Halloween is this weekend. That means we will be sharing a few old discussion posts we originally published 13 years ago. They’re worth mentioning here as well because it’s been a while since they’ve both been so relevant to new documentaries. The piece “What Films Give Us the Most Long-Term Scares?” is about documentaries that reveal the worst of humanity and/or make us fearful about the future. Some might scare us into action while others can leave us feeling hopeless. I felt all of that with Alex Gibney’s Musk, which is overwhelming in its runtime and doom, as it shows who Elon Musk really is and why what he’s saying and doing is bad for us and the planet. We could also add other recent AI-focused films, such as The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist and Ghost in the Machine, even though they might already be dated.

The other relevant Halloween-themed piece is titled “Are There Any Acceptable Documentary-Inspired Halloween Costumes?” While I have dressed up as people from documentaries in the past (my wife and I were the Beales one year), I’m still torn about the idea. It relates to the discussion of whether it’s okay to laugh at or mock a real person via documentaries. I’m sure Elon Musk has been a Halloween costume even before he was the subject of a film, and maybe that’s also true of Elizabeth Holmes. But the phenomenal popularity of You Can See Everything is certainly bringing the latter’s image to costume parties this year more than ever. Whether that’s morally fair, no matter what you think of the person, remains up for debate. Unless what we see on screen is indeed a fictional character Holmes created for her public persona?

Without further ado, below are this week’s documentary highlights, followed by daily listings for all known releases and broadcasts, along with a brief look at what’s coming soon for doc fans (including new films by Dawn Porter and Sam Pollard). Please consider becoming a paid subscriber for more in-depth highlights and reviews, plus full access to special posts like our best-of lists, and to give me more time to watch more (if not everything) available. If you have an upcoming documentary needing coverage or a mention, reach us at nonficseditor (at) gmail and let us know its release plans.

Nonfics Picks Of The Week: Everest: The Other Side (2026) & The Man Who Skied Down Everest (1975)

I’ve seen way too many negative reviews of You Can See Everything that knock it for not being the first documentary to do what it does. As if they don’t see and praise plenty of fiction and nonfiction films that follow in the footsteps of past productions. Will they pan the new Critics Choice Documentary Awards nominee Everest: The Other Side for not only being yet another nonfiction feature about a climber attempting some astounding and perilous feat but also the umpteenth example by its own directors, Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi? They keep on making documentaries about climbing mountains while climbing mountains themselves (or at least Chin), yet each one is distinct and still worth watching on its own.

Everest: The Other Side is particularly reminiscent of another couple’s mountain climbing documentary. Released about half a century earlier, the Oscar-winning feature The Man Who Skied Down Everest follows the conquest of Yuichiro Miura as he becomes the first person to ski down part of the titular peak. Men die along the way, but he achieves his personal goal in the end, and producers Budge and Judith Crawley made a poetic and riveting film out of the breathtaking footage Miura brought back. Chin and Vasarhelyi’s documentary follows the conquest of Jim Morrison as he becomes the first person to ski down the North Face of Everest. His wife dies along the way, but he achieves his personal goal in the end.

It’s probably my least favorite of Chin and Vasarhely’s films, and part of that is due to my biased disinterest in stories and characters like these now. I just don’t care if someone accomplishes some unnecessary feat, or if they die in the process. I feel terrible about members of their support teams who wind up as casualties, though it’s still their risk to take. Beyond this subjective issue, I wasn’t wowed by the storytelling or the cinematography this time, as both felt fairly straightforward in following the events at hand. It’s not as artistically memorable as their climbing films Meru or Free Solo. I’m probably taking a lot of the work that went into Everest: The Other Side for granted because they make it all look so easy now. Still, if I don’t care, I don’t care.

Everest: The Other Side will be released in theaters on Friday, October 30, 2026, via National Geographic Documentary Films and Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.

The Man Who Skied Down Everest is currently available to stream on Prime Video, JustWatch, GuideDoc, Pluto TV, YOW.tv, YouTube, Fawesome, Tubi, and Kanopy.

Other Documentary Highlights

The Cycle Of Love (2025)

One of this year’s best documentaries returns to theaters this week for one night before making its home-viewing debut the following day. The Cycle of Love is not scary or distressing, but it is still important, maybe more so than others because of its positivity. Directed by Orlando von Einsiedel (Oscar winner for The White Helmets and nominee for Virunga), the film tells the romantic story of a man who rode a bicycle from India to Sweden to be reunited with the woman he loved. It’s not just romance fluff, though. Here’s an excerpt from our review of The Cycle of Love that explains why:

“There is more to The Cycle of Love than the romantic story at its center. It’s a timeless film for that aspect, as well as for its focus on racial and social/caste discrimination, but it’s also incredibly vital for the turbulent moment we’re currently living through. The title isn’t just a reference to Mahanandia’s mode of transport but also refers to the friends we meet along the way (sorry, I couldn’t avoid that phrasing). Empathy, respect, kindness, love — it’s all cyclical in how we treat others and are treated in return, whether in present situations and relationships or as time and lives go on. This is a tale that involves destiny and karma as well as determination. Its themes being based in Hindu ideology is essential to its richness as a true story and as a film.”

The Cycle of Love will be back in select theaters nationwide on Sunday, November 1, 2026, one day only, for a “Date Night Special Screening Event.” The film will be released on TVOD to rent or purchase digitally (via Prime Video, Apple TV, and YouTube) on Monday, November 2, 2026.

EPiC: Elvis Presley In Concert (2025)

Another of the year’s best documentaries gets an additional release announcement this week, as Baz Luhrmann’s EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert will be available in a special edition Deluxe Steelbook collector’s set for the first time. The film is already available on VOD, DVD, Blu-ray, and 4K UHD disc, but this is the best physical media option for fans of Elvis and this documentary. It will also make a great gift, as you share one of the best films of 2026 with others. Just make sure you/they can watch it properly in 4K, since that’s the optimal experience outside of seeing it in IMAX, which you hopefully had a chance to do. Here’s an excerpt from our review of EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert:

“Nearly 50 years after Presley’s death, it’s surprising that one could make a film like this and have it still feel new, but that goes along with the running theme of his performance principle. I don’t know just how much of the footage featured in the documentary has been seen or heard before (apparently, it consists of a lot of thought-lost material), but I doubt it’s ever popped with such splendor. I’ve never enjoyed Presley so much as a performer as I did while watching EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert, feeling the bliss he felt come through the screen so profoundly.”

EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert will be released as a Deluxe Steelbook set on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, via Neon.

