Documentaries to Watch
by pjschrenk | created - 18 Mar 2017 | updated - 23 Feb 2023 | Public- Instant Watch Options
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1. 12 O'Clock Boys (2013)
TV-MA | 76 min | Documentary, Biography, Crime
Pug, a young boy growing up on a combative West Baltimore block, finds solace in a group of illegal dirt bike riders known as The 12 O'Clock Boys.
Director: Lotfy Nathan | Stars: Coco, Pug, Funmi Sodipo, Steven
Votes: 1,545 | Gross: $0.04M
2. 13th (2016)
TV-MA | 100 min | Documentary, Crime, History
An in-depth look at the prison system in the United States and how it reveals the nation's history of racial inequality.
Director: Ava DuVernay | Stars: Melina Abdullah, Michelle Alexander, Cory Booker, Dolores Canales
Votes: 37,668
3. 5 Girls (2001)
Not Rated | 120 min | Documentary
For two years, filmmaker Maria Finitzo followed five strong young women between the ages of 13 and 17. Unlike the myriad reports, books and "specials" that focus on young women as passive ... See full summary »
Director: Maria Finitzo | Stars: Haibihn, Amber, Toby, Corrie
Votes: 41
4. 7 nuodemes (2010)
60 min | Documentary
In the film, seven sports women who live in seven Lithuanian cities speak about their opinions on the 'seven deadly sins' from a contemporary perspective. The duality in a battle, is a ... See full summary »
Director: Kristina Inciuraite | Star: Rosita Civilyte
5. At Night, They Dance (2011)
81 min | Documentary, History
Seldom has Egypt's capital been so evocatively captured. A fly-on-the-wall doc exploring the mysterious and hard-knock reality of a typical Egyptian belly dancer clan in working-class Cairo... See full summary »
Directors: Isabelle Lavigne, Stéphane Thibault | Stars: Reda Ibrahim Mohamed Ali, Amira Said Samir Sayed, Bossy Said Samir Sayed, Hind Said Samir Sayed
Votes: 209
6. Bad Rap (2016)
82 min | Documentary, Music
Four Asian-American rappers run into tough obstacles as they try to make it big in Hip Hop, a genre rooted in black culture.
Director: Salima Koroma | Stars: Awkwafina, David Lee, Richard Lee, Jonnie Park
Votes: 201
7. Come Back, Africa (1959)
95 min | Documentary, Drama
Come Back, Africa chronicles the life of Zachariah, a black South African living under the rule of the harsh apartheid government in 1959.
Director: Lionel Rogosin | Stars: Zacharia Mgabi, Vinah Bendile, Miriam Makeba, Lewis Nkosi
Votes: 358
8. Eye Over Prague (2010)
78 min | Documentary, Drama
The powerful story of Jan Kaplicky, one of the most gifted architects of his generation. Mr. Kaplicky fled Prague along with many of his cultural contemporaries during the social unrest of ... See full summary »
Director: Olga Spátová | Stars: Jan Kaplicky, Pavel Bobek, Pavel Bém, Brian Clarke
Votes: 52
9. Jazz in Love (2013)
75 min | Documentary, Biography, Family
Jazz in Love by Baby Ruth Villarama tells the story of Jazz, a young man from Davao whose dream wedding is within reach: his boyfriend of 11 months has proposed. Because no law allows him ... See full summary »
Director: Baby Ruth Villarama | Stars: Ernesto Tigaldao Jr., Theodor Rutkowski, Jaisal Jone Bautista, Tatskie Subong Jr.
Votes: 17
10. Lezate divanegi (2003)
73 min | Documentary
Documentary showing the backstage of production of Samira Makhmalbaf's film Panj É Asr(At Five in the Afternoon), in Kabul, after the fall of the Taliban regime. Everything was recorded ... See full summary »
Director: Hana Makhmalbaf | Stars: Bibigol Asef, Sima Asef, Agheleh Farahmand, Marzieh Makhmalbaf
Votes: 178
11. Kedi (2016)
Not Rated | 79 min | Documentary
A profile of an ancient city and its unique people, seen through the eyes of the most mysterious and beloved animal humans have ever known, the Cat.
Director: Ceyda Torun | Stars: Yaman Barlas, Sari, Arzu Göl, Kemal Suncu
Votes: 15,872 | Gross: $2.83M
12. Leviathan (I) (2012)
Not Rated | 87 min | Documentary
A documentary shot in the North Atlantic and focused on the commercial fishing industry.
