Top Rated Documentary Movies on Kanopy - Page 79

Birders: The Central Park Effect

2012

Birders: The Central Park Effect

2012
7.8
A diverse group of full-of-attitude New Yorkers reveals how a hidden world of beautiful wild birds in the middle of Manhattan has upended and magically transformed their lives.
Enemies of Happiness

2006

Enemies of Happiness

2006
5.3
In September 2005, Afghanistan held its first parliamentary elections in 35 years. Among the candidates for 249 assembly seats was Malalai Joya, a courageous, controversial 27-year-old woman who had ignited outrage among hard-liners when she spoke out against corrupt warlords at the Grand Council of tribal elders in 2003. Enemies of Happiness is a revelatory portrait of this extraordinary freedom fighter and the way she won the hearts of voters, as well as a snapshot of life and politics in war-torn Afghanistan.
Horatio's Drive: America's First Road Trip

2003

Horatio's Drive: America's First Road Trip

2003
7.4
In the spring of 1903, on a whim and a fifty-dollar bet, Dr. Horatio Nelson Jackson set off from San Francisco in a 20-horsepower Winton touring car hoping to become the first person to cross the United States in the new-fangled "horseless carriage." Most people doubted that the automobile had much of a future. Jackson's trip would prove them wrong.
30 Years of Darkness

2012

30 Years of Darkness

2012
7.2
When the Spanish Civil War came to an end, Manuel Cortes was unable to flee the country. After a long journey, he managed to get back home in the dark without being discovered. His wife, Juliana, told him how the winning forces were shooting many of their fellow citizens. Manuel and Juliana decided to dig a small hole in the wall for Manuel to hide in. He could not even begin to imagine that this small hideaway was to become his private jail for the following 30 years. This is the story of the so-called post-war moles, people who had to put their lives on hold in order to escape from the repression imposed by the victors of the civil war.
Empire of the Air: The Men Who Made Radio

1991

Empire of the Air: The Men Who Made Radio

1991
7.5
For 50 years radio dominated the airwaves and the American consciousness as the first “mass medium.” In Empire of the Air: The Men Who Made Radio, Ken Burns examines the lives of three extraordinary men who shared the primary responsibility for this invention and its early success, and whose genius, friendship, rivalry and enmity interacted in tragic ways. This is the story of Lee de Forest, a clergyman’s flamboyant son, who invented the audion tube; Edwin Howard Armstrong, a brilliant, withdrawn inventor who pioneered FM technology; and David Sarnoff, a hard-driving Russian immigrant who created the most powerful communications company on earth.
Missing Young Woman

2001

Missing Young Woman

2001
7.1
This gripping documentary investigates the disappearance of young women from assembly plants that line the Mexican-American border.
Canal Zone

1977

Canal Zone

1977
6.9
CANAL ZONE is about the people who live and work in the Panama Canal Zone and shows both the operation of the Canal and the various governmental agencies — business, military, and civilian — related to the functioning of the Canal and the lives of the Americans in the zone. The film includes sequences of ships in transit, the work of special canal pilots, aspects of the civil government, work of the military, and the social, religious and recreational life of the Zonians.
Racetrack

1985

Racetrack

1985
6
RACETRACK is about the Belmont Race Track, one of the world's leading race tracks for thoroughbred racing. The film highlights the training, maintaining and racing of thoroughbred horses. Everyday occurrences are shown: in the backstretch — the grooming, feeding, shoeing, and caring for horses and the preparation for races; at the practice track the various aspects of training, exercising, and timing the horses; at the paddock — the pre-race presentation of the horses; and in the grandstand — betting and watching the races. The film also has sequences showing the variety of work done by trainers, jockeys, jockey agents, grooms, hot walkers, stable hands, and veterinarians.
Life with Murder

2010

Life with Murder

2010
6.2
Chatham, Ontario, 1998. Eighteen-year-old Jennifer Jenkins is brutally shot to death by multiple rifle rounds in her family home. The main suspect: her brother, Mason Jenkins, who fled the scene of the crime.
Bill W.

