Favorite Documentaries
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- DirectorJoshua OppenheimerAnonymousChristine CynnStarsAnwar CongoHerman KotoSyamsul ArifinA documentary which challenges former Indonesian death-squad leaders to reenact their mass-killings in whichever cinematic genres they wish, including classic Hollywood crime scenarios and lavish musical numbers.
- DirectorRobin AndersonBob ConnollyStarsJoe LeahyJoe Leahy is the half-caste son of one of the first explorers of the Papua New Guinean interior. His relations with the local Ganiga tribe who work his coffee plantation on their land are difficult at times. However he has successfully managed to get them to agree to open a second plantation in partnership with him. Things are looking up until the international coffee market hits rough times and conflict seems imminent between the Ganiga and their neighbouring traditional enemies.
- DirectorWenguang WuStarsMay May Ci ZhangBo GaoSen MouIndependent Chinese documentary by Wu Wenguan following and interviewing a group of young artists around the time of the events Tiananmen about their lives and careers.
- DirectorMarta RodríguezJorge SilvaThis film documents the life of a family of brick makers in the outskirts of Bogotá, using the personal experience of the Castañeda family to expose the exploitation of manual laborers. Marta Rodríguez and Jorge Silva worked on this documentary from 1966 to 1972, establishing a relationship with the family which allows the viewer an intimate look at their hardships.
- DirectorPier Paolo PasoliniStarsLello BersaniAlberto MoraviaCesare MusattiDirector Pasolini traverses Italy in 1963 with camera and microphone interviewing people in public places about sex, marriage and gender roles.
- DirectorJames BenningStarsFred GardnerLandscape shots of Utah with narration chronicling its history by way of The New York Times excerpts from the 1850s to the 1990s.
- DirectorAlbert MayslesDavid MayslesCharlotte ZwerinStarsMick JaggerKeith RichardsMick TaylorWhen three hundred thousand members of the Love Generation collided with a few dozen Hells Angels at San Francisco's Altamont Speedway, the bloody slash that transformed a decade's dreams into disillusionment was immortalized on this film.
- DirectorAgnès VardaStarsFrançois WertheimerAgnès VardaJean La PlancheVarda films and interviews gleaners in France in all forms, from those picking fields after the harvest to those scouring the dumpsters of Paris.
- DirectorBarbara KoppleStarsJohn L. LewisCarl HornNorman YarboroughA heartbreaking record of the thirteen-month struggle between a community fighting to survive and a corporation dedicated to the bottom line.
- DirectorBenjamin ChristensenStarsBenjamin ChristensenElisabeth ChristensenMaren PedersenFictionalized documentary showing the evolution of witchcraft, from its pagan roots to its confusion with hysteria in Eastern Europe.
- 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.
- DirectorSteve JamesStarsWilliam GatesArthur AgeeEmma GatesA film following the lives of two inner-city Chicago boys who struggle to become college basketball players on the road to going professional.
- DirectorRithy PanhStarsRandal DoucJean-Baptiste PhouRithy Panh uses clay figures, archival footage, and his narration to recreate the atrocities Cambodia's Khmer Rouge committed between 1975 and 1979.
- DirectorDziga VertovStarsMikhail KaufmanElizaveta SvilovaA man travels around a city with a camera slung over his shoulder, documenting urban life with dazzling invention.
- DirectorAlain ResnaisStarsMichel BouquetReinhard HeydrichHeinrich HimmlerThe history of Nazi Germany's death camps of the Final Solution and the hellish world of dehumanization and death contained inside.
- DirectorShinsuke OgawaIn the very heart of the Japanese mountains, Ogawa discovers a village still dealing with the trauma of global warfare and struggling for survival as their children flee for the cities.
- DirectorEzra EdelmanStarsKareem Abdul-JabbarMike AlbaneseMuhammad AliA chronicle of the rise and fall of O.J. Simpson, whose high-profile murder trial exposed the extent of American racial tensions, revealing a fractured and divided nation.
