Popular Documentary Movies on Kanopy - Page 31

America and Lewis Hine

1984

America and Lewis Hine

1984
6
Documentary about early 20th-century photographer Lewis Hine, who helped to expose grim working conditions in American factories and mines, especially the abuse and exploitation of children by their employers. Later, he became the official photographer for the construction of the Empire State Building.
This Ain't No Mouse Music!

2014

This Ain't No Mouse Music!

2014
7
Loving, music-filled tribute to Chris Strachwitz, guiding force behind legendary roots music label Arhoolie Records. With Ry Cooder, Clifton Chenier, Richard Thompson, Flaco Jiménez and a new generation of roots musicians.
The Black Candle

2009

The Black Candle

2009
5.8
The origins of Kwanzaa and the seven principles upon which the pan-African holiday derives its meaning are explored in this fascinating documentary. Narrated by Maya Angelou.
The Gilded Age

2018

The Gilded Age

2018
8
In the closing decades of the nineteenth century, during what has become known as the Gilded Age, the population of the United States doubled in the span of a single generation. As national wealth expanded, two classes rose simultaneously, separated by a gulf of experience and circumstance that was unprecedented in American life. These disparities sparked passionate and violent debate over questions still being asked in our own times: How is wealth best distributed, and by what process? Does government exist to protect private property or provide balm to the inevitable casualties of a churning industrial system? The outcome of these disputes was both uncertain and momentous, and marked by a passionate vitriol and level of violence that would shock the conscience of many Americans today.
Satan Wants You

2023

Satan Wants You

2023
6.2
The story of how the Satanic Panic of the 1980s was ignited by "Michelle Remembers", a memoir by psychiatrist and his patient. The book relied on recovered-memory therapy to uncover Michelle's abduction by baby-stealing Satanists.
To the Arctic 3D

2012

To the Arctic 3D

2012
6.5
A journey into the lives of a mother polar bear and her two seven-month-old cubs as they navigate the changing Arctic wilderness they call home.
Dying to Do Letterman

2011

Dying to Do Letterman

2011
6
When 35 year old stand-up comedian Steve Mazan learned he was dying of cancer, he dedicated the rest of his life to making his dream come true: performing comedy on The Late Show with David Letterman. This documentary chronicles his five-year journey, as he races his own ticking clock to achieve a nearly impossible goal. Hilarious and heart-breaking, Steve brings a brand-new perspective to living with cancer. This is a story that proves it's not how much time you have, it's what you do with it. As Steve says, 'If you stop chasing your dreams, you're already dead.'
Moments Like This Never Last

2021

Moments Like This Never Last

2021
6.1
Dash Snow rejected a life of privilege to make his own way as an artist on the streets of downtown New York City in the late 1990s. Developing from a notorious graffiti tagger into an international art star, he documented his drug- and alcohol-fueled nights with the surrogate family he formed with friends and fellow artists Ryan McGinley and Dan Colen before his death by heroin overdose in 2009. Drawing from Snow’s unforgettable body of work and involving archival footage, Cheryl Dunn’s exceptional portrait captures his all-too-brief life of reckless excess and creativity.
The Battle of Amfar

2013

The Battle of Amfar

2013
4.4
When AIDS struck in the early 1980s, a scientist and a movie star did not have to respond - but they did. Dr. Mathilde Krim and Elizabeth Taylor joined forces to create amfAR, the Foundation for AIDS Research. The fight against HIV has never been the same. The Perfect Host reveals how two powerful and very different women came together, and what their combined efforts achieved. With passion and wit, Taylor wielded celebrity as a weapon against government indifference while Krim's commitment to science ensured support for the most promising research areas. Today, the only man cured of AIDS can thank research championed by Mathilde Krim. Visually dazzling and emotionally compelling, this story offers a surprising perspective on the still ongoing fight against AIDS.
FAT: A Documentary

