Best Netflix documentaries to watch right now
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Showing items 1 to 24 of 62
Who Killed Jill Dando?
- 2023
- Documentary and factual
- Crime/detective
- 12
Summary:
Revisit the shocking 1999 murder of beloved TV presenter Jill Dando, which continues to mystify experts and the public, in this in-depth documentary.
How to watchWhy watch Who Killed Jill Dando?:
It remains one of the oddest cases in British criminal history. In April 1999, Jill Dando — not just a BBC presenter and newsreader but the highest-profile TV personality in the country, widely admired for her easy relatability and Princess Diana-esque air of elegant glamour — was shot dead in broad daylight on her own doorstep, and we still have no idea who did it or why.
This three-part documentary sifts through every element of the mystery, from the initial shock and the multiple theories on who might have been responsible, to the fraught murder trial two years later that proved to be a miscarriage of justice. It’s one of those true-crime docs that, at every turn, unleashes an interviewee whose insight or unusual demeanour adds another layer of intrigue.
Jack Seale
Encounters
- 2023
- Documentary and factual
- History
- PG
Summary:
Mass UFO sightings from the last 50 years fuel a global mystery in this docuseries featuring eyewitness accounts, expert interviews and new evidence.
How to watchWhy watch Encounters?:
New Netflix docuseries Encounters explores four true stories of human contact with otherworldly phenomena, featuring revelations from military whistleblowers of alien encounters, UFOs and clandestine Pentagon programmes, as well as coverage from major news corporations.
Each episode dives into a different encounter, whether it be with a submersible spacecraft off the coast of a Welsh village or an alien encounter experienced by a group of children in Zimbabwe.
Katelyn Mensah
Mark Cavendish: Never Enough
- Documentary and factual
- Drama
- 2023
- Alex Kiehl
- 92 mins
- 15
Summary:
An intimate documentary portrait of professional cyclist Mark CavendishIntimate and captivating, this documentary charts the meteoric rise, tragic downfall and unbelievable comeback of .
How to watchWhy watch Mark Cavendish: Never Enough?:
The accident during Stage 8 of this year’s Tour de France, which broke Mark Cavendish’s collarbone and put him out of the race, isn’t the news background this documentary’s producers would have chosen. Then again, it is a story of struggle and bad luck as well as great triumph: with intimate access to Mark Cavendish himself as well as his family and his colleagues, it charts how Cavendish’s comeback performance in the 2021 Tour de France ended five years of injury, illness and depression.
Like Netflix’s recent documentary Tour de France: Unchained, it brings home the sheer intensity of elite cycling
Jack Seale
The Lady of Silence: The Mataviejitas Murders
- Documentary and factual
- Crime/detective
- 2023
- María José Cuevas
- 111 mins
- 15
Summary:
True crime documentary about the manhunt for a murderer, who targeted elderly women between 1998 and 2005 in Mexico City
How to watchWhy watch The Lady of Silence: The Mataviejitas Murders?:
A stylishly filmed documentary remembers a serial-killer case that terrified and enthralled Mexico City at the turn of the millennium. With several elderly women dead by strangulation or bludgeoning, the police came up with an extraordinary profile of the likely killer: a man, dressed as a nurse, probably with a background in wrestling. Some of those descriptors proved to be accurate when the culprit was eventually found, but that came after a lot of media hype, some suspected copycat murders – and many more victims, who are commemorated here along with an analysis of a unique cultural phenomenon.
Jack Seale
Untold: Jake Paul the Problem Child
- Documentary and factual
- Drama
- 2023
- Andrew Renzi
- 72 mins
- 15
Summary:
Pro boxing sensation - and perennial troublemaker - Jake Paul shares his unlikely journey from online prankster to power puncher in this documentary.
How to watchWhy watch Untold: Jake Paul the Problem Child?:
Netflix’s excellent series of one-off sports documentaries focuses on the quirky or controversial edges of the sporting world – such as the fact that some of the most anticipated and analysed boxing bouts of the past couple of years have featured a YouTuber, Jake Paul, whom many connoisseurs of pugilism think is making a mockery of their beloved discipline. But is the prankster-turned-fighter really trashing a noble art, or is he correct in his assertion that boxing is just showbiz? Interviews and training footage try to get behind the phenomenon.
