Documentaries worth watching...
Documentaries - A good documentary can challenge you, present a new perspective, or simply present the facts... The films in this List achieve that... So if you've got 90 Minutes and an inquiring nature, consider one of these films...
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35 titles
- DirectorBasil GelpkeRaymond McCormackReto CaduffStarsWade AdamsAbdul Samad Al-AwadiFadhil J. Al-ChalabiA theatrical documentary on the planet's dwindling oil resources.
- DirectorNanette BursteinStarsHannah BaileyJake TusingMegan KrizmanichA documentary on seniors at a high school in a small Indiana town and their various cliques.
- DirectorAndrew JareckiStarsArnold FriedmanJesse FriedmanDavid FriedmanDocumentary on the Friedmans, a seemingly typical, upper-middle-class Jewish family whose world is instantly transformed when the father and his youngest son are arrested and charged with shocking and horrible crimes.
- DirectorJehane NoujaimStarsSamir KhaderJosh RushingGeorge W. BushA documentary on perception of the United States's war with Iraq, with an emphasis on Al Jazeera's coverage.
- DirectorBill CouturiéStarsTom BerengerEllen BurstynJ. Kenneth CampbellFeature-length documentary film featuring real-life letters written by American soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines during the Vietnam War to their families and friends back home.
- DirectorKurt KuenneStarsKurt KuenneAndrew BagbyDavid BagbyA filmmaker decides to memorialize a murdered friend when his friend's ex-girlfriend announces she is expecting his son.
- DirectorAlex GibneyStarsJohn BeardTim BeldenBarbara BoxerA documentary about the Enron corporation, its faulty and corrupt business practices, and how they led to its fall.
- DirectorWerner HerzogStarsWerner HerzogScott RowlandStefan PashovFilm-maker Werner Herzog travels to the McMurdo Station in Antarctica, looking to capture the continent's beauty and investigate the characters living there.
- DirectorBanksyStarsBanksyMr. BrainwashSpace InvaderFollowing the style of some of the world's most prolific street artists, an amateur filmmaker makes a foray into the art world.
- DirectorRobert KennerStarsMichael PollanEric SchlosserRichard LobbAn unflattering look inside America's corporate controlled food industry.
- DirectorHeidi EwingAlex GibneySeth GordonStarsJames RansoneTempestt BledsoeMorgan SpurlockA collection of documentaries that explores the hidden side of human nature through the use of the science of economics.
- DirectorJosh FoxStarsJosh FoxDick CheneyPete SeegerAn exploration of the fracking petroleum extraction industry and the serious environmental consequences involved.
- DirectorPeter DavisStarsTin ChanChau DiemNgo Dinh DiemA startling and courageous landmark documentary that unflinchingly confronted the United States' involvement in Vietnam at the height of the controversy that surrounded it.
- DirectorCharles FergusonStarsMatt DamonGylfi ZoegaAndri Snær MagnasonTakes a closer look at what brought about the 2008 financial meltdown.
- DirectorPatrick CreadonStarsRobert BixbyHumphrey BogartWarren BuffettFew are aware that America may be on the brink of a financial meltdown. I.O.U.S.A. explores the country's shocking current fiscal condition and ways to avoid a national economic disaster.
- DirectorJames MarshStarsPhilippe PetitJean François HeckelJean-Louis BlondeauA look at tightrope walker Philippe Petit's daring, but illegal, high-wire routine performed between New York City's World Trade Center's twin towers in 1974, what some consider, "the artistic crime of the century".
- DirectorJeff MalmbergStarsMark HogancampEmmanuel NnejiEdda HogancampDocumentary about Mark Hogancamp. After a vicious attack leaves him brain-damaged and broke, Mark seeks recovery in "Marwencol", a 1/6th scale World War II-era town he creates in his backyard. Inspired the movie Welcome to Marwen (2018)
- DirectorJames D. ScurlockStarsBeth NaefMike HudsonLouis C.K.When Hurricane Katrina ravaged America's Gulf Coast, it laid bare an uncomfortable reality-America is not only far from the world's wealthiest nation; it is crumbling beneath a staggering burden of individual and government debt. Maxed Out takes us on a journey deep inside the American debt-style, where everything seems okay as long as the minimum monthly payment arrives on time. Sure, most of us may have that sinking feeling that something isn't quite right, but we're told not to worry. After all, there's always more credit! Maxed Out shows how the modern financial industry really works, explains the true definition of "preferred customer" and tells us why the poor are getting poorer and the rich getting richer. By turns hilarious and profoundly disturbing, Maxed Out paints a picture of a national nightmare which is all too real for most of us.