Directors: Lucien Castaing-Taylor, Verena Paravel | Stars: Brian Jannelle, Adrian Guillette, Arthur Smith, Asterias Vulgaris
Votes: 3,794 | Gross: $1.09M
13. Only the Young (2012)
Not Rated | 72 min | Documentary, Comedy, Romance
A documentary on three teenagers living in a small desert town in Southern California.
Directors: Elizabeth Mims, Jason Tippet | Stars: Garrison Saenz, Kevin Conway, Skye Elmore, Samantha MacDonald
Votes: 416 | Gross: $0.01M
14. Prinzessinnenbad (2007)
92 min | Documentary
Three 15-year-old girls from Berlin-Kreuzberg, Klara, Mina and Tanutscha, are the protagonists of this documentary. The filmmaker Bettina Blümner accompanied her with her camera for a year and recorded her life on film.
Director: Bettina Blümner | Stars: Klara Reinacher, Tanutscha Glowasz, Mina Bowling, George-Daniel Thelitz
Votes: 636
15. Sisters in Law (2005)
Not Rated | 104 min | Documentary
Set in Kumba in South West Cameroon Sisters in Law follows Adultery, Rape and Abuse cases led by a Female Judge.
Directors: Florence Ayisi, Kim Longinotto | Stars: Vera Ngassa, Beatrice Ntuba
Votes: 417 | Gross: $0.03M
16. Starless Dreams (2016)
76 min | Documentary
Teenage girls consigned to the Iranian "Correctional and Rehabilitation Centre" discuss their troubled lives and reveal what brought them there.
Director: Mehrdad Oskouei
Votes: 368 | Gross: $0.00M
17. The Eagle Huntress (2016)
G | 87 min | Documentary, Adventure, Sport
Thirteen-year-old Aisholpan trains to become the first female in twelve generations of her nomad family to become an eagle huntress.
Director: Otto Bell | Stars: Aisholpan Nurgaiv, Daisy Ridley, Rys Nurgaiv
Votes: 4,184 | Gross: $3.17M
18. The Interrupters (2011)
Unrated | 125 min | Documentary, Crime
A year in the life of a city grappling with urban violence.
Director: Steve James | Stars: Tio Hardiman, Ameena Matthews, Toya Batey, Cobe Williams
Votes: 3,615 | Gross: $0.28M
19. The Oath (2010)
Unrated | 90 min | Documentary
Tells the story of two men whose fateful encounter in 1996 set them on a course of events that led them to Afghanistan, Osama bin Laden, 9/11, Guantanamo, and the U.S. Supreme Court.
Director: Laura Poitras | Stars: Osama bin Laden, Salim Hamdan, Abu Jandal, Troy Lebane
Votes: 950 | Gross: $0.04M
20. The Sky Turns (2004)
110 min | Documentary
One year in the life of a tiny village in northern Spain.
Director: Mercedes Álvarez | Stars: Peio Azketa, Hicham Chate, Cirilo Fernández, José Fernández
Votes: 377
21. The Wolfpack (2015)
R | 90 min | Documentary, Biography
Confined in an apartment from a New York housing project, the six Angulo brothers learned everything they know about the world through watching films and spend their time reenacting their favorite movies with intricate homemade costumes.
Director: Crystal Moselle | Stars: Mukunda Angulo, Narayana Angulo, Susanne Angulo, Bhagavan Angulo
Votes: 13,512 | Gross: $1.30M
22. The World Before Her (2012)
TV-PG | 90 min | Documentary
Two young women follow completely divergent paths in the new, modernizing India-one wants to become Miss India, the other is a fierce Hindu Nationalist prepared to kill and die for her beliefs.
Director: Nisha Pahuja | Stars: Pooja Chopra, Manasvi Mamgai, Marc Robinson, Ankita Shorey
Votes: 857
23. Valentine Road (2013)
TV-14 | 89 min | Documentary, Crime
On February 12, 2008 in Oxnard, California, eighth-grade student Brandon McInerney shot his classmate Larry King twice in the back of the head during first period. When Larry died two days ... See full summary »
Director: Marta Cunningham | Stars: James Bing, Jeremy Bing, Rosalie Black, Dawn Boldrin
Votes: 1,984
24. Blue Planet II (2017)
TV-G | 52 min | Documentary
David Attenborough returns to the world's oceans in this sequel to the acclaimed documentary filming rare and unusual creatures of the deep, as well as documenting the problems our oceans face.