Jack Seale
How to Become a Cult Leader
- 2023
- Documentary and factual
- Lifestyle
Summary:
Look inside the cult leader's playbook for achieving unconditional love, endless devotion and the power to control people's minds, bodies and souls.
How to watchWhy watch How to Become a Cult Leader?:
Peter Dinklage narrates a wry documentary that mixes animation with archive footage to build a “playbook” for anyone wanting to found their own sinister cult. From mass weddings and free love to psychological control methods and simple weaponry, the tools and techniques required are set out by observers of breakaway communities, spotting patterns in the behaviour of people who have become gurus. Lesson number one: never tell potential recruits up front what your organisation is really about.
Jack Seale
Missing: The Lucie Blackman Case
- Documentary and factual
- Crime/detective
- 2023
- Hyoe Yamamoto
- 82 mins
- 15
Summary:
Feature-length documentary about the 2000 disappearance of 21-year-old British former flight attendant Lucie Blackman in Tokyo and the subsequent international investigation
How to watchWhy watch Missing: the Lucie Blackman Case?:
Lucie Blackman, a 21-year-old woman from Kent, was working as a bar hostess in Tokyo in 2000 when she suddenly vanished. Her father Tim is interviewed in this documentary about the case and recalls the sheer panic caused by attempting to search for a loved one in an unfamiliar metropolis. The hunt for Lucie, which featured calls for help from senior British politicians that fuelled high media interest in both Japan and the UK, raised difficult questions about how seriously law enforcement agencies in Japan had been taking reports of women in danger.
Jack Seale
Unknown: Cosmic Time Machine
- History
- Documentary and factual
- 2023
- Shai Gal
- 64 mins
- PG
Summary:
The James Webb Telescope stirs imaginations with vivid photos of distant galaxies. This documentary tracks its historic journey from inception to launch.
How to watchWhy watch Unknown: Cosmic Time Machine?:
Completing a four-part documentary series about quests to expand human knowledge – previous episodes have covered the mysteries of the Ancient Egyptians, the prospect of artificial intelligence being used in military contexts, and an archaeological discovery shedding new light on humans’ evolutionary ancestors – is a film about Nasa’s mission to launch the James Webb Space Telescope. The work of engineers and scientists is followed as a billion-dollar piece of kit is created – since its launch it’s provided stunning images telling us more about black holes, galaxies, planets outside our solar system and how the universe looked soon after the Big Bang.
Jack Seale
The Deepest Breath
- Documentary and factual
- Drama
- 2023
- Laura McGann
- 109 mins
- 12A
Summary:
Bonded by their love of freediving, a record-setting champion and a heroic safety diver try to make history with a remarkable feat, ready to risk it all.
How to watchWhy watch The Deepest Breath?:
This truly immersive documentary explores the competitive and dangerous world of free-diving, where a person dives under water on a single breath of air. Italian Alessia Zecchini has set national and world records, and we follow her journey alongside Irish safety support diver Stephen Keenan. Laura McGann’s documentary uses a narrative device that suggests a tragedy will take place, but it’s not immediately clear when it will strike, and to whom. But once the events do unfold, you will be both moved and horrified.
Laura Rutkowski
Wham!
