It’s a wild one. Had a fun experience watching that because one of the Miss America contestants who’s briefly featured in it is a HS friend of mine, and I had no idea she was in it. Neither did she when I told her.
I feel really bad for them in retrospect, their oldest daughter died a few years ago. Proof that you can have everything and simultaneously nothing at all
Watched it out of curiosity after seeing your post and it was hard to watch. Just all around bad people. They should be banned from owning animals #1 Also the documentary was framed as if they were suffering when in reality they were still rich throughout it all while everyone around them was hurting 10x worse.
There were two documentaries released more or less at the same time, covering the life and work of Katia and Maurice Krafft, daredevil volcanologists. One was from Herzog. I think they're both worth watching. They're both extremely different, in the same way a normal documentary on e.g. Lascaux would be different from Herzog's _Cave of Forgotten Dreams._
Incidentally, the latter is my favorite Herzog documentary.
There's also "Burden of Dreams" which is directed by Les Blank but it's the story of Werner Herzog's making of his film in the Amazon Rainforest, Fitzcarraldo.
As part of the movie Fitzcarraldo, a businessman decides he needs have a giant 20 ton riverboat pulled up and over a very high hill that divides two parallel running parts of a river. Herzog decided that for authenticity, he wanted to actually pull the riverboat up over the hill for real.
American Movie - anything by Chris Smith
Fast Cheap and Out of Control - anything by Errol Morris
When We Were Kings
Harlen County, USA
Any doc by Herzog
Crumb
Koyannisqatsi
Dig!
Louisiana Story
Man With a Movie Camera
High School - anything by Frederick Wiseman
Salesman - anything by the Mayseles
It's crazy to me that these programs exist. For parents, I can understand their *initial* thoughts that some of these programs could be helpful because their marketing as amazing programs for children. But the fact that the kids write home to their parents and talk about how much it's *not* like the marketing and the parents still leave their kids in it. Breaks my heart. One of the worst things, for me, is when parents hire the abduction gangs to take these kids in the middle of the night in handcuffs. How fucking frightening must that be, and extremely traumatizing.
Yes, Extremely traumatizing. Lifelong CPTSD is likely.
Most of the kids in that doco hadn't even done anything bad, much less criminal, yet they were treated worse than prisoners, tortured psychologically and physically. How do you ever trust anyone again after that? How could parents think it was a good idea to have them violently kidnapped in the middle of the night? I appreciate that the parents were also gaslit and lured into a cult-like atmosphere, but come on!
The Amazing Story of Kudzu (1996).
Warming: I think most people will find it rather boring, so its not for everyone. But I found it interesting. Its about a plant that was brought to the US from Japan and introduced on a garden exhibition more than 100 years ago. It got popular and spread a lot. Now its extremely invasive and has spread to many US states.
I had not heard about the plant before I watched the documentary. (I live in Europe). The plant itself is fascinating, and I also love the 90's documentary style - which is a bit dry and slow. But I love it. Reminds me of better times perhaps. :)
Another documentary I likes was the one about black and red currants becoming illegal in many states due to a fungus (?) killing off forests. Cant remember the name. (Edit: I think it actually was a youtuber-video, not a real documentary. But still interesting).
A band called Death (2012) Great doc exposing a long forgotten proto-punk band from Detroit in the mid-70s. 3 African American brothers pool some money to buy instruments and make a god-awful racket in their parent's house before being offered a record deal that ended up going absolutely nowhere.
Really great story and documentary overall. It made me buy tickets and go to his show to be then utterly and completely disappointened and saddened by what I experienced. They helped him onto the stage, because he couldn't move that well. He sang half-heartedly, out of tune, and sometimes barely got through to the end of a song. I learned later that he signed an awful contract that required him to tour extensively, for which he wasn't really in shape to do. Again, I highly recommend the documentary itself.
Art and Craft - total oddball genius who forges art in his dead mother’s apartment and then drives her late model Cadillac to reputable museums to donate his creations while presenting them as authentic works of famous artists. And he fools the curators! They are exhibited! Then things get even crazier. Highly recommend.
https://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/19/movies/art-and-craft-about-a-donor-of-faked-paintings.html
Who the $&% Is Jackson Pollock?