SCTV: The Greatest Show You’ve Never Heard Of (2026)

First there was Marty, Life is Short, a biographical documentary about Martin Short that covered the Toronto production of Godspell and the sketch comedy series Second City Television (SCTV). Then there was You Had to Be There: How the Toronto Godspell Ignited the Comedy Revolution, Spread Love & Overalls, and Created a Community That Changed the World (In a Canadian Kind of Way), focused on the Godspell production but also featuring Short and many of the same talking heads. Now, within six months, we get SCTV: The Greatest Show You’ve Never Heard Of, which again features Short and many others seen in the other films (as well as the rare participation of Rick Moranis!), plus mention of the Godspell show again.

If you like these folks, it’s tough not to appreciate three documentaries about them in various capacities. More so if you already miss Catherine O’Hara and want to see her in the SCTV reunion footage. Otherwise, this one is mostly a clip show with a lot of reaction shots from actors watching themselves together. It’s like a less intellectual, whiter, Canadian-er Once Upon a Time in Harlem. Okay, maybe that’s going too far. But I was surprised by how much I learned about the history of SCTV and its legacy that I didn’t already know. Which would be a big deal even if I hadn’t already watched the previous two documentaries about the same comedy legends that came out this year.

SCTV: The Greatest Show You’ve Never Heard Of will premiere and begin streaming exclusively on Netflix on Friday, October 30, 2026.

Who Killed Alex Odeh? (2026)

I’ll be honest (I always am): I don’t really remember a lot of Who Killed Alex Odeh?, which I watched back in January during its Sundance run (where it won two awards). I also didn’t review it, maybe because I didn’t have a lot to say about it. But I gave it a pretty good rating on Letterboxd, so I obviously thought it was well done. That happens, and I feel like its director, Jason Osder, is the type who makes solid journalistic historical documentaries that are captivating to watch but maybe don’t stand out enough to be thought about much later. I guess that’s a problem since they’re histories. But not all histories need to be lasting learning experiences. So, watch this film about the murder of a Palestinian American activist in the 1980s, but don’t be surprised if it doesn’t seem essential even if it feels completely fulfilling.

Who Killed Alex Odeh? will be released in theaters on Friday, October 30, 2026, via Watermelon Pictures.

Awards Highlights

Gotham Nominees

Last week, the Gotham Film & Media Institute announced the nominees for the 36th Annual Gotham Film Awards, which will be held at the end of November 2026. Contenders in the Best Documentary Feature category include Closure (now in theaters), A Fox Under a Pink Moon (coming soon to theaters), NAZA (now in theaters), Once Upon a Time in Harlem (now in theaters), and You Can See Everything (now in theaters). That last film was also nominated for this year’s Audience Award.

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Documentary Release Calendar 10/30/26 - 11/5/26

Friday, October 30, 2026

Black Cats and Broomsticks (1955) - A short documentary about superstitions, personal rituals, taboos, and talismans. (TCM)

Everest: The Other Side (2026) - A Critics Choice-nominated documentary feature by Oscar winners Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin (Free Solo) that follows mountaineering couple Jim Morrison and Hilaree Nelson as they climb and ski the North Face of Mount Everest. See our highlights section for more info and a brief review. *NONFICS PICK* (In IMAX Theaters)

George Hall and His Orchestra (1937) - A short music film featuring performances by the titular group. (TCM)

Heathens (2026) - A documentary about five strangers who have lost their religious faith as they gather at a mountain retreat. (In Theaters - Los Angeles)

Impact x Nightline Season 5, Episode 3: “The Dropout – Who Is Elizabeth Holmes?” - The latest installment of a news magazine show. This episode is about the titular subject of the documentary You Can See Everything. (ABC)

Occupational Hazard: The First Coral Reefers (2026) - A documentary feature about Jimmy Buffett’s Coral Reefers Band. (In Theaters)

Paging Hezbollah (2026) - A documentary feature about Israel’s use of electronic devices, including pagers, in attacks against Hezbollah. (In Theaters)

SCTV: The Greatest Show You’ve Never Heard Of (2026) - A Critics Choice-nominated documentary directed by Jason Hehir (The Last Dance) about the history of the titular sketch comedy show. See our highlights section for more info and a brief review. *NONFICS PICK* (Netflix)

Vincent Price: What Keeps Us Alive (2026) - A documentary about the titular actor and horror icon. (TCM)

Who Killed Alex Odeh? (2026) - A documentary feature about the 1985 assassination of the titular Palestinian-American civil rights activist. See our highlights section for more info. *NONFICS PICK* (In Theaters)

Saturday, October 31, 2026

Austin City Limits Season 52, Episode 9: “Ty Myers” - The latest installment of a long-running music series. (PBS)

Earth Odyssey with Dylan Dreyer Season 9, Episode 5: “Wild Australian Seas and Skies” - The latest installment of an adventure series that takes viewers to exotic locations. (NBC)

Impact x Nightline Season 5, Episode 3: “The Dropout – Who Is Elizabeth Holmes?” - The latest installment of a news magazine show. This episode is about the titular subject of the documentary You Can See Everything. (Disney+ and Hulu)

Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom Protecting the Wild Season 4, Episode 5: “Hidden Puerto Rico” - The latest installment of a nature series focused on wildlife conservation. This episode involves animals in Puerto Rico. (NBC)

Sunday, November 1, 2026

A Body to Live In (2025) - A documentary about artist Fakir Musafar. Read our review. (The Criterion Channel)

Catfish Murders Season 1, Episode 3: “The Hometown Hero” - The latest installment of a true-crime series about murders involving catfish scenarios. (Oxygen)

The Cycle of Love (2025) - A Critics Choice-nominated documentary feature by Oscar-winning director Orlando von Einsiedel (The White Helmets) about a Delhi street artist who rode his bicycle 6,000 miles to reunite with the woman he loved. See our highlights section for more info and a link to our review. *NONFICS PICK* (Nationwide Theatrical Screening Event)

Color (2024) - A documentary feature about artist Alteronce Gumby and what color means to him. (Fawesome)

Doin’ It in the Park: Pick-Up Basketball, NYC (2012) - A documentary feature about New York’s outdoor summer basketball scene. (The Criterion Channel)

Home of the Brave: A Film by Laurie Anderson (1986) - A concert film by and starring Laurie Anderson. (The Criterion Channel)

The Last Waltz (1978) - A concert film by Martin Scorsese starring The Band and many musical guests. *NONFICS PICK* (The Criterion Channel)

Late Night Law Season 2, Episode 9 & 10 “Defend and Defuse” & “Missing Machetes” - The latest installments of a docuseries that follows law enforcement during the night shift. (A&E)

Manal Issa, 2024 (2024) - A short documentary by Elisabeth Subrin about the titular Lebanese-French actress. (The Criterion Channel)

Maria Schneider, 1983 (2022) - A short documentary by Elisabeth Subrin centered around a 1983 interview with the titular actress. (The Criterion Channel)

