16 Of The Greatest Documentaries Of All Times

Hands on a Hardbody: The Documentary

“Don’t let its low-budget late-90s digital camerawork fool you, this is one of the best American documentaries ever made. It’s hilarious and strangely touching.”

Synopsis: Twenty-four contestants compete in an endurance/sleep deprivation contest in order to win a brand new Nissan Hardbody truck. The last person to remain standing with his or her hand on the truck wins. An absurd marketing gimmick at first glance, the contest proves to be much more…

Available to buy on Apple TV

They Shall Not Grow Old

“It’s jaw-dropping good. Seriously. The amount of attention to details to make that era come to life is just absolutely amazing.”

Synopsis: A documentary about World War I with never-before-seen footage to commemorate the centennial of the end of the war.

Available to rent on YouTube, Apple TV, and Direct TV

Icarus

“It gets wilder and wilder as it goes on. At first you’re like, ‘huh ok, neat I guess’ and then all of a sudden BOOM you’re knee-deep in the scandal of a lifetime.

Synopsis: When Bryan sets out to uncover the truth about doping in sports, a chance meeting with a Russian scientist transforms his story from a personal experiment into a geopolitical thriller.

Available on Netflix

Three Identical Strangers

“Legit was obsessed with this story after watching”

Synopsis: In 1980 New York, three young men who were all adopted meet each other and find out they’re triplets who were separated at birth. But their quest to find out why turns into a bizarre and sinister mystery.

Available on Hulu

Touching the Void

“The most insane mountaineering/survival story you will ever hear.”

Synopsis: The true story of two climbers and their perilous journey up the west face of Siula Grande in the Peruvian Andes in 1985.

Available on AMC+ and DirectTV or to rent on Amazon

Enron: The Smartest Guy In The Room

“I was a toddler during the Enron crisis and I was SHOCKED by this movie. Their creation of the California electricity crisis was unhinged.”

Synopsis: A documentary about the Enron corporation, its faulty and corrupt business practices, and how they led to its fall.

Available on Amazon Prime

Harlan County U.S.A.

“It is the greatest documentary film I’ve ever seen.”

Synopsis: A heartbreaking record of the thirteen-month struggle between a coal mining community fighting to survive and a corporation dedicated to the bottom line.

Available on HBO Max

The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst

“I’m still chasing this true-crime high”

Synopsis: The complicated life of reclusive real estate icon Robert Durst, the key suspect in a series of unsolved crimes.

Available on HBO Max

Fyre Fraud

“It’s like watching the world’s most interesting train wreck”

Synopsis: Concert promoters and rapper Ja Rule advertise a high-end festival experience that fails spectacularly when they don’t plan for the infrastructure to support the venue, artists, and guests.

Available on Hulu

Barkley Marathon: the Race that Eats Its Young

“Such a great watch.”

Synopsis: A famous prison escape sparks the idea for a cult-like race that has seen only 10 finishers in its first 25 years. This award-winning, oddly inspiring, and wildly funny documentary reveals the sports world’s most guarded secret.

Available on Vudu or to rent on Apple TV

Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father

“Oh man, the ugly anger cries I had during this one. Best documentary I’ll never watch twice.”

Synopsis: A filmmaker decides to memorialize a murdered friend when his friend’s ex-girlfriend announces she is expecting his son.

Available on Amazon Prime

Hired Gun

“I love this movie. Watched it for the fourth time a few weeks ago.”

Synopsis: A documentary film about session and touring musicians that are hired by well established and famous bands and artists like Metallica, KISS, and Billy Joel.

Available on Amazon Prime

Resurrect Dead: The Mystery of the Toynbee Tiles

“This documentary is so weird I thought it was a fictional documentary for about two-thirds of it.”

Synopsis: An urban mystery unfurls as one man pieces together the surreal meaning of hundreds of cryptic tiled messages that have been appearing in city streets across the U.S. and South America.

Available on Vudu Fandango

Tickled

“The frustrating part is how good it is and how hard it’ll be for you to get your friends and family to watch it without you giving it away.”

Synopsis: Journalist David Farrier stumbles upon a mysterious tickling competition online. As he delves deeper he comes up against fierce resistance, but that doesn’t stop him getting to the bottom of a story stranger than fiction.

Available on HBO Max

The Vietnam War

“This documentary by Burns and Novick was eye-opening. I learned so much watching this series.”

Synopsis: A documentary series about the comprehensive history of the United States’ involvement in the bitterly divisive armed conflict in Southeast Asia.

Available on IMDb TV or to buy on Amazon Prime

The Imposter

“One of the most shocking true crime documentaries of the 2010s, and one that will challenge all of your assumptions about what desperate people will do.”

Synopsis: A young man in Spain claims to a grieving Texas family that he is their 16-year-old son who has been missing for 3 years.

Available on Peacock or to rent on Amazon, YouTube, and AppleTV

Source: www.reddit.com

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