- Documentary and factual
- Drama
- 2023
- Chris Smith
- 92 mins
- 12A
Summary:
Over a five-year period in the 1980s, best friends George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley conquered the world as pop duo Wham!, notching up six number one singles in the UK beginning with Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go. They made history as the first western pop act to perform in China, sparked a fashion craze for designer Katharine Hamnett's politicised slogan T-shirts ("Choose Life") and bowed out in June 1986 with an epic concert at Wembley Stadium. Director Chris Smith's feature-length documentary relives these golden years, charting Michael and Ridgley's journeys from school buddies to music trailblazers. The film is granted unprecedented access to the duo's personal archives including previously unseen footage and unheard interviews
How to watchWhy watch Wham!?:
The brief lifespan of 1980s pop pin-ups Wham! is revisited through a mix of archive footage and interviews in this slight but upbeat documentary. The story begins as one of boyhood high jinks, following Andrew Ridgeley and George Michael as they bond at school and form a band. As fame beckons, Michael’s talents outstrip those of his bandmate — but director Chris Smith downplays any hints of tension. The buoyant snapshots of Wham! in concert prove most engaging, and the film works best as a nostalgic celebration of fleeting youth and friendship.
Kevin Harley
Game On: The Unstoppable Rise of Women's Sport
- Documentary and factual
- News and current affairs
- 2023
- Sue Anstiss
- 64 mins
Summary:
In this documentary based on her book, Sue Anstiss celebrates the accomplishments of women athletes while challenging the stark inequalities they face.
How to watchWhy watch Game On: The Unstoppable Rise of Women's Sport?:
The author, campaigner and former triathlete Sue Anstiss has spent her career pushing for gender equality in sport. In this documentary based on her book of the same name, Anstiss pinpoints the present as a tipping point for women in sport: inequality persists in terms of coverage and funding of women’s sport, but extraordinary strides have been made in the past five or ten years. As Anstiss demonstrates, the shift from where sportswomen were 50 or 100 years ago has been profound.
Jack Seale
Take Care of Maya
- Documentary and factual
- 2023
- Henry Roosevelt
- 103 mins
- 12
Summary:
In this documentary, an anguished couple in Florida battles authorities for custody of their ailing daughter after being accused of child abuse.
How to watchWhy watch Take Care of Maya?:
A feature documentary, unravelling a real-life medical mystery. In 2016, nine-year-old Maya Kowalski arrived with her parents at a Florida hospital, complaining of pain that doctors struggled to explain. Did she have a rare illness, or was there something more sinister going on? The hospital staff decided on the latter, with lasting and devastating consequences for the family. Maya’s father is interviewed in a film that tells a nightmarish story and raises big questions about how medical professionals should deal with young patients.
Jack Seale
Anna Nicole Smith: You Don't Know Me
- Documentary and factual
- Drama
- 2023
- Ursula Macfarlane
- 116 mins
- 15
Summary:
Vickie Lynn Hogan, better known as model and actress Anna Nicole Smith, enjoyed a relatively quiet upbringing in Houston, Texas but her fortunes changes when she appeared on the front cover of March 1992 edition of Playboy magazine. Director Ursula Macfarlane's unflinching documentary uses previously unseen footage and home movies to explore the life and untimely 2007 death of a blonde bombshell, whose personal life was fodder for tabloid sensationalism. Key figures, who have remained silent until now, provide insights into Anna Nicole's dizzying ascent and the tragic repercussions of chasing a version of the American dream in front of the world's media
How to watchWhy watch Anna Nicole Smith: You Don't Know Me?:
A celebrity who was famous for being herself long before such things became the norm, Anna Nicole Smith had 15 years in the limelight before her early death in 2007. The model, actor and TV presenter was much talked-about, chiefly for her marriage to octogenarian oil tycoon J Howard Marshall, but was never someone the public could say they knew well.
This feature documentary aims to correct that, looking behind the blonde-bombshell exterior and talking to those who actually knew Smith first-hand. It paints a picture of a lonely life.
Jack Seale
American Manhunt: The Boston Marathon Bombing
- 2023
- Documentary and factual
- Crime/detective
- 15
Summary:
Follows the tragedy in which terrorists detonated a bomb at the Boston Marathon's finish line; they carried out the attack by placing two homemade pressure-cooker bombs that resulted in three fatalities and numerous injuries.
How to watchWhy watch American Manhunt: The Boston Marathon Bombing?:
Ten years ago, two pressure-cooker bombs exploded near the finish line of the world-famous Boston Marathon on Boylston Street, killing three people and injuring more than 280. A subsequent manhunt ensued, before the authorities identified and eventually captured the perpetrators: brothers Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and Tamerlan Tsarnaev.
