris synopsis. Why did errol morris choose the thin blue line as the title of his film. Barring of thin blue line flag display stirs controversy in montgomery county the flag, which shows a thin blue stripe in place of one of the flags red stripes, is meant to show support for. Death, a chocolate milkshake, a nosey blonde and the carol burnett show. Solving this mystery is going to be murder errol morriss unique documentary dramatically reenacts the crime scene. The thin blue line is a 1988 american documentary film by errol morris, about the trial and.
The thin blue line remains a landmark in morriss oeuvre because it. The thin blue line analysis by katie jones on prezi. Some bands and venues have expanded the meaning of backline to include other instruments for musicians, including bass guitars, keyboards, drum kits, and other percussion instruments. Aug 18, 2017 the thin blue line stands for law enforcements separation of order from chaos, or, as oxford dictionaries describes, its a reference to police, in the context of maintaining order during unrest. Barring of thin blue line flag display stirs controversy. The thin blue line is a 1988 american documentary film by errol morris, depicting the story of randall dale adams, a man convicted and sentenced to death for a murder he did not commit. Death did some tests on randall adams to see if he would kill again, these tests included. A film that successfully argued that a man was wrongly convicted for murder by a corrupt justice system in dallas county, texas. An analysis of the thin blue line maximilian christian kuhn term paper english language and literature. The result was the awardwinning film the thin blue line, so called because during adams trial the prosecutor said the police represent a thin blue line between society and anarchy.
The term thin blue line refers to the idea that police officers in their blue uniforms are the only barrier between brutal anarchy and a civilized society. Fowler, not entirely surprisingly, forgets about the anniversary and creates a lot of tension in their relationship. It is been selected for preservation by the library of congress in the united states national film registry for. As a mode of cinema, documentary can appropriate elements of narrative discourse more associated with the fiction film, including the use of a popular genre to. Currently, t here are over 900,000 sworn police officers serving in america today. As adams says in the film, harriss account of the day wood was shot was. Fortunately, for the movie and me philip glass liked the roughcut and it is his score for the thin blue line and subsequently for my adaptation of stephen hawkings a brief story of time that is the single most important element in those works. In his 1988 documentary, the thin blue line, errol morris explores the 1976 murder case of police officer robert wood and the man convicted for the murder, randall dale adams. Two service groups for which the thin line were created for are first responders and military armed forces personnel. It has become a symbol of that line we must stand fast to and hold onto in order. The thin line meanings thin line definitions morale patch. Having originally stumbled upon the subject, morris chose to make the documentary after he became personally persuaded of the convicted mans innocence curry 157. And of course, theres jeremy saulniers revenge thriller blue ruin. The term began as an allusion to the famous thin red line, when a british infantry regiment held off a russian cavalry charge during the crimean war in 1854, where red referred to the color of the british uniforms.