Stars: David Attenborough, Peter Drost, Roger Munns, Roger Horrocks
Votes: 46,431
25. Fire of Love (2022)
PG | 98 min | Documentary, Biography
Intrepid scientists and lovers Katia and Maurice Krafft died in a volcanic explosion doing the very thing that brought them together: unraveling the mysteries of volcanoes by capturing the most explosive imagery ever recorded.
Director: Sara Dosa | Stars: Katia Krafft, Maurice Krafft, Miranda July, Alka Balbir
Votes: 14,401
26. Murder in Big Horn (2023)
TV-MA | 154 min | Documentary, Crime
The deaths of a group of Native American women in rural Montana are the focus as Native families, journalists, and local law enforcement reveal a violent crisis set in motion almost 200 years ago.
Votes: 337
27. The 1619 Project (2023)
Approved | 61 min | Documentary, History
Connects the centrality of slavery in history with an unflinching account of brutal racism that endures in so many aspects of American life today.
Star: Nikole Hannah-Jones
Votes: 1,707
28. The Volcano: Rescue from Whakaari (2022)
PG-13 | 98 min | Documentary
Portrays human bravery and resilience after a tragic volcano disaster in New Zealand.
Director: Rory Kennedy | Stars: Mark Inman, Hazel Osborne, Pouroto Ngaropo, Andy McGregor
Votes: 8,274
29. My Octopus Teacher (2020)
TV-G | 85 min | Documentary, Drama
A filmmaker forges an unusual friendship with an octopus living in a South African kelp forest, learning as the animal shares the mysteries of her world.
Directors: Pippa Ehrlich, James Reed | Stars: Craig Foster, Tom Foster
Votes: 63,771
30. Aftershock: Everest and the Nepal Earthquake (2022)
TV-MA | 50 min | Documentary
Survivors' firsthand accounts and actual footage fuel this emotional docuseries about the deadly 2015 earthquake that shook Nepal.
Stars: Sara Safari, Shahar Zakai, Arjun Bhandari, Durga Kunwar
Votes: 4,303
31. Prehistoric Planet (2022–2023)
TV-PG | 203 min | Documentary, Animation, History
Travel back 66 million years to when majestic dinosaurs and extraordinary creatures roamed the lands, seas, and skies.
Star: David Attenborough
Votes: 10,660
32. Turning Point: 9/11 and the War on Terror (2021)
TV-14 | 52 min | Documentary, History, War
This unflinching series documents the 9/11 terrorist attacks, from Al Qaeda's roots in the 1980s to America's forceful response, both at home and abroad.
Stars: Mark Fallon, James LaPorta, Michel Paradis
Votes: 11,275
33. Fantastic Fungi (2019)
Not Rated | 81 min | Documentary
Fantastic Fungi is a descriptive time-lapse journey about the magical, mysterious and medicinal world of fungi and their power to heal, sustain and contribute to the regeneration of life on Earth that began 3.5 billion years ago.
Director: Louie Schwartzberg | Stars: Brie Larson, Andrew Weil, Giuliana Furci, Paul Stamets
Votes: 11,536
34. Frozen Planet II (2022–2023)
TV-PG | 49 min | Documentary
Following life in the frozen regions of the planet, including polar bears, Siberian tigers, snow monkeys, and penguins.
Stars: David Attenborough, Jamie McPherson, Helen Hobin, Bertie Gregory
Votes: 2,071
35. American Factory (2019)
TV-14 | 110 min | Documentary
In post-industrial Ohio, a Chinese billionaire opens a factory in an abandoned General Motors plant, hiring two thousand Americans. Early days of hope and optimism give way to setbacks as high-tech China clashes with working-class America.
Directors: Steven Bognar, Julia Reichert | Stars: Junming 'Jimmy' Wang, Robert Allen, Sherrod Brown, Dave Burrows
Votes: 23,870
36. Meru (2015)
R | 90 min | Documentary, Sport
Three elite climbers struggle to find their way through obsession and loss as they attempt to climb Mount Meru, one of the most coveted prizes in the high stakes game of Himalayan big wall climbing.
