''The Thin Blue Lie'' is a 2000 television film directed by Roger Young and starring

Rob Morrow Robert Alan Morrow (born September 21, 1962) is an American actor and director. He is known for his portrayal of Dr. Joel Fleischman on '' Northern Exposure'', a role that garnered him three Golden Globe and two Emmy nominations for Best Acto ...

Randy Quaid Randy Randall Rudy Quaid (born October 1, 1950) is an American actor known for his roles in both serious drama and light comedy. He was nominated for an Academy Award, BAFTA Award and a Golden Globe Award for his role in ''The Last Detail'' i ...

, and

Paul Sorvino Paul Anthony Sorvino (, ; April 13, 1939 – July 25, 2022) was an American actor. He often portrayed authority figures on both the criminal and the law enforcement sides of the law. Sorvino was particularly known for his roles as Lucchese cri ...

. It was released on August 13, 2000. The title is a reference to the phrase "

thin blue line The "thin blue line" is a term that typically refers to the concept of the police as the line which keeps society from descending into violent chaos. The "blue" in "thin blue line" refers to the blue color of the uniforms of many police depart ...

" used to describe the hypothetical role of law enforcement as the line between order and chaos.

Plot

The premise of the film concerns ''

Philadelphia Inquirer ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The newspaper's circulation is the largest in both the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the Delaware Valley metropolitan region of Southeastern Pennsy ...

'' reporter Jonathan Neumann (

), who, along with his partner Phil Chadway (

), won the

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made h ...

in 1978 for a series of articles exposing Philadelphia mayor

Frank Rizzo Francis Lazarro Rizzo (October 23, 1920 – July 16, 1991) was an American police officer and politician. He served as Philadelphia police commissioner from 1968 to 1971 and mayor of Philadelphia from 1972 to 1980. He was a member of the Democr ...

(

) and the Philadelphia Police Department for corruption. According to the articles, suspects were beaten and tortured in interrogation rooms in an effort to meet the high quota of criminal cases solved by Philadelphia detectives. Neumann and Chadway met extreme opposition from the police department, working amidst phone tappings, apartment ransackings, and threats of death and bodily harm.

Cast

as Jonathan Neumann *

as Phil Chadway *

as Frank Rizzo *

Cynthia Preston Cynthia Preston, sometimes credited as Cyndy Preston (born May 18, 1968), is a Canadian actress. Life and career Preston was born in Toronto, Ontario. She made her screen debut in the 1986 television film ''Miles to Go...'' playing Jill Clayburgh ...

as Kate Johnson *

G.W. Bailey George William Bailey (born August 27, 1944) is an American actor. Although he appeared in many dramatic roles, he may be best remembered for his "crusty" comedic characters such as Staff Sergeant Luther Rizzo in ''M*A*S*H'' (TV series 1979–19 ...

as K.C. *

Al Waxman Albert Samuel Waxman, (March 2, 1935 – January 18, 2001) was a Canadian actor and director of over 1,000 productions on radio, television, film, and stage. He is best known for his starring roles in the television series '' King of Kensingto ...

as Art Zugler *

Beau Starr Beau Starr (born September 1, 1944) is an American actor who has starred in movies and on television. He is known for his film role as Sheriff Ben Meeker in the 1988 hit horror movie '' Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers''; he reprised his ...

as Detective Marshall * Barry Wiggins as Detective King *

Chuck Shamata Charles "Chuck" Shamata (born 1942) is a Canadian actor. Early life and education Born and raised in Toronto, he worked at Honest Ed's,"Shamata's riding out acting's ups and downs". ''The Globe and Mail'', October 12, 1974. and studied acting ...

as Vinnie *

Louis Di Bianco Louis may refer to: * Louis (coin) * Louis (given name), origin and several individuals with this name * Louis (surname) * Louis (singer), Serbian singer * HMS ''Louis'', two ships of the Royal Navy See also Derived or associated terms * Lewis (d ...

as Deep Nightstick *

Melissa DiMarco Melissa DiMarco is a Canadian actress, producer, and television personality. She has made acting appearances in feature films and television. She is best known for her role as Daphne Hatzilakos in the teen drama series '' Degrassi: The Next Gene ...

as Sandra Durano *

Bruce McFee Bruce James McFee (18 May 1961 – 9 September 2021) was a Scottish National Party (SNP) politician. He was elected as a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the West of Scotland region at the 2003 election. McFee served on the Scotti ...

as Detective Harris *

Joe Pingue Joe Pingue is a Canadian actor and film maker. Early life Pingue was born and raised in St. Catharines, Ontario. He attended Ridley College for both elementary and high school, and studied theatre at York University. While attending Ridley Col ...

as Detective Regossi *

Philip Granger Philip, also Phillip, is a male given name, derived from the Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominent Philips who popularize ...

as John Reilly * Hayley Tyson as Sharon Chadway *Patrick Patterson as Chief Inspector Golden *

Christian Potenza Christian Potenza (born December 23, 1972) is a Canadian actor and comedian. He is best known for voicing Jude Lizowski on ''6teen'' and Chris McLean in the ''Total Drama'' franchise. Career He has been on television since 1997, when he first ...

as Danny O'Brien *

Richard Clarkin Richard Clarkin is a Canadian actor. He is most noted for his performance in the 2017 film ''The Drawer Boy'', for which he won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Supporting Actor at the 7th Canadian Screen Awards in 2019.Ryan Rajendra Black as Alberto * Joanne Boland *Michael Copeman as Jack Reynolds * Jason Jones as Prosecutor * Kelsa Kinsly as Reporter * Chantal Lonergan as Chelsea * Mayumi Rinas Mrs. Gonzalez * Juan Carlos Velis as Miguel Gonzalez * Scott Walker as Fire Chief

Issues pertaining to journalism ethics

Throughout the movie, Neumann faced a number of ethical dilemmas. First, most of his colleagues disagreed that he should pursue claims of torture from "suspects," citing that the city's crime level was at an all-time low, and to question Rizzo's police policies would put the city's safety in jeopardy. Second, when interviewing victims of police brutality, Neumann had to assure the frightened victims that they would not be harmed by talking to him, when in fact, they had been threatened by police and warned against talking to and/or cooperating with reporters. Third, Neumann had to find one detective willing to essentially betray his fellow officers in order to substantiate his claims.

External links

* * 2000 films 2000 crime drama films Films directed by Roger Young American crime drama films Fictional portrayals of the Philadelphia Police Department Films set in Philadelphia Films shot in Toronto Films shot in Philadelphia Showtime (TV network) films Police brutality in the United States African-American history in Philadelphia Philadelphia Police Department Torture in the United States 2000s English-language films 2000s American films {{2000s-crime-drama-film-stub