Netflix Top 25 in Documentary

An Inconvenient Truth

Former Vice President Al Gore wages a passionate campaign -- not for the White House, but for the environment -- in this Oscar-winning documentary. Laying out the facts of global warming, Gore urges audiences to act before it's too late.

March of the Penguins

Award-winning photographer Luc Jacquet takes documentary film to new heights -- and depths -- with his first feature film, a stunning insider's look at the life of emperor penguins living in one of the cruelest climates on the planet. The product of more than a year of filming on the Antarctic ice, this Oscar-winning documentary reveals never-before-captured footage of the penguins' underwater life and explores their steadfast quest for monogamy.

Super Size Me

Director Morgan Spurlock takes a hilarious and often terrifying look at the effects of fast food on the human body, using himself as the proverbial guinea pig. For one month, Spurlock eats nothing but McDonald's fare.

Inside Job

Featuring in-depth interviews with financial experts and insiders, this sobering, Oscar-winning documentary presents in comprehensive detail the pervasive and deep-rooted Wall Street corruption that led to the global economic meltdown of 2008.

Sicko

Michael Moore sets his sights on the plight of the uninsured in this Oscar-nominated documentary that uses Moore's trademark humor and confrontational style to ask the difficult questions and get to the truth behind the health care crisis. In the world's richest country, 45 million people have no health insurance, while HMOs grow in size and wealth. Moore also explores the widespread use of antidepressants and their possible link to violence.

Religulous

Politically provocative talk show host Bill Maher skewers the current state of organized religion in this hot-button documentary, making stops in Jerusalem, the Vatican and other holy destinations.

Fahrenheit 9/11

Michael Moore's hard-hitting documentary addresses the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, outlining the reasons the United States became a target for hatred and terrorism and criticizing President George W. Bush's response to the attacks.

Born Into Brothels

British filmmaker Zana Briski's Oscar-winning documentary is a portrait of several unforgettable children who live in Calcutta's red-light district, where their mothers work as prostitutes to ensure their survival. Spurred by the kids' fascination with her camera, Briski decides to teach them photography. As they begin to look at and record their world through new eyes, the kids awaken to their own talents and sense of worth.

Food, Inc.

Drawing on Eric Schlosser's Fast Food Nation and Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma, director Robert Kenner's provocative, Oscar-nominated documentary explores the food industry's detrimental effects on our health and environment.

God Grew Tired of Us

After raising themselves in the desert along with thousands of other "lost boys," Sudanese refugees John, Daniel and Panther have found their way to America, where they experience electricity, running water and supermarkets for the first time.

Who Killed the Electric Car?

Amid a volatile climate of ever-changing gas prices, this documentary delves into the short life of the GM EV1 electric car -- a fuel-efficient auto that was once all the rage in the mid-1990s and now has fallen by the roadside.

Waiting for "Superman"

Dynamic documentarian Davis Guggenheim weaves together stories about students, families, educators and reformers to shed light on the failing public school system and its consequences for the future of the United States.

Bowling for Columbine

Famed filmmaker and left-wing political humorist Michael Moore tackles America's obsession with firearms in this Oscar-winning documentary centered on the Columbine High School massacre of 1999.

Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room

Based on the book of the same name by Peter Elkin, director Alex Gibney's documentary takes a behind-the-scenes look at the powerful energy company whose downfall forever changed the landscape of the business world.

Capitalism: A Love Story

Filmmaker Michael Moore (Sicko, Fahrenheit 9/11) takes on capitalism's roots, the floundering U.S. economy, and 2008's global financial meltdown and subsequent bank bailout in this rousing documentary. Combining stories about those who suffer most from Corporate America's greed and insatiable thirst for profits and the people most responsible for myriad crises, Moore embarks on another shocking fact-finding rampage.

Man on Wire

Philippe Petit captured the world's attention in 1974 when he walked across a high wire between New York's Twin Towers. This Oscar winner for Best Documentary explores the preparations that went into the stunt as well as the event and its aftermath.

Earth

Fueled by dazzling high-definition photography and stunning locations around the world, this nature program captures three animal families in action over the course of a year, revealing how the sun influences animal behavior and migratory patterns.

Michael Jackson's This Is It

Featuring rehearsal footage, backstage action and interviews, this compelling documentary follows pop superstar Michael Jackson during the days leading up to his untimely death as he prepares for a series of 50 sold-out London shows.

Grizzly Man

Renowned nonfiction director Werner Herzog chronicles the tragic and untimely death of outdoorsman Timothy Treadwell, who devoted his life to studying grizzly bears living in the Alaskan wilderness -- only to have one of them maul him to death.

What the #$*! Do We Know!?

When she's thrust from her mundane life into an unfamiliar world, Amanda must develop an all-new perception of her surroundings and the people she interacts with in this quirky film that explores neurological processes and quantum uncertainty.

The Corporation

Filmmakers Mark Achbar and Jennifer Abbott explore the genesis of the American corporation, its global economic supremacy and its psychopathic leanings, with social critics like Noam Chomsky and Milton Friedman lending insight in this documentary.

The Fog of War

This Oscar-winning documentary traces former Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara's career from government to the World Bank; but his work during the Vietnam War -- examined through archival footage and interviews -- is the real highlight.

Jesus Camp

This riveting Oscar-nominated documentary offers an unfiltered look at a revivalist subculture in which devout Christian youngsters are being primed to deliver the fundamentalist community's religious and political messages. Building an evangelical army of tomorrow, the Kids on Fire summer camp in Devil's Lake, N.D., is dedicated to deepening the preteens' spirituality and sowing the seeds of political activism.

The Cove

A group of activists and filmmakers travels to the small village of Taiji, Japan, to secretly obtain footage of a heavily guarded operation that captures and kills scores of dolphins to use as meat.

Good Hair

Chris Rock hops around the world going from beauty salons to science labs to comb through the mystery of African American hair. Rock contemplates the purpose and application of a weave as well as women's self-esteem and their locks.