Top Documentary Movies


The Top Documentary Movies List is calculated by overall movie ratings and members' "Top Documentary List". Lists are calculated daily.

131. Man with a Movie Camera, The ( Chelovek s kino-apparatom )

Year of Release: 1929
Overall Rating: 3.0 out of 4 stars
Language: Russian
Genre: Documentary
MPAA Rating: NR
Director: Dziga Vertov
Plot: In this inventive documentary we follow a man documenting a typical day in the Soviet Union... while also documenting the making of that documentary.

132. Bukowski: Born Into This

Year of Release: 2004
Overall Rating: 2.8 out of 4 stars
Language: English
Genre: Documentary/Biography
MPAA Rating: R
Director: John Dullaghan
Actors: Charles Bukowski, Bono, Sean Penn, Tom Waits

133. Being Elmo: A Puppeteer's Journey

Year of Release: 2011
Overall Rating: 3.0 out of 4 stars
Language: English
Genre: Documentary
MPAA Rating: PG
Director: Constance Marks
Actors: Kevin Clash, Frank Oz, Bill Barretta, Rosie O'Donnell
Plot: Elmo is perhaps one of the most recognized and adored characters on Sesame Street - winning the hearts of children world-wide. Yet the man behind the puppet can walk down the street without a soul recognizing him. This is the story of Kevin Clash and how he breathes life into a cherished character.

134. The Times of Harvey Milk

Year of Release: 1984
Overall Rating: 2.9 out of 4 stars
Language: English
Genre: Documentary/Biography
MPAA Rating: NR
Director: Rob Epstein
Actors: Harvey Milk, Harvey Fierstein, Anne Kronenberg, Tory Hartmann
Plot: A documentary focusing on gay-rights pioneer Harvey Milk, his struggle and triumph getting elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and his assassination, along with Mayor George Moscone by Supervisor Dan White and the reaction to this heinous act.

135. Faces Places ( Visages, villages )

Year of Release: 2017
Overall Rating: 3.5 out of 4 stars
Language: French
Genre: Documentary
MPAA Rating: PG
Director: JR, Agnès Varda
Actors: Agnès Varda, JR, Laurent Levesque, Jean-Luc Godard

136. Twenty Feet from Stardom

Year of Release: 2013
Overall Rating: 3.0 out of 4 stars
Language: English
Genre: Documentary
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Director: Morgan Neville
Actors: Lou Adler, Stephanie 'Stevvi' Alexander, Darlene Love, Janice Pendarvis
Plot: The divas, the lead singers, the talented band - we know the face of the popular groups, but behind every great band and singer is a talented backup singer. These voices provide the harmony and cohesion to the group - with none of the fame or recognition - until now.

137. Cocaine Cowboys

Year of Release: 2006
Overall Rating: 2.9 out of 4 stars
Language: English
Genre: Documentary
MPAA Rating: R
Director: Billy Corben
Actors: Jon Roberts, Al Sunshine, Sam Burstyn, Mickey Munday
Plot: explore the rise of cocaine and the resulting crime epidemic that swept the city of Miami, Florida in the 1970s and 1980s.

138. The Imposter

Year of Release: 2012
Overall Rating: 3.0 out of 4 stars
Language: English
Genre: Documentary
MPAA Rating: R
Director: Bart Layton
Actors: Adam O'Brian, Anna Ruben, Cathy Dresbach, Alan Teichman
Plot: Documentary based on the true story of a young Frenchman who passes himself off as the 16-year-old son of a Texas family that had been missing for three years.

139. An Honest Liar

Year of Release: 2014
Overall Rating: 3.1 out of 4 stars
Language: English
Genre: Documentary/Biography
MPAA Rating: NR
Director: Tyler Measom, Justin Weinstein
Actors: James Randi, Penn Jillette, Bill Nye, Adam Savage

140. Hitman Hart: Wrestling with Shadows

Year of Release: 1998
Overall Rating: 3.0 out of 4 stars
Language: English
Genre: Documentary/Biography
MPAA Rating: R
Director: Paul Jay
Actors: Bret Hart, Owen Hart, Brian Pillman, Blade Hart
Plot: Documentary focusing on the career of pro wrestler Bret Hart & his controversial exit from the WWF.

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