- DirectorJennie LivingstonStarsBrooke XtravaganzaAndré ChristianDorian CoreyA chronicle of New York's drag scene in the 1980s, focusing on balls, voguing and the ambitions and dreams of those who gave the era its warmth and vitality.
- DirectorJean-Michel BarjolJean EustacheIn the French countryside it's the day for peasants to kill a big fat pig. The slaughter goes on for a great part of the day as they work to store 140kg worth of meat.
- DirectorMichael MooreStarsMichael MooreRoger B. SmithRhonda BrittonAfter General Motors closes its factory in Flint, Michigan, eliminating 35,000 jobs, filmmaker Michael Moore undertakes a quixotic quest to interview General Motors' chairman, Roger B. Smith.
- DirectorDong-won KimBefore the 1988 Seoul Olympics, the Korean government forced the redevelopment of Daldongne, for the poor hillside village was not to be seen by foreign guests arriving for the Games. Including Sanggye-dong, residents of two hundred Daldongne areas were expelled from their home. The government demolished all the houses and repressed them with gangsters, bulldozers and riot police.
- DirectorErrol MorrisStarsRandall AdamsDavid HarrisGus RoseA film that successfully argued that a man was wrongly convicted for murder by a corrupt justice system in Dallas County, Texas.
- DirectorKrzysztof KieslowskiPeople of different age, profession and social status answer two simple questions: who they are and what they want from life.
- DirectorKostas SfikasStavros TornesA poetic documentary about the island of Santorini.
- DirectorLeni RiefenstahlStarsAdolf HitlerHermann GöringMax AmannThe infamous propaganda film of the 1934 Nazi Party rally in Nuremberg, Germany.
- 199031mNot Rated7.3 (306)ShortDirectorLes BlankStarsMarc SavoyPaul PrudhommeMargaret Chenier"Les Blank marries his passion for spicy, down home food and his love for Cajuns and Creoles in this mouth-watering, exploration of the cooking, and other enthusiasms, of French-speaking Louisiana. Features tangy music, and food by Marc Savoy, Paul Prudhomme, and other greats". --Director's web site.
- 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.
- DirectorGianfranco RosiStarsSamuele PucilloMattias CucinaSamuele CaruanaCapturing life on the Italian island of Lampedusa, a frontline in the European migrant crisis.
- DirectorAmy BergStarsOliver O'GradyThomas DoyleAdamDocumentary about Father Oliver O'Grady, a Catholic priest who was relocated to various parishes around the United States during the 1970s in an attempt by the Catholic Church to cover up his rape of dozens of children.
- DirectorRon FrickeStarsPatrick DisantoA collection of expertly photographed scenes of human life and religion.
- DirectorJon Ungpakorn
- DirectorRaoul PeckStarsSamuel L. JacksonJames BaldwinMartin Luther KingWriter James Baldwin tells the story of race in modern America with his unfinished novel, Remember This House.
- DirectorAlison KlaymanStarsAi WeiweiDan AiLao AiA documentary that chronicles artist and activist Ai Weiwei as he prepares for a series of exhibitions and gets into an increasing number of clashes with the Chinese government.
- DirectorFax BahrGeorge HickenlooperEleanor CoppolaStarsDennis HopperMartin SheenMarlon BrandoDocumentary that chronicles how Francis Ford Coppola's Apocalypse Now (1979) was plagued by extraordinary script, shooting, budget, and casting problems--nearly destroying the life and career of the celebrated director.
- DirectorMartin BellStarsAnnieEddieAntoineGritty documentary that looks at the lives of teenagers living on the streets of Seattle.
- DirectorAsif KapadiaStarsAyrton SennaReginaldo LemeJohn BisignanoA documentary on Brazilian Formula One racing driver Ayrton Senna, who won the F1 world championship three times before his death at age 34.
- DirectorRob EpsteinStarsHarvey FiersteinHarvey MilkAnne KronenbergA documentary of the successful career and assassination of San Francisco's first elected gay city supervisor.
