Favorite documentary films
by classic-henry | created - 24 Apr 2012 | updated - 2 months ago | PublicIn progress. Not necessarily in order.
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1. Street Fight (2005)
Not Rated | 83 min | Documentary
This documentary follows the 2002 mayoral campaign in Newark, New Jersey in which a City Councilman, Cory Booker, attempted to unseat longtime mayor Sharpe James.
Director: Marshall Curry | Stars: Jen Bluestein, Cory Booker, Bill Bradley, Chris Christie
Votes: 2,117
2. Budrus (2009)
Unrated | 70 min | Documentary, Action, Biography
Follows a Palestinian leader who unites Fatah, Hamas and Israelis in an unarmed movement to save his village from destruction. Success eludes them until his 15-year-old daughter jumps into the fray.
Director: Julia Bacha
Votes: 405 | Gross: $0.07M
3. 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: 3,616 | Gross: $0.28M
4. Dirty Wars (2013)
Not Rated | 87 min | Documentary, Crime, History
Investigative journalist Jeremy Scahill is pulled into an unexpected journey as he chases down the hidden truth behind America's expanding covert wars.
Director: Rick Rowley | Stars: Jeremy Scahill, Nasser Al Aulaqi, Saleha Al Aulaqi, Muqbal Al Kazemi
Votes: 9,396 | Gross: $0.38M
5. Restrepo (2010)
R | 93 min | Documentary, Biography, History
A year with one platoon in the deadliest valley in Afghanistan.
Directors: Tim Hetherington, Sebastian Junger | Stars: The Men of Battle Company 2nd of the 503rd Infantry Regiment 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Juan 'Doc Restrepo, Dan Kearney, LaMonta Caldwell
Votes: 24,424 | Gross: $1.33M
6. Racing Dreams (2009)
PG | 93 min | Documentary, Sport
These kids are racing to make their NASCAR dreams a reality.
Director: Marshall Curry | Stars: Annabeth Barnes, Josh Hobson, Brandon Warren, Russ Wiles
Votes: 456 | Gross: $0.06M
7. Murderball (2005)
R | 88 min | Documentary, Sport
Quadriplegics, who play full-contact rugby in wheelchairs, overcome unimaginable obstacles to compete in the Paralympic Games in Athens, Greece.
Directors: Henry Alex Rubin, Dana Adam Shapiro | Stars: Joe Soares, Keith Cavill, Mark Zupan, Robert Soares
Votes: 10,458 | Gross: $1.52M
8. A Lion in the House (2006)
Not Rated | 225 min | Documentary
Five families struggle with the ups and downs of cancer treatment over the course of six years.
Directors: Steven Bognar, Julia Reichert | Stars: Justin Ashcraft, Adam Ashcraft, Dale Ashcraft, Debbie Ashcraft
Votes: 397
9. Pressure Cooker (2008)
Unrated | 99 min | Documentary
Infamously blunt, Wilma Stephenson runs a "boot camp" teaching Culinary Arts at Frankford High, disciplining her students into capable chefs and responsible students. But behind her tough ... See full summary »
Directors: Mark Becker, Jennifer Grausman
Votes: 434
10. The Cove (2009)
PG-13 | 92 min | Documentary, Biography, Crime
Using state-of-the-art equipment, a group of activists, led by renowned dolphin trainer Ric O'Barry, infiltrate a cove near Taijii, Japan to expose both a shocking instance of animal abuse and a serious threat to human health.
Director: Louie Psihoyos | Stars: Richard O'Barry, Louie Psihoyos, Hardy Jones, Michael Illiff
Votes: 51,452 | Gross: $0.87M
11. Freedom Summer (2014)
PG | 113 min | Documentary, History
A look back at the summer of 1964, when more than 700 student activists took segregated Mississippi by storm, registering voters, creating freedom schools and establishing the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party.
Director: Stanley Nelson | Stars: Karin Kunstler Goldman, Julian Bond, Peggy Jean Connor, Dudley Connor
Votes: 231
12. Musique au poing (1982)
Not Rated | 54 min | Documentary, Music
FELA KUTIis to African music what Bob Marley is to reggae: its prophet. All contemporary forms of black music, from funk to electronic, owe something to the irresistible groove of the ... See full summary »
Directors: Jean-Jacques Flori, Stéphane Tchalgadjieff | Stars: Fela Kuti, Martin Luther King, Pope John Paul II
Votes: 227
13. Better This World (2011)
Not Rated | 82 min | Documentary
A pair of childhood friends from Texas who set out to prove themselves.
Directors: Kelly Duane, Katie Galloway | Stars: Scott Crow, Brandon Darby, Matthew Vadum
Votes: 385
14. First Position (2011)
Not Rated | 95 min | Documentary
A documentary that follows six young dancers from around the world as they prepare for the Youth America Grand Prix, one of the most prestigious ballet competitions in the world.
