A movie that documents something, usually some issue or event that that the filmmaker is interested in.
‘Class Action Park‘ is a documentary that discusses the iconic and now-defunct Action Park directed by Seth Porges and Chris Charles Scott III. It was released as an HBO Max exclusive and narrated by John Hodgman. Action Park is legendary as a water park as well as the number of lawsuits over safety violations, injuries,…
The Netflix documentary ‘The Speed Cubers‘ is directed by Sue Kim and takes on Speed Cubing, the competition for solving the Rubik’s Cube, as its subject. It specifically discusses the friendly competition between American “cuber” Max Park from California and Australian competitor Feliks Zemdegs, both world record-holders. The movie tells the story of how Zemdegs…
‘Fear City: New York vs The Mafia‘ is a three-part true crime documentary series on Netflix. It is directed by Sam Hobkinson and discusses law enforcement’s attempts to break the Mafia’s control of New York City. In 1970s-80s New York, the Big Apple is known as Fear City with the Gambino, Colombo, Bonanno, Lucchese, and…
ESPN Films and Netflix brings us ‘The Last Dance,’ a ten-part documentary series directed by Jason Hehir. It discusses NBA pro-athlete Michael Jordan and his 1984 – 1998 career which saw them create a dynasty that is still discussed in sports media to this day. The series begins with 1998 NBA season as they head…
Executive producer Shawn Levy brings the hit show ‘Unsolved Mysteries‘ back to life on the streaming service Netflix with a six-part volume one. Like the original show, it touches on various unsolved crimes and their lack of a satisfying conclusion. One episode deals with UFO sightings that affected an entire family who all claim they…
“Fishing With Dynamite” is a documentary film written and directed by Paul Wagner. It was released by Aspiration Entertainment and produced by American Focus, Inc. for the Olsson Center for Applied Ethics at the Darden School Of Business, University of Virginia. The documentary is a financial and economic feature that focuses on “Capitalism in Crisis”…
‘The Rise of Jordan Peterson‘ is a 2019 documentary directed by Patricia Marcoccia which follows the clinical psychologist and professor Jordan Peterson, the writing of his books, his stand against proposed Canadian law Bill C-16, and subsequent rise to fame. It was produced by Holding Space Films and released by Gravitas Ventures. The film starts with…
Netflix takes potshots at their competitors on cable with ‘Trial By Media,’ a six-episode documentary is executive produced by George Clooney. Yes, the actor who’s best known for ruining the Batman media franchise. The show takes on several sensationalized court cases. They start with ‘Jenny Jones murder’ when the daytime talk show host embarrassed one…
Directed by Rebecca Chaiklin and Eric Goode, ‘Tiger King’ is a Netflix documentary series covering the bizarre true of Zoo owner Joe Exotic, who had an intense feud with a self-proclaimed animal rights activist Carole Baskin and the shocking conclusion. Joe Exotic was a zookeeper in Oklahoma who had a huge collection ‘big cats,’ including…
‘The Trials of Gabriel Fernandez‘ is a harrowing and troubling six-part documentary of abuse, violence, and neglect in the case of an eight-year-old living in Palmdale, California. It is directed by Brian Knappenberger and made available through Netflix. Gabriel Fernandez was routinely beaten, starved, and locked in a cabinet by his mother and step-father. The…
Reelz and Netflix partner together for Unabomber: In His Own Words, a documentary series of serial killer Theodore Kaczynski, who terrorized the United States between 1969 to 1995. The television show is written and directed by Mick Grogan. Kaczynski was a brutal murderer who was highly intelligent and even briefly worked as a college professor…
Are you a true crime junkie like me? As a writer, hearing stories of how people committed crimes, their motivations, and how law enforcement caught or stopped is always interesting to me. Here Are Ten True Crime Series On Netflix You Should Be Watching: The Confession Tapes– What if someone makes a confession, but it…