Directors: Jimmy Chin, Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi | Stars: Conrad Anker, Grace Chin, Jimmy Chin, Amee Hinkley
Votes: 19,051 | Gross: $2.33M
37. Turn Every Page: The Adventures of Robert Caro and Robert Gottlieb (2022)
PG | 112 min | Documentary
Follows the iconic Pulitzer Prize-winning author Robert Caro and his editor, the literary giant Robert Gottlieb, in this chronicle of a unique 50-year professional relationship.
Director: Lizzie Gottlieb | Stars: Robert A. Caro, Bill Clinton, Robert Gottlieb, Conan O'Brien
Votes: 482
38. Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room (2005)
R | 110 min | Documentary, Biography, History
A documentary about the Enron corporation, its faulty and corrupt business practices, and how they led to its fall.
Director: Alex Gibney | Stars: John Beard, Tim Belden, Barbara Boxer, George W. Bush
Votes: 20,109
39. Senna (2010)
PG-13 | 106 min | Documentary, Biography, Sport
A documentary on Brazilian Formula One racing driver Ayrton Senna, who won the F1 world championship three times before his death at age 34.
Director: Asif Kapadia | Stars: Ayrton Senna, Reginaldo Leme, John Bisignano, Neyde Senna
Votes: 75,755 | Gross: $1.61M
40. The Crime of the Century (2021)
TV-MA | 116 min | Documentary, Crime
A searing indictment of Big Pharma and the political operatives and government regulations that enable over-production, reckless distribution and abuse of synthetic opiates.
Stars: Patrick Radden Keefe, Edward Byrne, Kadrolsha Ona Carole, Anna Lembke
Votes: 4,357
41. The Great Hack (2019)
TV-MA | 114 min | Documentary, Biography, History
The Cambridge Analytica scandal is examined through the roles of several affected persons.
Directors: Karim Amer, Jehane Noujaim | Stars: Brittany Kaiser, David Carroll, Paul-Olivier Dehaye, Ravi Naik
Votes: 25,018
42. Is That Black Enough for You?!? (2022)
R | 135 min | Documentary, History
Tracks the history of Black cinema, focused mainly on the '70s, with archival and new interviews with many of the key players from the era.
Director: Elvis Mitchell | Stars: Elvis Mitchell, Margaret Avery, Harry Belafonte, Charles Burnett
Votes: 1,504
43. Collective (2019)
Not Rated | 109 min | Documentary, Crime
Director Alexander Nanau follows a crack team of investigators at the Romanian newspaper Gazeta Sporturilor as they try to uncover a vast health-care fraud that enriched moguls and politicians and led to the deaths of innocent citizens.
Director: Alexander Nanau | Stars: Dan Alexandru Condrea, Liviu Iolu, Razvan Lutac, Mirela Neag
Votes: 13,436
44. Crip Camp (2020)
R | 106 min | Documentary, History
Down the road from Woodstock, a revolution blossomed at a ramshackle summer camp for teenagers with disabilities, transforming their lives and igniting a landmark movement.
Directors: James Lebrecht, Nicole Newnham | Stars: James Lebrecht, Lionel Je'Woodyard, Joseph O'Conor, Ann Cupolo Freeman
Votes: 8,228
45. Descendant (2022)
PG | 109 min | Documentary, History
Follows descendants of the survivors from the Clotilda, the last ship that carried enslaved Africans to the United States, as they reclaim their story.
Director: Margaret Brown | Stars: Theodore Arthur, Gary Autrey, Chris Davis, Joycelyn Davis
Votes: 1,416
46. Honeyland (2019)
Unrated | 89 min | Documentary, Drama
The last female bee-hunter in Europe must save the bees and return the natural balance in Honeyland, when a family of nomadic beekeepers invade her land and threaten her livelihood.
Directors: Tamara Kotevska, Ljubomir Stefanov | Stars: Hatidze Muratova, Nazife Muratova, Hussein Sam, Ljutvie Sam
Votes: 19,403 | Gross: $0.82M
47. Winter on Fire: Ukraine's Fight for Freedom (2015)
Not Rated | 102 min | Documentary, History, War
A documentary on the unrest in Ukraine during 2013 and 2014, as student demonstrations supporting European integration grew into a violent revolution calling for the resignation of President Viktor F. Yanukovich.
Director: Evgeny Afineevsky | Stars: His Beatitude Sviatoslav, Said Ismagilov, Bishop Agapit, Archbishop Petro Malchuk
Votes: 20,623
48. The Dissident (2020)
PG-13 | 119 min | Documentary, Crime, Thriller
When Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi disappears in Istanbul, his fiancée and dissidents around the world piece together the clues to a murder and expose a global cover up.