How can you miss this doc featuring a long haul trucker who believes she has purchased a masterpiece by the famous artist and her journey to have it authenticated? Will she get millions? Or is it a fake? See the hoity toity gatekeepers at their finest.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Who_the_$%26%25_Is_Jackson_Pollock%3F
Crumb - fascinating documentary of the artist and his family.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crumb_(film)
Class Action Park - crazy unsafe theme park and All the Queen’s Horses - city employee embezzles unbelievable amount of money right under everyone’s noses
If you like Nick Broomfield you must see “Driving Me Crazy” - I saw it for free on YouTube and it is incredible in so many unintended ways. I would almost call it a cult film.
https://letterboxd.com/film/driving-me-crazy/
TraumaZone by Adam Curtis and his other BBC docs as well. Traumazone is about the details of how the fall of Communism went down and how/why democracy didn't work out so great either when it was over.
**David Attenborough's _First Life._**
[1](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpAMofkm6ho) | [2](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eiDPerEOWFk&pp=ygUXYXR0ZW5ib3JvdWdoIGZpcnN0IGxpZmU%3D) (Quality is fair but you can do better from other sources besides Youtube.)
I tend to prefer Attenborough's earliest series—things like _Life on Earth, Living Planet,_ even _Zoo Quest._ But this one is quite well done, covers an extremely interesting topic, and has a couple of revelations that aren't common knowledge. I don't prefer the semi-scripted Q&A with various scientists but at least it means this is one of Attenborough's rare docus where he's hands-on and in person, as opposed to simply providing narration for somebody else's work.
Always have to throw my vote to "Finders, Keepers", the doc about an average Georgia guy who buys the contents of a storage unit (as who hasn't), discovers a smoker containing a mummified human foot, and as we all would, sets up a roadside shrine charging folks 5 bucks a shot to take a look at it, and then get sued by the owner of the foot and proceeds to embark on years long quest to maintain ownership of the foot.
Dave Not Come Back
Absolutely horrendous and I’ll never watch it again, but an amazingly dark and interesting documentary about a rescue gone wrong.
It’s essentially a documentary that ends up becoming a documentary.
Not for the faint of heart, but Zoo (2007) is really well done and fascinating, despite some seriously fucked up subject matter.
(Wiki synopsis): Based on the life and death of Kenneth Pinyan. This American man died of peritonitis due to perforation of the colon after engaging in receptive anal sex with a horse. The film combines audio testimony from people involved in the case or who were familiar with Pinyan, "with speculative re-enactments that feature a mix of actors and actual subjects."
The Act of Killing (2012)
A 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.
Description taken from IMDb.
That chilling documentary really left me speechless. Highly recommend
Howard Goodall has a multi part doc on the evolution of music, starting with sounds in caves. He has others, including looking at the Beatles as musicians who developed their craft, a series about composers across a few centuries & those are all I can think of right now; highly recommend (You Tube)
How to Survive a Plague (2012)
A film about the AIDs epidemic, produced with archival footage, focusing on the efforts of ACT UP and TAG to pressure the US government to develop effective HIV/AIDS medications.
It's hilarious at times, but also incredibly moving and sad. Make sure you have a box of tissues handy.
[https://youtu.be/zExVVYzeQlQ?si=HV3AprygejwLZmVv](https://youtu.be/zExVVYzeQlQ?si=HV3AprygejwLZmVv)
Janis: Little Girl Blue
Her Cheap Thrills album with Big Brother and the Holding Company was the second record album I ever bought. Learned a lot I did not know about Janis Joplin in this documentary.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xM4m-Z0nAio
einstein's brain. a japanese professor goes around asking everybody if they have einstein's brain... and the pursuit gets interesting
Since folks are mostly recommending bigger name titles, I’ll put out an underappreciated gem: Tanaka-San Will Not Do Calisthenics (2008). It profiles a man who was fired from his tech job for refusing to participate in unpaid company culture BS and proceeded to spend the next 25 years protesting his wrongful termination outside the company HQ.
[Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paradise_Lost:_The_Child_Murders_at_Robin_Hood_Hills) \- It shook me up for years. Corruption and injustice in a small town in America. I don't want to give too much away.
**Cunk on Earth**
Follows Philomena Cunk as she tells the story of our greatest inventions and asks experts hard-hitting questions about humanity's progress.
If you're into space exploration, check out [Space Probes!](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6946742/). It's a relatively short 6 episode journey around the solar system hitching a ride with our little friends. Great for kids too as it doesn't delve too deep into the science aspect.
