I was sitting next to Ben on the couch as he was flicking through our Apple TV. One of his top suggestions was a documentary on Netflix called Wild Wild Country about a cult who created a city in a small area of Oregon and then poisoned some of the locals by spraying ebola on the local salad bar.
‘What the hell is that???’ I shrieked as I grabbed the remote from him. ‘Netflix never told me about this!!!’
I love Netflix, but sometimes the dear old Flix gets it very, very wrong. I’m a big documentary lover but I really need them to be recommended to me. There is nothing more boring than a boring documentary. I have first-hand experience with this because Mr Smaggle is a fan of war history. A good war history documentary is one of life’s greatest pleasures. A bad war history documentary is like setting fire to your brain and your spare time simultaneously.
The point is Netflix doesn’t know you as well as it thinks it does and there are some amazing hidden gems lurking in there that you’ve never even heard of.
A lot of my time is spent crocheting and sometimes when I’m working on a new project that’s very repetitive, I need something stimulating on while I’m doing it. I like to watch documentaries so at least I’m learning something at the same time. Although I admit, I spent most of last weekend watching the latest season of Degrassi. It was amazing.
These are a few of my all-time favourite documentaries. Some of these are new and some of them are older but sometimes people miss the release of docos the first time around and it would be a shame to miss these…
25 Documentaries on Netflix You Need To Watch Right Now
This movie is about the school shooting massacre at Columbine in 1999. I was in high school when it happened so it always resonated with me quite strongly. If you haven’t seen this, it’s a really important documentary to watch. Michael Moore is a little bit sensationalist but his messages are generally pretty tops. It’s important to keep fighting for better gun control laws in the US and to keep raising awareness for mental health in youth and this message is as important today as it was fifteen years ago. You should also read Sue Klebold’s book A Mother’s Reckoning. She’s the mother of one of the shooters and this book is incredible. She talks about her grief and shame and ponders the question ‘How did this happen?’
I’m one of those people who straight up judge documentaries by their titles. Ben made me watch this and I had a bad attitude because it was about a tight rope walker and it sounded SUPER boring and lame. I was so very wrong. This documentary is short, snappy and totally mesmerising. There’s footage in this documentary that you will watch and wonder why you’ve never seen it before and how it’s not a viral video. It’s a very lovely, easy watch.
Photo: Submarine Entertainment
This documentary is exactly what it sounds like. It’s about the puppeteer who has brought Sesame Street’s Elmo to life for the last few decades. It’s such a gorgeous look into the life of Bill Baretta and how he ended up where he is today. It’s also narrated by Whoopie Goldberg which is always awesome.
We originally watched this because Ben and one of his mates played this ridiculously difficult game called Super Meat Boy until they were rolling around on the floor laughing with utter delirium, having played the same 30-second level about 80 times in a row. When we found out they did a documentary about the makers, we had to watch it. It’s a fascinating doco about the lives of indie game makers and it’s extraordinary to see the amount of work, time and sacrifice that goes into the making of these games.
I literally pearl clutched throughout this entire doco. Warning: it’s really sad and will ruin aquariums for you forever. Which isn’t necessarily a bad thing because it’s always important to shine a spotlight on our actions but just be warned, you may be quite a changed person after this doco. I know I was.
This is a fascinating look into the internet porn industry and these ‘factories’ where filmmakers advertise for girls, put them up in these houses with other porn stars and start this process of getting all they can get out of them while they’re young and fresh in the industry. I have a lot of conflicting feelings about porn and sex industries and this did nothing to make it clearer but it’s an interesting piece of a complicated puzzle.
I really enjoyed this doco – it’s about Aaron Shwartz a programming prodigy from America who took his own life at 26 after years of defending his ‘hacktivism’. He’s one of the reasons that many online journal collections are now available for free because he believed it was immoral that scientists were government funded to spend years doing important and often life-changing research, only for their work to be locked up behind third party paywalls, accessible only for people who had money. Since his death, many science and medical journal collections with third-party paywalls have been court ordered to be realised to the public free of charge and there’s proof of this change having major societal, medical and scientific impacts on the world.
This is a fabulous six-part doco about the life of the Rajneeshee cult. I won’t say too much about it (otherwise I’ll ruin it!) but it’s a bloody good series. I loved it because I knew quite a bit about the Rajneeshee and their leader the Bhagwan and everything I’d heard about them was pretty awful. This documentary really changed the way I viewed them. Side note: If anyone has watched this can we please talk about Sheela and how we all want to be her a little bit? Yes?
We’re big Larry David (creator of Seinfeld) and Curb Your Enthusiasm fans and we heard a weird thing on the news about an episode of Curb being used in a murder trial. There weren’t too many details about it so we forgot about it until this popped up on Netflix recently. It’s a very short doco, incredibly engaging and it’s one of the most amazing stories I’ve ever heard. Watch it. It’s ace.
