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There is something nasty to be said about a television program that so accidentally yet perfectly captures the abject experience of living through a late stage of civilizational putrefaction. The acrid humor of the Netflix docuseries Tiger King was the right flavor for the mounting grievances and absurdities of the year 2020, its nightmarish politics, our sudden and rapid disabling at the hands of a global pandemic, and a growing acceptance of the possibility that we may have driven the car off the edge of the cliff. It seemed that as we hung in the threshold between normalcy and apocalypse, the release of Tiger King coincided with our immediate need to process collective feeling, mutual comfort, and momentary reassurance, as the pathologies of global capitalism and bioinsecurities ( Ahuja, 2016) took up residence in our living rooms. Yet the visceral experience of watching this particular series, in addition to delivering the entertaining schadenfreude it presumed to offer, also exposed a rhythmic conditioning to shock and awe that produced our banal abjection as spectators of crises. If it seems too simple to suggest that mere escapism from grim realities propelled Tiger King into being an omnipresent text with an extensive discursive reach, it is probably because there remains, at least for me, a lingering aftertaste of something bitter and hopeless that has successfully ruined the experience of cackling and balking through binge-watching every episode with a group of friends on Zoom.

If I were to say that I hated this show, it would be a middling sort of hate; the kind that never fully settles into your consciousness enough to warrant an explanation. This disdain operates exclusively via a set of ugly and slippery affects, the synesthetic equivalent of catching a whiff of an unexpected smell emanating from your mouth as you breathe into a warm, two-layered cloth mask: not quite offensive enough to gag, but ripe enough to warrant some morbid curiosity and a second inquisitive exhalation. But like any bodily odor, the longer it lingers the less foul it smells. The longue durée of unabated exposure to the turpitude of Tiger King 's events, characters, injuries, and deaths mediates a spectatorial narcosis that cannot respond solidly to any one outrage. The cascade of follies is intentional, strategic, and effective in rendering the audience complicit in its carnivalesque horror. In not being able to look away from the sheer volume of incredible offenses, the viewer's responses have a short and anticipatable range; the campy ludicrousness of Joe Exotic's musical refrain "I saw a tiger, and tiger saw man" lands on the viewer with the same velocity as his meth-fueled marriage to his two husbands. The narrative's stench seeps in at a level at which we can smell it and yet not react.

Nowhere in the series does the passivity of the witness reveal itself more than in the surreal surveillance footage of the moment of Travis Maldonado's suicide, in Tiger King's fifth episode. Joshua Dial, Joe Exotic's campaign manager, watches himself on tape as his brief conversation with Travis ends with an off-screen gunshot. Dial sits in his chair frozen in shock, not moving or reacting for several minutes, before slowly getting up and appearing to approach Travis's unseen body. Like Dial, the viewer's access to shock is mediated by the clinical perspective of the surveillance camera. The shock is at a distance, off-screen, deferred. The flippancy with which the story lunges past the gravity of a young man's captivity to drug use, predatory love, and attendant nihilism is paralleled only by the ribaldry of the show itself. The narrative suppresses our instinct for empathy, encouraging us instead to slip into a passive gaping. Tiger King might just be the Nosferatu of trash TV. By this, I mean that it is a series that drains the viewer of their life force while simultaneously reflecting back to them an image of the abject creature they are becoming in their waking life.

I am tempted to name this feeling as a kind of conciliatory horror, not just because of the overabundance of comically wicked characters but because of how closely shock and boredom sit together. These seemingly paradoxical sensations form a significant portion of Tiger King's affective milieu. Shock and boredom are your viewing companions on the couch as you toggle psychically from an absurd news cycle to an agitated quarantine in a hopeless attempt to "Netflix-and-chill." Unlike the seriousness of typical true crime documentaries, or the delightfulness of campy horror flicks-even though the docuseries borrows heavily from the generic conventions of both- Tiger King manages to reproduce, validate, and affirm our stupefaction arising under a global pandemic and rising fascism.

Sianne Ngai's (2005, p. 271) articulation of stuplimity as "a concatenation of boredom and astonishment-a bringing together of what 'dulls' and what 'irritates' or agitates; of sharp, sudden excitation and prolonged desensitization, exhaustion, or fatigue" pierces through the cacophony of in situ reactions that clamor around the viewing experience of Tiger King. Put differently, shock and awe are active strategic devices that proliferate to the extent that they lose their punctum and thus their ability to prick and disturb. The result is a rote and abject chortling at the docuseries' relentless evocation of our capacity to be stunned. Much like the hapless protagonist's soporific horror at the rising monotony of the goings-on at a certain Midsommar fest in Ari Aster's 2019 film, our own increasingly bemused horror at the circuitous and often profoundly poignant storytelling dulls our ability to react with anything other than exhaustion and surrender to the inevitable end of the series.

The series begins with this ending: Joe Exotic makes a collect call from prison where he is serving time for a conviction of conspiracy to murder his archnemesis, Carole Baskin. We are told where this story leads right away, and are free therefore to focus on the details of the characters rather than the series' overall anticipatory arc. Though technically serialized, the formal architecture of the docuseries privileges episodic spectacle, with every shocking detail repeated variously ad nauseam to the point at which they become less events to which the spectator reacts than a gloopy and thick "agglutination" ( Ngai, 2005, p. 263) of sensations. The details come in aggregated sets: two husbands, three wives, four zoos, three missing limbs, three strangely loyal zoo hands, two music albums, 24 songs, 16 music videos, endless video uploads to social media, ever-growing numbers of big cats, innumerable death threats, rapidly-multiplying knaves of increasing cunning, Joe's incessant recitations of "that bitch Carole Baskin." The tedium of reacting is overwhelming and stupendous, and soon there are no more gasps to give. By the end of the series, we are exhausted, harried, inert, and bored. In a sense, watching Tiger King is a high-order participation in the logics of accumulation under capitalism, insofar as the numbing abundance of sensationalism manufactures our inability to choose between feeling over-stimulated and bored. Thus, our haplessness in bingeing and purging affective excess, especially under existential duress, placates and maintains the rhythmic circuitry of everyday consumption now being threatened by economic deceleration under quarantine.

The "stupendous proliferation of discrete quanta held together by a fairly simple syntax or organizing principle" ( Ngai, 2005, p. 263) produces in Tiger King a casual kind of horror, one that reflects the quality of not just the series itself but the particular moment in which the series earns its popularity and its place in our collective viewing histories, as the cultural phenomenon that got us through the transition into quarantine. Without this context, the docuseries might be just another "hidden gem" in the Netflix catalogue, to be watched and promptly forgotten. The fact that it persists in the collective imaginary suggests that this particular fun house of horror deeply touches a part of how we have affectively experienced the turbulence of these times. Conditioning us to embrace our own captivity and possible boredom at home (while horrific human rights abuses are committed in the name of "closed borders"), the cages of exotic animals become the backdrop to this comic spectacle of criminality, and to a profound alienation from justice that is cast as camp grandiosity. The "reality" of the docuseries calls into question our capacity to recognize and escape the fever dream, in which we find ourselves unable to resist succumbing to the charms of a vampiric conceit. So, yes, for what it reveals to me about our affective lives in the present, I hate this show.

Conflict of interest: The author has no conflict of interest to declare.

References

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There is something nasty to be said about a television program that so accidentally yet perfectly captures the abject experience of living through a late stage of civilizational putrefaction.

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Netflix loves a documentary. In fact, it's become one of the most prolific producers of new documentaries around, so there's a huge amount of choice. Below we've picked out some of our favourite Netflix documentaries. And if this isn't enough for you, we have a separate list of the best documentaries available on other platforms (including YouTube) as well.