2012

Bill W.

2012
6.8
William G. Wilson is co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous, a man included in TIME Magazine's "100 Persons of the 20th Century." Interviews, recreations, and rare archival material reveal how Bill Wilson, a hopeless drunk near death from his alcoholism, found a way out of his own addiction and then forged a path for countless others to follow. With Bill as its driving force, A.A. grew from a handful of men to a worldwide fellowship of over 2 million men and women - a success that made him an icon within A.A., but also an alcoholic unable to be a member of the very society he had created. A reluctant hero, Bill Wilson lived a life of sacrifice and service, and left a legacy that continues every day, all around the world.
Top Fighter 2

1996

Top Fighter 2

1996
4.6
The sequel to "Top Fighter" focuses on the importance of women in martial arts movies, from starting as the "hero's girl" to becoming superstars by themselves. Featuring Angela Mao, Michelle Yeoh, Cynthia Rothrock and more.
The Sons of Tennessee Williams

2010

The Sons of Tennessee Williams

2010
4.8
Mardi Gras, drag balls and politics – where else could these elements come together but in New Orleans? Interweaving archival footage and contemporary interviews, The Sons of Tennessee Williams charts the evolution of the gay Mardi Gras krewe scene over the decades, illuminating the ways in which its emergence was a seminal factor in the cause of gay liberation in the South.
It’s a Girl!

2012

It’s a Girl!

2012
6.8
In India, China and many other parts of the world today, girls are killed, aborted and abandoned simply because they are girls. The United Nations estimates as many as 200 million girls are missing in the world today because of this so-called “gendercide”. The film tells the stories of abandoned and trafficked girls, of women who suffer extreme dowry-related violence, of brave mothers fighting to save their daughters’ lives, and of other mothers who would kill for a son. Global experts and grassroots activists put the stories in context and advocate different paths towards change, while collectively lamenting the lack of any truly effective action against this injustice.
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?
A Matter of Taste: Serving Up Paul Liebrandt

2011

A Matter of Taste: Serving Up Paul Liebrandt

2011
4.8
Paul Liebrandt is one of the most talented and controversial chefs in the food world and the youngest chef to have received 3 stars from the New York Times. He was 24. NY Times food critic, William Grimes, likened Paul to 'a pianist who seems to have found a couple of dozen extra keys.' Through Paul, the film reveals the creative process, the extreme hard work, long hours, and dedication it takes to be a culinary artist and have success in the cutthroat world of haute cuisine. Exploring the complicated relationships between food critics, chefs, and owners the film delves into the life of a dedicated young chef ahead of his time.
Brother Outsider: The Life of Bayard Rustin

2003

Brother Outsider: The Life of Bayard Rustin

2003
5
Documentary on Bayard Rustin, best-remembered as the organizer of the 1963 March on Washington.
N is a Number: A Portrait of Paul Erdős

1993

N is a Number: A Portrait of Paul Erdős

1993
7.2
In an age when genius is a mere commodity, it is useful to look at a person who led a rich life without the traditional trappings of success. A man with no home and no job, Paul Erdös was the most prolific mathematician who ever lived. Born in Hungary in 1913, Erdös wrote and co-authored over 1,500 papers and pioneered several fields in theoretical mathematics. At the age of 83 he still spent most of his time on the road, going from math meeting to math meeting, continually working on problems. He died on September 20, 1996 while attending such a meeting in Warsaw, Poland.
Australia After Dark

1975

Australia After Dark

1975
5
An exotic world of eroticism, witchcraft, masochism and strange secret places.
Last Call at the Oasis

2011

Last Call at the Oasis

2011
7.5
Participant Media’s Last Call at the Oasis is a new documentary from Jessica Yu & Elise Pearlstein. Think water is an infinite resource? Think again.
Thunder Soul

2010

Thunder Soul

2010
6.8
Jamie Foxx presents the inspiring true story of high school band leader Conrad O. Johnson, who transformed his ragtag jazz band students into a legendary funk powerhouse that took the nation by storm.