Top 100 Documentaries
(No Particular Order)
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- DirectorPippa EhrlichJames ReedStarsCraig FosterTom FosterA 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.
- DirectorLiz GarbusStarsJesse TempleBrad KatinasDiane SchulerThis documentary explores the depth behind the case of a woman whose vehicle collision killed numerous people, including herself. Was she really the reckless drunk, or the perfect suburban mother?
- DirectorKurt KuenneStarsKurt KuenneAndrew BagbyDavid BagbyA filmmaker decides to memorialize a murdered friend when his friend's ex-girlfriend announces she is expecting his son.
- DirectorBart LaytonStarsAdam O'BrianNicholas BarclayCarey GibsonA documentary centered on a young man in Spain who claims to a grieving Texas family that he is their 16-year-old son who has been missing for 3 years.
- 20184 epsTV-MA7.5 (31K)TV Mini SeriesStarsTrey BorzillieriJerry ClarkJason WickThe extraordinary story of the "pizza bomber heist" and the FBI's investigation into a bizarre collection of suspects.
- StarsGemma HoskinsAbbie SchaubVirginia AnzengruberA seven-part docuseries about the unsolved murder of a nun and the horrific secrets and pain that linger nearly five decades after her death.
- DirectorRod BlackhurstBrian McGinnStarsAmanda KnoxMeredith KercherRaffaele SollecitoAmerican exchange student Amanda Knox is charged with the 2007 death of another student in Italy.
- DirectorEva OrnerStarsLarissa AndersonFrancesca AsumahSarah BaughnTracing from his rise in the 1970s to his disgrace in accusations of rape and sexual harassment in more recent years.
- 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.
- StarsDan SchneiderAnnie SchneiderJack StephensDan Schneider, a small-town pharmacist in Louisiana, makes effort to identify his son's killer, which leads to his gathering of evidence against a prolific "pill mill" doctor in New Orleans.
- StarsJoe ExoticCarole BaskinJohn ReinkeA rivalry between big cat eccentrics takes a dark turn when Joe Exotic, a controversial animal park boss, is caught in a murder-for-hire plot.
- StarsCem Yigit UzümogluTuba BüyüküstünAlp IlkmanOttoman Sultan Mehmed II wages an epic campaign to take the Byzantine capital of Constantinople and shapes the course of history for centuries.
- StarsWilliam GuirolaWyatt HinzAlfredo TavaresFilmmaker Brian Knappenberger investigates the tragic death of an 8-year-old California boy who endured horrific abuse by his mother and her boyfriend, along with the fractured and complex systems that failed to protect him.
- StarsChris GrahamDoug MathewsAmy MurrayA detailed account of the McDonald's Monopoly game scam during the 1990s as told by the participants in the case, including the prizewinners and the FBI agents involved.
- DirectorMichael DeGrazierBenjamin PaulidesStarsJaryd AtaderoDeOrr Kunz Jr.Nate EatonA documentary that chronicles the similar disappearances of five children in the wilds of North America, across multiple decades.
- StarsDeanna ThompsonJohn GreenClaudette HamlinA group of online justice seekers track down a guy who posted a video of himself killing kittens.
- DirectorLouise OsmondJerry RothwellStarsTilda SwintonDonald CrowhurstTed HyndsA documentary about the disastrous 1968 round-the-world yacht race.
- DirectorTopher CochraneAlex RustStarsAlex RustRoss GerberJim RamirezA documentary about the journey and spirit of Alex Rust, a farm boy turned day trader from Indiana who, at 25, abandoned his yuppie life in Chicago, bought a modest sailboat, and set out to sail around the world, learning as he journeyed.
- StarsMichael PetersonDavid RudolfRon GueretteThe high-profile murder trial of American novelist Michael Peterson following the death of his wife Kathleen Peterson in 2001.
- DirectorJosh KriegmanElyse SteinbergStarsAnthony WeinerHuma AbedinJordan Zain WeinerAn examination of disgraced New York Congressman Anthony Weiner's mayoral campaign and today's political landscape.
