Documentaries are a dime a dozen within the streaming period as a result of they’re cheaper to provide, so whereas they satiate the urge for food for true tales, not all will be deemed good.
However the documentary movies and sequence that managed to seize our consideration this 12 months broke via by telling us one thing new; educating us about an concept, an individual or a perspective; or reframing a story. Some are about well-known folks, some are about unusual individuals who did one thing extraordinary, some are about individuals who suffered.
Greatest is a matter of perspective, however these titles are actually notable and 100% value your time.
Our picks for this 12 months’s finest in arts and leisure.
‘Pee-wee as Himself’
Paul Reubens in “Pee-wee as Himself.”
(HBO)
Considerably, the title Paul Reubens is absent from the title of this bountiful, candy and generally melancholy take a look at one of popular culture’s nice creations and its creator. (Pee-wee Herman has a star on Hollywood Boulevard, Reubens will level out, however he doesn’t.) As soft-spoken as Pee-wee is explosive, Reubens, who sat for 40 hours of interviews earlier than withdrawing from the venture, engages in a bemused, semi-ironic tussle with director Matt Wolf for management of the narrative and his legacy. (And, one would say, wins.) Along with reminding us of the pure pleasure of Pee-wee and the beloved character’s skill to bounce again as circumstances generally sidelined Reubens, the movie is a resume of the actor’s life and occasions, from prejudices that, for skilled causes, stored him within the closet, to the forward-looking, idiosyncratic brilliance of “Pee-wee’s Playhouse,” which enlivened Saturday mornings with its dedication to variety, distinction, inclusion, openness and love. (Learn the assessment | Watch on HBO Max) — Robert Lloyd
‘Being Katharine Graham’
Katharine Graham with Washington Put up editors in 1971.
(Courtesy of the Katharine Graham Property)
Katharine Graham is nothing lower than a hero of contemporary journalism. A baby, and grownup, of privilege, she was thrust into the function of writer on the Washington Put up by the tragic loss of life of her husband. Nobody anticipated her, the primary lady to move a serious media firm, to do greater than nod when the boys talked. As a substitute, as George and Teddy Kunhardt’s movie meticulously reveals, she turned a key participant within the paper’s rise to prominence, courageously agreeing to publish the Pentagon Papers, standing behind her journalists throughout their Watergate investigation and customarily serving as a writer and chief govt who all the time put the necessity for an knowledgeable nation first. “You will be pals with folks within the authorities,” she says, “however you keep in mind, they usually keep in mind, that the paper comes first.” (Learn the assessment | Watch on Prime Video) — Mary McNamara
‘My Undesirable Mates: Half I — Final Air in Moscow’
Ksenia Mironova in “My Undesirable Mates: Half I — Final Air in Moscow.”
(Julia Loktev)
Filmmaker Julia Loktev wasn’t anticipating to seize historical past when, in October 2021, she headed to Russia, the place of her delivery, hoping to comply with some younger journalists nonetheless combating the nice battle after being labeled “international brokers” by Putin’s watchdogs. Solely a handful of months later, Ukraine was below invasion and TV Rain — half politics, half old-school MTV — was near extinction, a factor of the previous. It is a five-hour documentary that takes its time (perhaps an excessive amount of of it) telling a narrative about how straightforward it’s for a society to slide into worry. However your dedication is value it, even when it generally looks like we’re at an limitless feast turned technique session. Underlying tensions harden into despair. In the meantime, these reporters can’t assist however do what they do, so in love with their jobs, they press on, smiling at their very own self-immolation. “My Undesirable Mates” is horrifying however one way or the other not cynical. (Learn the assessment | Watch in choose theaters) — Joshua Rothkopf
‘My Mother Jayne’
Mariska Hargitay as a toddler along with her mom, the actor Jayne Mansfield.
(HBO)
Mariska Hargitay, the star of “Regulation & Order: Particular Victims Unit,” was solely 3 years previous when her mom, the actor Jayne Mansfield, died in a horrific auto accident in 1967. Her willpower to seek out out extra about her mom and the reality behind Mansfield’s picture as a blond bombshell is detailed in “My Mother Jayne,” one of the crucial stunning and compelling documentaries of 2025. Hargitay’s deep exploration of Mansfield’s life and the invention that her mom was the precise reverse of her onscreen persona leads her to some startling revelations that have an effect on her personal life. Hargitay’s journey is dramatic and emotional, full of twists and turns. Have some tissues helpful. (Learn the assessment | Watch on HBO Max) — Greg Braxton
‘Juan Gabriel: I Should, I Can, I Will’
Juan Gabriel as seen in “Juan Gabriel: I Should, I Can, I Will.”