- DirectorAl ReinertStarsJim LovellKen MattinglyRussell SchweickartAn in-depth look at various NASA moon landing missions, starting with Apollo 8.
- DirectorJosé PadilhaFelipe LacerdaStarsSandro do NascimentoRodrigo PimentelLuiz Eduardo SoaresOn June 12, 2000, a young man with a gun took the passengers aboard Bus 174 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil hostage. This documentary examines the event itself, the resulting media frenzy, the police response, and the perpetrator's background.
- DirectorTakis PapagiannidisStarsChryssoula DiavatiLykourgos KallergisKiriakos KatrivanosPortrays the marine element as a catalyst between myth and historical experience via the evocation of the major events that shaped modern Greece in the course of its past decades.
- DirectorCamille BillopsJames HatchStarsBillie BrowningSuzanne BrowningA documentary that chronicles a substance abused teenage girl and the downward spiral of her family.
- DirectorMitsuo YanagimachiThe 1970s in Japan saw the rise of motorcycle gangs, which drew the interest of the media. The movie follows a member of the "Black Emperors" gang and his interaction with his parents after he gets in trouble with the police.
- DirectorRobert J. FlahertyStarsAllakariallakAlice NevalingaCunayouIn this silent predecessor to the modern documentary, film-maker Robert J. Flaherty spends one year following the lives of Nanook and his family, Inuits living in the Arctic Circle.
- DirectorWang BingDocuments a workday at a remote Chinese oil field, from a stolen nap in a break room to the massive drills plunging into the earth.
- DirectorWalter RuttmannStarsPaul von HindenburgThis movie shows us one day in Berlin, the rhythm of that time, starting at the earliest morning and ends in the deepest night.
- DirectorChris MarkerStarsAmilcar CabralFlorence DelayArielle DombasleA woman narrates the contemplative writings of a seasoned world traveler, focusing on contemporary Japan.
- DirectorRobert KramerStarsJesse JacksonPaul McIsaacPat RobertsonDoc (McIsaac), back from a decade in in Africa, and filmmaker Kramer, decide to follow Route 1, from the Canadian border all the way to the tip of Florida.
- DirectorJean-Marie TénoStarsJean-Marie TénoNarcisse KouokamMarie Claire DatiA documentary examining political repression in Cameroon, Central Africa.
- DirectorAhmed El MaanouniStarsLarbi BatmaNass-El GhiwaneAbderrahman PacoThe very popular Moroccan group Nass-El Ghiwane are filmed, in performances, meetings, interviews, and collaborations with other musicians.
- DirectorTravis WilkersonAn experimental documentary exploring the turn-of-century lynching of union organizer Frank Little in Butte, Montana.
- DirectorMarlon RiggsStarsMarlon RiggsMichael BellKerrigan BlackA documentary about the experiences of black homosexual men living in the United States of America.
- DirectorMarlon RiggsStarsBarbara T. ChristianGeorge FredericksonLarry C. LevineThis documentary traces the deep-rooted stereotypes which have fueled anti-black prejudice.
- DirectorVictor A. TurinResisting the character-driven narrative adhered to by the rest of the world's filmmakers, Victor Turin formulated a grand, elemental drama centered around the struggle for survival in Asia, from the arid plains of Turkestan to the icy Siberian mountains. This unique film tells the story of the creation of a monumental Soviet construction project - a railway that connected Central Asia and Siberia.
- DirectorPawel LozinskiStarsHenryk GrynbergAfter almost 50 years, Holocaust survivor Henryk Grynberg visits the village he grew up in. He was also hiding there during the Nazi occupation. Grynberg wants to know what happened to his father and younger brother during the war.
- DirectorAllan KingStarsPhyllis BobbittJoyce BoneNorman CollinsDirector Allan King documents the final months of five terminally ill cancer patients at the Toronto Grace Health Centre.
- DirectorBert SternAram AvakianStarsLouis ArmstrongMahalia JacksonChuck BerryThe highlights of the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival.
