2) The Thin Blue Line
Errol Morris is most deservingly considered one of the foremost, if not the foremost, documentarian in all of film. His first movie, Gates of Heaven, received enormous acclaim, with a critic by the name of Roger Ebert emerging as one of its most vocal champions. Ten years later, he released The Thin Blue Line, an investigation into the murder of a police officer and its aftermath, including a man being wrongly convicted of the crime and being sentenced to execution.
This is one of those movies that when you watch it, there’s this weird dissonance in your mind from the fact that you know it’s dated, but it still feels like it was made recently. It has an energy to it that still feels fresh, and that could be due to the fact that it was an investigation into a wrongful conviction that could ultimately have real life consequences if enough people were to see it.
A gorgeous score by Philip Glass and gripping reenactments of dramatic moments contribute to an altogether immersive documentary. Adding to the aura of this movie is the fact that it actually did lead to the falsely accused man, Randall Dale Adams, having his conviction overturned and being released from prison. It’s no wonder so many documentary and crime genre filmmakers have tried to replicate the style and success of The Thin Blue Line, though none have matched its mastery.
