For all our readers who enjoy watching documentaries, then this is for you.
We have put together a list of recent and interesting doccies to watch, more especially if you would like to learn something new.
The list below ranges from True Crime, Sports, Investigative, and Social.
Documentaries you should be streaming right now:
The Last Dance
Now dubbed the world’s top documentary, The Last Dance explores the story of the legendary Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls during the 1997-98 season. In the fall of 1997, Michael Jordan, Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf and head coach Phil Jackson agreed to let an NBA Entertainment film crew follow the team all season long. The result would be a remarkable portrait of an iconic player and a celebrated team – a portrait only now being revealed, more than two decades later, in “The Last Dance.”
Streaming on: Netflix
Genre: Sports
Becoming: Michelle Obama
If you recall, 2 years ago The Obama’s signed a multiyear agreement to produce new films and shows with Netflix, and now through their production, we’re getting a full doccie all about Michelle Obama.
Becoming is an intimate look into the life of former First Lady Michelle Obama during a moment of profound change, not only for her personally but for the country she and her husband served over eight impactful years in the White House. The film offers a rare and up-close look at her life, taking viewers behind the scenes as she embarks on a 34-city promoting her bestselling memoir of the same name.
Streaming on: Netflix
Genre: Social & Biographical
Coachella: 20 Years in the Desert
Youtube has debuted a new documentary to share the bigger story of The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.
The world-known festival recently had to postpone its 2020 gathering due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
While more people are home now, it will be a perfect time to tune into “Coachella: 20 Years in the Desert” documentary and indulge about the birth of this mega festival which co-founded by Paul Tollett and Rick Van Santen in 1999.
the documentary shares the history of the festival, showcasing some of the biggest artists who have been the past shows and presents exclusive, never-before-seen footage and interviews.
Streaming on: Youtube
Genre: Music
Coronavirus, Explained
Just in the midst of COVID-19, Netflix debuted a new mini-series ‘Coronavirus, Explained’ together with Vox Media.
The series explores the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic deeper exploring more subjects about the virus. The first episode looks into the early days of the outbreak in China up to the current global status and how it became a pandemic.
Streaming on: Netflix
Genre: Topical, Medical
Tiger King
Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness is another widely popular doccie to come out this year. The doccie takes viewers in the world of big cat owners, few stand out more than Joe Exotic, a mulleted, gun-toting polygamist and country western singer who presides over an Oklahoma roadside zoo.
Charismatic but misguided, Joe and an unbelievable cast of characters including drug kingpins, conmen, and cult leaders all share a passion for big cats, and the status and attention their dangerous menageries garner. But things take a dark turn when Carole Baskin, an animal activist and owner of a big cat sanctuary, threatens to put them out of business, stoking a rivalry that eventually leads to Joe’s arrest for a murder-for-hire plot, and reveals a twisted tale where the only thing more dangerous than a big cat is its owner.
Streaming on: Netflix
Genre: True Crime
How to Steal a Country
How to Steal a Country is all about the Gupta’s family and Jacob Zuma takeover. The documentary follows the story of the Gupta family’s spectacular rise from flea market shoe salesmen to establishing a massive black owned business empire in South Africa. It runs as a suspenseful detective story uncovering one huge bribery scandal after another, involving the top echelons of political power and several well-known multinational corporations.
Streaming on: Showmax
Genre: Politics
Broken
This is a docu-series to scare you a bit especially if you’re into buying fake products. Broken exposes the realities that go behind some of the popular products we use. The four-part series and each hour-long episode tackles a new industry from beauty, e-cigarettes, and furniture to name a few. It exposes counterfeit cosmetics, vape products, disposable furniture, and plastics. Each episode takes a dive into realities that create issues and features interviews with people whose lives have been affected by buy into such products.
Streaming on: Netflix
Genre: Investigative, Retail
Formula 1: Drive to Survive
If you’re a fan of Formula 1, then this one is for you. Formula 1: Drive to Survive is a 10-part docu-series giving racing fans a look under the hood of this adrenaline-rushing sport. It covers the 2019 Formula One World Championship and with every team including Ferrari and Mercedes who gave Netflix a cold shoulder during the making of Season 1.
The second season revisits Daniel Ricciardo at Renault, follow Pierre Gasly’s emotional rollercoaster of a year, and cast a spotlight on the Belgian Grand Prix weekend.
Streaming on: Netflix
Genre: Sports
Abstract: The Art of Design
Sometimes we care less about behind the scenes than the final actual product, the buildings, the cars we fall in love with, the clothes but wait…have you asked yourself about the creatives behind that car you drive? the office building that you go to? your favorite shoe?
Well, Abstract: The Art of Design is about visionary designers who shape the world around us and it will surely help you understand the future by seeing the design behind the objects that surround us from sneakers, architecture, cars, illustration and more.
The doccie series showcases the work of Paula Scher (graphic designer), Cristoph Niemann (illustrator), Platon (photographer), Tinker Hatfield (Nike shoe designer), Ralph Gilles (automotive designer), Bjarke Ingels (architect), Isle Crawford (interior designer), and Es Devlin (stage designer).
Streaming on: Netflix and YouTube
Genre: Art & Design
Murder to Mercy: The Cyntoia Brown Story
In short, Murder to Mercy: The Cyntoia Brown Story is a story of Cyntoia Brown who was 16 years and got convicted of the murder and robbery of Johnny Michael Allen. Brown claimed that Allen had paid her $150 to have sex with him, and that she feared for her life during their encounter, leading her to shoot him. But it was argued that Brown killed Allen to rob him while he was sleeping. The doccie takes us through her arrest, time in jail, trial, questions about her past, physiology and the law.
Streaming on: Netflix
Genre: Investigative
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