OJ’s Accomplice (2026) - A two-part documentary that investigates more of the story of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman’s murders. (Peacock)

Palimpsest: The Story of a Name (2025) - A documentary feature by Mary Stephen about her family and the origin of her name. (The Criterion Channel)

Pawaganak: The Great Canadian Puberty Rite (1974) - A short documentary by Mary Stephen that follows a couple’s road trip after college. (The Criterion Channel)

Rock Rubber 45s (2018) - A documentary feature by Bobbito García about basketball, sneakers, and the filmmaker’s youth. (The Criterion Channel)

Snapped: Killer Moms Season 1, Episode 3: “Kelly Turner” - The latest installment of a true-crime docuseries about mothers who kill to protect or avenge their children. (Oxygen)

Stretch and Bobbito: Radio That Changed Lives (2015) - A documentary feature by Bobbito García about his hip-hop radio show. (The Criterion Channel)

Two Gods (2020) - A documentary feature about a Muslim casket maker in Newark who begins mentoring two young men. (The Criterion Channel)

A Very Easy Death (1975) - A short documentary by Mary Stephen about her mother’s death. (The Criterion Channel)

Monday, November 2, 2026

The Cycle of Love (2025) - A Critics Choice-nominated documentary feature by Oscar-winning director Orlando von Einsiedel (The White Helmets) about a Delhi street artist who rode his bicycle 6,000 miles to reunite with the woman he loved. See our highlights section for more info and a link to our review. *NONFICS PICK* (VOD)

Harlan Coben’s Final Twist Season 2, Episode 5: “Caught on Camera” - The latest installment of a true-crime docuseries exposing shocking murders and scandals. This episode involves a couple shot dead in a crashed car. (CBS and Paramount+)

Her Honor, the Nurse (1956) - A short documentary about the work of the modern nurse. (TCM)

Pati Jinich Explores Panamericana Season 2, Episode 2: “New Mexico & Colorado -- Life Along the Rio” - The latest installment of a docuseries starring the titular chef about Pan-American food, culture, and history. (PBS)

Tuesday, November 3, 2026

100 Beds (2020) - A documentary feature in which people talk about their worst beds. (DVD)

Billy Idol Should Be Dead (2025) - A biographical documentary feature about the titular rock star. (DVD and Blu-ray)

EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert (2025) - A documentary feature directed by Baz Luhrmann starring the King of Rock and Roll as he returns to the stage in his later years. See our highlights section for more info and a link to our review. *NONFICS PICK* (Deluxe Steelbook 4K UHD/Blu-ray)

A Hidden Star (2022) - A documentary feature about two women who take a trip to Ireland with their friend’s ashes. (Blu-ray)

In Search Of (2026) - A documentary feature about a man traveling the country in mourning for his late actor brother. (DVD)

A Marble in the Jar (2025) - A documentary feature about surfer Tatiana Weston-Webb and her mentor, Greg Browning. (VOD)

Picturesque Patzcuaro (1942) - A short documentary installment of James A. FitzPatrick’s TravelTalks travelogue franchise that explores Mexico’s Lake Patzcuaro and the island of Janitzio. (TCM)

A Soldier Home (2018) - A documentary feature about an Iraq War veteran after his return home. (DVD)

Tony Driver (2019) - A documentary feature about an assimilated Italian immigrant. (DVD)

Wednesday, November 4, 2026

40 Takes Willy (2025) - A medium-length documentary about director William Wyler. (TCM)

Birds of War (2026) - A documentary feature that follows the love story of a London-based Lebanese journalist and Syrian activist/cameraman. (In Theaters)

Founding Further: James Forten (2026) - A documentary about the titular Black Revolutionary War hero. (In Theaters)

Ghost Adventures Season 31, Episode 33: “Goumond House of Grim” - The latest installment of a docuseries following paranormal investigators. (Discovery Channel)

Nova Season 53, Episode 16: “Evolution: The Mating Game” - The fourth installment of a five-part series within Nova about evolution on Earth over billions of years. This episode looks at the evolution of sexual reproduction. (PBS)

Rammstein - Live in Mexico City (2026) - A concert film starring the titular German band. (In Theaters)

Taken: Natalee Holloway (2026) - A three-part true crime docuseries about the 2005 disappearance of the titular teenager during her high school graduation trip to Aruba. (Netflix)

The Water Rats (2022) - A medium-length documentary about strangers swimming in London’s Hampstead Heath during the first COVID-19 lockdown in 2020. (OVID)

Thursday, November 5, 2026

Archive X: Unexplained Phenomena Season 1, Episode 6: “Aliens & Demons” - The latest installment of a docuseries that explores prophetic dreams, ESP, near-death experiences, alien encounters, and messages from beyond. (Sundance Channel)

The Bridge (2026) - A music-centered documentary feature about survivors of the October 7 attacks in Israel who travel to Los Angeles to attend the Rock ’n’ Roll Fantasy Camp. (In Theaters)

Nature Season 45, Episode 4: “HumanLike: The Chimps of Fongoli” - The latest installment of a nature series. This episode involves chimpanzees. (PBS)

Terrell & T.O. (2026) - A documentary about former NFL wide receiver Terrell Owens. (Prime Video)

Wolobougou (2025) - A documentary feature about a women’s clinic in Burkina Faso. (OVID)

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Sneak Peek At What’s Coming Soon

11/6 - Nuisance Bear - A Critics Choice-nominated documentary feature about the relationship between a community on the shore of the Hudson Bay and the polar bears getting too close to their town. Read our review of Nuisance Bear. *NONFICS PICK* (In Theaters)

11/6 - Passengers - A documentary unveiling footage from the 1990s of disillusioned New Yorkers. Watch the new trailer for the film below. (VOD)

11/10 - Get Huge: Looksmaxxing to Death - A docuseries about male influencer culture. (Hulu)

11/12 - The Jigsaw Puzzle Murder - A two-part true-crime documentary about a mysterious case involving the discovery of unidentified body parts. Watch the new trailer for the film below. (Paramount+)

11/17 - The Boys and the Bees - A short documentary about a beekeeping family in Georgia. (PBS)

11/17 - When a Witness Recants - A documentary by Dawn Porter (John Lewis: Good Trouble) about three men who were wrongfully convicted of killing a fellow teenager in Baltimore in 1983. Watch the new trailer for the film below. (HBO and HBO Max)

11/20 - Ash & Crayons - A documentary feature by Oscar-nominated director Evgeny Afineevsky (Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for Freedom) that follows seven Ukrainian children during the war. (In Theaters)

11/24 - The Slightest Touch - A documentary feature about a woman living with a rare and extremely painful genetic condition involving her skin and her friendship with actor Colin Farrell. Watch the new trailer for the film below. (HBO and HBO Max)

