Netflix‘s back catalog of documentaries is almost overwhelming. That’s why we’ve made this list: Our picks for the best Netflix has to offer.
Here’s how we’re breaking things down. We’re starting with the best at the top, then the rest listed by genre.
The Best Documentaries on Netflix
Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey
There are plenty of Netflix documentaries about cults gone mad, but Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey might be the most disturbing of them all. Unlike Murder Among the Mormons, which almost treated its topic as a wacky comedy, Keep Sweet is a very dark story about a dark human being in Warren Jeffs. On the same subject : 16 best movies to watch on Netflix, Hulu before they leave (June 2022). It’s a fantastic documentary, and one of the best that Netflix has ever produced, but it comes with a pretty heavy content warning.
As good as Netflix documentaries are, there’s a tendency to drag true crime into these bloated multi-episode series. Fortunately, our Father is the opposite of that. It’s a lean, perfectly executed documentary focused on Donald Cline, an Indiana fertility doctor who used his own sperm to inseminate a ridiculous amount of women against their will.
This is an amazing piece. One of those stories that just swells and swells to the point where your jaw drops in disbelief.
The true crime documentary genre is fully saturated at this point, but The Staircase stands out.
Focusing on Michael Peterson and the death of his wife Kathleen, The Staircase is more than just a murder mystery. It’s an extended epic that takes place over literal decades, a documentary that follows Peterson and examines his every move, yet somehow still remains objective.
It’s a good time to watch or revisit this one, as HBO Max has just released a drama miniseries based on it.
Barack Obama is heading straight for the work of David Attenborough. And we don’t hate the idea!
Our Great National Parks is a world-class nature documentary in the style of major BBC programs like Planet Earth. They nailed it here. If you’re a fan of this type of show, this is completely unmissable.
Formula 1: Drive to Survive
The absolute gold standard for long-form sports documentaries. Drive to Survive is so good and so popular that it has inspired a whole new level of interest in Formula 1, especially in the US. This show is great for elevating the characters that take up the sport. More shows like this, please.
This Oscar-winning documentary is an absolute best. To see also : The 10 Best Books You Should Read Before You Look At Their Changes.
Icarus begins as an exposé on the impact performance-enhancing drugs have on sports performance, but a sequence of events drags director Bryan Fogel into a web of geopolitics and conspiracies. To say more would spoil it, but Fogel ended up creating a documentary that had a very real impact on our perception of sports as a whole. In this respect, Icarus is a literal watershed.
I’ve watched a lot of true crime documentaries on Netflix, but nothing has come close to The Keepers. A stunning story, told for generations, that is respectful of victims but compelling throughout.
It’s a story about the unsolved murder of Catherine Cesnik, a nun who taught at a Catholic school in Baltimore, but The Keepers goes beyond what you might expect and exposes a possible cover-up of allegations of sexual abuse.
Who Killed Little Gregory (2019)
Who Killed Little Gregory is a documentary focused on the horrific murder of Grégory Villemin. It is without a doubt the best true crime documentary on Netflix. On the same subject : Big video: 46 best movies to watch. It’s about a murder and attempts to solve that murder, but it’s also a lesson in media representation and the horrible sexism that Grégory’s mother had to face after the murder of her own son.
In 2020, in the midst of a pandemic, Netflix abandoned this sports documentary perfection.
The Last Dance focuses on the Chicago Bulls during their 97-98 NBA season, but is actually a starting point for a documentary that tells the life story of their central star, Michael Jordan.
As a result, many criticized it for being a little too Jordan-focused, but The Last Dance was an event documentary that lived up to the hype.
13th by Ava Duvernay is a stunning documentary that tells the story of American slavery and its lasting impacts, many of which still resonate today.
In the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement, this should be mandatory.
True crime
Jimmy Savile: A British Horror Story
It’s almost impossible to overstate how famous Jimmy Savile was in the UK – particularly in the 1980s. He was beyond a household name, in many ways he felt like an eccentric uncle to the nation.
Which made the revelations that he had sexually assaulted hundreds of underage girls and boys even more horrific. This was a person all of Britain had invited into their homes.
Jimmy Savile: British Horror Story does a great job of going through the archives, combining totally bizarre footage in retrospect and adding fantastic interviews with some of British TV’s top players during Savile’s heyday. A fascinating yet disturbing documentary. Be warned: this is a tough watch,
The Tinder Swindler (2022)
A documentary focused on Shimon Hayut, aka “Tinder Swindler”, a con artist who used dating apps to defraud various women across Europe to finance a lavish lifestyle.
A slightly different topic compared to most true crime documentaries on Netflix. Definitely worth a look.
The Raincoat Killer (2021)
It’s rare these days to watch a straight and clean crime show that doesn’t prolong things, or deliberately blurs the facts for the sake of drama. But that’s exactly why The Raincoat Killer is so good and unique.
It’s a great, comprehensive look at The Raincoat Killer, a brutal serial killer in South Korea. It is one of the best true crime documentaries on Netflix.
House of Secrets: The Burari Deaths (2021)
One of Netflix’s newest true-crime documentaries, this one is a good one.