Pray Away

An exploration of the origins of the "conversion therapy" movement - a harmful and medically denounced process where religious groups try to "cure" homosexuality - may not make for light entertainment, but this searing look at the practice and its roots is darkly compelling. Director Kristine Stolakis speaks with both key founders of the movement and survivors of the often brutal treatments that arose over nearly half a century, always with an insightful lens for her subjects - sympathy for the abused, never quite forgiveness for those involved in the movement who have since left it. Pray Away is a difficult watch at times - especially for LGBTQ+ viewers - but it shines an important light on the movement and the damage it causes. A bold debut for Stolakis.

Disclosure

Director Sam Feder points a wide lens at the roles and representations of transgender people in film, looking back over a century to the earliest depictions in the silent film era, through being the butt of jokes in '80s sitcoms, to the better - but still not perfect - onscreen portrayals that have slowly increased in recent years. It also asks viewers to reconsider some Hollywood favourites, such as Psycho, Silence of the Lambs and even Mrs Doubtfire, and look at how, for decades, they provided only harmful or mocking views of any form of gender diversity. Filled with insightful interviews from trans actors and creators - including Orange is the New Black's Laverne Cox, Pose's Mj Rodriguez, The Matrix's Lilly Wachowski, and Chaz Bono - and with a particular emphasis on Black trans lives, Disclosure is an important documentary, now more than ever.

Black Holes: The Edge of All We Know

Yes, this is a documentary about black holes. But it's really a documentary about the scientific process and humanity's ceaseless pursuit of knowledge. It follows two teams of scientists grappling with different challenges. One team is working to capture the first image of a black hole while the other is trying to solve the so-called information paradox. It's both an important historical record of how major scientific breakthroughs are made and also a somewhat strange, disjointed love letter to science itself.

Louis Theroux: The City Addicted to Crystal Meth

This is an extraordinary piece of filmmaking about an issue that continues to grip many communities in America. Theroux approaches the crystal meth crisis like he does any difficult, complex subject: awkwardly but with compassion and rigour. This is an incredibly sad portrait of the impact crystal meth is having on both individuals but also entire cities. There's a standoffishness to Theroux's reporting, which is especially evident here, that allows him to show what's happening in a more subtle way, rather than telling you outright.

Challenger: The Final Flight

In 1986 the space shuttle Challenger suffered total disaster, breaking up 73 seconds after launch and killing all seven crew members on board. The tragedy reshaped the space programme. In this four-part documentary, the crew's surviving family paint a picture of the astronauts which was one of the most diverse crews ever created and included school teacher Christa McAuliff who was picked to be the first private citizen in space. The series retells the disaster and dives into the mechanical failures and decision making process, speaking to former Nasa engineers and officials who worked on the mission and had raised safety concerns before the launch.

Murder Among The Mormons

In October 1985 in Salt Lake City, two people were killed by pipe bombs in incidents that seemed to be related to the lucrative trade in rare Mormon documents. The following day, Mark Hoffman - who had a track record of uncovering historic documents that were damaging to the Mormon church - was grievously injured after a bomb went off in his car. This three-part true crime documentary explains what happens next, and offers a fascinating look at the Church of the Latter Day Saints, and a man who wasn't quite what he seemed.

Don't F**k with Cats: Hunting an Internet Killer

According to cyber vigilantes on Facebook, there's one unwritten rule on the internet: don't fuck with cats. So when a video is posted online of a mysterious man killing two kittens, internet users across the world leapt into action to find the perpetrator. This Netflix documentary is about a group of Facebook sleuths who tried to track down Luka Magnotta, a man who was convicted of killing and dismembering 33-year-old Chinese undergrad student Jun Lin. The three-part docuseries written and directed by Mark Lewis is at times hard to watch and may favour true crime drama over justice for Lin and his memory. But it's still a fascinating look at how ordinary people can root out a killer using the same internet tools that are available to everyone.

Crack: Cocaine, Corruption & Conspiracy

America has spent billions during its 'war on drugs' but has it worked? This 90-minute film charts the rise of crack cocaine in the 1980s and 1990s by telling the stories of those who have had their lives ruined by the drug - including the dealers who, at one point, made small fortunes from their work. It covers the drug's origins, illegal imports into the US, and the ensuing 'crack babies' media frenzy. Director Stanley Nelson tackles some of the myths of the crack 'epidemic' by using a wide range of scientists and historians who provide cultural context to the chaos that ensued.

American Murder: The Family Next Door

At around 2AM on August 13, 2018, 38-year-old Shanann Watts arrived back at her home in Colorado after a brief business trip. The next day, Shanann, who was pregnant with her third child at the time, was reported missing. Soon, it transpired that Shanann's two young daughters were also gone from the home she shared with her husband Chris. This shocking true-crime documentary, authorised by the family of Shanann Watts, is unusual in that is it made up almost entirely of archival footage shot by her family, the police, the media covering the story of her murder and Shanann herself. This isn't just the story of her murder, it's the story of her life. Thanks to social media, you get to know her and daughters Celeste and Bella, you watch their birthdays, their holidays, their smiles and laughter, painting them as the perfect American family. It's an expertly executed, at times horrifying account of deceit, betrayal and domestic violence.

Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado

During the 80s and 90s, Walter Mercado was a fixture of Latin American life. Every day he would appear, flamboyantly swirling his bejewelled capes and sporting impossibly feathery hair, to read people's horoscopes on TV. Then he suddenly vanished. The androgynous Puerto Rican astrologer, whose personal life was a complete mystery, used the force of his self-conviction to climb his way into millions of people's living rooms. Like Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard, he ended up isolated in his mansion, surrounded by paraphernalia of his glory years (including dozens of capes and bizarre paintings of his own face) and guarded by a protective assistant called Willie. Unlike Desmond, his ending isn't tragic. When the 80-year old, once described as "bigger than Jesus Christ" appears on camera for this documentary, he sparkles, but seems smaller and vulnerable. He doesn't want to talk about death ("how depressing") or ageing ("I'm just like Dorian Gray"). But in front of his fans, who he truly loves, he grows larger than life. This loving tribute to Mercado is rather too indulgent at times, but does something unique. It shows that the man under the cape was just the same as the man on screen: wonderful, weird and the real deal.

Tell Me Who I Am

A sometimes verbose but engrossing documentary about brotherhood and trauma - both psychological, and pretty physical. The latter and the former collide when Alex Lewis, a 18-year-old from the home counties, has a motorcycle accident, hits his head and forgets everything about his life; well, not quite everything: he remembers that the young man standing at his bedside is his identical twin, Marcus, and that he can trust him. Back in his family home, Alex asks Marcus to help him reconstruct his past: does he have a girlfriend? How is his relationship with their parents? Why does her mum keep inviting strange people to their home? For over ten years, Alex lives in an idyllic world of Marcus's making. But after their mother's death, the amnesiac twin realises that his brother might have sugar-coated the past a little...

Athlete A

This harrowing documentary follows journalists from The Indianapolis Star as they uncover an abuse scandal that goes to the heart of gymnastics in the US. Reporters exposed how elite gymnasts faced abuse from the adults they trusted with their careers and how the sport's governing body USA Gymnastics covered up what was happening. As an Olympic doctor is sent to jail, the documentary tells the story through the survivors who spoke out against how they were treated.

The Last Dance

Before David Beckham and Cristiano Ronaldo, there was Michael Jordan. The 1990s Chicago Bulls were a force of nature - and Jordan in particular helped create the superstar athlete genre with his skill and grace both on and off the basketball court. The Last Dance is, ostensibly, a look at the final season for that great Bulls team - featuring Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman and more players who would become household names. But it's about more than that. The action jumps back and forth between 1998 and the late 80s and early 90s when Jordan was coming through and dominating, using a mixture of archive clips and never before seen behind-the-scenes footage. It's genuinely fascinating to see the interactions between some huge characters, and it's an engrossing watch, even if you know nothing about basketball.

