Top Rated Documentary Movies on Kanopy - Page 40

The Last Reef: Cities Beneath the Sea

2012

The Last Reef: Cities Beneath the Sea

2012
7.4
From the Academy-Award nominated creators of the Broadway show STOMP and the award-winning film Wild Ocean, The Last Reef is an uplifting, inspirational large-format and 3D cinema experience capturing one of nature's more vibrant and diverse wonderlands. Exotic coral reefs, vibrant sea walls in the sub-arctic pulsating with anemones and crustaceans: these biodiversity hot spots are as vital to our lives as the rainforests. Shot on location in Palau, Vancouver Island, French Polynesia, Mexico, and The Bahamas using groundbreaking 3D cinematography, The Last Reef takes us on a global journey to explore the connection of our cities on land with the ocean's complex, parallel world of the coral reefs beneath the sea.
Mechanical Principles

1930

Mechanical Principles

1930
6.6
Close up we see pistons move up and down or side to side. Pendulums sway, the small parts of machinery move. Gears drive larger wheels. Gears within gears spin. Shafts turn some mechanism that is out of sight. Screws revolve and move other gears; a bit rotates. More subtle mechanisms move other mechanical parts for unknown purposes. Weights rise and fall. The movements, underscored by sound, are rhythmic. Circles, squares, rods, and teeth are in constant and sometimes asymmetrical motion. These human-made mechanical bits seem benign and reassuring.
The Steel Road

1929

The Steel Road

1929
5.8
Bold and exhilarating documentary account of the building of the Turkestan-Siberian railway, presented as a heroic triumph of Soviet progress over natural adversity.
The Perfect Human Diet

2012

The Perfect Human Diet

2012
5.8
"The Perfect Human Diet" is an unprecedented global exploration to find a solution to our epidemic of overweight obesity and diet-related disease - the #1 killer in America. The film bypasses current dietary group-think by exploring modern dietary science, previous historical findings, ancestral native diets and the emerging field of human dietary evolution; revealing for the first time, the authentic human diet. Film audiences finally have the opportunity to see what our species really needs for optimal health and are introduced to a practical template based on these breakthrough scientific facts.
Juvenile Court

1973

Juvenile Court

1973
7
JUVENILE COURT shows the complex variety of cases before the Memphis Juvenile Court: foster home placement, drug abuse, armed robbery, child abuse, and sexual offenses. The sequences illustrate such issues as community protection vs. the desire for rehabilitation, the range and the limits of the choices available to the court, the psychology of the offender, and the constitutional and procedural questions involved in administering a juvenile court.
With Byrd at the South Pole

1930

With Byrd at the South Pole

1930
6.5
With Byrd at the South Pole (1930) is a documentary film about Rear Admiral Richard E. Byrd and his 1st quest to the South Pole beginning at the Little America-Exploration Base. The film's soundtrack consists mostly of music and sound effects, with narration read by Floyd Gibbons. The film won at the 3rd Academy Awards for Best Cinematography.
Jane's Journey

2011

Jane's Journey

2011
6.6
It would be hard to name anyone who has had more of an impact in the realm of animal research and wildlife conservation than Jane Goodall, whose 45 year study of wild chimpanzees in Africa is legendary. In Jane's Journey, we travel with her across several continents, from her childhood home in England, to the Gombe National Park in Tanzania where she began her groundbreaking research and where she still returns every year to enjoy the company of the chimpanzees that made her famous. Featuring a wide range of interviews and spectacular footage from her own private collection, Jane's Journey is an inspiring portrait of the private person behind the world-famous icon.
Why We Fight: The Battle of Britain

1943

Why We Fight: The Battle of Britain

1943
6.7
The fourth of Frank Capra's Why We Fight series of seven propaganda films, which made the case for fighting and winning the Second World War. It was released in 1943 and concentrated on the German bombardment of the United Kingdom in anticipation of Operation Sea Lion, the planned German invasion.
Kimjongilia

2009

Kimjongilia

2009
6.2
The first film to fully expose the humanitarian crisis of North Korea, this stylish, deeply moving documentary is centered around astonishing interviews with survivors of North Korea's vast and largely hidden prison camps, and interspersed with archival footage of North Korean propoganda films and original art performances.
Black Gold

2006

Black Gold

2006
6.4
An in-depth look at the world of coffee and global trade.
Boxing Gym

2010

Boxing Gym

2010
6.6
Explores the world of a boxing gym in Austin, Texas, dwelling on the discipline of training as people from all walks of life aspire to reach their personal best.
Cannes Man

1996

Cannes Man

1996
5.2
Film producer Sy Lerner makes a bet with a fellow film executive that he can turn any nobody into a star at the Cannes Film Festival. A New York cab driver who is visiting the festival is chosen as the test subject to settle the bet and Sy uses his skills of hype and manipulation to try and turn the cab driver named Frank into the talk of the town. Many celebrities make cameos throughout the film.
Sergio

2009

Sergio

2009
7.7
Charismatic, charming and complex, Sérgio Vieira de Mello was the world's go-to guy, a man who could descend into the most dangerous places, charm the worst war criminals, and somehow protect the lives of the ordinary people to whom he'd devoted his life. The documentary tells the story of his most treacherous mission ever... a mission in which his own life hangs in the balance.
Winter Soldier

1972

Winter Soldier

1972
8.1
For three days in 1971, former US soldiers who were in Vietnam testify in Detroit about their war experiences. Nearly 30 speak, describing atrocities personally committed or witnessed, telling of inaccurate body counts, and recounting the process of destroying a village.
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.
Emma and Eddie: A Working Couple

2024

Emma and Eddie: A Working Couple

2024
5.5
Emma and Eddie live two lives: one on social media and one in real life. The webcam couple is out to save their marriage by starting their own adult web-studio in Eastern Europe.
The Phantom

2021

The Phantom

2021
6.2
Carlos DeLuna was arrested in 1993 aged 21 for the murder of Wanda Lopez, and protested his innocence until his execution, declaring that it was another Carlos who committed the crime.
Closed for Storm

2020

Closed for Storm

2020
6.2
The story of Six Flags New Orleans, a theme park devastated by Hurricane Katrina that has become a holy grail of sorts for urban exploration and the efforts to restore the park to its former glory.
Fat Fiction

2020

Fat Fiction

2020
6.5
Leading health experts examine the history of the U.S. Dietary Guidelines and question decades of dietary advice insisting that saturated fats are bad for us.
Pretending I'm a Superman: The Tony Hawk Video Game Story

2020

Pretending I'm a Superman: The Tony Hawk Video Game Story

2020
6.4
The story of the skaters and developers who came together to create one of the best-selling games of all time, changing the skateboarding scene and pop culture forever.