12/1 - Seized - A documentary feature about a legal battle between a small town newspaper and the local authorities. Read our review of Seized. (HBO Max)

12/4 - Every Contact Leaves a Trace - A documentary feature directed by Lynne Sachs (Film About a Father Who) about her collection of hundreds of business cards from contacts she’s made over the years. (In Theaters)

12/16 - To Hold a Mountain - A documentary feature about a shepherd mother and daughter who defend their land in Montenegro from military threats. Watch the new trailer for the film below. (In Theaters)

12/18 - Tutu - A documentary feature directed by Sam Pollard (MLK/FBI) about Desmond Tutu. (In theaters)

1/6 - Cookie Queens - A documentary feature about Girl Scouts selling cookies. Read our review of Cookie Queens. (Paramount+)

For our latest column on Oscar-winning documentaries, we’re skipping ahead 30 years to the film honored in 1976: The Man Who Skied Down Everest. The jump forward is appropriate given this week’s theatrical release of Everest: The Other Side, which features another man skiing down a different part of the mountain. But we’re not totally ignoring the chronological plan because this column does also circle back to the ceremonies next in line as we acknowledge the Academy Awards’ longtime interest in adventure-driven documentaries.

If Everest: The Other Side is nominated next year, the recognition will continue an Oscar tradition as notable as the trends toward awarding Holocaust documentaries, World War II propaganda, artist profiles, nature films, labor stories, and issue-driven advocacy works. Adventure, exploration, and athletic achievements have been a staple of documentary film since the dawn of cinema. Races and matches of all kinds were spotlighted, while early portable cameras became a common accessory in expeditions to anywhere that man could venture. Film was immediately used as a way to record feats never before attempted by anyone, let alone seen by audiences everywhere.

The first documentary to win an Academy Award, With Byrd at the South Pole, fit this tradition. As did two of the “novelty” nonfiction shorts that won Oscars before documentaries got their own category: Wrestling Swordfish and Wings Over Everest. Other winners over the years have documented trips up mountains, across oceans, beneath the seas, through canyons, jungles, and Arctic and Antarctic terrain, and even to the Moon. They’ve depicted record-breaking endeavors and death-defying exploits, such as walking a high-wire between the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center. Most recently, Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, the directors of Everest: The Other Side, deservedly won the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature with Free Solo, a film depicting a historic rope-free climb that was thought to be impossible.

Almost 50 years earlier, Yuichiro Miura conquered another first by pioneering the idea of skiing on Mount Everest. Not to be confused with much later achievements by Davo Karničar or Jim Morrison — the latter the main subject of Everest: The Other Side, as the first person to ski the more dangerous North Face of the mountain. Miura tackled the South Col, accompanied by a team including several film technicians and the cinematographer Mitsuji Kanau. While we celebrate the cinematography of today that at least can depend on the ease and accessibility of GoPros, drones, and other modern advancements in mobile filmmaking, Kanau and the other cameramen on board Miura’s mission had to manage with the larger, heavier equipment of the time to capture the adventure and sport of it all in gorgeous CinemaScope.

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Between the awards and box office success for You Can See Everything, I’m really happy for Lance Oppenheim. At the same time, I feel like the ‘90s teenage version of me who would get annoyed at the sudden popularity of bands I liked for years. Oppenheim isn’t going to be this little secret for me anymore. I have to share him with more people than have probably seen a documentary in a theater in decades. But I am glad these people might now discover his previous films, including Some Kind of Heaven, which just began streaming for free with ads on Tubi and Fandango.

There is also some concern that Oppenheim will leave documentary behind. You Can See Everything is a bit different from his other nonfiction features, and some critics claim it isn’t even a documentary (they’re wrong, of course). Oppenheim also recently directed the drama Primetime, which has given him additional success and promise in the “narrative feature” arena. But how sad would it be if he’s the one to, as many pundits predict, finally have a documentary nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars and then leave nonfiction cinema behind? I don’t think that will happen. I hope not.

Speaking of my favorite documentarians doing other things, I’ve been wanting to share Don Argott’s side hustle for a while (and no, I’m not being paid to mention this). It’s an apparel brand called Depressed Heroes, and it’s focused on music and movie t-shirts. Some designs feature clever mashups for fans of both. The only documentary represented is Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker’s Apocalypse (eventually I’d love for Nonfics to make classic doc tees if anyone wants to help us figure that out). Most of the film-focused shirts involve New Hollywood auteurs, ‘80s teen movies, ‘90s indie directors, or horror. The last of which is perfect for Halloween, of course. He’s got a sale on horror apparel for the season, so check that out now.

Below are this week’s documentary highlights, followed by daily listings for all known releases and broadcasts, along with a brief look at what’s coming soon for doc fans (including the latest from Ron Howard). Please consider becoming a paid subscriber for more in-depth highlights and reviews, plus full access to special posts like our best-of lists, and to give me more time to watch more (if not everything) available. If you have an upcoming documentary needing coverage or a mention, reach us at nonficseditor (at) gmail and let us know its release plans.

Nonfics Pick Of The Week: The Eyes Of Ghana (2025)

Ben Proudfoot is best known for his prolific work directing short documentaries, including Oscar winners The Queen of Basketball and The Last Repair Shop and Oscar nominee A Concerto Is a Conversation. One of his latest, The Baddest Speechwriter of All, was just nominated for a Critics Choice Award and is considered a strong contender in this year’s Academy Awards race. He also has The Eyes of Ghana in contention. It’s not his feature debut, but given it’s been a decade since his only other feature, Rwanda & Juliet, and he’s made so many shorts in that time, it may as well be. It also ought to be his breakout feature, and deserves to be.

Here is an excerpt from our review of The Eyes of Ghana published after its festival premiere last year (and which is quoted in the trailer shared above):

“With The Last Repair Shop, Proudfoot and Bowers gave us a love letter to music education. His and Thrash’s The Turnaround is a love letter to sports fandom. Now he has made a love letter to the power of cinema. If you’re not familiar with Proudfoot’s work, your expectations for The Eyes of Ghana may differ. It’s not a deep examination of post-colonial Ghana, nor a history lesson about its first prime minister, Kwame Nkrumah. It’s not even the complete story of the discovery of a treasure trove of surviving films that had been thought destroyed after Nkrumah’s government was overthrown by the military. All of those things are part of the documentary, but as firstly a portrait of 93-year-old Ghanaian filmmaker Chris Hesse, it’s a lighter affair than, say, Concerning Violence or even Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat.”

The Eyes of Ghana will be released in theaters on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, for a limited time, via IShowSpeed.