Filthy Rich

This Netflix documentary is the first in a wave of works focused on the heinous life of mega-rich and powerful business magnate Jeffery Epstein. Epstein is perhaps best known for being accused of raping hundreds of underage girls over the course of decades with impunity. For most of his life, Epstein seemed untouchable. Even after a 2018 investigation sparked renewed interest from prosecutors and led to him being put in custody, his apparent suicide in prison when he was denied bail left victims and the public with more questions than answers. The documentary paints Ghislaine Maxwell as a direct conspirator and co-abuser (which she denies). Donald Trump, Bill Clinton, Prince Andrew are also thrown back into the spotlight as people that eye-witnesses had spotted close to Epstein (again, they deny this). This documentary may make you angry, but comes no closer to unravelling the mystery around his life and death than other reports. Instead, it focuses on the women who accused him of abusing them and trafficking them to other powerful men. Again and again, they tell their stories, describing how they were lured to his house in Palm Beach, or to his private island, and abused. It's painful to watch. Their voices become centre stage as they say the trail of monsters goes far beyond Epstein, and that justice has yet to be done.

Voyeur

Netflix's Voyeur reels you in with the promise of a scandalous story of a peeping motel owner - but it's so much more. When celebrated journalist Gay Talese stumbles upon the story of Gerald Foos - a former motel owner who built a second floor above the motel's rooms to spy and peep on his guests - he thinks he has the story and character of a lifetime. A book deal and an excerpt in the New Yorker suggest he might be right. But when these two duelling personalities (and their egos) start to unravel, so does the story Talese is trying to tell. The documentary itself very much comes in two halves. It first details Foos and Talese's decades-long relationship, which includes a particularly galling anecdote about Talese's first visit to the motel's secret level and his tie falling through the vent Foos would watch his guests from. In the second, Talese becomes as much of a flawed character as Foos when his journalistic integrity is questioned and reputation is left tainted. What started as a story about one perverted peeper, ended with two oddballs struggling for control of their own narrative.

Tiger King

The American big cat community is wild. Very wild. This true crime fly-on-the-wall documentary centres on the trials and tribulations of an Oklahoma zoo owner called Joe Exotic and his nemesis, an animal rights activist called Carol Baskin. Sure, it's a show about lions and tigers trapped in cages. But it's also a show about some of the most dislikable and downright fascinating people you're ever likely to come across. It's dirty, grizzly car crash TV at its very best.

Killer Inside: The Mind of Aaron Hernandez

How does a millionaire American football player for the sport's most successful team come to murder a man in cold blood? That's the question posed by Killer Inside: The Mind of Aaron Hernandez, a glossy and controversial Netflix Original documentary. It's a fascinating story and the three episodes will grip fans and non-fans alike. It falls a little short in some respects, especially in examining the potential role of CTE (a degenerative brain disease) and a sometimes salacious interest in his sexuality, but it's still a compelling watch and those who enjoy it would do well to listen to the Boston Globe's podcast series Gladiator, which goes into greater depth on the Aaron Hernandez story.

Want more choice? Read our guides to the best Disney Plus TV shows and the best films on Disney Plus.

Pandemic

Netflix's six-part docuseries on the preparations underway to prevent a future pandemic was eerily timed. Three weeks before the series dropped, the first cases of a previously unknown coronavirus were reported in China - the start of an outbreak that would change the world forever. Pandemic looks at the risks of future global pandemics, and follows the researchers and medical professionals who will be on the front line when the inevitable happens.

Bikram: Yogi, Guru, Predator

Bikram yoga first emerged in the 1970s and since then it's taken over the world, with a huge number of celebrity endorsements. The yoga itself is a proprietary system 26 moves that's conducted in a hot room. But aside from the exercise, it's grown in popularity due to its enigmatic founder Bikram Choudhury. This documentary exposes deep problems behind the Choudhury's empire. In recent years Choudhury has been accused of rape, settled civil suits against him and fled the United States after refusing to pay $6.8 million in legal damages. The film tells the story from the perspective of the victims and is a harrowing watch.

Rotten

Before food arrives on your plate, it can take a tumultuous journey. The imported food we eat can often have a hidden back story - Rotten seeks to expose this. The surge in popularity of the avocado has seen its lucrative industry become a target for cartels that are out to make money; while the world of chicken production can end in growers sabotaging each other's stocks. Each episode within Rotten's two series takes on the obscure, and often dangerous, world of a food's production.

Inside Bill's Brain: Decoding Bill Gates

After An Inconvenient Truth and He Named Me Malala, award-winning director Davis Guggenheim explores the journey of renowned tech visionary and philanthropist Bill Gates. The three-part documentary takes viewers through Gates' upbringing, marriage and the creation of Microsoft. The real subject, though, seems to be the work of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, a charity that is on a mission to solve some of the world's most persistent problems - from battling infectious diseases and child mortality in developing countries to educating vulnerable communities in the US.

Knock Down the House

After Donald Trump's election in 2016, a group of activists got together to try and change US politics. The result was an influx of new candidates for Congress and the Senate in the 2018 mid-term elections - including loads more women and ethnic minorities. Knock Down the House follows four of them in the months leading up to the Democratic primaries: a mother from Nevada, a nurse from Missouri, a miner's daughter from West Virginia and a 28-year-old bartender from the Bronx called Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. It's an uplifting, optimistic glimpse of a different kind of politics.

American Factory

Barack and Michelle Obama are making their Hollywood debut with a film tackling Trump's promises to resurrect the country's industrial heartland. The documentary - the first release by the Obamas' Higher Ground Productions as part of their partnership with Netflix - looks at what happens when a Chinese billionaire takes over an abandoned General Motors plant in Ohio and hires 2,000 blue-collar American workers for a new automotive glass factory.

The Great Hack

How well do you really know the Cambridge Analytica scandal? This two-hour documentary digs into the origins of the shady political and data science consultancy whose dodgy use of data kicked off a congressional hearing, a parliamentary inquiry and left Facebook with a $5 billion (£4.1b) fine and a shattered reputation. Told through the eyes of the journalist and whistleblower who broke the story, and people close to Cambridge Analytica, The Great Hack is a defining look at the standout scandal of the data monopoly era.

Losers

Sport can be brutal - particularly if results don't go your way. Losers focuses on the individuals and teams that make the headlines for the wrong reasons. The eight-episode collection, each is just 30 minutes long, focuses on a different story each time around. They go from the ultrarunner lost in the desert and presumed dead, to the Torquay United football team that owes much of its survival from financial oblivion to a police dog.

Fyre Festival

Fyre Festival was an unmitigated disaster - and the whole thing was captured on social media and video. The "luxury" music festival took place in the summer of 2017 but its reputation has lived on following its catastrophically bad organisation and execution. Created by Billy McFarland, CEO of Fyre Media Inc and rapper Ja Rule, the event was billed as the don't miss festival of the year: influencers, celebrities and musicians were all due to appear. The reality? Not enough tents, payments missing, and general chaos. The documentary tells the inside story of the failure of Fyre.

Struggle: The Life and Lost Art of Szukalski

This is a documentary about a Polish sculptor but everything about Stanislav Szukalski from his Polishness to his sculpture is as complicated as it gets. His fans have included Hollywood screenwriter Ben Hecht, the 60s underground LA comic scene, Adolf Hitler and Leonardo Dicaprio's dad. Directed by Ireneusz Dobrowolski and using interviews by art collector Glenn Bray, this is a peculiar but powerful look at iconography and nationalism in 20th century Europe, with this 'punk' sculptor and alt historian shifting between stardom, notoriety and obscurity.