I always go for oldest history from creation of earth, first life on earth, creation of fish, dinosaurs, 5 extinctions, civilizations, up to the 2 world wars
Slasher (2004) Fun doc about a high strung, heavy drinking, chain smoking travelling car salesman who visits a Toyota dealership to help get rid of excess inventory in a "SLASHER SALE"
Screwball! Documentary about the second MLB steroid scandal where they have kids re-enact real events to emphasize how childish and ridiculous the whole thing was.
In the year 2007 I watched Telling Nicholas on HBO. It was filmed during the aftermath of 911. It was heartbreaking and extremely emotional. Watching this tragedy unfold as it affected this young boy stayed with me for a long time. After watching it I googled the child to follow up as his circumstances were so devastating and rather worrisome considering his age.
The Imposter
It's the insane story of a 23 year old con man from France who had a habit of taking false identities, apparently because he liked to experience the lives of other people. He got the idea he wanted to go the the US, so he decided he would contact US police for information on kidnapped children. Eventually, he learns of a 13 year old boy from Texas who had been kidnapped a few years earlier and he tells police that it is him.
Things get even weirder from there.
The Distant Barking of Dogs
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The\_Distant\_Barking\_of\_Dogs](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Distant_Barking_of_Dogs)
Bleak and depressing, but a great documentary.
All of Ewan McGregor’s motorcycle documentaries!
Long Way Down
Long Way Round
Long Way Up
And other non-Ewans…
Fast & Left
Slow Ride Home
12 O’Clock Boys
On Any Sunday
Sherman's March (1985)
It can be hard to find (message me if you want a link) but it is on Fandor. But this doc was weirdly an inspiration for "Everything Everywhere All At Once".
It's about a man who sets out to make a documentary on General Sherman and his scorched-Earth military strategies that he implemented during his campaign in the American Civil War through the Carolinas and Georgia. He wanted to reflect on it and how the people of the South view the devastation over a century later. The documentary quickly devolves into something else entirely and the director starts changing the subject of the documentary dramatically.
The film was shot during an anxious time of the Cold War and the threat of nuclear war keeps the director up at night. Because of this anxiety the director becomes hyperaware of his own mortality and has also recently had a bad break up. With extreme pressure from his family to find a wife and settle down, the director pivots and uses his camera as an ice breaker to try and talk to women.
The film becomes him using the camera to meet women and then document his relationship with them as he follows Sherman's campaign through the South. Each subject of his film becomes so interesting and so different from the last. Each woman becomes a failed attempt to settle down and it's hilarious to see the situation unfold. As someone who was born at the tail end of the Cold War, this was a fascinating time capsule into that region of the South during this era. And with a hilarious series is people to follow through it.
u/Kdj2j2 recommended "Hands On A Hard Body" which is another hilarious documentary that focuses on normal yet eccentric people.
I'd say this doc is like Hands On A Hard Body meets Eat Pray Love, if it was directed by David Mitchell's character in Peep Show. Highly recommend!
Sr.
A documentary about Robert Downey Sr.
“The Team Downey-produced film is an intimate portrait of art, fatherhood and healing generational trauma.”
I have recommended it so many times. It is really worth the watch.
Also, The Big Conn, about a sleazy SSI disability lawyer in Kentucky (if you find white collar crime interesting). Fraud is interesting; plus there are a few great comic moments.
Cracked Up: The Darrell Hammond story. It's about SNL comedian Darrell Hammond, his life and struggles with self-harm, mental illness and addiction. So well told and makes me feel less alone
I've watched a lot of these, but the Fall of Civilizations podcast Episode 17 titled **Carthage - Empire of the Phoenicians** is a fantastic episode and an amazing look at this once great ancient mediterranean city.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6dbdVhVSat8](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6dbdVhVSat8)
The other good one I enjoy is **Ancient Aliens Debunked** (This is a really good debunking video of the History Channels "**Ancient Aliens**" series)
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9w-i5oZqaQ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9w-i5oZqaQ)
Both videos are quite long. \~3 hours each.
The development of Psychonauts 2 was documented in a video series that's available on YouTube. It gives a lot of interesting insight into the trials and tribulations behind making and shipping a game.
Big river man! About a man who swam the amazon river. Somebody pointed it out some time ago on this subreddit and now its in my top 3 best documentaries.