(Netflix)
Few issues on this world are as medicinal to the soul as getting misplaced in a Juan Gabriel music — whether or not you’re giving your throat muscle tissues a exercise whereas choking again tears as you’re feeling the ache and longing that imbues “Amor Eterno,” or discovering your self compelled to shimmy and twirl to the insanely catchy beat of “El Noa Noa.” The prolific and provocative icon of Mexican music, often called the “Divo of Juarez,” wrote greater than 1,500 songs and toured to sold-out crowds till his loss of life in 2016. However that larger-than-life onstage persona — typically clad in flamboyant sequined jackets — was just one facet of the enigmatic man who was born Alberto Aguilera Valadez. All of it will get unpacked in Netflix‘s four-part docuseries directed by Maria Jose Cuevas, which presents an intimate take a look at the person behind the legend, utilizing his private archives and residential movies, in addition to interviews with individuals who knew him nicely. The sequence digs into the twin personas he navigated on and off stage, taking us via his humble beginnings and strained relationship along with his mom, and displaying how, via his genre-shifting music, he tapped into that ache and loneliness to make himself into one in all Mexico’s most profitable artists. Gabriel confronted his share of criticism, fractured relationships and controversies within the glow of the highlight, together with in 1990, when protests emerged over his scheduled efficiency at Mexico’s prestigious cultural venue, Palacio de Bellas Artes; he in the end took the stage — and let me simply say, overlook the Eras Tour; I’d pay $100 to observe that present on a film display. Some could query the necessity for 4 elements, however I may have watched a complete hour of footage simply on his wardrobe choice, primarily his white leather-based fringe boots. And by the way in which, it’s all in Spanish. (Watch on Netflix) — Yvonne Villarreal
‘The Excellent Neighbor’ (Netflix)
“The Excellent Neighbor” facilities on Ajike “AJ” Owens, pictured on the poster, who was shot and killed by her neighbor in 2023.
(Netflix)
Made nearly solely from police physique digital camera footage, “The Excellent Neighbor” is a haunting story instructed with innovation and care. The Sundance favourite paperwork the killing of Ajike Owens, a 35-year-old mom of 4 who was fatally shot by her neighbor, Susan Lorincz. It consists of footage from the 2 years of disputes that led to the capturing and of its tragic aftermath. A lot of the fabric is from the a number of 911 trespassing calls Lorincz made about kids within the neighborhood (together with Owens’ youngsters) taking part in on a vacant lot close to her home on their unassuming avenue in Marion County, Fla.
Director Geeta Gandbhir, whose sister-in-law was an in depth buddy of Owens, instructed The Instances earlier this 12 months she wished to make use of the footage to “rebuild” the neighborhood’s world “so everybody may see the injury achieved by one outlier with a gun.” It’s a harrowing watch, however a gripping story that explores greater than only a neighborhood dispute that turned lethal. It poses bigger questions on gun violence, race and the way “stand your floor” legal guidelines are enforced and investigated. (Learn the assessment | Watch on Netflix) — Kaitlyn Huamani
‘Deaf President Now!,’ ‘Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore’
Tim Rarus, left, Bridgetta Bourne-Firl, Greg Hlibok and Jerry Covell in “Deaf President Now!” (Apple TV+)
Marlee Matlin in “Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore.” (Sundance Institute)
The Deaf neighborhood has lengthy struggled for visibility and civil rights, however 2025 provided a pair of nuanced portrayals of what that battle has regarded like over time and what we will study from it. “Deaf President Now!”, directed by Nyle DiMarco — a Deaf activist and winner of “America’s Subsequent High Mannequin” — and Davis Guggenheim (“Nonetheless: A Michael J. Fox Film”), highlights one of the crucial pivotal and historic moments for Deaf folks as instructed by 4 former college students who led an eight-day protest that resulted in Gallaudet College appointing its first Deaf president. The demonstration additionally led to legislative modifications that protected Deaf folks’s rights. (Watch on Apple TV)
In the meantime, director Shoshannah Stern’s intimate movie about Marlee Matlin tells us about not solely the non-public {and professional} hurdles the Oscar-winning actor needed to overcome to grow to be a Hollywood star, but in addition how she fought for extra Deaf actors to affix her ranks, like Troy Kotsur, her “CODA” co-star. Each movies are subtitled and in American Signal Language, turning the desk on listening to viewers. (Learn the assessment | Watch on PBS) — Maira Garcia
‘Lilith Honest: Constructing a Thriller’
Sarah McLachlan in “Lilith Honest: Constructing a Thriller.”
