Top Rated Documentary Movies on The Roku Channel - Page 5

Fata Morgana

1971

Fata Morgana

1971
6.6
Shot under extreme conditions and inspired by Mayan creation theory, the film contemplates the illusion of reality and the possibility of capturing for the camera something which is not there. It is about the mirages of nature—and the nature of mirage.
Imagine: John Lennon

1988

Imagine: John Lennon

1988
6.9
The biography of former Beatle, John Lennon—narrated by Lennon himself—with extensive material from Yoko Ono's personal collection, previously unseen footage from Lennon's private archives, and interviews with David Bowie, his first wife Cynthia, second wife Yoko Ono and sons Julian and Sean.
Joe Strummer: The Future Is Unwritten

2007

Joe Strummer: The Future Is Unwritten

2007
7.2
As the front man of the Clash from 1977 onwards, Joe Strummer changed people's lives forever. Four years after his death, his influence reaches out around the world, more strongly now than ever before. In "The Future Is Unwritten", from British film director Julien Temple, Joe Strummer is revealed not just as a legend or musician, but as a true communicator of our times. Drawing on both a shared punk history and the close personal friendship which developed over the last years of Joe's life, Julien Temple's film is a celebration of Joe Strummer - before, during and after the Clash.
Antarctica: A Year on Ice

2013

Antarctica: A Year on Ice

2013
7.3
Filling the giant screen with stunning time-lapse vistas of Antarctica, and detailing year-round life at McMurdo and Scott Base, Anthony Powell’s documentary is a potent hymn to the icy continent and the heavens above.
ABBA: The Movie

1977

ABBA: The Movie

1977
6.6
A radio DJ in pursuit of an exclusive interview follows ABBA during their mega-successful tour of Australia.
Somm

2013

Somm

2013
6.9
Somm takes the viewer on a humorous, emotional and illuminating look into the mysterious world of the Court of Master Sommeliers and their massively intimidating Master Sommelier Exam.
American: The Bill Hicks Story

2010

American: The Bill Hicks Story

2010
7.4
American: The Bill Hicks Story is a biographical documentary film on the life of comedian Bill Hicks.
The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years

1988

The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years

1988
6.8
An exploration of the heavy metal scene in Los Angeles, with particular emphasis on glam metal. It features concert footage and interviews of legendary heavy metal and hard rock bands and artists such as Aerosmith, Alice Cooper, Kiss, Megadeth, Motörhead, Ozzy Osbourne and W.A.S.P..
Mountain

2017

Mountain

2017
7
An epic cinematic and musical collaboration between SHERPA filmmaker Jennifer Peedom and the Australian Chamber Orchestra, that explores humankind's fascination with high places.
Killer Legends

2014

Killer Legends

2014
5.7
Delving into our collective nightmares, this horror-documentary investigates the origins of our most terrifying urban legends and the true stories that may have inspired them.
Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound

2019

Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound

2019
6.8
The history of cinematic sound, told by legendary sound designers and visionary filmmakers.
Terra

2015

Terra

2015
8.3
A visually stunning documentary that reflects human's relationship to other species on Earth as humanity becomes more and more isolated from Nature.
The Wild and Wonderful Whites of West Virginia

2009

The Wild and Wonderful Whites of West Virginia

2009
6.7
Produced by Johnny Knoxville and Jeff Tremaine for MTV and Dickhouse Productions, The Wild and Wonderful Whites of West Virginia is a documentary about the renowned West Virginia outlaw Jesco White and his eccentric backwoods family. In addition to getting in trouble with the law, the Whites, who live deep within Appalachia, uphold a time-honored dancing style, even as they contend with poverty, drugs and other issues. Alternately humorous and sad, the movie is an unflinching look at life on the criminal margins of rural mountain culture.
Raiders!: The Story of the Greatest Fan Film Ever Made

2015

Raiders!: The Story of the Greatest Fan Film Ever Made

2015
6.7
In 1982, three 11 year-olds in Mississippi set out to remake their favorite film: Raiders of the Lost Ark. It took seven turbulent years that tested the limits of their friendship and nearly burned down their mother's house. By the end, they had completed every scene except one... the explosive airplane scene. 30 years later, they attempt to finally realize their childhood dream by building a replica of the 75 foot "Flying Wing" plane from Raiders in a mud pit in the backwoods of Mississippi... and then blow it up! This is the story behind the making of what is known as "the greatest fan film ever made."
Kurt Cobain: About a Son

2007

Kurt Cobain: About a Son

2007
6.9
An intimate and moving meditation on the late musician and artist Kurt Cobain, based on more than 25 hours of previously unheard audiotaped interviews conducted with Cobain by noted music journalist Michael Azerrad for his book "Come As You Are: The Story of Nirvana." In the film, Kurt Cobain recounts his own life - from his childhood and adolescence to his days of musical discovery and later dealings with explosive fame - and offers often piercing insights into his life, music, and times. The conversations heard in the film have never before been made public, and they reveal a highly personal portrait of an artist much discussed but not particularly well understood.
Land of Silence and Darkness

1971

Land of Silence and Darkness

1971
7.4
Through examining Fini Straubinger, an old woman who has been deaf and blind since her teens, and her work on behalf of other deaf-blind people, this film shows how the deaf-blind struggle to understand and accept a world from which they are almost wholly isolated.
Perfect Bid: The Contestant Who Knew Too Much

2017

Perfect Bid: The Contestant Who Knew Too Much

2017
6.5
Maths teacher Ted Slauson became adept at recording and memorizing prices of products featured on the iconic game show The Price is Right, an obsession dating back to the show's inception in 1972. This passion and dedication for the show culminated in him helping a contestant place a perfect bid during a 2008 showcase, an innocent act that would create one of the biggest controversies in television industry history.
Rewind This!

2013

Rewind This!

2013
6.9
Home video changed the world. The cultural and historical impact of the VHS tape was enormous. This film traces the ripples of that impact by examining the myriad aspects of society that were altered by the creation of videotape.
Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead: The Story of the National Lampoon

2015

Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead: The Story of the National Lampoon

2015
6.6
A look at the history of the American comedy publication and production company, National Lampoon, from its beginning in the 1970s to 2010, featuring rare and never before seen footage, this is the mind boggling story of The National Lampoon from its subversive and electrifying beginnings, to rebirth as an unlikely Hollywood heavyweight, and beyond. A humour empire like no other, the impact of the magazines irreverent, often shocking, sensibility was nothing short of seismic: this is an institution whose (drunk stoned brilliant) alumni left their fingerprints all over popular culture. Both insanely great and breathtakingly innovative, The National Lampoon created the foundation of modern comic sensibility by setting the bar in comedy impossibly high.
Salinger

2013

Salinger

2013
6.4
An in-depth investigation into the private world of the American writer J. D. Salinger (1919-2010), who lived most of his life behind the impenetrable wall of a self-imposed seclusion: how his dramatic experiences during World War II influenced his life and work, his relationships with very young women, his obsessive writing methods, his many literary secrets.