Our Planet

Narrated by David Attenborough and produced by the same team behind the BBC's Planet Earth, Our Planet is a nature documentary on a scale not seen before. Everything here is bigger, more beautiful and more ambitious. The whole series is available in 4K, so if you've got a compatible TV set then this will likely be one of the most visually stunning documentaries you've ever watched. Yet, unlike most big-budget nature documentaries that have come before it, Our Planet is a clarion call for action on climate change. Its episodes are filled with stories of a planet in crisis, of animals pushed to the brink of humanity's wanton destruction of the planet we must all share. It's utterly essential viewing.

The Dawn Wall

Climbing film Free Solo may have won an Oscar, but this ascent is equally as gripping. The Dawn Wall follows the journey of two athletes, Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson, as they attempt to scale the 3,000 feet of rock that make-up one side of Yosemite National Park's El Capitan. The 2015 climb saw both Caldwell and Jorgeson live on the rock for two weeks as they slowly made vertical progress on the first attempted climb of the rock face. As well as charting their death-defying progress, the film also looks back at the years of preparation that went into the effort.

Shirkers

Shirkers is the kind of doc that won't give you nightmares - unless you're a precocious indie filmmaker, that is. A Netflix Original that first screened at last year's Sundance Film Festival, it's the work of Sandi Tan who tells the story of her lost, early 90s indie film: the original Shirkers. Tan is concerned with her then American film school mentor Georges Cardona because well, he made off with the reels from what was supposed to be Singapore's first road movie. But just as fun is the punky, scrappy energy as she tracks the memories of this bunch of nerdy, pop culture obsessed teen girls and the rediscovered footage.

Dogs

Dogs! It was only a matter of time before someone made a documentary about dogs, and this documentary series is heart warming and interesting. From Syria to New York, each episode touches on the relationship between a person and their canine companions - from Japanese groomers who find their unique grooming style threatening at an American dog show, to an Italian fisherman who finds his labrador a source of support as he contemplates losing his job.

Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat

Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat, hosted by the delightful Samin Nosrat, is a charming look into how some of the world's most inventive dishes are made, from Italy to California. Each of the four episodes explores one of the four titular elements. Perfect for the winter months, it has the comforting elements of Netflix-favourite Queer Eye, mixed in with the hunger usually brought on by an episode of Masterchef. Beautifully shot and genuinely heartwarming, Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat shows that good documentaries don't have to be serious - they just have to be interesting.

Wild, Wild Country

Chapman and Maclain Way's Emmy-award winning documentary about a cult in Oregon has to be seen to be believed. A four part series, Wild, Wild Country tells the story of Bagwan Shree Rajneesh, also known as Osho, an Indian cult leader who moves to Oregon from Pune, India. He imports parts of his idyllic lifestyle to willing followers, but his leadership quickly descends into chaos after conflicts with local farmers lead to a bioterror attack on local water supplies. The documentary intersperses interviews of former cult member with footage from the 70s. A follow up documentary, on VICE, asks what happened to the Rajneeshes after the events of Wild, Wild Country, if you find yourself curiously transfixed by them.

Evil Genius

We can't get enough of true crime, and documentary film makers keep digging up real, bizarre events. Produced by Mark and Jay Duplass, who also produced Wild, Wild Country, it follows the events after the death of Brian Wells, a pizza man with a bomb around his neck. As a trail to find the real culprit goes on, it becomes increasingly evident that the plot isn't quite what it seems. Trey Borzielli, a co-director on the documentary, corresponded extensively with people involved in the case, such as Margorie Diehl-Armstrong, one of the key suspects in the bombing. Even though the case is a matter of historical record, you'll be gripped to the edge of your seat in suspense.

The Staircase

In 2001, Kathleen Peterson was found dead at the bottom of a staircase in her North Carolina home. Although he maintains his innocence, her novelist husband, Michael Peterson, quickly becomes the lead suspect in an murder investigation that will absorb the next 17 years of his life. This 13-part series follows Michael Peterson's defense team as they prepare to fight a case that digs into every aspect of their client's life, including an eerily similar case from decades earlier. Along the way, they uncover injustice from investigators, bitter family feuds and a strange theory involving an owl.

Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond

Jim & Andy is a weird one. But then again, what can you expect from a documentary about Jim Carrey method-acting his way through Man on the Moon, a 1999 film about the life of the eccentric and often infuriating comedian Andy Kaufman?

Carrey's insistence on not just playing Kaufman, but actually being him draws the frustration and admiration of everyone working on the film, including director Milos Forman. Carrey, as Kaufman and his disagreeable alter-ego Tony Clifton, crashes cars on set, storms into Steven Speilberg's office, cons his way into the Playboy Mansion and pushes his co-stars to outright violence. Most of the fly-on-the-wall footage is deliciously painful to watch, but moments when Carrey - as Kaufman - is reunited with the late comedian's real family are genuinely touching.

The footage at the core of this documentary was suppressed for 20 years over fears that it would make Carrey come across as "an asshole," the actor tells us in the ongoing present-day interview spliced throughout the film. Carrey goes full transcendental in these talking heads, ruminating on the meaning of his films and concluding that he could become anyone - even Jesus.

Flint Town

In Flint, life grinds you down. This Netflix original series tells the story of a city where the police force is struggling to maintain control. And yet, for the most part, the drama eases past - punctuated by a gunshot, an anguished scream. It's beautifully produced - lingering shots of snow-covered, abandoned houses are cut with smooth, sliding drone panoramas. The problems facing the city are considerable: unemployment, underfunding, violence and to top it all off a poisoned water supply, It would be easy, and obvious, to turn this into a dramatic pastiche of a city on the brink. But Flint Town is a slow, considered character drama that tracks key figures in the city's police force as they struggle to maintain order. As the drama slowly unfolds, it's the city itself that becomes the most compelling character: perpetually frozen, blood-stained but fighting to survive.

Dirty Money

This six-parter from Netflix explores the murky world of finance where banks knowingly launder funds on behalf of drug cartels, car manufacturers cheat on emissions tests and pharmaceutical firms ramp up the price of drugs to pay their executives' bonuses. Each episode tells a depressingly familiar story about corporations leaving morality behind in the pursuit of profits, evading justice and, in many cases, ending up reaping the rewards of their deviant behaviour. The biggest criminals, it turns out, tend to wear suits.

Strong Island

Nominated for Best Documentary in this year's Oscars, Yance Ford's Strong Island tackles the murder of the director's own brother. His sibling was shot, but his case never saw justice. Although the story of a black man being unjustly killed is a narrative we have sadly become used to, Strong Island stands apart as largely a film about grief as well as racial injustice. It is certainly a documentary worthy of its nomination.

Get Me Roger Stone

Exploring the life of Republican political strategist Roger Stone, this Netflix documentary is one for fans of House of Cards, or spectators to the current real-life twists and turns within American politics. Netflix has filed Get Me Roger Stone under 'provocative', 'controversial', 'scandalous' and 'dark' - a description that fits a little too perfectly. It is suggested he is heavily responsible for creating Trump as a political figure and encouraging him to run for the United States' Presidency. This story is almost stranger than fiction, and is both engrossing and deeply troubling.

Casting JonBenet

Making a Murderer was one of the most popular Netflix originals of last year, Casting JonBenet is cut from the same cloth. In 1996, Boulder, Colorado was rocked by the mysterious death of six-year-old pageant queen, JonBenet Ramsey. Her death was ruled as a homicide by police and received widespread media attention, but the killer was never identified - although suspicions still run wild as to who could have committed such a heinous crime. From the very first moments, Casting JonBenet leaves you with a steady sense of horror, not just at the story of JonBenet, but for the interwoven threads of tragedy connecting those who watched her story play out from afar.