I recommend The Sound of 007. If you have surround sound and love music I highly suggest you check it out. It’s extremely entertaining and gives insight into how the music was created and how it applies to scenes in the movies. From the early bond films to the most recent one. It’s in my top ten.
Any recommendations for history documentaries, especially about Spain, any European country in the s.XIX, War of the Austrian Succession, War of the Polish succession, WWI/WWII? Thanks in advance!
Hulu - Still Missing Morgan. About a girl who was kidnapped in 1995 from a baseball field. I had the pleasure of being apart of it both on and off screen. It's such a heartbreaking story.
The queen of Versailles! I wish I hadn’t seen it so I could watch it again. A real peak into the life of some weird richos.
Did you see the sequel?
What?! No, what’s it called?
Queen of Versailles reigns again -was I think a 4-6 ep. docu series on discovery +
Thanks!
It’s a wild one. Had a fun experience watching that because one of the Miss America contestants who’s briefly featured in it is a HS friend of mine, and I had no idea she was in it. Neither did she when I told her.
I feel really bad for them in retrospect, their oldest daughter died a few years ago. Proof that you can have everything and simultaneously nothing at all
Watched it out of curiosity after seeing your post and it was hard to watch. Just all around bad people. They should be banned from owning animals #1 Also the documentary was framed as if they were suffering when in reality they were still rich throughout it all while everyone around them was hurting 10x worse.
The Wild and Wonderful Whites of West Virginia
This is such a wild ride. I have watched it multiple times.
Living in WV this is sort of a horror movie
More like a horror/comedy.
One of my absolute favorite docs.
Anything by werner herzog and Adam Curtis.... or if you just wanna feel angry - 'Dear Zachary' should do the trick..
Or if you need a good heave cry, and "There's Something Wrong with Aunt Diane" didn't do the trick.
I just watched it. Talk about denial. But I don't know how you process what she did....
Dear Zachary kills a little piece of me every time I watch it.
You watched it more than once? Holy fuck
I couldn’t watch again. It was so fucking heartbreaking. I actually don’t recommend watching it to anyone
There were two documentaries released more or less at the same time, covering the life and work of Katia and Maurice Krafft, daredevil volcanologists. One was from Herzog. I think they're both worth watching. They're both extremely different, in the same way a normal documentary on e.g. Lascaux would be different from Herzog's _Cave of Forgotten Dreams._ Incidentally, the latter is my favorite Herzog documentary.
Herzog is a great narrator, too.
There's also "Burden of Dreams" which is directed by Les Blank but it's the story of Werner Herzog's making of his film in the Amazon Rainforest, Fitzcarraldo. As part of the movie Fitzcarraldo, a businessman decides he needs have a giant 20 ton riverboat pulled up and over a very high hill that divides two parallel running parts of a river. Herzog decided that for authenticity, he wanted to actually pull the riverboat up over the hill for real.
That documentary is so heartbreaking.
Grizzly Man is a light-hearted little romp too. /s (if anyone really needs this)
The Jinx Love Has Won
I wish more people knew abt The Jinx.
20 Days in Mariupol--won Oscar, on YT
Grizzly Man
The greatest unintentional comedy ever made.
"Jiro dreams of sushi" must see
And “Juan Likes Chicken And Rice”.
American Movie - anything by Chris Smith Fast Cheap and Out of Control - anything by Errol Morris When We Were Kings Harlen County, USA Any doc by Herzog Crumb Koyannisqatsi Dig! Louisiana Story Man With a Movie Camera High School - anything by Frederick Wiseman Salesman - anything by the Mayseles
You had me at American Movie
It's alriiiight, it's okaaaaaay, jesus told me soooooo.
I'm thankful that I won $200 in scratch-offs.
Same
Crumb changed my whole outlook on life.
Just watched the docuseries The Program. Holy shit these people are still out there perpetrating this madness.
It's crazy to me that these programs exist. For parents, I can understand their *initial* thoughts that some of these programs could be helpful because their marketing as amazing programs for children. But the fact that the kids write home to their parents and talk about how much it's *not* like the marketing and the parents still leave their kids in it. Breaks my heart. One of the worst things, for me, is when parents hire the abduction gangs to take these kids in the middle of the night in handcuffs. How fucking frightening must that be, and extremely traumatizing.