Director: Bryan Fogel | Stars: Jamal Khashoggi, Omar Abdulaziz, Irfan Fidan, Recep Kiliç
Votes: 30,476
49. Hockeyland (2021)
108 min | Documentary, Sport
In Minnesota's fabled heartland of US ice hockey, the teams of rival towns skate for a last chance to etch their names into local lore.
Director: Tommy Haines | Stars: Blake Biondi, Elliot Van Orsdel, Indio Dowd, Will Troutwine
Votes: 217
50. Attica (2021)
TV-MA | 116 min | Documentary, History
This unnervingly vivid dive into the 1971 uprising from Emmy® winning director Stanley Nelson sheds new light on the enduring violence and racism of the prison system and highlights the urgent, ongoing need for reform 50 years later.
Directors: Traci Curry, Stanley Nelson | Stars: Arthur Harrison, Carlos Roche, Tyrone Larkins, George Che Nieves
Votes: 3,077
51. Kokomo City (2023)
R | 73 min | Documentary
A raw depiction of the lives of four black trans sex workers as they confront the dichotomy between the black community and themselves.
Director: D. Smith | Stars: Daniella Carter, Dominique Silver, Koko Da Doll, Liyah Mitchell
Votes: 976
52. Diving Deep: The Life and Times of Mike deGruy (2019)
83 min | Documentary
When ocean explorer and filmmaker Mike deGruy dies unexpectedly in an accident, his wife returns to the edit room to make a film.
Director: Mimi Armstrong DeGruy | Stars: Gracie Atkins, Paul Atkins, David Attenborough, James Cameron
Votes: 96
53. Until the Light Takes Us (2008)
Not Rated | 93 min | Documentary, Music
Interviews and news footage explore the rise of black metal music in Norway in the 1990s, including artists who were involved in suicide, murder and arson.
Directors: Aaron Aites, Audrey Ewell | Stars: Fenriz, Varg Vikernes, Euronymous, Hellhammer
Votes: 6,684 | Gross: $0.12M
54. Black Ice (2022)
R | 96 min | Documentary, Sport
Black Ice exposes a history of racism in hockey through the untold stories of Black hockey players, both past and present, in a predominantly white sport.
Director: Hubert Davis | Stars: P.K. Subban, Marcel Albers
Votes: 338
55. 4 Little Girls (1997)
TV-14 | 102 min | Documentary, History
A documentary of the notorious racial terrorist bombing of an African American church during the Civil Rights Movement.
Director: Spike Lee | Stars: Maxine McNair, Walter Cronkite, Chris McNair, Fred Lee Shuttlesworth
Votes: 3,578 | Gross: $0.13M
56. Sherpa (2015)
Not Rated | 96 min | Documentary
In 2014, director Jennifer Peedom was working on a documentary about the Sherpas of Mount Everest when the largest avalanche in recent history occurred on the mountain, killing 16 Sherpas.
Director: Jennifer Peedom | Stars: Russell Brice, Tim Medvetz, Pasang Tenzing Sherpa, Phurba Tashi Sherpa
Votes: 5,411
57. Writing with Fire (2021)
Not Rated | 92 min | Documentary
In a cluttered news landscape dominated by men, emerges India's only newspaper run by Dalit women. Chief Reporter Meera and her journalists break traditions, redefining what it means to be powerful.
Directors: Sushmit Ghosh, Rintu Thomas | Stars: Meera Devi, Shyamkali Devi, Suneeta Prajapati
Votes: 1,662
58. Just Girls (2020)
70 min | Documentary
Set in conservative and growingly anti-LGBTQ Poland, Just Girls follows three Polish women as they daily defy intolerance while they pursue their dreams of inner happiness.
Director: Miguel Gaudêncio | Stars: Wiktoria Maria Arbaros, Izabella Kawycz, Ksenia Kwiecinska, Daria Naroc
Votes: 58
59. The Australian Wars (2022)
Documentary
There are more than ten thousand monuments across the country that honour the war dead . But what of the bloody battles fought on our home soil, in our longest-running war that established the Australian nation?
Stars: Rachel Perkins, Marcia Langton, Henry Reynolds, Nicholas Clements
Votes: 96
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