Is this the greatest true crime story never told? | Little White Lies

Trailers

Is this the great­est true crime sto­ry nev­er told?

10 Jun 2017

Words by Charlie Theobald

New doc­u­men­tary Out of Thin Air fea­tures a dou­ble mur­der case that’s stranger than fiction.

“Every Ice­lander knows about this case.” So begins this strange and com­pelling doc­u­men­tary fea­ture from direc­tor Dylan Howitt, which arrives in the UK soon via the BBC’s Sto­ryville series.

In 1974 two men van­ished sev­er­al months apart. Back then, Ice­land was a tight knit com­mu­ni­ty of around 200,000 peo­ple. Every­one knew every­one, and this infa­mous case – which soon became a dou­ble mur­der inves­ti­ga­tion – shook the entire coun­try to its core.

Get more Lit­tle White Lies

Now this sen­sa­tion­al true crime sto­ry is being told in full for the first time. Out of Thin Air com­pris­es first-per­son tes­ti­mo­ny, archive footage, per­son­al diaries, false con­fes­sions, dra­mat­ic recon­struc­tion and wrong­ful con­vic­tions, the film sheds new light on one of the most shock­ing mis­car­riages of jus­tice ever wit­nessed in Europe.

Out of Thin Air pre­mieres in the UK on 14 August on BBC Four. Check out the atmos­pher­ic trail­er above and let us know your thoughts @LWLies

Two illustrated book covers depicting a smiling Black man wearing a hat and tie, with a city skyline in the background

LWLies 107: The Sin­ners issue – Out now!

You might like

Flame billowing from industrial chimney on snowy landscape, person in warm coat standing in foreground.
Incoming

It’s time for action in the explosive first trailer for How to Blow Up a Pipeline

by Charles Bramesco

A cross-cul­tur­al coali­tion plots to dis­rupt an oil sup­ply chain in Daniel Gold­haber’s gal­va­niz­ing new film.
Two smiling women, one with short hair and the other with longer hair, wearing dark clothing, in a black and white photograph.
Incoming

Hong Sang-soo gets lost in the funhouse in the first Walk Up trailer

by Charles Bramesco

The Kore­an film­mak­er’s lat­est dra­ma climbs through the floors of an apart­ment build­ing and finds pock­ets of quo­tid­i­an life.
Two armed military personnel in combat gear standing next to an armoured vehicle.
Incoming

Jake Gyllenhaal takes on the Taliban in the first trailer for The Covenant

by Charles Bramesco

In Guy Ritchie’s new thriller, a sol­dier must fight his way through Afghanistan to res­cue the inter­preter who saved his life.
Two women, one with long brown hair and the other with short dark hair, standing together in a room.
Incoming

Puberty is an adventure in the Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret trailer

by Charles Bramesco

The Edge of Sev­en­teen direc­tor Kel­ly Fre­mon Craig returns to the tra­vails of ado­les­cent girlhood.
Young woman in a cluttered room, holding a plush toy.
Incoming

Michelle Williams just needs some hot water in the first Showing Up trailer

by Charles Bramesco

She plays a frus­trat­ed artist prepar­ing for a show in Kel­ly Reichardt’s wry, down­beat comedy.
Incoming

Pay your way out of death in the trailer for Brandon Cronenberg’s Infinity Pool

by Charles Bramesco

Alexan­der Skars­gård and Mia Goth star in the thriller set at a resort hid­ing an under­side of depravity.

Accessibility Settings

Text

Applies the Open Dyslexic font, designed to improve readability for individuals with dyslexia.

Applies a more readable font throughout the website, improving readability.

Underlines links throughout the website, making them easier to distinguish.

Adjusts the font size for improved readability.

Visuals

Reduces animations and disables autoplaying videos across the website, reducing distractions and improving focus.

Reduces the colour saturation throughout the website to create a more soothing visual experience.

Increases the contrast of elements on the website, making text and interface elements easier to distinguish.