(ABC Information Studios)
It’s laborious to convey simply how wondrous and revolutionary and comforting it felt to attend Lilith Honest within the late Nineteen Nineties to individuals who weren’t there, however this documentary comes fairly darn shut. Based by singer-songwriter Sarah McLachlan, the touring competition was each a celebration of girls in music and an act of defiance to show that the sexist requirements of the business at the moment have been morally and financially mistaken. The documentary itself can also be a celebration of McLachlan and her fellow Lilith artists — which included Sheryl Crow, Liz Phair, Tracy Chapman, Queen Latifah, Natalie Service provider, Paula Cole, Sinéad O’Connor, the Indigo Ladies and lots of others — and it reveals how the competition leaned into the ability of authenticity and neighborhood and being earnest in a manner that different occasions haven’t. Some elements of the Lilith Honest story might sound unimaginable to those that’ve come of age within the period of Beyoncé and Taylor Swift, however among the politics and attitudes towards ladies of that point may really feel eerily related to our present social local weather. (Learn the assessment | Watch on Hulu) — Tracy Brown
‘Surviving Ohio State’
Dan Ritchie, a former Buckeyes wrestler, in “Surviving Ohio State.”
(HBO)
Ohio State College has one of many nation’s prime athletic applications, and its Buckeyes are at present vying for the school soccer championship. However regardless of its elite rating, the college nonetheless hasn’t shaken the sexual abuse scandal detailed on this movie. Impressed by a Sports activities Illustrated article, the documentary, which was produced by Oscar-winning filmmaker Eva Orner and Smokehouse Footage, the manufacturing firm headed by George Clooney and Grant Heslov, facilities across the findings of a 2019 investigation that concluded that Robert Strauss, the athletic division and scholar well being heart physician, sexually assaulted at the least 177 college students 1000’s of occasions throughout his 1978 to 1996 tenure. College officers repeatedly ignored quite a few complaints and didn’t take motion in opposition to Strauss. A central determine within the scandal is former wrestling staff coach Jim Jordan, a congressman who’s at present chairman of the Home Judiciary Committee and a faithful ally to President Trump. Jordan has repeatedly denied any data of Strauss’ actions. The documentary options shattering, typically tearful testimonies by former wrestling staff members as they element their trauma and battle for justice. (Watch on HBO Max) — G.B.
‘Stiller & Meara: Nothing Is Misplaced’
Anne Meara Stiller, Jerry Stiller, Ben Stiller and Amy Stiller in an archival picture from “Stiller & Meara: Nothing Is Misplaced.”
(Apple)
Ben Stiller’s transferring, loving, dreamlike household portrait is efficacious not just for the eye it brings to the nice double act that made his mother and father, Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara, well-known within the Sixties, however to their later particular person accomplishments as nicely. It’s a present biz story of rising up inside a present biz story, however it’s relatable, too, for anybody who has handled getting old mother and father or has had the unhappy event to filter the home the place they grew up or mirror upon how imperfectly they understood their mother and father — and the way that understanding is a key to understanding themself. As completely different folks with completely different targets — “My mother wished to be pleased impartial of performing,” says Ben, “and I believe for my dad performing was so necessary to him it was a part of his happiness” — there was pressure between Anne and Jerry, however they cherished one another, staying married for 62 years, and cherished their youngsters. Letters, diaries, scripts, manuscripts, previous pictures, tape recordings and residential films, together with the reminiscences of Ben and his sister Amy, inform the story. (Learn the assessment | Watch on Apple TV) — R.L.
‘Orwell: 2+2=5’
A scene from the documentary “Orwell: 2+2=5.”
