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Netflix Originals : 2022 : Documentary Movies - Sort: Most Popular

Amy Renner Amy Renner

Dec. 10, 2022

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Posing as a wealthy, jet-setting diamond mogul, he wooed women online then conned them out of millions of dollars. Now some victims plan for payback.

Crime Documentary

  • 2.3

50%

50%
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In the tense and gripping documentary feature The Volcano: Rescue From Whakaari, Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Rory Kennedy tracks the minute-by-minute unfolding of the tragic volcanic eruption off the coast of New Zealand in December of 2019, ultimately claiming 22 lives. During a routine sightseeing day-trip to a remote volcanic island, 47 tourists and guides were trapped in the epicenter of a boiling pyroclastic surge of toxic dust and ash. Both terrifying and inspiring, the film uses first-hand accounts to convey the experience of living through such a lethal eruption.

Offering more than a startling and brutal portrait of mother nature’s profound indifference, The Volcano also serves as testimony to human nature’s innate generosity. Guided by survivors — men and women who were tested in ways they never imagined — as well as the courageous and quick-thinking ordinary citizens who sprang to action that day, the viewer comes to understand the value of our human connection.

Documentary

  • 5

22%

78%

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

Documentary 1 hr, 31 mins

  • 4

92%

8%

Days after 9/11, letters containing fatal anthrax spores spark panic and tragedy in the US. This documentary from Oscar-nominated director Dan Krauss (Extremis) and BBC Studios Production follows the subsequent FBI investigation.

Crime Documentary

  • 3

63%

38%
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Limited Netflix

World-renowned therapist Phil Stutz sits down for an unusual, heartfelt session with friend and patient Jonah Hill, bringing to life Stutz’s visualization exercises, called The Tools, and sharing how to apply them to pursue “active love.”

Documentary

  • 3.5

78%

22%

As the Kalahari Desert faces a worsening dry season, prides, packs and herds of all kinds must rely on the power of family to survive.

NR Documentary Nature 1 hr, 18 mins

  • 3.8

84%

16%
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A young mother’s mysterious death and her son’s subsequent kidnapping blow open a decades-long mystery about the woman’s true identity, and the murderous federal fugitive at the center of it all.

NR Documentary

  • 5

75%

25%

Elon Musk and SpaceX engineers embark on a historic mission to return NASA astronauts to the International Space Station and revolutionize space travel.

NR Documentary 2 hrs, 8 mins

  • 5

83%

17%

From documentarian Chris Smith (American Movie) comes a lovingly irreverent portrait of the life, career, and last days of maverick filmmaker Robert Downey Sr., whose rebellious spirit infused decades of counterculture movie-making. “Sr.” widens the lens from Downey's art to the life with which it was deeply intertwined, including an intimate examination of his relationship with son Robert Downey, Jr. Shot over the course of three years, the film truly honors Senior's nonlinear, outlaw-like approach, including capturing his decision to embark on his own concurrent and final film project. Smith’s portrait of a family and an artist is a meditation on life that’s as surreal as it is sentimental, a celebration of making art with no rules that tosses out its own rulebook along the way.

R Documentary 1 hr, 29 mins

40%

60%
  • 4

38%

62%

Global superstar Jennifer Lopez reflects on her multifaceted career and the pressure of life in the spotlight in this documentary.

Documentary Music 1 hr, 35 mins

  • 4.5

64%

36%

Filmed across two turbulent years, In Her Hands tells the story of Zarifa Ghafari, who at 26 became one of Afghanistan’s first female mayors and the youngest to ever hold the position. The film documents her fight for survival against the backdrop of her country’s accelerated unraveling. As Western forces announce their retreat and the Taliban start their sweep back to power, Zarifa and women across the country face a new reality. Amid these tectonic changes, Zarifa must make the most difficult decision of her life.

Documentary

  • 4

64%

36%

From celebrated writer and film historian Elvis Mitchell, Is That Black Enough for You?!? is both a documentary and deeply personal essay. The film examines the craft and power of cinema from a perspective often overlooked: the African American contribution to films released from the landmark era of the 70s.

Documentary

25%

75%

José Luis Barbero, one of the world’s most famous dolphin trainers, is at the peak of his 30-year-career. He has just been hired as a Vice-President by the prestigious Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta (USA), when a 99-second blurry video is released online. It allegedly shows him abusing the dolphins under his care.

A scandal ensues, but Barbero claims he doesn’t recognize himself in the video. He says he is innocent and a victim of a revenge scheme by some ex-employees. The affair breaks in the news across the globe dividing those who fight to defend or denounce the master dolphin trainer. The dolphin trainer receives a wave of online hate, including death threats. A few weeks later Barbero disappears. This documentary thriller charts the epic rise and fall of Barbero until the moment of his disappearance. With footage from inside the marine parks where he worked, the film reveals the dark side of the industry from an insider’s perspective.

Was the video of Barbero an attempt to bring down an outdated and cruel industry, or was its real intention a personal vendetta? Those at the heart of this dark and tragic story share their version of events for the first time.

Documentary 1 hr, 34 mins

0%

100%

In the summer of 1997, the murder of photojournalist José Luis Cabezas shocked Argentina. It ultimately revealed an organized crime network which appeared to involve the country’s political and financial elite. The consequences would be almost as dramatic as the crime itself, not only for the perpetrator but for the whole country.

Documentary

  • 1

33%

67%

Using unprecedented Olympic footage and behind-the-scenes material, The Redeem Team tells the story of the US Olympic Men’s Basketball Team’s quest for gold at the Olympic Games Beijing 2008 following the previous team’s shocking performance four years earlier in Athens.

Documentary

  • 5

50%

50%

Abercrombie & Fitch conquered malls in the late ‘90s and early ‘00s with gorgeous models, pulsing dance beats and a fierce scent. But while the brand was running white hot, its popular “all-American” image began burning out as controversy came to light surrounding its exclusionary marketing and discriminatory hiring.

Documentary

  • 1

40%

60%

A top fertility doctor had a sickening secret: he was using his own sperm. Decades later, his “children” band together to pursue justice.

Documentary True Story

  • 2

86%

14%

He’s the original computer genius gone rogue, inventor of one of the most successful (and most hated) pieces of software of all time: McAfee Anti-Virus. At his peak, John McAfee was worth $100 million. But when his neighbour was murdered, McAfee went on the run – and invited a film crew with him. With access to hundreds of hours of never-before-broadcast footage of McAfee as he’s pursued by the authorities, this is the definitive story of a larger-than-life character, a man who ran for President, escaped from prison multiple times, and claimed to have hacked the world.

Documentary

  • 2.7

40%

60%

In August 2021, Ikuta will try the new kabuki performance for the first time joining the final season of the independent Kabuki stage series called “Idomu (Challenge)" led by kabuki actor Matsuya Onoe. Toma Ikuta and Matsuya Onoe were classmates back in their high school and have been close friends. In their high school days, the two promised that they would stand on the same stage some day. And for the final stage of Onoe’s produced Kabuki stage series, Ikuta will star as a special guest in his first ever time in the new kabuki "Akado Suzunosuke" and play the role of Tatsumaki Rainoshin. This documentary follows Ikuta's challenge to the new kabuki and his friendship with Matsuya Onoe.

Documentary

  • 5

86%

14%

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