The White Helmets

Having taken home the Oscar for best documentary in 2017, White Helmets is firmly one of the best things you'll watch this year. Focusing on a group of volunteer rescue workers in Syria, the film follows them as they attempt to rescue left trapped in the wake of airstrikes. The 40-minute film charts these rescue workers from Syria's Civil Defence Foreces, marking their heroism in the face of conflict and destruction. These people put their lives on the line everyday to help those in need; strangers come together in defence of human life. It's truly inspiring and heart-wrenching to witness the level of devastation these first responders brave through, and their tireless belief in each other and the people who will stay with you long after the final scene.

What happened, Miss Simone?

Based on the biography of the same name by Alan Light, What Happened, Miss Simone? draws on previously unseen diaries, interviews and childhood journals to look at Simone not just as the soul legend she became, but as a dedicated civil rights activist and one of the fiercest figures in generations. Simone's struggles with mental illness are here depicted faithfully, with the input of her daughter Lisa Simone Kelly, and director Liz Garbus's treatment is unfailingly careful and compassionate. Fluctuations in Simone's health did little to unravel her enormous political anger and need for music - Garbus's biopic presents an iconic figure of great complexity, whose music provided a kind of battleground for the torment she lived through.

Take Your Pills

In Take Your Pills, director Alison Klayman takes on the prescription stimulant craze in the US, exploring how young people use drugs like Adderall and Ritalin in the hope of benefiting from performance-enhancing effects. There are college students worried they'll be at a disadvantage if they don't pop a pill before an exam, a programmer who wants to live up to the myth of the coder-genius, and a finance worker whose colleague collapsed after two many Adderall-fuelled all-nighters.

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47 of the Best Documentaries on Netflix Right Now

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Netflix loves a documentary. In fact, it's become one of the most prolific producers of new documentaries around, so there's a huge amount of choice. Below we've picked out some of our favourite Netflix documentaries. And if this isn't enough for you, we have a separate list of the best documentaries available on other platforms (including YouTube) as well.

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47 of the Best Documentaries on Netflix Right Now

# data[].attributes.subject
47 of the Best Documentaries on Netflix Right Now

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Netflix loves a documentary. In fact, it's become one of the most prolific producers of new documentaries around, so there's a huge amount of choice. Below we've picked out some of our favourite Netflix documentaries. And if this isn't enough for you, we have a separate list of the best documentaries available on other platforms (including YouTube) as well.

Pray Away

An exploration of the origins of the "conversion therapy" movement - a harmful and medically denounced process where religious groups try to "cure" homosexuality - may not make for light entertainment, but this searing look at the practice and its roots is darkly compelling. Director Kristine Stolakis speaks with both key founders of the movement and survivors of the often brutal treatments that arose over nearly half a century, always with an insightful lens for her subjects - sympathy for the abused, never quite forgiveness for those involved in the movement who have since left it. Pray Away is a difficult watch at times - especially for LGBTQ+ viewers - but it shines an important light on the movement and the damage it causes. A bold debut for Stolakis.

Disclosure

Director Sam Feder points a wide lens at the roles and representations of transgender people in film, looking back over a century to the earliest depictions in the silent film era, through being the butt of jokes in '80s sitcoms, to the better - but still not perfect - onscreen portrayals that have slowly increased in recent years. It also asks viewers to reconsider some Hollywood favourites, such as Psycho, Silence of the Lambs and even Mrs Doubtfire, and look at how, for decades, they provided only harmful or mocking views of any form of gender diversity. Filled with insightful interviews from trans actors and creators - including Orange is the New Black's Laverne Cox, Pose's Mj Rodriguez, The Matrix's Lilly Wachowski, and Chaz Bono - and with a particular emphasis on Black trans lives, Disclosure is an important documentary, now more than ever.

Black Holes: The Edge of All We Know

Yes, this is a documentary about black holes. But it's really a documentary about the scientific process and humanity's ceaseless pursuit of knowledge. It follows two teams of scientists grappling with different challenges. One team is working to capture the first image of a black hole while the other is trying to solve the so-called information paradox. It's both an important historical record of how major scientific breakthroughs are made and also a somewhat strange, disjointed love letter to science itself.

Louis Theroux: The City Addicted to Crystal Meth

This is an extraordinary piece of filmmaking about an issue that continues to grip many communities in America. Theroux approaches the crystal meth crisis like he does any difficult, complex subject: awkwardly but with compassion and rigour. This is an incredibly sad portrait of the impact crystal meth is having on both individuals but also entire cities. There's a standoffishness to Theroux's reporting, which is especially evident here, that allows him to show what's happening in a more subtle way, rather than telling you outright.

Challenger: The Final Flight

In 1986 the space shuttle Challenger suffered total disaster, breaking up 73 seconds after launch and killing all seven crew members on board. The tragedy reshaped the space programme. In this four-part documentary, the crew's surviving family paint a picture of the astronauts which was one of the most diverse crews ever created and included school teacher Christa McAuliff who was picked to be the first private citizen in space. The series retells the disaster and dives into the mechanical failures and decision making process, speaking to former Nasa engineers and officials who worked on the mission and had raised safety concerns before the launch.

Murder Among The Mormons

In October 1985 in Salt Lake City, two people were killed by pipe bombs in incidents that seemed to be related to the lucrative trade in rare Mormon documents. The following day, Mark Hoffman - who had a track record of uncovering historic documents that were damaging to the Mormon church - was grievously injured after a bomb went off in his car. This three-part true crime documentary explains what happens next, and offers a fascinating look at the Church of the Latter Day Saints, and a man who wasn't quite what he seemed.

Don't F**k with Cats: Hunting an Internet Killer

According to cyber vigilantes on Facebook, there's one unwritten rule on the internet: don't fuck with cats. So when a video is posted online of a mysterious man killing two kittens, internet users across the world leapt into action to find the perpetrator. This Netflix documentary is about a group of Facebook sleuths who tried to track down Luka Magnotta, a man who was convicted of killing and dismembering 33-year-old Chinese undergrad student Jun Lin. The three-part docuseries written and directed by Mark Lewis is at times hard to watch and may favour true crime drama over justice for Lin and his memory. But it's still a fascinating look at how ordinary people can root out a killer using the same internet tools that are available to everyone.

Crack: Cocaine, Corruption & Conspiracy

America has spent billions during its 'war on drugs' but has it worked? This 90-minute film charts the rise of crack cocaine in the 1980s and 1990s by telling the stories of those who have had their lives ruined by the drug - including the dealers who, at one point, made small fortunes from their work. It covers the drug's origins, illegal imports into the US, and the ensuing 'crack babies' media frenzy. Director Stanley Nelson tackles some of the myths of the crack 'epidemic' by using a wide range of scientists and historians who provide cultural context to the chaos that ensued.

American Murder: The Family Next Door

At around 2AM on August 13, 2018, 38-year-old Shanann Watts arrived back at her home in Colorado after a brief business trip. The next day, Shanann, who was pregnant with her third child at the time, was reported missing. Soon, it transpired that Shanann's two young daughters were also gone from the home she shared with her husband Chris. This shocking true-crime documentary, authorised by the family of Shanann Watts, is unusual in that is it made up almost entirely of archival footage shot by her family, the police, the media covering the story of her murder and Shanann herself. This isn't just the story of her murder, it's the story of her life. Thanks to social media, you get to know her and daughters Celeste and Bella, you watch their birthdays, their holidays, their smiles and laughter, painting them as the perfect American family. It's an expertly executed, at times horrifying account of deceit, betrayal and domestic violence.

Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado

During the 80s and 90s, Walter Mercado was a fixture of Latin American life. Every day he would appear, flamboyantly swirling his bejewelled capes and sporting impossibly feathery hair, to read people's horoscopes on TV. Then he suddenly vanished. The androgynous Puerto Rican astrologer, whose personal life was a complete mystery, used the force of his self-conviction to climb his way into millions of people's living rooms. Like Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard, he ended up isolated in his mansion, surrounded by paraphernalia of his glory years (including dozens of capes and bizarre paintings of his own face) and guarded by a protective assistant called Willie. Unlike Desmond, his ending isn't tragic. When the 80-year old, once described as "bigger than Jesus Christ" appears on camera for this documentary, he sparkles, but seems smaller and vulnerable. He doesn't want to talk about death ("how depressing") or ageing ("I'm just like Dorian Gray"). But in front of his fans, who he truly loves, he grows larger than life. This loving tribute to Mercado is rather too indulgent at times, but does something unique. It shows that the man under the cape was just the same as the man on screen: wonderful, weird and the real deal.

Tell Me Who I Am

A sometimes verbose but engrossing documentary about brotherhood and trauma - both psychological, and pretty physical. The latter and the former collide when Alex Lewis, a 18-year-old from the home counties, has a motorcycle accident, hits his head and forgets everything about his life; well, not quite everything: he remembers that the young man standing at his bedside is his identical twin, Marcus, and that he can trust him. Back in his family home, Alex asks Marcus to help him reconstruct his past: does he have a girlfriend? How is his relationship with their parents? Why does her mum keep inviting strange people to their home? For over ten years, Alex lives in an idyllic world of Marcus's making. But after their mother's death, the amnesiac twin realises that his brother might have sugar-coated the past a little...

Athlete A

This harrowing documentary follows journalists from The Indianapolis Star as they uncover an abuse scandal that goes to the heart of gymnastics in the US. Reporters exposed how elite gymnasts faced abuse from the adults they trusted with their careers and how the sport's governing body USA Gymnastics covered up what was happening. As an Olympic doctor is sent to jail, the documentary tells the story through the survivors who spoke out against how they were treated.

The Last Dance

Before David Beckham and Cristiano Ronaldo, there was Michael Jordan. The 1990s Chicago Bulls were a force of nature - and Jordan in particular helped create the superstar athlete genre with his skill and grace both on and off the basketball court. The Last Dance is, ostensibly, a look at the final season for that great Bulls team - featuring Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman and more players who would become household names. But it's about more than that. The action jumps back and forth between 1998 and the late 80s and early 90s when Jordan was coming through and dominating, using a mixture of archive clips and never before seen behind-the-scenes footage. It's genuinely fascinating to see the interactions between some huge characters, and it's an engrossing watch, even if you know nothing about basketball.

Filthy Rich

This Netflix documentary is the first in a wave of works focused on the heinous life of mega-rich and powerful business magnate Jeffery Epstein. Epstein is perhaps best known for being accused of raping hundreds of underage girls over the course of decades with impunity. For most of his life, Epstein seemed untouchable. Even after a 2018 investigation sparked renewed interest from prosecutors and led to him being put in custody, his apparent suicide in prison when he was denied bail left victims and the public with more questions than answers. The documentary paints Ghislaine Maxwell as a direct conspirator and co-abuser (which she denies). Donald Trump, Bill Clinton, Prince Andrew are also thrown back into the spotlight as people that eye-witnesses had spotted close to Epstein (again, they deny this). This documentary may make you angry, but comes no closer to unravelling the mystery around his life and death than other reports. Instead, it focuses on the women who accused him of abusing them and trafficking them to other powerful men. Again and again, they tell their stories, describing how they were lured to his house in Palm Beach, or to his private island, and abused. It's painful to watch. Their voices become centre stage as they say the trail of monsters goes far beyond Epstein, and that justice has yet to be done.

Voyeur

Netflix's Voyeur reels you in with the promise of a scandalous story of a peeping motel owner - but it's so much more. When celebrated journalist Gay Talese stumbles upon the story of Gerald Foos - a former motel owner who built a second floor above the motel's rooms to spy and peep on his guests - he thinks he has the story and character of a lifetime. A book deal and an excerpt in the New Yorker suggest he might be right. But when these two duelling personalities (and their egos) start to unravel, so does the story Talese is trying to tell. The documentary itself very much comes in two halves. It first details Foos and Talese's decades-long relationship, which includes a particularly galling anecdote about Talese's first visit to the motel's secret level and his tie falling through the vent Foos would watch his guests from. In the second, Talese becomes as much of a flawed character as Foos when his journalistic integrity is questioned and reputation is left tainted. What started as a story about one perverted peeper, ended with two oddballs struggling for control of their own narrative.

Tiger King

The American big cat community is wild. Very wild. This true crime fly-on-the-wall documentary centres on the trials and tribulations of an Oklahoma zoo owner called Joe Exotic and his nemesis, an animal rights activist called Carol Baskin. Sure, it's a show about lions and tigers trapped in cages. But it's also a show about some of the most dislikable and downright fascinating people you're ever likely to come across. It's dirty, grizzly car crash TV at its very best.

Killer Inside: The Mind of Aaron Hernandez

How does a millionaire American football player for the sport's most successful team come to murder a man in cold blood? That's the question posed by Killer Inside: The Mind of Aaron Hernandez, a glossy and controversial Netflix Original documentary. It's a fascinating story and the three episodes will grip fans and non-fans alike. It falls a little short in some respects, especially in examining the potential role of CTE (a degenerative brain disease) and a sometimes salacious interest in his sexuality, but it's still a compelling watch and those who enjoy it would do well to listen to the Boston Globe's podcast series Gladiator, which goes into greater depth on the Aaron Hernandez story.

Want more choice? Read our guides to the best Disney Plus TV shows and the best films on Disney Plus.

Pandemic

Netflix's six-part docuseries on the preparations underway to prevent a future pandemic was eerily timed. Three weeks before the series dropped, the first cases of a previously unknown coronavirus were reported in China - the start of an outbreak that would change the world forever. Pandemic looks at the risks of future global pandemics, and follows the researchers and medical professionals who will be on the front line when the inevitable happens.

Bikram: Yogi, Guru, Predator

Bikram yoga first emerged in the 1970s and since then it's taken over the world, with a huge number of celebrity endorsements. The yoga itself is a proprietary system 26 moves that's conducted in a hot room. But aside from the exercise, it's grown in popularity due to its enigmatic founder Bikram Choudhury. This documentary exposes deep problems behind the Choudhury's empire. In recent years Choudhury has been accused of rape, settled civil suits against him and fled the United States after refusing to pay $6.8 million in legal damages. The film tells the story from the perspective of the victims and is a harrowing watch.

Rotten

Before food arrives on your plate, it can take a tumultuous journey. The imported food we eat can often have a hidden back story - Rotten seeks to expose this. The surge in popularity of the avocado has seen its lucrative industry become a target for cartels that are out to make money; while the world of chicken production can end in growers sabotaging each other's stocks. Each episode within Rotten's two series takes on the obscure, and often dangerous, world of a food's production.

Inside Bill's Brain: Decoding Bill Gates

After An Inconvenient Truth and He Named Me Malala, award-winning director Davis Guggenheim explores the journey of renowned tech visionary and philanthropist Bill Gates. The three-part documentary takes viewers through Gates' upbringing, marriage and the creation of Microsoft. The real subject, though, seems to be the work of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, a charity that is on a mission to solve some of the world's most persistent problems - from battling infectious diseases and child mortality in developing countries to educating vulnerable communities in the US.

Knock Down the House

After Donald Trump's election in 2016, a group of activists got together to try and change US politics. The result was an influx of new candidates for Congress and the Senate in the 2018 mid-term elections - including loads more women and ethnic minorities. Knock Down the House follows four of them in the months leading up to the Democratic primaries: a mother from Nevada, a nurse from Missouri, a miner's daughter from West Virginia and a 28-year-old bartender from the Bronx called Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. It's an uplifting, optimistic glimpse of a different kind of politics.