Now, the events are being explored in new Netflix documentary American Manhunt: the Boston Marathon Bombing, which covers the days of the search that followed the attacks.
The three-parter speaks to FBI agents, police officers and ordinary citizens whose actions led to the killers’ capture.
Lauren Morris
Waco: American Apocalypse
- 2023
- Documentary and factual
- Crime/detective
- 15
Summary:
It showcases what happened in 1993 in Waco, Texas when cult leader David Koresh faced off against the federal government in a 51-day siege.
How to watchWhy watch Waco: American Apocalypse?:
It’s 30 years since the world watched in horror as a 51-day stand-off between the FBI and a cult led by David Koresh in Waco, Texas ended in a fiery massacre. This three-part documentary has the tools to offer a new angle on a heavily analysed event, boasting interviews with people who had been inside the cult, news footage that is only now being released to the public, video recordings taken inside the negotiating room where the authorities drew up their much-criticised plan of attack, and digital re-creations of the Koresh compound. You can feel the chaos simmering.
Jack Seale
MH370: The Plane That Disappeared
- 2023
- Documentary and factual
- 12
Summary:
March 8th, 2014, Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 disappeared from radar. 239 people went missing, a global investigation into this greatest mystery Despite reports, countless theories, and searches for evidence, nothing. What Are We Missing?
How to watchWhy watch MH370: The Plane That Disappeared?:
This three-parter dives into the competing theories that attempt to explain what happened in 2014 when a Boeing 777 took off from Kuala Lumpur on a flight to Beijing, but never arrived. The crew and passengers’ loved ones give their thoughts, as do a plethora of journalists, internet sleuths and amateur experts whom some might call conspiracy theorists. Every possible explanation is unlikely; it’s up to you to decide which one is true.
Jack Seale
Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal
- 2023
- Documentary and factual
- Crime/detective
- 15
Summary:
Shocking tragedies shatter a tight-knit South Carolina community and expose the horrifying secrets of its most powerful family.
How to watchWhy watch Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal?:
A family of attorneys who wield a little too much power, brought down by a series of mysterious deaths? It sounds like the premise for a prestige drama but it’s real, and the history of the Murtaugh clan’s dominance of coastal South Carolina’s 14th district gives this true-crime documentary plenty to chew on.
The intrigue begins with the death of a young family friend in a 2019 boating accident, but when the Murtaughs themselves are hit by violent tragedy, more than one historical incident is re-examined. Local observers are only too willing to speculate on camera about the family’s many secrets.
Jack Seale
Money Shot: The Pornhub Story
- Science and technology
- Documentary and factual
- 2023
- Suzanne Hillinger
- 94 mins
- 18
Summary:
Featuring interviews with performers, activists and past employees, this documentary offers a deep dive into the successes and scandals of Pornhub.
How to watchWhy watch Money Shot: the Pornhub Story?:
The website Pornhub is one of the major online phenomena of the past decade. It helped to pioneer free pornography on the internet, putting traditional producers and distributors out of business and making billions in the process. But as with so many things digital, the lack of regulation has caused problems in an industry already known for unethical practices. This documentary tracks Pornhub’s rise while asking whether it has the will or ability to tackle serious problems such as non-consensual material featuring victims of human trafficking.
Jack Seale
Gunther's Millions
- 2023
- Documentary and factual
- News and current affairs
- 15
Summary:
A dog with a trust fund isn't the strangest part of this story. Gunther's eccentric handler also lived a luxe life with a cult-like entourage.
How to watchWhy watch Gunther's Millions?:
This Netflix docuseries boasts a very peculiar plot line. It tells the bizarre story of a German Shepherd named Gunther, who inherited $400 million from his owner Karlotta Liebenstein, a rich German countess. Following Karlotta’s death, she appointed her family friend Maurizio Mian to be Gunther’s caretaker and manage the multi-million dollar fortune – or at least that’s the story we’re told at the beginning of the documentary.