This is an oldie but it’s really good, especially you’ve recently seen I, Tonya. When I watched this recently and wrote about it on Facebook, a very rude lady said ‘Who cares???’ which I thought was a rather odd response. The story is so fascinating and it’s a massive part of Olympic history. Even if you’re not super into sport or you don’t really know much about the story, give it a go. It’s a really good watch.
On the topic of sport and cheating, Icarus is a must see. It’s about doping in sport, particularly in Russia and the high-level government cover-ups that occur when countries compete against each other for gold. It’s actually an unbelievable documentary, it won the Oscar for best doco this year. It’s an absolute must see.
This is straight up, the most batshit bananas doco I’ve ever seen. To set the story, this guy loses his foot in an accident and has it embalmed, which is weird enough in itself. His foot then accidentally gets sold inside an old meat smoker at a garage sale and the guy who accidentally bought it refuses to give it back. If you think I’ve told you most of the story, I haven’t. Watch it, it’s a hoot.
Photo by Harry Benson
I’ve always liked Amy Winehouse’s music but I was never fanatical about it but Apple Music keeps profiling me and making me listen to it and I’m fast becoming obsessed. I recently went to the Amy Winehouse exhibition at the Jewish Museum in Melbourne and then came home and watched this. It’s a fab doco about a troubled soul who left this world way too soon.
This is easily one of the most engaging documentaries I’ve seen. It’s about two men who are serving time for a crime they may not have committed. But also they may have committed it. Evidence points in all kinds of directions and it’s a real arm chair detective kind of doco.
I mean it’s Sir David Attenborough. Need I say more?
An utterly mesmerising inside look at a Chinese company that re-boots a shut down factory in Ohio. Major culture clash. This documentary is lovely and slow if you’re looking for something that’s not shocking and outrageous.
Photo by Alex Stivers
17. Fyre: The Greatest Party That Never Happened
I have a very deep obsession with dude bros who fall for their own hype and Billy McFarland is the king of this category. He planned this elite festival on a posh island and the whole thing ended up being utter trash.
18. Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem, Madness
I think this one stands out as the most stuff that has happened to a person ever. Joe Exotic, who in retrospect after watching the whole doco is quite a terrible person, runs a tiger ‘sanctuary’ and his life and business is just about as bizarre as it can get. And that’s before you take into account his feud with Carole Baskin from a local tiger rescue centre. If you somehow missed this at the beginning of 2020, do yourself a favour and watch it now.
This is about the unsolved murder of a nun and the sexual abuse that occurred at a Catholic high school in Baltimore. It basically outlines the consequences of being a whistleblower for priests in the Catholic Church. Sister Catherine is an angel and should be remembered as such.
Okay so I know this was very heavily on side with the Beckham’s but after I watched this, I was a raving Posh and Beck’s fan. I’m also very, very angry at England and when you watch it you’ll know why. Posh and Becks forever.
Photo from Duplass Brothers Productions
A truly bizarre doco about a tiny town in Australia with a population of 11 and a murder takes place and no one knows who did it. Although it is kind of obvious after you watch it.
A fascinating unpacking of Juul one of the first vaping companies out of Silicone Valley and how they lost sight of what their true mission was (to get smokers to vape instead) and unwittingly (or wittingly) created a new generation of vapers who weren’t even smoking in the first place.
23. Poisoned The Dirty Truth About Your Food
Fair warning – you may never want to eat again after watching this. It’s about foodborne illness and death in the US and how victims families have fought to have food laws changed for consumer protection. For god’s sake wash your lettuce and maybe never eat rockmelon again.
This one isn’t life changing but I really enjoyed it. I think Pamela Anderson is unbelievably kind and good hearted and I can’t believe what a lovely person she is after everything she went through. She is life goals. I adore her.
This chronicles the amazing women who fought to take down the systemic abuse 100s of professional gymnasts survived at the hands of the USA gymnastics team doctor. If you’re not already utterly in awe of Simone Biles you will be after you watch this.
If you’re planning on spending the weekend watching documentaries on Netflix, I’ve totally sorted you out. Just make sure you have enough food and drinks in the fridge and you probably won’t need to move for at least 72 hours. You’re welcome!
Not into docos? Here some other things you might like…
9 TV Shows You Need To Watch Like Now
7 TV Shows To Watch That Will Blow Your Mind
5 Things You Need To Watch Right Now
What are your favourite documentaries on Netflix? Any classics you want to recommend?
P.S I have a newsletter that goes out every Wednesday at 10 am with recommendations and habit ideas that help you take the anxiety out of better a person – you can sign up for it here.