2019

FAT: A Documentary

2019
6.3
Weight loss expert Vinnie Tortorich and award-winning filmmaker Peter Pardini want you to join their team to make a hard-hitting documentary film that exposes the widespread myths and lies around healthy eating, fat and weight loss and shows how, in spite of all our good intentions, we go on getting fatter and fatter.
Bound by Flesh

2012

Bound by Flesh

2012
5.9
Conjoined twins Daisy and Violet Hilton were once the cream of the sideshow crop. Taught to sing and dance at an early age, the winsome duo ascended through the early 20th-century vaudeville circuit as a side attraction (working alongside Bob Hope and Charlie Chaplin as well as a memorable turn in the Tod Browning classic "Freaks") before a cascade of unscrupulous management and harsh mistreatment brought their careers (and lives) tumbling down. This engrossing glimpse into a bygone era is filled with fascinating interviews and rare archival footage.
The Legal Death

2018

The Legal Death

2018
7
The Connection

2014

The Connection

2014
6.5
The Connection is a film about how frontier research is proving that there is a direct connection between your mind and your health.
Dave Stevens: Drawn to Perfection

2022

Dave Stevens: Drawn to Perfection

2022
Dave Stevens created The Rocketeer and reintroduced the world to 50's pin-up model Bettie Page. While carving out his own unique corner of importance in comic book and illustration art, Dave showed the world what it's like to pursue the life of a creative individual.
Martin Lawrence Live: Runteldat

2002

Martin Lawrence Live: Runteldat

2002
5.2
The controversial bad-boy of comedy delivers a piercing look at his life, lifting the metaphorical smokescreen that he feels has clouded the public view, commenting on everything from the dangers of smoking to the trials of relationships, and unleashing a nonstop litany of raucous anecdotes, stinging social commentary and very personal reflections about life.
Black Indians: An American Story

2004

Black Indians: An American Story

2004
6.2
James Earl Jones narrates this examination of the historical relationship between American Indians and African-Americans, who often merged their cultures to work and live together while mainstream white society shunned them. Through illuminating anecdotes and interviews, descendants of fused black and Indian families discuss the complications of their mixed heritage and how their culture was largely erased on official documents.
False Confessions

2018

False Confessions

2018
8
Defence attorney Jane Fisher-Byrialsen is determined to put an end to interrogation techniques that pressure innocent people into false confessions. The film follows four of her cases and examines the psychological aspect of how people end up confessing to crimes they have not committed and the consequences of these confessions – for those accused, for their families, and for society at large.
The Unmaking of a College

2022

The Unmaking of a College

2022
8
In THE UNMAKING OF A COLLEGE, students at Hampshire College confront a new president's underhanded attempt to shut down their school and discover that a powerful institution is bullying an inexperienced administration into giving up the independence of one of the most experimenting colleges in the United States. A raucous ode to democracy in action, this film evokes the courage required to stand up to power at a time when many liberal arts colleges are failing.
Tiny Tim: King for a Day

2020

Tiny Tim: King for a Day

2020
6.1
The story of Tiny Tim’s improbable rise to stardom is the ultimate fairytale - and so is that of his downfall. For a brief time, the shy and truly unusual outsider artist was the biggest star in the world.
Koshien: Japan's Field of Dreams

2019

Koshien: Japan's Field of Dreams

2019
7
Baseball is life for the die-hard competitors in Koshien, Japan’s national high school baseball championship, whose alumni include US baseball stars Shohei Ohtani and former Yankee Hideki Matsui. As popular as America’s World Series, the stakes are beyond high in this single-elimination tournament. For Coach Mizutani, cleaning the grounds and greeting guests are equally important as honing baseball skills, however, demonstrating discipline, sacrifice and unwavering dedication. Director Ema Ryan Yamazaki follows Mizutani and his team on their quest to win the 100th annual Koshien, and, in the process, goes beyond baseball to reveal the heart of the Japanese national character.