Director: Bess Kargman | Stars: Aran Bell, Rebecca Houseknecht, Joan Sebastian Zamora, Miko Fogarty
Votes: 3,455 | Gross: $1.10M
15. Raising Renee (2011)
81 min | Documentary, Biography, Family
RAISING RENEE begins in 2003 as Beverly McIver is savoring opening night of her first solo art show in New York. An accomplished painter and winner of major awards, her career was ... See full summary »
Directors: Steven Ascher, Jeanne Jordan | Stars: Beverly McIver, Renee McIver, Roni Bryant, Ethel McIver
Votes: 43
16. The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant (2009 TV Movie)
Not Rated | 40 min | Documentary
To the residents of Moraine, Ohio, General Motors was more than just a car company, it was the lifeblood of a community. In the wake of GM's 2008 announcement that it was closing the plant,... See full summary »
Directors: Steven Bognar, Julia Reichert | Stars: Popeye Hurst, Kim Clay, Kate Geiger, Kathe Day
Votes: 495
17. Peace, Propaganda & the Promised Land (2004 Video)
80 min | Documentary
This video shows how the foreign policy interests of American political elites-working in combination with Israeli public relations stratgies-influence US news reporting about the Middle ... See full summary »
Directors: Sut Jhally, Bathsheba Ratzkoff | Stars: Seth Ackerman, Stav Adivi, Arik Ascherman, Hanan Ashrawi
Votes: 567
18. Sparkle (II) (2012)
18 min | Documentary, Short, Biography
Sheri Sparkle Williams has been a star dancer with the Dayton Contemporary Dance Company (DCDC) for nearly 40 years, a track record virtually unheard of in the professional dance community.... See full summary »
Directors: Steven Bognar, Julia Reichert
Votes: 11
19. Jesus Camp (2006)
PG-13 | 87 min | Documentary
A documentary on kids who attend a summer camp hoping to become the next Billy Graham.
Directors: Heidi Ewing, Rachel Grady | Stars: Mike Papantonio, Lou Engle, Becky Fischer, Ted Haggard
Votes: 28,779 | Gross: $0.90M
20. Harlan County U.S.A. (1976)
PG | 103 min | Documentary
A heartbreaking record of the thirteen-month struggle between a community fighting to survive and a corporation dedicated to the bottom line.
Director: Barbara Kopple | Stars: John L. Lewis, Carl Horn, Norman Yarborough, Logan Patterson
Votes: 6,633
21. The Waiting Room (III) (2012)
Not Rated | 81 min | Documentary
Go behind the doors of an American public hospital struggling to care for a community of largely uninsured patients.
Director: Peter Nicks | Star: Sean Bennett
Votes: 902 | Gross: $0.24M
22. Lake of Fire (2006)
Unrated | 152 min | Documentary
A graphic documentary on both sides of the abortion debate.
Director: Tony Kaye | Stars: Noam Chomsky, Bill Baird, Flip Benham, Dallas Blanchard
Votes: 2,735 | Gross: $0.02M
23. Jodorowsky's Dune (2013)
PG-13 | 90 min | Documentary
The story of cult film director Alejandro Jodorowsky's ambitious but ultimately doomed film adaptation of the seminal science fiction novel.
Director: Frank Pavich | Stars: Alejandro Jodorowsky, Michel Seydoux, H.R. Giger, Chris Foss
Votes: 27,583 | Gross: $0.65M
24. Heroin(e) (2017)
39 min | Documentary, Short
Three women fight to break the cycle one life at a time.
Director: Elaine McMillion Sheldon | Stars: Jan Rader, Patricia Keller, Necia Freeman, Najah Menapace
Votes: 3,326
25. Quest (II) (2017)
104 min | Documentary, Family, Music
A husband and wife live in an impoverished neighborhood in north Philadelphia while they raise their daughter and run a recording studio in their basement.
Director: Jonathan Olshefski | Stars: Christopher Rainey, Christine'a Rainey, P.J. Rainey, William Withers
Votes: 359 | Gross: $0.05M
26. On Her Shoulders (2018)
95 min | Documentary, Biography
Nadia Murad, a 23-year-old Yazidi, survived genocide and sexual slavery committed by ISIS. Repeating her story to the world, this ordinary girl finds herself thrust onto the international stage as the voice of her people.
Director: Alexandria Bombach | Stars: Nadia Murad, Murad Ismael, Simone Monasebian, Michelle Rempel
Votes: 516 | Gross: $0.03M
27. How to Die in Oregon (2011)
Not Rated | 107 min | Documentary, Drama, Family
In 1994 Oregon became the first state to legalize a terminally ill person's request to end his or her life with medication. At the time, only Belgium, Switzerland, and the Netherlands had ... See full summary »
Director: Peter Richardson | Stars: Harry Bruton, Ray Carnay, Cody Curtis, Paul Darley
Votes: 2,019
28. 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: 19,415 | Gross: $0.82M
29. Dick Johnson Is Dead (2020)
PG-13 | 89 min | Documentary, Biography, Drama
A daughter helps her father prepare for the end of his life.
Director: Kirsten Johnson | Stars: Michael Hilow, Ana Hoffman, Dick Johnson, Kirsten Johnson
Votes: 7,237
30. The Mole Agent (2020)
Not Rated | 84 min | Documentary
A private investigator in Chile hires someone to work as a mole at a retirement home where a client of his suspects the caretakers of elder abuse.
Director: Maite Alberdi | Stars: Sergio Chamy, Romulo Aitken, Marta Olivares, Berta Ureta
Votes: 9,503
31. Good Night Oppy (2022)
PG | 105 min | Documentary
The film follows Opportunity, the Mars Exploration Rover affectionately dubbed Oppy by her creators and scientists at NASA. Oppy was originally expected to live for only 90 days but she ultimately explored Mars for nearly 15 years.
Director: Ryan White | Stars: Angela Bassett, Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert, David Letterman
Votes: 4,538
32. Trees, and Other Entanglements (2023)
TV-14 | 115 min | Documentary
Irene Taylor crafts a poetic meditation on nature, mortality, and the passage of time in her exploration of our symbiotic nexus with trees.
Director: Irene Taylor | Stars: Dirk Brinkman, Gilead Redd Taylor Brodsky, Carolyn Finney, Matthew Furuzawa
Votes: 369
33. Marwencol (2010)
Not Rated | 83 min | Documentary, Biography, Fantasy
Documentary 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)
Director: Jeff Malmberg | Stars: Mark Hogancamp, Emmanuel Nneji, Edda Hogancamp, Tom Neubauer
Votes: 3,705 | Gross: $0.11M
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