Other Documentary Highlights

Closure (2026) & Making Marie Antoinette (2026)

These two new releases couldn’t be more different in their subject matter (though both involve a parent-child relationship). But in my attempt to consolidate, I’m grouping them because they’re both tedious watches, for different reasons. Closure, the latest from All These Sleepless Nights director Michal Marczak, follows a father relentlessly searching a river for the body of his missing teenage son. It’s repetitive and seems to go nowhere until a contrasting search gives us a greater understanding of the tedium we’ve experienced.

Critics Choice nominee Making Marie Antoinette, the final making-of feature by Hearts of Darkness director Eleanor Coppola, emphasizes the tiresome routine of moviemaking as it follows the production of daughter Sofia Coppola’s Marie Antoinette. Having been on many a set, I can attest that it’s a faithful representation — tedious, yes, but never dull if you’re like me and can never get enough. Also, Diane Lane provides a wonderful voiceover reading of Eleanor Coppola’s filming diary.

Closure will be released theatrically in New York City on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, via 1-2 Special, ahead of a national rollout.

Making Marie Antoinette will be released in theaters nationwide on Friday, October 23, via Mubi, ahead of its debut on the streaming service.

The One About Matthew Perry (2026) & Paralyzed By Hope: The Maria Bamford Story (2026)

Another grouping for this week highlights two new Netflix celebrity biographies, both of which see their subjects in and out of institutions for their mental health disorders. The One About Matthew Perry is a three-part docuseries about the titular actor best known for the sitcom Friends and secondarily known for his struggles with addiction. I can’t say more since reviews are embargoed until its release date.

Paralyzed by Hope: The Maria Bamford Story, the second documentary from Judd Apatow on the life of a comedian in as many weeks, is about the titular performer. She is known for her stand-up bits and television specials and series addressing and poking fun at her own diagnoses of OCD and bipolar II disorder. Apatow directed Paralyzed by Hope with Neil Berkeley, who also just recently put out another comedian biography with Who Is Martin Mull? on Netflix. This is one of the best from both of them, as they together and separately continue to elevate the genre with hilarious, moving, and compelling stories that are never stale in their structures.

The One About Matthew Perry will premiere and begin streaming exclusively on Netflix on Tuesday, October 27, 2026.

Paralyzed by Hope: The Maria Bamford Story will premiere and begin streaming exclusively on Netflix on Friday, October 23, 2026.

When We Were Kings (1996)

One of the first articles published on Nonfics for its launch in September 2013 was our first Documentary Classics column, spotlighting Leon Gast’s When We Were Kings. More than 13 years later, this week the film is celebrating the 30th anniversary of its release. Following its premiere at Sundance that January, it opened theatrically on October 25, 1996. That was 20 years after Gast had originally intended to put out the documentary, which would have been more of a concert film focused on the three-day Zaire 74 event. Instead, it wound up being about the simultaneous boxing match between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman called “The Rumble in the Jungle.” When We Were Kings also went on to win the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature and remains one of the most memorable Oscar-winning docs of the 1990s.

Here is an excerpt from our column reviewing When We Were Kings and its legacy:

“By the time Gast settled a legal battle for the footage, struggled to find money to finish it, and finally had a premiere at the 1996 Sundance Film Festival, the documentary still featured Foreman as a secondary character. However, the fight was now the main event. And Ali was the main concentration. Whether he’s the main character is another story. It’s certainly about him, but I might argue that Norman Mailer and George Plimpton are the stars of When We Were Kings as much as Ali is. The two writers are among the five talking heads who were interviewed for the film in the ’90s (Spike Lee is another), and at one point, they provide a rat-a-tat-tat telling and analysis of the bout’s climax that is even more captivating than the boxer’s poetic showboating that makes up much of the earlier-shot material. Meanwhile, the concert acts, including James Brown, B.B. King, and The Spinners, are almost relegated to tertiary status.”

When We Were Kings is currently available to stream on HBO Max with a subscription, and for free with ads on Shout! TV and JustWatch.

William Greaves Documentaries

Once Upon a Time in Harlem, which William Greaves conceived and filmed more than 50 years ago, was completed by his son, David Greaves, this year and was released in theaters last week courtesy of Neon. Timed to that occasion and his centenary (100th birthday) earlier this month, NYC’s Film Forum is hosting a one-week retrospective of the elder Greaves’s work. Some of the screenings will be presented by his granddaughter, Liani Greaves, who was also a producer on Once Upon a Time in Harlem. Most of the films are unavailable to stream at home, so if you can, definitely check out them out on the big screen. For those that are available, I recommend anyone incapable of getting to Film Forum watch along at home.

The series begins with William Greaves’s most famous and pioneering documentary, the brilliantly constructed, ahead-of-its-time, National Film Registry-selected 1968 feature Symbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take One (now streaming on The Criterion Channel). Also screening on the first day is Nationtime (now streaming on Kanopy), on the 1972 National Black Political Convention, the 1986 medium-length film Black Power in America: Myth…or Reality?, and the 1974 short From These Roots. On Saturday, you can find his early shorts Putting It Straight (now streaming for free on the National Film Board of Canada website) and Smoke and Weather (also on the NFB website), plus Still a Brother: Inside the Negro Middle Class (now streaming for free via the American Archive of Public Broadcasting), In the Company of Men, and the shorts The First World Festival of Negro Arts and Wealth of a Nation (now on YouTube via the U.S. National Archives).

Sunday offers the first showings in the series of Greaves’s 2001 biographical feature Ralph Bunche: An American Odyssey (now streaming on Kanopy), while Monday brings the sequel/remake Symbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take 2 1/2 (now streaming on The Criterion Channel), the short You’ve Got a Number, and the medium-length In the Company of Men follow-up The Deep North. On Tuesday, you can see Voice of La Raza. On Wednesday, you can see Frederick Douglass: An American Life (also on YouTube via the U.S. National Archives) and Booker T. Washington: The Life and the Legacy (also on YouTube via the U.S. National Archives). And on Thursday, you can see the shorts Where Dreams Come True (also on YouTube via the U.S. National Archives) and Space for Women (also on YouTube via the U.S. National Archives).

The retrospective also includes films in which Greaves is an actor (such as Lost Boundaries, Souls of Sin, and Miracle in Harlem) and documentaries that he edited, such as Stanley Jackson’s short Profile of a Problem Drinker and Terence Macartney-Filgate’s short Blood and Fire (also now streaming on the NFB website). For those in New York City, Once Upon a Time in Harlem will also be screening for free this Saturday and Sunday at a few theaters in Manhattan, presented by Mayor Zohran Mamdani.

William Greaves 100 begins on Friday, October 23, 2026, and runs through Thursday, October 29, 2026.