- DirectorChantal AkermanStarsNatalia ChakhovskaiaA look at life in Eastern Europe after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
- DirectorAlan BerlinerStarsAlan BerlinerOscar BerlinerA portrait of the director's father, searching for the extraordinary in the subject's seemingly normal existence.
- DirectorNikolaus GeyrhalterHomo Sapiens shows stunning images of forgotten places, buildings we constructed and then left.
- DirectorLiang ZhaoUnder the sun, the heavenly beauty of grasslands will soon be covered by the raging dust of mines. Facing the ashes and noises caused by heavy mining , the herdsmen have no choice but to leave as the meadow areas dwindle. In the moonlight, iron mines are brightly lit throughout the night. Workers who operate the drilling machines must stay awake. The fight is tortuous, against the machine and against themselves. Meanwhile, coal miners are busy filling trucks with coals. Wearing a coal-dust mask, they become ghostlike creatures. An endless line of trucks will transport all the coals and iron ores to the iron works. There traps another crowd of souls, being baked in hell. In the hospital, time hangs heavy on miners' hands. After decades of breathing coal dust, death is just around the corner. They are living the reality of purgatory, but there will be no paradise.
- DirectorDaniel LindsayT.J. MartinStarsHenry AlfaroDanny BakewellJohn D. BarnettTwenty-five years after the verdict in the Rodney King trial sparked several days of protests, violence and looting in Los Angeles, filmmakers examine that tumultuous period through rarely seen archival footage.
- DirectorWerner HerzogStarsWerner HerzogThis film surveys the disaster of the Kuwaiti oil fields in flames, with little narration and scarcely any interviews. Hell on Earth is presented in such transcendent visions and music that one can only be fascinated by it.
- DirectorMarcel OphülsStarsHelmut TausendMarcel VerdierAlexis GraveAn in-depth exploration of the various reactions by the French people to the Vichy government's acceptance of the German invasion.
- DirectorMartin BellStarsErin BlackwellMary Ellen MarkA sequel to Streetwise, focusing on Tiny.
- DirectorPeter BogdanovichStarsNeil ArmstrongMick AvoryRon Blair"Runnin' Down A Dream," a film directed by cinema legend Peter Bogdanovich, is the story of one of America's great rock and roll bands told as never before.
- DirectorFrank HurleyStarsErnest ShackletonFrank WorsleyJ. StenhouseThe story of the 1914-1916 Antarctic exploration mission of Sir Ernest Shackleton. The ship sails south, breaking the ice, and ultimately getting trapped by the fast-changing weather. The ship breaks up in the ice, and while 22 men and 70 dogs wait on Elephant Island, Shackleton and a crew of five take a 20-foot lifeboat 800 miles to South Georgia Island to mount a rescue mission. We also get a good look at the exotic animals of the region, particularly the penguins.
- DirectorAdam CurtisStarsAdam CurtisDonald TrumpVladimir PutinAdam Curtis explains how, at a time of confusing and inexplicable world events, politicians and the people they represent have retreated in to a damaging over-simplified version of what is happening.
- DirectorJoe BerlingerBruce SinofskyStarsTony BrooksDiana DavisTerry WoodA horrific triple child murder leads to an indictment and trial of three nonconformist boys based on questionable evidence.
- DirectorDavid FranceStarsPeter StaleyLarry KramerIris LongThe story of two coalitions -- ACT UP and TAG (Treatment Action Group) -- whose activism and innovation turned AIDS from a death sentence into a manageable condition.
- DirectorClaude Friese-GreeneStarsNorman SwanTravelogue filmed between 1924 and 1926 on a motor journey between Land's End and John O'Groats using Friese-Green's two colour additive process.
- DirectorEbrahim GolestanTHIS IS A MAINLY VISUAL DOCUMENTARY WITH SOME NARRATION -- No plot-line to spoil so NO SPOILERS, just descriptions and commentary. JEWELS GALORE!. Rubies, Diamonds, Emeralds, and GOLD GOLD GOLD.