Top 30 Documentaries All Time
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- DirectorClaude LanzmannStarsSimon SrebnikMichael PodchlebnikMotke ZaïdlClaude Lanzmann's epic documentary recounts the story of the Holocaust through interviews with witnesses - perpetrators as well as survivors.
- DirectorChris SmithStarsMark BorchardtMike SchankTom SchimmelsDocumentary about an aspiring filmmaker's attempts to finance his dream project by finally completing the low-budget horror film he abandoned years before.
- StarsDavid McCulloughSam WaterstonJulie HarrisA comprehensive survey of the American Civil War.
- DirectorMichael CollinsWhen a teenager from a political family in the Philippines is accused of a double murder, the country's entire judicial system is put to the test after years of alleged corruption.
- 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.
- 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.
- DirectorSteve JamesStarsTio HardimanAmeena MatthewsToya BateyA year in the life of a city grappling with urban violence.
- 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.
- DirectorJoe BerlingerBruce SinofskyStarsTony BrooksDiana DavisTerry WoodA horrific triple child murder leads to an indictment and trial of three nonconformist boys based on questionable evidence.
- DirectorKen BurnsStarsKeith DavidKevin ConwayPhilip BoscoA biographical film about the acclaimed American humourist and author.
- DirectorMatthew AkersJeff DupreStarsMarina AbramovicUlayKlaus BiesenbachA documentary that follows the Serbian performance artist as she prepares for a retrospective of her work at The Museum of Modern Art in New York.
- DirectorDaniele AnastasionEric StraussStarsJoshua Milton Blahyi Jr.Janice BlahyiJoshua BlahyiTells the story of Joshua Milton Blahyi - aka General Butt Naked - a brutal warlord who murdered thousands during Liberia's horrific 14-year civil war. Today, the General has renounced his violent past and reinvented himself as Evangelist Joshua Milton Blahyi. This portrait takes viewers on Joshua's crusade to redeem his past, as he confronts his victims and attempts to rehabilitate the former child soldiers who once fought for him. Whatever you make of him -- liar or madman, charlatan or genuine repentant -- the film challenges viewers to ask important questions about both the power and the limits of forgiveness, amid a nation's search for healing and justice.
- DirectorTerry ZwigoffStarsRobert CrumbAline Kominsky-CrumbCharles CrumbAn intimate portrait of controversial cartoonist Robert Crumb and his traumatized family.
- 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.
- DirectorNisha PahujaRanjit, a farmer in India, takes on the fight of his life when he demands justice for his 13-year-old daughter, the victim of a brutal gang rape. His decision to support his daughter is virtually unheard of, and his journey unprecedented.
- DirectorMichael AptedStarsRobert RedfordNorman ZigrossiRobert SikmaThis film describes the events surrounding a 1975 shootout at the Pine Ridge reservation in S. Dakota where two FBI agents were killed.
- StarsRobert DurstAndrew JareckiDick DeGuerinFilmmaker Andrew Jarecki examines the complicated life of reclusive real estate icon Robert Durst, the key suspect in a series of unsolved crimes.
- DirectorBennett MillerStarsTimothy 'Speed' LevitchTimothy "Speed" Levitch, an eccentric New York City tour bus guide, takes tourists around the island of Manhattan and shares an archive of beautifully distorted information about the city.
- DirectorDoug PrayStarsJuliette PaskowitzDavid PaskowitzJonathan PaskowitzDoug Pray explores the life of surfer Dorian "Doc" Paskowitz.
- DirectorKen BurnsStarsJack JohnsonKeith DavidSamuel L. JacksonThe story of Jack Johnson, the first African-American Heavyweight boxing champion.
- DirectorChris SmithStarsJim CarreyDanny DeVitoMilos FormanA behind-the-scenes look at how Jim Carrey adopted the persona of idiosyncratic comedian Andy Kaufman on the set of Man on the Moon (1999).
- DirectorTerry ZwigoffStarsHoward ArmstrongTed BoganYank RachellAbout the obscure country-blues musician and idiosyncratic visual artist Howard "Louie Bluie" Armstrong, member of the last known black string band in America.
- DirectorWilliam GazeckiStarsDan GiffordJim CavanaughDick DeGuerinA reassessment of the tragedy at Waco that left 76 members of the Branch Davidian religious sect dead.
- DirectorJeff FeuerzeigStarsDaniel JohnstonMabel JohnstonBill JohnstonDaniel Johnston, manic-depressive genius singer/songwriter/artist is revealed in this portrait of madness, creativity and love.
- DirectorAmy BergStarsJason BaldwinDamien Wayne EcholsJessie MisskelleyAn examination of a failure of justice in the case against the West Memphis Three.
- DirectorAlex GibneyStarsJohn BeardTim BeldenBarbara BoxerA documentary about the Enron corporation, its faulty and corrupt business practices, and how they led to its fall.
- StarsDaniel OkrentGeorge F. WillJohn ChancellorA documentary on the history of the sport with major topics including Afro-American players, player/team owner relations and the resilience of the game.
- DirectorKirby DickStarsBob FlanaganSheree RoseKathe BurkhartDiagnosed with cystic fibrosis from a young age, performance artist Bob Flanagan shared his life and pain in his art, usually through sadomasochistic practices.
- DirectorDon HardyDana NachmanStarsJack CummingsJackie CummingsAllen GraftonThe story of several families who have their lives destroyed when their hometown is whipped into a frenzy by allegations of child molestation.
- 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)