Awards Highlights

Cinema Eye Honors Unforgettables & Broadcast Nominees

The first nominees and honorees for the 2027 Cinema Eye Honors were announced last week, including the contenders for its broadcast documentary categories. Among the features and series recognized there are Bang My Box: The Robin Byrd Story (now streaming on HBO Max), Mr. Scorsese (Apple TV), The Yogurt Shop Murders (HBO Max), Trust Me: The False Prophet (Netflix), Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time (Hulu), Katrina: Come Hell or High Water (Netflix), The Man Will Burn (HBO Max), Critical Incident: Death at the Border (HBO Max), Breakdown: 1975 (Netflix), and Earth, Wind & Fire: To Be Celestial vs. That’s the Weight of the World (HBO Max).

This year’s Unforgettables include the subjects and participants of the documentaries American Doctor (now in theaters), Ask E. Jean (VOD), A Fox Under a Pink Moon, Give Me the Ball!, Steal This Story, Please! (VOD), and One in a Million (now in theaters). The Cinema Eye Honors also shared their longlist for the Audience Choice Prize, which includes You Can See Everything (in theaters), The History of Concrete (in theaters), The Bend in the River, Cookie Queens (VOD), The Cycle of Love (in theaters), Time and Water (Disney+ and Hulu), NAZA (in theaters), Everybody to Kenmure Street (in theaters), Wild Inside (in theaters), and Once Upon a Time in Harlem. They also unveiled the shortlist for shorts, which includes A Derailment, La Tierra del Valor (The Home of the Brave) (streaming online via the Los Angeles Times), They’re Here, and Bill Morrison’s Sawyer Avenue, Sunday Afternoon (now on YouTube via The New Yorker).

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Documentary Release Calendar 10/23/26 - 10/29/26

Friday, October 23, 2026

Agatha’s Almanac - A documentary feature about a 90-year-old woman and her devotion to her farm. Read our review. *NONFICS PICK* (OVID)

First We Bombed New Mexico (2023) - A documentary feature about Indigenous and Latino Nuevomexicano people who have suffered from the radiation caused by the atomic bomb testing in New Mexico. (In Theaters)

The Gymnasts of Fisherman Colony (2026) - A documentary feature about girl gymnasts in Pakistan. (In Theaters)

Making Marie Antoinette (2026) - A Critics Choice-nominated making-of documentary directed by Eleanor Coppola about her daughter Sofia’s 2006 film Maria Antoinette. See our highlights section for more info and a brief review. (In Theaters)

Nuns vs. the Vatican (2025) - A documentary feature about nuns who expose the priests who abused them. (In Theaters)

Paralyzed by Hope: The Maria Bamford Story (2026) - A documentary feature directed by Judd Apatow (Mel Brooks: The 99 Year Old Man!) and Neil Berkeley (Gilbert) about the titular comedian. See our highlights section for more info and a brief review. *NONFICS PICK* (Netflix)

Pasión (2026) - A documentary about what soccer means to Mexico. (In Theaters)

The Unbelievable with Dan Aykroyd Season 4, Episode 4: “Astonishing Beings” - The latest installment of a docuseries about mysterious and bizarre people and things. (History)

Saturday, October 24, 2026

48 Hours Season 40, Episode 3: “What the Cameras Saw” - The latest installment of an investigative documentary series. (CBS)

Austin City Limits Season 52, Episode 8: “Red Clay Strays” - The latest installment of a long-running music series. (PBS)

Earth Odyssey with Dylan Dreyer Season 9, Episode 4: “A High-Climbing Adventure” - The latest installment of an adventure series that takes viewers to exotic locations. (NBC)

Heathens (2026) - A documentary about five strangers who have lost their religious faith as they gather at a mountain retreat. (In Theaters)

Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom Protecting the Wild Season 4, Episode 4: “Weird and Wonderful” - The latest installment of a nature series focused on wildlife conservation. This episode involves animals specific to Australia, including cassowaries, echidnas, and platypuses. (NBC)

Prosecuting Evil with Kelly Siegler Season 3, Episode 4: “Triangle of Guilt” - The latest installment of a true-crime docuseries involving murder trials in Texas. (Oxygen)

Super Animals Season 4, Episode 10 - The latest installment of a nature docuseries for kids about animals with special traits. This episode involves jungle animals including jaguars, pythons, monkeys, and toucans. (National Geographic)

Sunday, October 25, 2026

Catfish Murders Season 1, Episode 2: “A Hopeless Romantic” - The latest installment of a true-crime series about murders involving catfish scenarios. (Oxygen)

A Course Called Ireland (2026) - A six-part docuseries starring Bill Murray as he tours golf courses in Ireland. (Paramount+)

Late Night Law Season 2, Episode 7 & 8 “Neck Chair” & “Running with Warrants” - The latest installments of a docuseries that follows law enforcement during the night shift. (A&E)

Snapped: Killer Moms Season 1, Episode 2: “Cynthia Cdebaca” - The latest installment of a true-crime docuseries about mothers who kill to protect or avenge their children. (Oxygen)

Warren Miller’s Days Off (2026) - A documentary that showcases professional skiers on their days off. (In Theaters)

The Wolves of Real Estate: The Alexander Brothers (2026) - A docuseries about three brothers, their ascent in the world of luxury real estate and private security, and their convictions for sex trafficking. (Peacock)

Monday, October 26, 2026

Harlan Coben’s Final Twist Season 2, Episode 4: “Caught on Camera” - The latest installment of a true-crime docuseries exposing shocking murders and scandals. This episode involves a couple shot dead in a crashed car. (CBS and Paramount+)

Pati Jinich Explores Panamericana Season 2, Episode 1: “Montana & Wyoming -- Small Acts, Wide Ripples” - The latest installment of a docuseries starring the titular chef about Pan-American food, culture, and history. (PBS)

Seeds (2025) - A documentary feature about Black generational farmers in Georgia. Presented as an episode of Independent Lens. Read our review. *NONFICS PICK* (PBS)

A Well-Spent Life (1971) - A medium-length documentary by Les Blank and Skip Gerson about blues singer and guitarist Mance Lipscomb. *NONFICS PICK* (TCM)

Tuesday, October 27, 2026

40 Watts from Nowhere (2025) - A documentary about an independent FM station in Los Angeles in the 1990s. (Blu-ray)

Fools’ Paradise (lost?) (2024) - A documentary feature about the healing power of the natural world. (DVD)

In Pursuit: Lessons of American Leadership (2026) - A documentary special about what can be learned from the past to make for a better America. (PBS)

Kordell Stewart / Slash & Burn (2026) - A short documentary about NFL quarterback Kordell Stewart and a rumor that followed him for decades. (HBO and HBO Max)

Le Joli Mai (The Lovely Month of May) (1963) - A documentary feature by Chris Marker and Pierre Lhomme about Paris in 1962 after the ceasefire with Algeria. Read our essay on the film. *NONFICS PICK* (Blu-ray)

