Top Rated Documentary Movies on Fandor - Page 4

Escapes

2017

Escapes

2017
5.8
Escapes blazes a path through mid-20th-century Hollywood via the experiences of Hampton Fancher – flamenco dancer, actor, and the unlikely producer and screenwriter of the landmark sci-fi classic Blade Runner. Fancher recounts episodes from his life — romantic misadventures with silver-screen stars, wayward acts of chivalry, jealousy, and friendship — matched with a parallel world of film and TV footage wherein Fancher plays cowboys, killers, fops, cads, and the occasional hero. Escapes shows how one man’s personal journey can unexpectedly shape a medium’s future.
The Academy of Muses

2015

The Academy of Muses

2015
6.7
On returning from class, a teacher is questioned by his wife, who distrusts his pedagogic project: an “Academy of the Muses” inspired by classical references, which is supposed to contribute to regenerating the world through poetry. The controversial project triggers a series of situations dominated by words and desire.
¡Vivan las Antipodas!

2011

¡Vivan las Antipodas!

2011
7.3
What would be the shortest route between Entre Rios in Argentina and the Chinese metropolis Shanghai? Simply a straight line through the center of the earth, since the two places are antipodes: they are located diametrically opposite to each other on the earth's surface. During his visits to four such antipodal pairs, the award-winning documentary filmmaker Victor Kossakovsky captured images that turn our view of the world upside down.
A Skin So Soft

2018

A Skin So Soft

2018
6.3
Jean-François, Ronald, Alexis, Cédric, Benoit and Maxim are gladiators of modern times. From the strongman to the top-class bodybuilder, to the veteran who has become a trainer, they all share the same definition and obsession with overcoming their limitations. They are waiting for the next competition, working hard in the gym and following extreme diets.
Welcome to Death Row

2001

Welcome to Death Row

2001
7.5
The record label Death Row Records has, since its creation in 1993, been synonymous with the American hip-hop climate. Formed by ex-bodyguard Suge Knight, the label has released seminal rap albums from luminaries including Dr. Dre, Snoop Doggy Dogg, and the famous hip-hop martyr Tupac Shakur. WELCOME TO DEATH ROW is a fascinating, well-researched documentary which explores the history of this intriguing and incredibly significant company.
Sad Vacation: The Last Days of Sid and Nancy

2016

Sad Vacation: The Last Days of Sid and Nancy

2016
6.7
The final days of Nancy Spungen and Sid Vicious are explored.
Shepard & Dark

2012

Shepard & Dark

2012
5.9
An indelible portrait of the complex relationship between playwright and actor Sam Shepard and his close friend Johnny Dark as they prepare forty years of their correspondence for publication, stirring up old memories both good and bad.
Strange Powers: Stephin Merritt and the Magnetic Fields

2011

Strange Powers: Stephin Merritt and the Magnetic Fields

2011
6.7
Ten years in the making, Strange Powers is an intimate documentary portrait of songwriter Stephin Merritt and his band the Magnetic Fields. With his unique gift for memorable melodies, lovelorn lyrics and wry musical stylings that blend classic Tin Pan Alley with modern sounds, Stephin Merritt has distinguished himself as one of contemporary pop's most beloved and influential artists.
Church & State

2018

Church & State

2018
5.2
Church & State is the improbable story of a brash, inexperienced gay activist and a tiny Salt Lake City law firm that joined forces to topple Utah’s gay marriage ban. The film’s ride on the bumpy road to equality in Utah offers a glimpse at the Mormon church’s influence in state politics and the squabbles inside the gay community that nearly derailed a chance to make history. Church & State is a story of triumph, setback and a little-known lawsuit that should have failed, but instead paved the way for a U.S. Supreme Court decision that legalized gay unions nationwide.
The Past Is a Grotesque Animal

2014

The Past Is a Grotesque Animal

2014
5.9
A personal, accessible look at an artist - Kevin Barnes, frontman of the endlessly versatile indie pop band of Montreal - whose pursuit to make transcendent music at all costs drives him to value art over human relationships. As he struggles with all of those around him, family and bandmates alike, he's forced to reconsider the future of the band, begging the question - is this really worth it?
Capturing Reality

2008

Capturing Reality

2008
6.1
From cinema-verite; pioneers Albert Maysles and Joan Churchill to maverick movie makers like Errol Morris, Werner Herzog and Nick Broomfield, the world's best documentarians reflect upon the unique power of their genre. Capturing Reality explores the complex creative process that goes into making non-fiction films. Deftly charting the documentarian's journey, it poses the question: can film capture reality?
Beetle Queen Conquers Tokyo

2009

Beetle Queen Conquers Tokyo

2009
5.6
Untangling the web of cultural and historical ties underlying Japan's deep fascination with insects.
The Prison in Twelve Landscapes

2016

The Prison in Twelve Landscapes

2016
6.6
More people are imprisoned in the United States at this moment than in any other time or place in history, yet the prison itself has never felt further away or more out of sight. This is a film about the prison in which we never see an actual penitentiary. The film unfolds a cinematic journey through a series of landscapes across the USA where prisons do work and affect lives, from an anti-sex-offender pocket park in Los Angeles, to a congregation of ex-incarcerated chess players shut out of the formal labor market, to an Appalachian coal town betting its future on the promise of prison jobs.
The Price of Sex

2011

The Price of Sex

2011
6.6
The Price of Sex is a documentary about young Eastern European women who’ve been drawn into a netherworld of sex trafficking and abuse. Intimate, harrowing and revealing, it is a story told by the young women who were supposed to be silenced by shame, fear and violence. Photojournalist Mimi Chakarova, who grew up in Bulgaria, takes us on a personal investigative journey, exposing the shadowy world of sex trafficking from Eastern Europe to the Middle East and Western Europe. Filming undercover and gaining extraordinary access, Chakarova illuminates how even though some women escape to tell their stories, sex trafficking thrives.
Derailroaded

2005

Derailroaded

2005
7.6
A documentary on the life and music of manic-depressive, paranoid-schizophrenic cult music icon Wild Man Fischer.
After Auschwitz

2017

After Auschwitz

2017
5.7
For six female Holocaust survivors, liberation from the camps marked the beginning of a lifelong struggle.
Tupac Assassination: Battle For Compton

2017

Tupac Assassination: Battle For Compton

2017
6.3
The unsolved murders of Tupac Shakur and Christopher "Biggie Smalls" Wallace still stir the public's imagination after 20 years. Yet law enforcement has been at a standstill to produce results. The producers of "American Federale" and the first two "Assassination" films, finally unravel the tangled cases and expose not only who may have done it, but also why these cases have never seen justice. Battle For Compton" is the story of "The Machine"; a group of high powered individuals with a very dark secret they killed to keep, and have spent the last 20 years hiding- hoping one day it will all go away- before they do.
Watchers of the Sky

2014

Watchers of the Sky

2014
5.6
Five interwoven stories of remarkable courage from Nuremberg to Rwanda, from Darfur to Syria, and from apathy to action.
The War at Home

1979

The War at Home

1979
7.2
Documentary film about the anti-war movement in the Madison, Wisconsin area during the time of the Vietnam War. It combines archival footage and interviews with participants that explore the events of the period on the University of Wisconsin–Madison campus.
Beatles Stories

2011

Beatles Stories

2011
7.6
A big fan of The Beatles growing up in the 60s, Seth Swirsky noticed that whenever he heard someone relating a story about themselves and The Beatles, he was "all ears". So, starting in 2005, he sought out and filmed those with never before heard, "Beatles Stories". Written by Mike Pope