Focusing on the bizarre deaths of 11 family members in a house in Burari, Delhi, India in 2018, House of Secrets delves into the theories behind the strangest suicide/murder cases in recent memory. Unmissable things.
This is a steal is about Netflix as it wins. A four-part series focusing on the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, this is essentially a documentary about an art heist. Remember Evil Genius? (Which is also on this list.) This Is a Robbery is very much in that style. The first episode takes a while to start, but be patient – this one has a reward.
Murder Among the Mormons (2021)
Some of Netflix’s latest true-crime documentaries are a little bloated and… a little bad?
Fortunately, Murder Among the Mormons is a return to form. Definitely watch this one.
American Murder: The Family Next Door (2020)
There are plenty of true crime documentaries out there (and on this list), but American Murder: The Family Next Door stands out.
It tells the story of Chris Watts, a seemingly normal guy who murdered his wife and children. Access to images is impressive and is uniquely edited and produced, using text messages and social media posts to tell the story. It’s a horrifying reminder of the banal and incredibly common existence of domestic violence.
Making A Murderer (2015-2018)
With the series of true crime documentaries and podcasts that have followed in their wake, it’s easy to forget that the world once collectively lost its mind about Making A Murderer. In many ways, it created the model that many Netflix documentaries now follow. A true original.
Nature/science
Seaspiracy follows in the footsteps of several documentaries focused on the impact of meat consumption on the environment. This time, the global fishing industry is in the crosshairs. As expected, this has stirred up quite a bit of controversy from all interested parties – PETA, Greenpeace and conservation groups seem not to agree on whether Seaspiracy is accurate or fair. Watch and draw your own conclusions.
My Octopus Teacher (2020)
My Octopus Teacher follows Craig Foster, a filmmaker who spent a year diving and interacting with an octopus off the coast of South Africa. It is a nature film, to be sure, but it is simultaneously a documentary designed to inspire awe in the viewer. In short, octopuses are amazing. Little aliens on Earth, essentially. This is the story of a relationship between humans and nature, but it is also an inspiring call to action: don’t ignore the wonder that exists around you.
David Attenborough’s nature documentaries are so ubiquitous that they are vulnerable to self-parody, but Our Planet is – I believe – the high-water mark. Only Planet Earth, another Attenborough document, comes close. But I prefer this one.
Time can lessen its impact, but when Tiger King was first released on Netflix, the whole world couldn’t stop talking about it.
Tiger King explores the strange underworld of big cat breeding, focusing on a cast of unforgettable (and ultimately dangerous) characters. He drags his audience to strange places. Season two is out now, and while the show has lost a lot of its bite, it’s intriguing to follow this cast of wild humans doing wild and completely weird things.
Sports
14 Peaks tells the story of Nepalese climber Nimsdai Purja and his goal to climb all 14 mountains above the height of 8,000 meters in one year. It’s amazing. Must watch things.
Netflix may have burned the True Crime documentary to the ground, but it’s on fire when it comes to sports. Bad Sport is the latest entry in this expanding sub-category, and it’s amazing. Focusing on strange controversies in the history of the sport, Bad Sport is less about great players doing important things, it’s about what happens when the sport goes bad, falls into the dirt. All these episodes are great. Hoping for a season 2.
River Runner is kind of like Free Solo for kayaking. Consider this a compliment.
Focusing on Scott Lindgren, a kayaking legend who was one of the sport’s pioneers, this is a traditional story of an extreme sports star beating the odds, but it goes a little deeper than that. Battling a brain tumor and his own personal demons, Lindgren is a compelling case study. Must watch things.
Untold is the latest from the folks behind Wild Wild Country.
It is a sports documentary series, with each episode delving into controversial sports topics. The first episode focuses on Malice at the Palace, the notorious basketball game in which Ron Artest walked into the crowd and mourned fans in 2004.
The second episode focuses on Christie Martin, the 1980s boxer who rose to fame after fighting on the undercard of Mike Tyson.
It’s released weekly and so far so good. It’s very 30 by 30 – which is a good thing.
Naomi Osaka has become one of the most famous and talked about athletes on the planet. This fascinating documentary explores different phases of her career and offers incredible access to the life of a young woman struggling with the pressures of sport and fame. One must watch.
Athlete A is a major feature-length exposition about Larry Nassar, the US Gymnastics team doctor, who sexually abused female athletes for decades.
Be warned: this one is distressing.
If you’re looking for a slightly more uplifting documentary, you could do a lot worse than The Speed Cubers, a look at the competitive world of rubix… Cubers? It’s short, but it has an incredible emotional impact. Get ready, this one might break you.
Politics/history
In the wake of the Capitol siege, the Facebook/Cambridge Analytica controversy almost feels like ancient history, but that doesn’t make this documentary any less important. If you haven’t seen it, then watch it.
Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal (2021)
Recently released, Operations Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal has as long a name as some recent Netflix documentaries. Thankfully, this isn’t as bloated as, say, the recent Cecil Hotel doc, but it could still use some tweaks.