Magical Universe (2013) - A documentary about the artist Al Carbee. (DVD and Blu-ray)

Megadoc (2025) - A documentary feature by Mike Figgis about the making of Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis. Read our review. (Blu-ray)

The One About Matthew Perry (2026) - A three-part docuseries about the titular actor. See our highlights section for more info. (Netflix)

Scary Stories (2018) - A documentary feature about the Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark book series. Read our review. (Blu-ray)

Wednesday, October 28, 2026

Blind AF (2024) - A feature-length documentary about a blind Paralympic champion attempting a record-breaking cross-country bike ride. (Prime Video)

Closure (2026) - A documentary feature by Michal Marczak (All These Sleepless Nights) that follows a man as he searches for his missing son. See our highlights section for more info and a brief review. (In Theaters)

The Eyes of Ghana (2025) - A documentary feature by two-time Oscar-winning director Ben Proudfoot (The Queen of Basketball; The Last Repair Shop) about filmmaker Chris Hesse and his nearly lost coverage of post-colonial Africa. See our highlights section for more info and a link to our review. *NONFICS PICK* (In Theaters)

Ghost Adventures Season 31, Episode 5: “Mountain Meadows Massacre” - The latest installment of a docuseries following paranormal investigators. (Discovery Channel)

Hanging By a Wire (2026) - A documentary feature about the rescue operation to save a group of students trapped in a cable car high above a valley. Read our review. (Paramount+)

Nature Season 45, Episode 3: “Tiger Island” - The latest installment of a nature series. This episode continues to involve tigers. (PBS)

Nova Season 53, Episode 15: “Evolution: Bodybuilders” - The third installment of a five-part series within Nova about evolution on Earth over billions of years. This episode looks at the evolution of body shapes and sizes. (PBS)

Ozzy & Black Sabbath: Back To The Beginning (2025) - A concert film starring Ozzy Osborne and his band Black Sabbath. (In Theaters)

Pati Jinich Explores Panamericana Season 2, Episode 2: “New Mexico & Colorado -- Life Along the Rio” - The latest installment of a docuseries starring the titular chef about Pan-American food, culture, and history. (PBS)

Thursday, October 29, 2026

After The First 48 Season 13, Episode 2: “No Road Home” - The latest installment of a true-crime docuseries about murder cases attempted to be solved in the first 48 hours. This episode involves a woman gunned down on the side of the road. (A&E)

Archive X: Unexplained Phenomena Season 1, Episode 5: “Near Death Experience” - The latest installment of a docuseries that explores prophetic dreams, ESP, near-death experiences, alien encounters, and messages from beyond. (Sundance Channel)

Black Cats and Broomsticks (1955) - A short documentary about superstitions, personal rituals, taboos, and talismans. (TCM - Technically airing early Friday morning.)

George Hall and His Orchestra (1937) - A short music film featuring performances by the titular group. (TCM - Technically airing early Friday morning.)

Killer Investigations Season 2, Episode 2: “The Missing Mom” - The latest installment of a true-crime series about the country’s most gripping homicide cases. (A&E)

MGM Parade Show #13 (1955) - This installment of the Hollywood-focused docuseries showcases the MGM films The Great Waltz and I’ll Cry Tomorrow. (TCM)

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Sneak Peek At What’s Coming Soon

10/30 - Paging Hezbollah - A documentary feature about Israel’s use of electronic devices, including pagers, in attacks against Hezbollah. (In Theaters)

11/4 - Taken: Natalee Holloway - A three-part true crime docuseries about the 2005 disappearance of the titular teenager during her high school graduation trip to Aruba. Watch the new trailer for the series below. (Netflix)

11/6 - Kratom: Side Effects May Include - A documentary feature about the titular substance known as “gas station heroin.” (VOD)

11/6 - Wolves Up Close with Bertie Gregory - A nature documentary special about wolves. (National Geographic)

11/8 - The Biggest Little Farm Series - A 12-part docuseries sequel to the film The Biggest Little Farm that continues the story of the Chester farm. Watch the new trailer for the series below. (YouTube)

11/10 - We Chose to Go to the Moon - A live documentary about America’s mission to go to the Moon. (PBS)

11/11 - Avedon - A Critics Choice-nominated biographical documentary feature by Ron Howard (Pavarotti) about the photographer Richard Avedon. Watch the new trailer for the film below. *NONFICS PICK* (Netflix)

11/13 - Expedition: Saving Our Seas - A medium-length documentary special about the impact of rapid environmental change on the world’s oceans. (National Geographic)

11/16 - Crime and Punishment in America - A four-part docuseries directed by Lynn Novick (The U.S. and the Holocaust), executive produced by Ken Burns and Sam Pollard, and narrated by Keith David about the history of the American criminal justice system. Watch the trailer for the series below. (PBS).

11/27 - 14th - A Critics Choice-documentary feature by Ava DuVernay (13th) about the 14th Amendment. *NONFICS PICK* (In Theaters)

12/6 - Lucy Worsley’s Keys to the Castle - A four-part docuseries that spotlights four of Europe’s most iconic castles. (PBS)

This is a big week for documentary releases. I would love to highlight all of the notable newcomers, including The Disciple, which was one of my most anticipated films of the year, and the Mariana van Zeller-led Super Scam Me. But I only have room for a handful that I have seen and highly recommend. I also think this would be a great week to highlight I…

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Judd Apatow seems to have a monopoly on documentaries about comedians. He has also been very busy this year, helming three docs, including the previously released Mel Brooks: The 99 Year Old Man!, and producing more (I keep thinking he was also involved in others that he has one degree of separation from, like Who Is Martin Mull?). Norm: The Tale of Nor…

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Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim’s You Can See Everything is one of the greatest documentaries of all time. I hate to use such hyperbole for a film I’ve only recently seen just once, but I went in with high expectations after hearing similar praise and was still surprised at how good it is. Of course, “one of the greatest documentaries of all time” is…

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Here are the nominees for the 2026 Critics Choice Documentary Awards, the winners of which will be revealed in a live-streamed ceremony on November 8 (and where to watch the films and series right now):

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

• 14th (Coming to Netflix on December 4, 2026)

• Everest: The Other Side (Opening in Theaters on October 30, 2026)

• Everybody to Kenmure Street (Now in Theaters)

• The History of Concrete (Now in Theaters)

• Musk (Now in Theaters)

• NAZA (Now in Theaters)

• Once Upon a Time in Harlem (Opening in Theaters on October 16, 2026)

• Rehearsals for a Revolution (Opening in Theaters in January 2027 following an awards-qualifying run in December)

• Remake (Available on VOD)

• You Can See Everything (Opening in Theaters on October 16, 2026)

BEST DIRECTOR

• Yuval Abraham & Rachel Szor – NAZA (Now in Theaters)