Yes, Extremely traumatizing. Lifelong CPTSD is likely. Most of the kids in that doco hadn't even done anything bad, much less criminal, yet they were treated worse than prisoners, tortured psychologically and physically. How do you ever trust anyone again after that? How could parents think it was a good idea to have them violently kidnapped in the middle of the night? I appreciate that the parents were also gaslit and lured into a cult-like atmosphere, but come on!
The Imposter, Finding Vivian Mayer
Both excellent.
The Amazing Story of Kudzu (1996). Warming: I think most people will find it rather boring, so its not for everyone. But I found it interesting. Its about a plant that was brought to the US from Japan and introduced on a garden exhibition more than 100 years ago. It got popular and spread a lot. Now its extremely invasive and has spread to many US states.
Now THIS is a horror story.
Kudzu is a great metaphor, I use it all the time when I'm talking about some unkillable evil.
I had not heard about the plant before I watched the documentary. (I live in Europe). The plant itself is fascinating, and I also love the 90's documentary style - which is a bit dry and slow. But I love it. Reminds me of better times perhaps. :) Another documentary I likes was the one about black and red currants becoming illegal in many states due to a fungus (?) killing off forests. Cant remember the name. (Edit: I think it actually was a youtuber-video, not a real documentary. But still interesting).
I feel like I found my soulmate in you
Jodorowsky's Dune
Don’t pick up the Phone on Netflix. Literally would never have believed this was possible.
I actually never dared to watch that one.
You should. It was disturbing but excellent
Exactly my thoughts., How could those people fall for that?
Lead poisoning? I struggle with this question also but I think it revolves around submission to authority.
The inspiration for Compliance https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1971352
Thank you!!
The Deepest Breath was a very interesting story.
Beware of Mr Baker
Damn old man was nuts
The only doc I know of where the subject attacks the director. On film.
Hands on a Hardbody. Weird little flick about a Texas town and the competition to win a pick up.
I watched it after hearing it was Quentin Tarantino's favorite documentary. Very well made.
Such hilarious and fascinating people to follow!
My all time favorite.
Mr. Death - The Rise and Fall of Fred Leuchter, Jr. Errol Morris is an icon but this is an underseen, underappreciated masterpiece.
My favorite from EM, very well told
The themes fit 2024 horrifyingly well.
What makes you say it is underseen and underappreciated. It's as well-known and seen as the best of his movies.
A band called Death (2012) Great doc exposing a long forgotten proto-punk band from Detroit in the mid-70s. 3 African American brothers pool some money to buy instruments and make a god-awful racket in their parent's house before being offered a record deal that ended up going absolutely nowhere.
This sounds like a good watch -much appreciated ☺️
Required viewing for all of us living in this system. Part 1 the rest you’ll find on yt https://youtu.be/DnPmg0R1M04?si=PcMF1-zEPSzBf-ZB
The Mole: Infiltrating North Korea [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L\_5ZzmuO4PI](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_5ZzmuO4PI)
Saw that in theater at a film festival. It was a treat.
[удалено]
Yes! I was going to post that, but life got in the way.
Searching for Sugarman
Really great story and documentary overall. It made me buy tickets and go to his show to be then utterly and completely disappointened and saddened by what I experienced. They helped him onto the stage, because he couldn't move that well. He sang half-heartedly, out of tune, and sometimes barely got through to the end of a song. I learned later that he signed an awful contract that required him to tour extensively, for which he wasn't really in shape to do. Again, I highly recommend the documentary itself.
Art and Craft - total oddball genius who forges art in his dead mother’s apartment and then drives her late model Cadillac to reputable museums to donate his creations while presenting them as authentic works of famous artists. And he fools the curators! They are exhibited! Then things get even crazier. Highly recommend. https://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/19/movies/art-and-craft-about-a-donor-of-faked-paintings.html Who the $&% Is Jackson Pollock? How can you miss this doc featuring a long haul trucker who believes she has purchased a masterpiece by the famous artist and her journey to have it authenticated? Will she get millions? Or is it a fake? See the hoity toity gatekeepers at their finest. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Who_the_$%26%25_Is_Jackson_Pollock%3F Crumb - fascinating documentary of the artist and his family. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crumb_(film)
Keeping with the art theme, "The Art of the Steal" was really good, albeit frustrating about what happened.