Dream/Killer is a 2015 documentary that tells the story of the wrongful conviction of Ryan Ferguson and his family’s quest to prove his innocence while facing a judicial system that puts roadblocks in their way. Columbia Daily Tribune reporter Kent Heitholt was tragically murdered at his workplace parking lot on November 1, 2001. The case…
Tell Me Who I Am is an original documentary from Netflix directed by Ed Perkins. It is based on the book of the same and it tells the fascinating, tragic, but also wonderful story of twin brothers Alex and Marcus Lewis. Sometime after Alex turns eighteen, he is in a horrible motorcycle accident not far…
Directed by Ursula Macfarlane, Untouchable is a Hulu documentary about former movie mogul Harvey Weinstein and the numerous allegations of sexual misconduct leveled at him by women in the entertainment industry. The movie traces Bob and his brother Harvey Weinstein from their days as concert promoters to the founding of Miramax, Dimension Films, and later…
Right-wing reporter and ‘gonzo journalist,’ (as she calls herself)-turned-filmmaker Lauren Southern released her new documentary Borderless. She narrates and hosts the feature as she travels throughout Europe to investigate the immigration crisis affecting the continent. Southern travels from Morroco to Spain to Ireland and beyond speaking with immigrants, refugees, border security officials, farmers, politicians, and…
We all have that one friend who has that weird belief. Behind The Curve explores one of the most unique and bizarre groups in our society, flat earthers. Directed by Daniel J. Clark, he meets and talks to real flat earthers. From the nut-jobs to the weirdos, and even to the strangely normal people who hold…
Directed by Joe Berlinger, Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes is a four-part Netflix documentary that tells the shockingly horrifying story of serial killer Ted Bundy. His reign of terror and brutal murders terrified people in at least five states, though he quipped to one law enforcement official that it was six. The…
FYRE: The Greatest Party That Never Happened is an original Netflix documentary directed by Chris Smith. It is one of three films that documents the Fyre Festival, a musical event on a beach island developed by self-proclaimed entrepreneur Billy McFarland and rapper Ja Rule. The film documents how Ja Rule and Billy McFarland had an idea for…
Directed by Jenner Furst and Julia Willoughby Nason, Fyre Fraud is a Hulu original documentary that tells the story of the Fyre Festival. The film is described as a, “true-crime comedy bolstered by a cast of whistleblowers, victims, and insiders going beyond the spectacle to uncover the power of FOMO and an ecosystem of enablers, driven…
With my eclectic taste in films, it is often hard to narrow down my absolute favorite movies of the year. That being said, 2018 was a good year for movies and I found myself begging for more, especially in the comic book and science fiction genre. Here is my list of favorite films for the…
Singer-songer writer Joy Villa released her newest project on her YouTube channel, a new mini-documentary ‘The Epic #WalkAwayMarch in DC,’ which covers the historic gathering where voters shared stories of why they walked away from the Democrat Party. Not only does Joy bring us great music like Devil In The City, excellent perspective on the…
Following on the success of a series of documentaries including 2016: Obama’s America and Hillary’s America, Conservative commentator-turned-filmmaker Dinesh D’Souza holds nothing back in his latest feature ‘Death Of A Nation.’ The documentary explores hidden connections between the American Left and some of the worst European dictators. The theme of the documentary is to challenge…
Looking for some good documentaries to explore history, political science, pop culture, or something else? This year was full of some amazing feature films that covered several amazing topics. I enjoyed several. This is my list of top documentaries to come out in 2017. 10. Banking On Bitcoin– The battle for crypto-currency is at the…
StudioJake had the awesome privilege of interviewing Hollywood superstar Robert Davi. His movie career spans decades, playing in franchises like Die Hard, The Expendables, and James Bond to hilarious comedies like An American Carol. He talks about the upcoming documentary ‘Davi’s Way‘ covering his singing tour, ‘Davi Sings Sinatra.’ We also talk about his upcoming…