(Velvet Movie)
There’s no manner a documentary about George Orwell’s cultural legacy doesn’t linger as one of many 12 months’s finest — least of all in a second when doublespeak will get a day by day airing out of Washington and the proof of our personal eyes can’t be trusted. Director Raoul Peck, a constantly sharp exfoliator of difficult topics, turns his film into each a historic primer of the creator’s eventful life and a information to recognizing tomorrow’s fascists. (You additionally get an entertaining style of the various on-screen variations of “1984,” our favourite being the one with John Harm and a synthy Eurythmics rating.) Unusually for a doc, Peck marshals an unforgettable vocal efficiency — from British actor Damian Lewis, who narrates the film as Orwell, his each line dripping with contempt for authoritarianism. He begins to see it in all places, even in himself. You’ll take into consideration his phrases days later. (Watch on VOD) — J.R.
‘Billy Joel: And So It Goes’
An archival picture of Billy Joel as seen in “And So It Goes.”
(HBO)
In the event you’ve ever lived in New York, you realize that the Piano Man is part of the town’s lore and cultural heritage, very like Randy Newman is to L.A. and Springsteen is to Jersey. However the reality is that Billy Joel’s affect extends far past the borders of the Huge Apple — his songs have permeated the tradition in a manner that’s inescapable (not not like the aforementioned artists). What makes this two-part documentary, directed by Susan Lacy and Jessica Levin, distinctive (and very watchable) is the way it dispels the myths round his profession, significantly with regards to his first spouse and former supervisor Elizabeth Weber, who helped catapult Joel to stardom. By taking the method of analyzing his life via the lens of his albums, we get a greater understanding of the person and the battles he fought to grow to be one in all America’s largest pop stars. (Watch on HBO Max) — M.G.
‘Mr. Scorsese’
Martin Scorsese in “Mr. Scorsese.”
(Apple)
For followers of Martin Scorsese, and American filmmaking, Rebecca Miller’s five-part sequence is a must-watch. An in-depth interview with the well-known director serves as narration, whereas the sequence is chockablock with archival off-camera footage and interviews with longtime colleagues together with (however not restricted to) pals and collaborators Thelma Schoonmaker, Robert De Niro, Nicholas Pileggi, Brian De Palma, Steven Spielberg, Leonardo DiCaprio and Daniel Day-Lewis. On one stage, “Mr. Scorsese” is the cinematic autobiography of a person and his work; on one other it’s a glimpse into the evolution of contemporary American movie, supplied by one in all its most beloved icons. (Learn the assessment | Watch on Apple TV) — M.M.
‘Riefenstahl’
Nazi propaganda filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl, as seen in “Riefenstahl.”
(Bavaria Media / Kino Lorber)
Once more with Hitler’s favourite filmmaker? Sure, once more. Nobody has achieved a greater job of indicting her phony naïveté than German documentarian Andres Veiel, who not solely pokes holes within the prior try, 1993’s “The Fantastic Horrible Lifetime of Leni Riefenstahl” (a profile that coddled her), however finds new proof of a calculating thoughts obsessive about reputational rehabbing. When not making cellphone calls with convicted Nazi architect Albert Speer about methods to strike the most effective e-book deal, Riefenstahl is seen — in jaw-dropping footage — snowboarding, residing her untroubled mountain life-style with a associate 25 years her junior and being confronted on discuss reveals. Appropriately, Veiel foregrounds the unavoidable reality: Extras in her films ended up at focus camps, one thing she lied about. Most impressively, the doc permits us to understand “Triumph of the Will” and “Olympia” whereas insisting that visible genius can by no means be sufficient. (Learn the assessment| Watch on VOD) — J.R.
‘Taurasi’
Basketball star Diana Taurasi in “Taurasi.”
(Prime)
I’ve grown into a type of grumps who’s cautious of how simply we throw round honorifics like “legendary” and “GOAT.” However Diana Taurasi is among the biggest of all time. Her basketball resume speaks for itself: a three-time WNBA champion, a two-time Finals MVP in addition to a league MVP, an 11-time All Star and a six-time Olympic gold medalist being simply among the highlights. The three-part docuseries chronicles the life and profession of the previous Phoenix Mercury guard from her childhood in Chino via her 20 years as knowledgeable basketball participant. The episodes supply a glimpse at an earlier period of the WNBA when the passion and cultural footprint of girls’s sports activities didn’t have their present momentum and sheds some mild onto why folks like Taurasi needed to play abroad to be handled (and paid) like a celebrity. However what I recognize most is how the documentary not solely captures Taurasi’s swagger, however highlights simply how a lot her household and her upbringing as the child of Argentine immigrants helped form the participant and the individual that she is. (Watch on Prime Video) — T.B.