American Factory

Barack and Michelle Obama are making their Hollywood debut with a film tackling Trump's promises to resurrect the country's industrial heartland. The documentary - the first release by the Obamas' Higher Ground Productions as part of their partnership with Netflix - looks at what happens when a Chinese billionaire takes over an abandoned General Motors plant in Ohio and hires 2,000 blue-collar American workers for a new automotive glass factory.

The Great Hack

How well do you really know the Cambridge Analytica scandal? This two-hour documentary digs into the origins of the shady political and data science consultancy whose dodgy use of data kicked off a congressional hearing, a parliamentary inquiry and left Facebook with a $5 billion (£4.1b) fine and a shattered reputation. Told through the eyes of the journalist and whistleblower who broke the story, and people close to Cambridge Analytica, The Great Hack is a defining look at the standout scandal of the data monopoly era.

Losers

Sport can be brutal - particularly if results don't go your way. Losers focuses on the individuals and teams that make the headlines for the wrong reasons. The eight-episode collection, each is just 30 minutes long, focuses on a different story each time around. They go from the ultrarunner lost in the desert and presumed dead, to the Torquay United football team that owes much of its survival from financial oblivion to a police dog.

Fyre Festival

Fyre Festival was an unmitigated disaster - and the whole thing was captured on social media and video. The "luxury" music festival took place in the summer of 2017 but its reputation has lived on following its catastrophically bad organisation and execution. Created by Billy McFarland, CEO of Fyre Media Inc and rapper Ja Rule, the event was billed as the don't miss festival of the year: influencers, celebrities and musicians were all due to appear. The reality? Not enough tents, payments missing, and general chaos. The documentary tells the inside story of the failure of Fyre.

Struggle: The Life and Lost Art of Szukalski

This is a documentary about a Polish sculptor but everything about Stanislav Szukalski from his Polishness to his sculpture is as complicated as it gets. His fans have included Hollywood screenwriter Ben Hecht, the 60s underground LA comic scene, Adolf Hitler and Leonardo Dicaprio's dad. Directed by Ireneusz Dobrowolski and using interviews by art collector Glenn Bray, this is a peculiar but powerful look at iconography and nationalism in 20th century Europe, with this 'punk' sculptor and alt historian shifting between stardom, notoriety and obscurity.

Our Planet

Narrated by David Attenborough and produced by the same team behind the BBC's Planet Earth, Our Planet is a nature documentary on a scale not seen before. Everything here is bigger, more beautiful and more ambitious. The whole series is available in 4K, so if you've got a compatible TV set then this will likely be one of the most visually stunning documentaries you've ever watched. Yet, unlike most big-budget nature documentaries that have come before it, Our Planet is a clarion call for action on climate change. Its episodes are filled with stories of a planet in crisis, of animals pushed to the brink of humanity's wanton destruction of the planet we must all share. It's utterly essential viewing.

The Dawn Wall

Climbing film Free Solo may have won an Oscar, but this ascent is equally as gripping. The Dawn Wall follows the journey of two athletes, Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson, as they attempt to scale the 3,000 feet of rock that make-up one side of Yosemite National Park's El Capitan. The 2015 climb saw both Caldwell and Jorgeson live on the rock for two weeks as they slowly made vertical progress on the first attempted climb of the rock face. As well as charting their death-defying progress, the film also looks back at the years of preparation that went into the effort.

Shirkers

Shirkers is the kind of doc that won't give you nightmares - unless you're a precocious indie filmmaker, that is. A Netflix Original that first screened at last year's Sundance Film Festival, it's the work of Sandi Tan who tells the story of her lost, early 90s indie film: the original Shirkers. Tan is concerned with her then American film school mentor Georges Cardona because well, he made off with the reels from what was supposed to be Singapore's first road movie. But just as fun is the punky, scrappy energy as she tracks the memories of this bunch of nerdy, pop culture obsessed teen girls and the rediscovered footage.

Dogs

Dogs! It was only a matter of time before someone made a documentary about dogs, and this documentary series is heart warming and interesting. From Syria to New York, each episode touches on the relationship between a person and their canine companions - from Japanese groomers who find their unique grooming style threatening at an American dog show, to an Italian fisherman who finds his labrador a source of support as he contemplates losing his job.

Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat

Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat, hosted by the delightful Samin Nosrat, is a charming look into how some of the world's most inventive dishes are made, from Italy to California. Each of the four episodes explores one of the four titular elements. Perfect for the winter months, it has the comforting elements of Netflix-favourite Queer Eye, mixed in with the hunger usually brought on by an episode of Masterchef. Beautifully shot and genuinely heartwarming, Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat shows that good documentaries don't have to be serious - they just have to be interesting.

Wild, Wild Country

Chapman and Maclain Way's Emmy-award winning documentary about a cult in Oregon has to be seen to be believed. A four part series, Wild, Wild Country tells the story of Bagwan Shree Rajneesh, also known as Osho, an Indian cult leader who moves to Oregon from Pune, India. He imports parts of his idyllic lifestyle to willing followers, but his leadership quickly descends into chaos after conflicts with local farmers lead to a bioterror attack on local water supplies. The documentary intersperses interviews of former cult member with footage from the 70s. A follow up documentary, on VICE, asks what happened to the Rajneeshes after the events of Wild, Wild Country, if you find yourself curiously transfixed by them.

Evil Genius

We can't get enough of true crime, and documentary film makers keep digging up real, bizarre events. Produced by Mark and Jay Duplass, who also produced Wild, Wild Country, it follows the events after the death of Brian Wells, a pizza man with a bomb around his neck. As a trail to find the real culprit goes on, it becomes increasingly evident that the plot isn't quite what it seems. Trey Borzielli, a co-director on the documentary, corresponded extensively with people involved in the case, such as Margorie Diehl-Armstrong, one of the key suspects in the bombing. Even though the case is a matter of historical record, you'll be gripped to the edge of your seat in suspense.

The Staircase

In 2001, Kathleen Peterson was found dead at the bottom of a staircase in her North Carolina home. Although he maintains his innocence, her novelist husband, Michael Peterson, quickly becomes the lead suspect in an murder investigation that will absorb the next 17 years of his life. This 13-part series follows Michael Peterson's defense team as they prepare to fight a case that digs into every aspect of their client's life, including an eerily similar case from decades earlier. Along the way, they uncover injustice from investigators, bitter family feuds and a strange theory involving an owl.

Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond

Jim & Andy is a weird one. But then again, what can you expect from a documentary about Jim Carrey method-acting his way through Man on the Moon, a 1999 film about the life of the eccentric and often infuriating comedian Andy Kaufman?

Carrey's insistence on not just playing Kaufman, but actually being him draws the frustration and admiration of everyone working on the film, including director Milos Forman. Carrey, as Kaufman and his disagreeable alter-ego Tony Clifton, crashes cars on set, storms into Steven Speilberg's office, cons his way into the Playboy Mansion and pushes his co-stars to outright violence. Most of the fly-on-the-wall footage is deliciously painful to watch, but moments when Carrey - as Kaufman - is reunited with the late comedian's real family are genuinely touching.

The footage at the core of this documentary was suppressed for 20 years over fears that it would make Carrey come across as "an asshole," the actor tells us in the ongoing present-day interview spliced throughout the film. Carrey goes full transcendental in these talking heads, ruminating on the meaning of his films and concluding that he could become anyone - even Jesus.