Operation Varsity Blues focused on the FBI investigation into college admissions that landed actress Felicity Huffman in jail. Its director Chris Smith previously worked on the documentary Fyre Festival. This isn’t all that appealing, but it’s still worth watching.
Knock Down the House (2019)
Regardless of your views on Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Knock Down The House is an incredible underdog story that can’t be missed. Focusing on progressive candidates during the 2018 Congressional primary campaigns, it is an insightful look at the democratic process. It’s an inspiring reminder that we need to fight to assert the voices of ordinary people.
What Happened, Miss Simone? (2015)
I won’t say much here. Nina Simone is a legend and this is perhaps one of the best documentaries I have ever seen.
Long and bloated, Wild Wild Country is nevertheless one of the most fascinating documentaries I’ve ever watched on Netflix.
It tells the story of Indian guru Bhagwan Shree Rajnees, who tried to build a gigantic community, for what was essentially a sex cult, in the United States. It’s a weird story that somehow gets weirder with age. Much like Tiger King, the story plunges into depths you won’t believe. Sometimes it’s hard work, but Wild Wild Country is absolutely worth it.
I absolutely adore this documentary. Five acclaimed directors today (including Steven Spielberg and Francis Ford Coppola) help tell the story of five famous film directors from the 1930s and 40s who worked on the front lines during World War II. It wraps its legacies alongside the impact of the war itself in a truly compelling story of Hollywood’s golden age.
Another Oscar winner for Netflix, this documentary is the first produced by the Higher Ground Productions team of Barack and Michelle Obama.
American Factory tells the story of Fuyao, a Chinese company that built a factory in Ohio that inhabits a now closed General Motors factory. You have to watch this movie.
Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich (2020)
By now, we all have some sort of understanding of the Jeffrey Epstein story, but Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich does himself a great service by focusing on the stories of the survivors of his abuse.
Fyre: The Greatest Party That Never Happened (2019)
Hulu also has a great documentary from the Fyre festival, but I prefer the one from Netflix. Unlike many Netflix documentaries, which are stretched and bloated into multi-part episodes, this documentary is crisp, direct, and solid gold throughout.
James Bond Movies Ranked, From Sean Connery to Daniel Craig
Instrumental power is characterized by Zuboff as the “instrumentation and instrumentalization of behavior for the purposes of modification, prediction, monetization and control” (p. 352).
What is a good example of socialism?
Zambia’s healthcare is universal and therefore an example of socialism. Turkmenistan is a strong example of socialism with government-subsidized energy, lots of housing subsidies, and a largely state-owned economy.
What is socialism in simple terms? Socialism is, broadly speaking, a political and economic system in which property and the means of production are in common ownership, typically controlled by the state or government. Socialism is based on the idea that common or public ownership of resources and means of production leads to a more egalitarian society.
What is the good side of socialism?
Redistribution of income and wealth through a progressive tax system and a welfare state. Ownership of the main public services in the sector, such as gas, electricity, water, railways. Private company and private property of other industries. Free healthcare and free public education provided by direct taxes.
What is socialism an example of?
Socialism is a populist economic and political system based on public ownership (also known as collective or common ownership) of the means of production. These means include the machines, tools and factories used to produce goods that are intended to directly satisfy human needs.
What is surveillance system?
A digital video surveillance system is a surveillance system capable of capturing images and videos that can be compressed, stored or sent over communication networks. Digital video surveillance systems can be used in almost any environment.
What is surveillance and how does it work? Video surveillance systems are a system of one or more video cameras on a network that send the captured video and audio information to a certain location. Images are not publicly available like television. They are monitored live or streamed to a central location for recording and storage.
What are the four types of surveillance systems?
Passive surveillance, active surveillance and also syndromic surveillance. Passive surveillance is the most common form of surveillance and occurs when laboratories, physicians, or other healthcare professionals regularly report cases or illnesses to the local health department.
What are the types of surveillance systems?
Selected Surveillance Strategies
- Sentinel Surveillance. …
- Periodic Population Surveys. …
- Laboratory Based Surveillance. …
- Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response. …
- Example: The Philippine National Epidemiological Surveillance System. …
- Informal Networks as Critical Elements of Surveillance Systems.
Is Pokemon Go surveillance?
Google’s augmented reality game Pokémon Go is a prime example of surveillance capitalism. Participants were not just playing a virtual phone game, they were being intentionally led to restaurants, bars, and fast-food outlets that had paid for guaranteed foot traffic [2].
Will Arceus return to Pokemon Go? The next season in Pokemon Go is suspected to start on December 1st – after the conclusion of Season of Mischief. Pokémon: Legends Arceus will be released on January 28, 2022.
Is Pokemon arceus like Pokemon go?
It’s also unmistakably clear that Legends: Arceus feels more like Pokémon GO at times due to the new capture mechanics. In Pokémon GO, players need to traverse their surroundings to catch Pokémon and have no limit on how many can be caught during a game session.
Does Arceus exist in Pokémon?
Arceus (Japanese: アルセウス Arceus) is a Normal-type Mythical Pokémon introduced in Generation IV. While not known to evolve into or from any other Pokémon, Arceus will change types when holding a specific Plate or Z-Crystal.