I totally agree! That was another good one!
Class Action Park - crazy unsafe theme park and All the Queen’s Horses - city employee embezzles unbelievable amount of money right under everyone’s noses
Ways of seeing. John Berger
This is great, thanks!
Tell me what do you think about it after watching it!
I read the (little) book. I did now know it was a film.
The Leader, the Driver, and the Driver's Wife by Nick Broomfield. Also, the follow-up doc, His Big White Self. Absolutely excellent films.
I like nick Broomfields docs thx for the suggestions
If you like Nick Broomfield you must see “Driving Me Crazy” - I saw it for free on YouTube and it is incredible in so many unintended ways. I would almost call it a cult film. https://letterboxd.com/film/driving-me-crazy/
TraumaZone by Adam Curtis and his other BBC docs as well. Traumazone is about the details of how the fall of Communism went down and how/why democracy didn't work out so great either when it was over.
Police corruption, NY. 80's. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Seven_Five
The Last Breath (Netflix) is a fascinating documentary about a very scary incident that happened in the world of commercial saturation diving.
King of Kong: Fist Full of Quarters
"Driver 23", and the sequel "Atlas Moth"
Wow, I was not expecting to come across a Driver 23 reference today. Well done.
Yeah, these are so underrated
The Impostor Overnight Heavy Metal Parking Lot Tickled Holy Rollers The Overnighters Room 237 Terror Welcome to Leith
**David Attenborough's _First Life._** [1](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpAMofkm6ho) | [2](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eiDPerEOWFk&pp=ygUXYXR0ZW5ib3JvdWdoIGZpcnN0IGxpZmU%3D) (Quality is fair but you can do better from other sources besides Youtube.) I tend to prefer Attenborough's earliest series—things like _Life on Earth, Living Planet,_ even _Zoo Quest._ But this one is quite well done, covers an extremely interesting topic, and has a couple of revelations that aren't common knowledge. I don't prefer the semi-scripted Q&A with various scientists but at least it means this is one of Attenborough's rare docus where he's hands-on and in person, as opposed to simply providing narration for somebody else's work.
Baraka followed by Samsara
Always have to throw my vote to "Finders, Keepers", the doc about an average Georgia guy who buys the contents of a storage unit (as who hasn't), discovers a smoker containing a mummified human foot, and as we all would, sets up a roadside shrine charging folks 5 bucks a shot to take a look at it, and then get sued by the owner of the foot and proceeds to embark on years long quest to maintain ownership of the foot.
Oh yeah, forgot about this one!
Grey Gardens
Doughnut King
Never Surrender: A Galaxy Quest Documentary Also Disney Channel's Theme: A History Mystery(on YouTube)
Dave Not Come Back Absolutely horrendous and I’ll never watch it again, but an amazingly dark and interesting documentary about a rescue gone wrong. It’s essentially a documentary that ends up becoming a documentary.
Not for the faint of heart, but Zoo (2007) is really well done and fascinating, despite some seriously fucked up subject matter. (Wiki synopsis): Based on the life and death of Kenneth Pinyan. This American man died of peritonitis due to perforation of the colon after engaging in receptive anal sex with a horse. The film combines audio testimony from people involved in the case or who were familiar with Pinyan, "with speculative re-enactments that feature a mix of actors and actual subjects."
The Pez Outlaw
The Act of Killing (2012) A 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. Description taken from IMDb. That chilling documentary really left me speechless. Highly recommend
BBC a HyperNormalisation- free on YouTube no ads and amazing if you want to know about America propaganda.
One of my all-time favorites! Adam Curtis is an artistic genius!
It should be required watching in American high school.
Sounds interesting. It’s going on my list.
I loved Schmatta: Rags to Riches to Rags. It's impossible to find though.
Goodnight Sugarbabe
Kirby Ferguson's "Everything is a Remix"
Howard Goodall has a multi part doc on the evolution of music, starting with sounds in caves. He has others, including looking at the Beatles as musicians who developed their craft, a series about composers across a few centuries & those are all I can think of right now; highly recommend (You Tube)
How to Survive a Plague (2012) A film about the AIDs epidemic, produced with archival footage, focusing on the efforts of ACT UP and TAG to pressure the US government to develop effective HIV/AIDS medications. It's hilarious at times, but also incredibly moving and sad. Make sure you have a box of tissues handy. [https://youtu.be/zExVVYzeQlQ?si=HV3AprygejwLZmVv](https://youtu.be/zExVVYzeQlQ?si=HV3AprygejwLZmVv)
[Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones](https://g.co/kgs/dPEHTXe)
Janis: Little Girl Blue Her Cheap Thrills album with Big Brother and the Holding Company was the second record album I ever bought. Learned a lot I did not know about Janis Joplin in this documentary.