Flint Town

In Flint, life grinds you down. This Netflix original series tells the story of a city where the police force is struggling to maintain control. And yet, for the most part, the drama eases past - punctuated by a gunshot, an anguished scream. It's beautifully produced - lingering shots of snow-covered, abandoned houses are cut with smooth, sliding drone panoramas. The problems facing the city are considerable: unemployment, underfunding, violence and to top it all off a poisoned water supply, It would be easy, and obvious, to turn this into a dramatic pastiche of a city on the brink. But Flint Town is a slow, considered character drama that tracks key figures in the city's police force as they struggle to maintain order. As the drama slowly unfolds, it's the city itself that becomes the most compelling character: perpetually frozen, blood-stained but fighting to survive.

Dirty Money

This six-parter from Netflix explores the murky world of finance where banks knowingly launder funds on behalf of drug cartels, car manufacturers cheat on emissions tests and pharmaceutical firms ramp up the price of drugs to pay their executives' bonuses. Each episode tells a depressingly familiar story about corporations leaving morality behind in the pursuit of profits, evading justice and, in many cases, ending up reaping the rewards of their deviant behaviour. The biggest criminals, it turns out, tend to wear suits.

Strong Island

Nominated for Best Documentary in this year's Oscars, Yance Ford's Strong Island tackles the murder of the director's own brother. His sibling was shot, but his case never saw justice. Although the story of a black man being unjustly killed is a narrative we have sadly become used to, Strong Island stands apart as largely a film about grief as well as racial injustice. It is certainly a documentary worthy of its nomination.

Get Me Roger Stone

Exploring the life of Republican political strategist Roger Stone, this Netflix documentary is one for fans of House of Cards, or spectators to the current real-life twists and turns within American politics. Netflix has filed Get Me Roger Stone under 'provocative', 'controversial', 'scandalous' and 'dark' - a description that fits a little too perfectly. It is suggested he is heavily responsible for creating Trump as a political figure and encouraging him to run for the United States' Presidency. This story is almost stranger than fiction, and is both engrossing and deeply troubling.

Casting JonBenet

Making a Murderer was one of the most popular Netflix originals of last year, Casting JonBenet is cut from the same cloth. In 1996, Boulder, Colorado was rocked by the mysterious death of six-year-old pageant queen, JonBenet Ramsey. Her death was ruled as a homicide by police and received widespread media attention, but the killer was never identified - although suspicions still run wild as to who could have committed such a heinous crime. From the very first moments, Casting JonBenet leaves you with a steady sense of horror, not just at the story of JonBenet, but for the interwoven threads of tragedy connecting those who watched her story play out from afar.

The White Helmets

Having taken home the Oscar for best documentary in 2017, White Helmets is firmly one of the best things you'll watch this year. Focusing on a group of volunteer rescue workers in Syria, the film follows them as they attempt to rescue left trapped in the wake of airstrikes. The 40-minute film charts these rescue workers from Syria's Civil Defence Foreces, marking their heroism in the face of conflict and destruction. These people put their lives on the line everyday to help those in need; strangers come together in defence of human life. It's truly inspiring and heart-wrenching to witness the level of devastation these first responders brave through, and their tireless belief in each other and the people who will stay with you long after the final scene.

What happened, Miss Simone?

Based on the biography of the same name by Alan Light, What Happened, Miss Simone? draws on previously unseen diaries, interviews and childhood journals to look at Simone not just as the soul legend she became, but as a dedicated civil rights activist and one of the fiercest figures in generations. Simone's struggles with mental illness are here depicted faithfully, with the input of her daughter Lisa Simone Kelly, and director Liz Garbus's treatment is unfailingly careful and compassionate. Fluctuations in Simone's health did little to unravel her enormous political anger and need for music - Garbus's biopic presents an iconic figure of great complexity, whose music provided a kind of battleground for the torment she lived through.

Take Your Pills

In Take Your Pills, director Alison Klayman takes on the prescription stimulant craze in the US, exploring how young people use drugs like Adderall and Ritalin in the hope of benefiting from performance-enhancing effects. There are college students worried they'll be at a disadvantage if they don't pop a pill before an exam, a programmer who wants to live up to the myth of the coder-genius, and a finance worker whose colleague collapsed after two many Adderall-fuelled all-nighters.

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47 of the Best Documentaries on Netflix Right Now

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Netflix loves a documentary. In fact, it's become one of the most prolific producers of new documentaries around, so there's a huge amount of choice. Below we've picked out some of our favourite Netflix documentaries. And if this isn't enough for you, we have a separate list of the best documentaries available on other platforms (including YouTube) as well.

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43 of the best documentaries you need to watch

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The WIRED approved list of the best documentaries available in the UK, including the best on YouTube and BBC iPlayer

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43 of the best documentaries you need to watch

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The WIRED approved list of the best documentaries available in the UK, including the best on YouTube and BBC iPlayer

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The Beatles: Get Back 2021 (Disney Plus)

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The Beatles: Get Back 2021 (Disney Plus)

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Watch The Beatles: Get Back | Full episodes | Disney+

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A three-part documentary from Peter Jackson capturing a moment in music history with The Beatles.

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The Beatles might not sound as the most contemporary theme, but its 'contemporaneity' lies in the novelty of the new footage and Peter Jackson's re-edit + the whole 'revamping operation':  Jackson's version creates  a new narrative structure that builds on the netflix-style long docu-series format...

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I have watched:

American Murder: The Family Next Door
Tell Me Who I Am
Killer Inside: The Mind Of Aaron Hernandez

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Identity
Murder
True Crime
History?

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This thread of documentaries are mostly biographical (a reconstruction of events in a persons life) wether that's a person well known in the public eye or the complete opposite.

A documentary series rather than one full length doc?

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I recently watched a docu-series on BBC Iplayer called Brickies. It's a 6 part series containing 30-minute episodes.

'Life on the building site - banter, fallout, and friendships. The bricklayers are building their lives brick by brick. But under pressure, who's going to thrive with all the drama?'

I clicked on the series thinking I wouldn't be interested however I binged the entire series within one sitting. Whilst being educational it also highlighted the pressures of the industry, especially during COVID.

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Series following the lives of young bricklayers.

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The Mystery Of Marilyn Monroe: The Unheard Tapes

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The Mystery Of Marilyn Monroe: The Unheard Tapes

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A new documentary on Netflix.

Exploring the mystery surrounding Marilyn's death, through unheard interview tapes.

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Watch The Mystery of Marilyn Monroe: The Unheard Tapes | Netflix Official Site

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This documentary explores the mystery surrounding the death of movie icon Marilyn Monroe through previously unheard interviews with her inner circle. Watch trailers & learn more.

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I'm not sure if this documentary was on the lists however it is a must.

Seaspiracy is a 2021 documentary film about the environmental impact of fishing directed by and starring Ali Tabrizi, a British filmmaker. The film examines various human impacts on marine life and advocates for ending fish consumption

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Watch Seaspiracy | Netflix Official Site

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Passionate about ocean life, a filmmaker sets out to document the harm that humans do to marine species - and uncovers alarming global corruption. Watch trailers & learn more.

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- Knock Down the House
- American Factory
- Shirkers

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- True crime
- Elite/extreme professional sports
- Biopics
- Social issue

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In terms of theme they're similar, with the exception of the Netflix docs having many more true crime films/series on the list.

I think it's indicative of Netflix's business model being much more geared towards providing a steady and rotating stream of "entertaining" content with a particular structure/style rather than more cinematic films.

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Seriously lacking in international films.

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Prasad, 2020, p. 572: 'I am tempted to name this feeling as a kind of conciliatory horror, not just because of the overabundance of comically wicked characters but because of how closely shock and boredom sit together. These seemingly paradoxical sensations form a significant portion of Tiger King’s affective milieu.....Though technically serialized, the formal architecture of the docuseries privileges episodic spectacle, with every shocking detail repeated variously ad nauseam to the pointat which they become less events to which the spectator reacts than a gloopy and thick “agglutination” (Ngai, 2005, p. 263) of sensations.'