- DirectorLaura PoitrasStarsEdward SnowdenGlenn GreenwaldWilliam BinneyA documentarian and a reporter travel to Hong Kong for the first of many meetings with Edward Snowden.
- DirectorGabriela CowperthwaiteStarsTilikumDave DuffusSamantha BergA documentary following the controversial captivity of killer whales, and its dangers for both humans and whales.
- 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.
- DirectorAmy FlanneryStarsMarlowe MacintyreHerb McCormickDoug RutherfordRed Dot on the Ocean is the story of Matt Rutherford, a severely troubled youth, who became a sailing legend. Departing Annapolis, MD in a scrappy old 27-foot fiberglass sloop without fanfare, 30-year-old Rutherford braved the icebergs of the arctic and mountainous waves of Cape Horn to become the only person to ever sail single-handed, non-stop around the Americas; a 27,000 mile journey many professional sailors declared "a suicide mission." As a youngster, Matt's ADHD and tics made life at home and at school near-impossible. At age 13 he was in drug rehab and he spent his remaining teen years more on the streets than in school. Then, at age 17, locked up in a cell, he had an epiphany and decided to turn his life around. Matt attended and excelled at a special high school for troubled youth where he developed a desire to explore the world. After graduating, he bought his first sailboat - sight unseen on the Internet. Over the next few years he bought boats on the cheap, fixed them up, and learned to sail on the fly. In 2008, Matt embarked on a single-handed voyage from the USA to Europe, West Africa and back across the Atlantic to the Caribbean. He'd found his calling. In 2011, Matt took on his biggest challenge: a solo, nonstop circumnavigation of the Americas. He did it for himself, and to raise money for disabled sailors. After 309 days at sea, Matt achieved his goal and sailed into Annapolis to a hero's welcome. Matt's story is told through his own words and interviews with his family, sailing experts, and others. We use family photos and video of his childhood; Matt's own footage of his early sailing days; and video, audio logs, and stills from his historic around the Americas voyage. To this we add additional ocean footage; archival visuals of earlier explorers Matt admires; and re-enactments from Matt's troubled past. Matt Rutherford's story is full of surprises. It is truly inspiring and makes us all feel we can do more than we ever imagined.
- DirectorSkye BorgmanStarsJan BrobergBob BrobergMary Ann BrobergThe twisting, turning, stranger-than-fiction true story of the Brobergs, a naive, church-going Idaho family that fell under the spell of a sociopathic neighbor with designs on their twelve-year-old daughter.
- DirectorBrian KnappenbergerStarsAaron SwartzTim Berners-LeeCindy CohnThe story of programming prodigy and information activist Aaron Swartz, who took his own life at the age of 26.
- DirectorJoe BerlingerBruce SinofskyStarsTony BrooksDiana DavisTerry WoodA horrific triple child murder leads to an indictment and trial of three nonconformist boys based on questionable evidence.
- DirectorTim HetheringtonSebastian JungerStarsThe Men of Battle Company 2nd of the 503rd Infantry Regiment 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat TeamJuan 'Doc RestrepoDan KearneyA year with one platoon in the deadliest valley in Afghanistan.
- DirectorJonathan HackerStarsLily FletcherTom HollanderPaul Marshall Johnson Jr.Deep in the Saudi desert, young thrill-seekers at jihadi boot camp sign up to a plot to overthrow the Saudi government. They detonate three horrific car-bombs at Western compounds in downtown Riyadh and become embroiled in a nail-biting game of cat and mouse with government forces. As their plans unravel, they resort to ever more brutal tactics. Exposing the dark side of the human soul, Path of Blood reveals Al Qaeda as you've never seen it before. Using a treasure trove of Al Qaeda home-movie footage captured by the security services, this haunting documentary film shows how brainwashed idealism and the youthful pursuit of adventure can descend into madness and carnage.