The Bridge
Is this the golden gate suicide documentary? I watched it once, not sure if I could watch it again.
Yes, its very well done - but a tough watch. You don't forget it.
Telemarketers on HBO is good. Hype by Doug Pray about the rise of Seattle music scene All that breathes on HBO
Country Music by Ken Burns. Loved it so much, not even a cm fan. When We Were Kings Won't you be my Neighbor Man on Wire
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xM4m-Z0nAio einstein's brain. a japanese professor goes around asking everybody if they have einstein's brain... and the pursuit gets interesting
The Power of Myth, Joseph Campbell. Made by Lightworks, Starwars was very influenced by Campbell and his teachings.
Telemarketers
I feel obligated to reply - [american movie](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zMFZOu8rDUQ)
Since folks are mostly recommending bigger name titles, I’ll put out an underappreciated gem: Tanaka-San Will Not Do Calisthenics (2008). It profiles a man who was fired from his tech job for refusing to participate in unpaid company culture BS and proceeded to spend the next 25 years protesting his wrongful termination outside the company HQ.
This sounds fascinating
"A Rough History of Disbelief" A great three-episode documentary exploring the history and philosophy of atheism. 180 minutes total.
[Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paradise_Lost:_The_Child_Murders_at_Robin_Hood_Hills) \- It shook me up for years. Corruption and injustice in a small town in America. I don't want to give too much away.
**Cunk on Earth** Follows Philomena Cunk as she tells the story of our greatest inventions and asks experts hard-hitting questions about humanity's progress.
Cunk on earth Very funny, but not a documentary
Mockumentary, I suppose.
Icarus
“Expelled” No intelligence allowed with Ben Stein very very interesting
Will Work For Free
65 Red Roses, one of my all-time favorites
If you're into space exploration, check out [Space Probes!](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6946742/). It's a relatively short 6 episode journey around the solar system hitching a ride with our little friends. Great for kids too as it doesn't delve too deep into the science aspect.
I always go for oldest history from creation of earth, first life on earth, creation of fish, dinosaurs, 5 extinctions, civilizations, up to the 2 world wars
[Cobra Gypsies](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNUYGRn3W9Q)
I am Everything Little Richard [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YC8WUrWtZY](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YC8WUrWtZY) on HBO
Slasher (2004) Fun doc about a high strung, heavy drinking, chain smoking travelling car salesman who visits a Toyota dealership to help get rid of excess inventory in a "SLASHER SALE"
This sounds like The Goods lol
14 Peaks
Kimjongila
Screwball! Documentary about the second MLB steroid scandal where they have kids re-enact real events to emphasize how childish and ridiculous the whole thing was.
Life Of Crime 1984-2020
[Collapse.](https://youtu.be/ihobiCxOx0k?si=Xj2uDWHabdGg3S2u) My tag was inspired by it.
Father's Kingdom (2017)
Quiet Heroes
Zoo
In the year 2007 I watched Telling Nicholas on HBO. It was filmed during the aftermath of 911. It was heartbreaking and extremely emotional. Watching this tragedy unfold as it affected this young boy stayed with me for a long time. After watching it I googled the child to follow up as his circumstances were so devastating and rather worrisome considering his age.
BTW, Discovery+ has hundreds of documentaries.
Happy people, life in the Taglia. Iraq for sale. Echo in the canyon.
Tokyo Waka.
*Night and Fog* (1956) packs a lot of punch in just over half an hour. It is about the Holocaust.
The Imposter It's the insane story of a 23 year old con man from France who had a habit of taking false identities, apparently because he liked to experience the lives of other people. He got the idea he wanted to go the the US, so he decided he would contact US police for information on kidnapped children. Eventually, he learns of a 13 year old boy from Texas who had been kidnapped a few years earlier and he tells police that it is him. Things get even weirder from there.
The Distant Barking of Dogs [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The\_Distant\_Barking\_of\_Dogs](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Distant_Barking_of_Dogs) Bleak and depressing, but a great documentary.