Packing a lot into just four episodes, and with multiple twists and turns to what was already advertised as an incredibly bizarre story, and bold characters to match, Gunther’s Millions is sure to keep you entertained.
Grace Henry
Pamela, a Love Story
- Entertainment
- Drama
- 2023
- Ryan White
- 112 mins
- 15
Summary:
In her own words, through personal video and diaries, Pamela Anderson shares the story of her rise to fame, rocky romances and infamous sex tape scandal.
How to watchWhy watch Pamela, A Love Story?:
Last year, Pamela Anderson was the subject of the hit series Pam & Tommy on Disney Plus – and now the former Baywatch star is telling her story on her own terms in a brand-new Netflix film.
Directed by acclaimed documentary filmmaker Ryan White – whose previous credits include The Keepers and The Case Against 8 – Pamela, A Love Story is described by the streamer as “an intimate and humanising portrait of one of the world’s most famous blonde bombshells.”
Patrick Cremona
Break Point
- 2023
- Sport
- Documentary and factual
- 15
Summary:
Follows men's and women's pro tennis players throughout four Grand Slam tournaments.
How to watchWhy watch Break Point?:
The Netflix documentary F1: Drive to Survive is so good, you can watch it even if you don’t like motor racing; the same team are behind this series, which reveals just how tough life is as an elite tennis player. In a first season that happens to capture the retirement of Ashleigh Barty and Roger Federer, interviews (including with enfant terrible Nick Kyrgios) and behind-the-scenes footage gives a flavour of what it’s like to be competing for Grand Slams – or battling up the ranks, hoping to win a big title some day. As with the F1 show, we witness the adverse effects of intense pressure but also a lot of laughs.
Jack Seale
MADOFF: The Monster of Wall Street
- 2023
- Drama
- Crime/detective
- 15
Summary:
It follows the rise and fall of the American financier and ponzi schemer: Madoff.
How to watchWhy watch MADOFF: The Monster of Wall Street?:
His arrest in 2008 and subsequent conviction anointed New York financier Bernie Madoff as one of the biggest con artists of all time: his investment advice firm was in fact the largest Ponzi scheme of all time, worth nearly $65bn before the financial crash brought it down. This four-part documentary uses close access to the late Madoff’s associates, as well as the journalists who brought him down and dramatic reconstructions of the man in his pomp in his Manhattan offices, to tell a pacy tale about someone whose charisma and ambition were never compromised by any feelings of guilt.
Jack Seale
I Am a Killer
- 2018
- Documentary and factual
- News and current affairs
- 18
Summary:
Documentary series in which convicted murderers recount the events leading up to their crimes and reveal how they feel about their actions having now spent time on death row.
How to watchWhy watch I Am a Killer?:
Mere weeks after Netflix dropped the third season of this controversial documentary, here’s a fourth. The concept is simple and stark: convicted murderers in the US are allowed to tell their own stories. Get past the fact that this means people guilty of horrendous crimes are portrayed more positively than normal, and you find compelling stories of remorse, or an absence of it, often combined with revelations about the adverse life circumstances that preceded the murderer’s actions.
Jack Seale
The Volcano: Rescue from Whakaari
- Documentary and factual
- 2022
- Rory Kennedy
- 98 mins
- 12A
Summary:
Survivors' and rescuers' accounts and minute-by-minute footage fuel this gripping documentary about the deadly 2019 volcanic eruption in New Zealand.
How to watchWhy watch The Volcano: Rescue from Whakaari?:
Forty-seven people were on Whakaari aka “White Island”, a volcanic isle in north-eastern New Zealand, when it erupted on 9 December 2019. Twenty-two did not survive the event. This feature-length documentary painstakingly knits together smartphone footage taken by the tourists themselves, in addition to more traditional archive video and interviews, to create a minute-by-minute account of the disaster. Often, it captures quick decisions that saved lives; before that, it puts the island and its visitors into context to complete a full picture of an extraordinary, tragic day.
Jack Seale