- DirectorJean-Xavier de LestradeStarsAnn FinnellPatrick McGuinnessJames WilliamsOscar-winning documentary that documents a murder trial in which a 15-year-old African-American is wrongfully accused of a 2000 murder in Jacksonville, Florida.
- DirectorCharles FergusonStarsCampbell ScottGerald BurkeAli FadhilA comprehensive look at the Bush Administration's conduct of the Iraq war and its occupation of the country.
- DirectorAbdallah OmeishSufyan OmeishStarsJames AkinsArik AschermanBishop Barltlett Jr.A thought-provoking and powerful documentary film on the current and historical root causes of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and U.S. political involvement.
- DirectorAndrew RossiStarsDavid CarrSarah EllisonLarry IngrassiaUnprecedented access to the New York Times newsroom yields a complex view of the transformation of a media landscape fraught with both peril and opportunity.
- DirectorJoe BerlingerBruce SinofskyStarsTony BrooksDiana DavisTerry WoodA horrific triple child murder leads to an indictment and trial of three nonconformist boys based on questionable evidence.
- DirectorLarry CharlesStarsBill MaherTal BachmanJonathan BouldenBill Maher's take on the current state of world religion.
- DirectorDavid ZeigerStarsMichael AlaimoEdward AsnerJoe BangertNO! SIR! tells an almost entirely forgotten story of the military men and women who forced the U.S. government to end the Vietnam War
- DirectorJeffrey BlitzStarsAngela ArenivarUbaldo ArenivarJorge ArenivarSpellbound follows eight teenagers on their quest to win the 1999 National Spelling Bee.
- 20091h 32mNot Rated7.7 (2.4K)75MetascoreDirectorJudith EhrlichRick GoldsmithStarsPeter ArnettBen BagdikianAnn BeesonAn exploration of the life and work of Dr. Daniel Ellsberg, former Marine and military strategist, who was responsible for the publication of secret government documents that revealed the truth behind America's involvement in Vietnam.
- DirectorTaggart SiegelStarsJohn PetersonAnna NielsenJohn EdwardsThe epic tale of a maverick Midwestern farmer. Castigated as a pariah in his community, Farmer John bravely transforms his farm amidst a failing economy, vicious rumors, and arson. He succeeds in creating a bastion of free expression and a revolutionary form of agriculture in rural America.
- DirectorBrett HarveyStarsAdam ScorgieChris BennettSteve BloomBC's illegal marijuana trade industry has evolved into a business giant, dubbed by some involved as 'The Union', Commanding upwards of $7 billion Canadian annually. With up to 85% of 'BC Bud' being exported to the United States, the trade has become an international issue. Follow filmmaker Adam Scorgie as he demystifies the underground market and brings to light how an industry can function while remaining illegal. Through growers, police officers, criminologists, economists, doctors, politicians and pop culture icons, Scorgie examines the cause and effect nature of the business - an industry that may be profiting more by being illegal.
- DirectorChris MartinJohn PilgerSean CrottyStarsJohn PilgerPhilip AgeeSalvador AllendeVenezuela, Guatemala, Cuba, Chile, Salvador, Bolivia: people's struggle for democracy versus US imperialism in Latin America since the 1950s, backing coups and supporting dictatorships.
- DirectorKevin MacdonaldStarsSimon YatesJoe SimpsonBrendan MackeyThe true story of two climbers and their perilous journey up the west face of Siula Grande in the Peruvian Andes in 1985.
- DirectorChristian FreiStarsJames NachtweyChristiane AmanpourHans-Hermann KlareDocumentary about war photographer James Nachtwey, considered by many the greatest war photographer ever.
- DirectorSteven OkazakiStarsHarold AgnewShuntaro HidaKiyoko ImoriUsing extensive interviews with survivors and archival footage, an examination reveals the aftermath of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
- DirectorWinterfilm CollectiveStarsRusty SachsJoe BangertScott ShimabukuroFor three days in 1971, former US soldiers who were in Vietnam testify in Detroit about their war experiences. Nearly 30 speak, describing atrocities personally committed or witnessed, telling of inaccurate body counts, and recounting the process of destroying a village. The atrocities are casual, seem routine, and are sanctioned or committed by officers. Images from the war illustrate the testimony; there's a side discussion among veterans about racism and a couple of interviews about the soldiers' self-realization. The testimony appears in the US Congressional Record on April 6 and 7, 1971. A "winter soldier" contrasts with Paine's "summer soldier and sunshine patriot."
- DirectorPeter JosephStarsChogyam TrungpaJordan MaxwellGeorge CarlinMythology and belief in society today, presenting uncommon perspectives of common cultural issues.