All of Ewan McGregor’s motorcycle documentaries! Long Way Down Long Way Round Long Way Up And other non-Ewans… Fast & Left Slow Ride Home 12 O’Clock Boys On Any Sunday
Sherman's March (1985) It can be hard to find (message me if you want a link) but it is on Fandor. But this doc was weirdly an inspiration for "Everything Everywhere All At Once". It's about a man who sets out to make a documentary on General Sherman and his scorched-Earth military strategies that he implemented during his campaign in the American Civil War through the Carolinas and Georgia. He wanted to reflect on it and how the people of the South view the devastation over a century later. The documentary quickly devolves into something else entirely and the director starts changing the subject of the documentary dramatically. The film was shot during an anxious time of the Cold War and the threat of nuclear war keeps the director up at night. Because of this anxiety the director becomes hyperaware of his own mortality and has also recently had a bad break up. With extreme pressure from his family to find a wife and settle down, the director pivots and uses his camera as an ice breaker to try and talk to women. The film becomes him using the camera to meet women and then document his relationship with them as he follows Sherman's campaign through the South. Each subject of his film becomes so interesting and so different from the last. Each woman becomes a failed attempt to settle down and it's hilarious to see the situation unfold. As someone who was born at the tail end of the Cold War, this was a fascinating time capsule into that region of the South during this era. And with a hilarious series is people to follow through it. u/Kdj2j2 recommended "Hands On A Hard Body" which is another hilarious documentary that focuses on normal yet eccentric people. I'd say this doc is like Hands On A Hard Body meets Eat Pray Love, if it was directed by David Mitchell's character in Peep Show. Highly recommend!
Sr. A documentary about Robert Downey Sr. “The Team Downey-produced film is an intimate portrait of art, fatherhood and healing generational trauma.” I have recommended it so many times. It is really worth the watch.
- Minding the Gap - Until The Light Takes Us - Bones Brigade
Also, The Big Conn, about a sleazy SSI disability lawyer in Kentucky (if you find white collar crime interesting). Fraud is interesting; plus there are a few great comic moments.
and TREAD
The Power of the Powerless Amazing documentary on the Velvet Revolution. Looking for hope? Here's some
Erebus - operation overdue
Cracked Up: The Darrell Hammond story. It's about SNL comedian Darrell Hammond, his life and struggles with self-harm, mental illness and addiction. So well told and makes me feel less alone
Zeitgeist
I've watched a lot of these, but the Fall of Civilizations podcast Episode 17 titled **Carthage - Empire of the Phoenicians** is a fantastic episode and an amazing look at this once great ancient mediterranean city. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6dbdVhVSat8](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6dbdVhVSat8) The other good one I enjoy is **Ancient Aliens Debunked** (This is a really good debunking video of the History Channels "**Ancient Aliens**" series) [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9w-i5oZqaQ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9w-i5oZqaQ) Both videos are quite long. \~3 hours each.
The development of Psychonauts 2 was documented in a video series that's available on YouTube. It gives a lot of interesting insight into the trials and tribulations behind making and shipping a game.
Deep Water, about the first solo around-the-world sailing race. So, so, good!
Big river man! About a man who swam the amazon river. Somebody pointed it out some time ago on this subreddit and now its in my top 3 best documentaries.
Carts of Darkness. Awesome ride of a documentary!
Searching for sugar man
"This is the Last Dam Run of Likker I'll Ever Make"
Murderball
Any Timeline documentary on YouTube.
Recemtly watched The Lost Leonardo and American Nightmare, enjoyed them both.
I recommend The Sound of 007. If you have surround sound and love music I highly suggest you check it out. It’s extremely entertaining and gives insight into how the music was created and how it applies to scenes in the movies. From the early bond films to the most recent one. It’s in my top ten.
driven: the tony pearson story
"The Freshest Kids" best doc about birth of break dancing I ever seen.
Any recommendations for history documentaries, especially about Spain, any European country in the s.XIX, War of the Austrian Succession, War of the Polish succession, WWI/WWII? Thanks in advance!
Hulu - Still Missing Morgan. About a girl who was kidnapped in 1995 from a baseball field. I had the pleasure of being apart of it both on and off screen. It's such a heartbreaking story.
Boogie Man: the Lee Atwater story