FILM: THE THIN BLUE LINE

Widely recognized as a monumental achievement in the documentary tradition, The Thin Blue Line is a seminal true-crime document. Formal and stylistic inventiveness pulse through director Errol Morris’ film, which investigates the circumstances around the murder of Dallas police officer Robert Wood and the subsequent sentencing of two men for their alleged involvement. For the film’s screening in Morris’s 1999 MoMA retrospective, curator Josh Siegel wrote, “The film marked a significant advance in Morris’s distinctive style: letting people tell their sides of the story, and artfully illustrating their accounts with dramatic reenactments, fetishistic close-ups of the telling detail, old movie clips, a hypnotic musical soundtrack by Philip Glass, forensic photographs, family-album snapshots, newspaper clippings, and court documents.”

This film appears as part of our GAME CHANGERS Series, featuring twelve films that revolutionized cinema. Each film in the series represents a bold step forward; using new and adventurous techniques, courageous directorial visions, or telling stories from new points-of-view.

In addition to the screenings being free of charge, all twelve films are preceded by a Happy Hour starting at 6:30pm, featuring half price beer and wine as well as free snacks and soda. Join us and experience a piece of cinematic history!

Mini concerts with JUAN CARDONA, JR. on the Mighty Wurlitzer Organ take place 30 minutes before each film and are made possible by the New York Theatre Organ Society (NYTOS).