• Felipe Bustos Sierra – Everybody to Kenmure Street (Now in Theaters)

• Ava DuVernay – 14th (Coming to Netflix on December 4, 2026)

• Nathan Fielder & Lance Oppenheim – You Can See Everything (Opening in Theaters on October 16, 2026)

• Ross McElwee – Remake (Available on VOD)

• Orlando von Einsiedel – The Cycle of Love (Now in Theaters)

BEST FIRST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

• David Greaves – Once Upon a Time in Harlem (Opening in Theaters on October 16, 2026)

• Baz Luhrmann – EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert (Available to Stream on Prime Video)

• Gabriela Osio Vanden & Jack Weisman – Nuisance Bear (Opening in Theaters on November 4, 2026)

• Xander Robin – The Python Hunt (Available on VOD)

• Poh Si Teng – American Doctor (Now in Theaters)

• John Wilson – The History of Concrete (Now in Theaters)

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

• David Bolen – You Can See Everything (Opening in Theaters on October 16, 2026)

• David Bolen & Matt Clegg – The Python Hunt (Available on VOD)

• Sophie Darlington – Lion (Available to Stream on Hulu)

• Franklin Dow – The Cycle of Love (Now in Theaters)

• Gabriela Osio Vanden & Jack Weisman – Nuisance Bear (Opening in Theaters on November 4, 2026)

• Clair Popkin, Jimmy Chin, Christopher Murphy – Everest: The Other Side (Opening in Theaters on October 30, 2026)

BEST EDITING

• Spencer Averick – 14th (Coming to Netflix on December 4, 2026)

• Anne de Mare & Lynn True – Once Upon a Time in Harlem (Opening in Theaters on October 16, 2026)

• Adam Locke-Norton – You Can See Everything (Opening in Theaters on October 16, 2026)

• Colin Monie – Everybody to Kenmure Street (Now in Theaters)

• Jonathan Redmond – EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert (Available to Stream on Prime Video)

• Cori Wapnowska – The History of Concrete (Now in Theaters)

BEST SCORE

• Ari Balouzian – You Can See Everything (Opening in Theaters on October 16, 2026)

• Dan Deacon – Time and Water (Available to Stream on Disney+ and Hulu)

• Caroline Ho – Everest: The Other Side (Opening in Theaters on October 30, 2026)

• Jason Moran – 14th (Coming to Netflix on December 4, 2026)

• Cristóbal Tapia de Veer – Nuisance Bear (Opening in Theaters on November 4, 2026)

• Hans Zimmer, Niccolò Pacella, George Hutson Warren – Lion (Available to Stream on Hulu)

BEST NARRATION

• The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist (Available to Stream on Netflix and Peacock)
  Written by Daniel Roher & Caroline Lindy
  Performed by Daniel Roher & Caroline Lindy

• The History of Concrete (Now in Theaters)
  Written by John Wilson
  Performed by John Wilson

• Lorne (Available to Stream on Netflix)
  Written by Morgan Neville, Alan Lowe, Jake Hostetter
  Performed by Chris Parnell

• Nuisance Bear (Opening in Theaters on November 4, 2026)
  Written by Mike Tunalaaq Gibbons
  Performed by Mike Tunalaaq Gibbons

• Rehearsals for a Revolution (Opening in Theaters in January 2027 following an awards-qualifying run in December)
  Written by Pegah Ahangarani
  Performed by Pegah Ahangarani

• Remake (Available on VOD)
  Written by Ross McElwee
  Performed by Ross McElwee

BEST ARCHIVAL DOCUMENTARY

• EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert (Available to Stream on Prime Video)

• Making Marie Antoinette (Coming to Mubi on November 6, 2026)

• Man on the Run (Available to Stream on Prime Video)

• Once Upon a Time in Harlem (Opening in Theaters on October 16, 2026)

• Rehearsals for a Revolution (Opening in Theaters in January 2027 following an awards-qualifying run in December)

• Remake (Available on VOD)

BEST HISTORICAL DOCUMENTARY

• 14th (Coming to Netflix on December 4, 2026)

• Once Upon a Time in Harlem (Opening in Theaters on October 16, 2026)

• Rehearsals for a Revolution (Opening in Theaters in January 2027 following an awards-qualifying run in December)

• SCTV: The Greatest Show You’ve Never Heard Of (Coming to Netflix on October 30, 2026)

• Soul Patrol (Opening in Theaters on November 6, 2026)

• Turning Point: Generation 9/11 (Available to Stream on Netflix)

BEST BIOGRAPHICAL DOCUMENTARY

• Avedon (Coming to Netflix on November 11, 2026)

• Jean-Michel Basquiat (Coming to Netflix on December 11, 2026)

• Lorne (Available to Stream on Netflix)

• Marty, Life Is Short (Available to Stream on Netflix)

• Mel Brooks: The 99 Year Old Man! (Available to Stream on HBO Max)

• Musk (Now in Theaters)

BEST MUSIC DOCUMENTARY

• Earth, Wind & Fire (To Be Celestial vs. That’s the Weight of the World) (Available to Stream on HBO Max)

• EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert (Available to Stream on Prime Video)

• Man on the Run (Available to Stream on Prime Video)

• Oasis: Don’t Look Back in Anger (Now in Theaters)

• Peter Asher: Everywhere Man (Available on VOD)

• Sara Bareilles: Good Grief (currently unavailable)

BEST POLITICAL DOCUMENTARY

• 14th (Coming to Netflix on December 4, 2026)

• American Doctor (Now in Theaters)

• Ask E. Jean (currently unavailable)

• Everybody to Kenmure Street (Now in Theaters)

• Musk (Now in Theaters)

• NAZA (Now in Theaters)

• Union Town (Coming to Theaters in December 2026)

BEST SCIENCE/NATURE DOCUMENTARY

• The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist (Available to Stream on Netflix and Peacock)

• Ghost Elephants (Available to Stream on Hulu)

• Lion (Available to Stream on Hulu)

• Nuisance Bear (Opening in Theaters on November 4, 2026)

• Secrets of the Bees (Available to Stream on Hulu)

• Time and Water (Available to Stream on Disney+ and Hulu)

BEST SPORTS DOCUMENTARY

• The Dynasty: UConn Huskies (Available to Stream on Apple TV)

• Everest: The Other Side (Opening in Theaters on October 30, 2026)

• Give Me the Ball! (Coming to ESPN on November 22, 2026)

• Rafa (Available to Stream on Netflix)

• Standout: The Ben Kjar Story (Available to Stream on Prime Video, Tubi, and Kanopy)

• Tyson (Coming Soon to Netflix)

BEST TRUE CRIME DOCUMENTARY

• Baby Doe (Available on VOD)

• Funny Money: The Dane Cook Story (Available on VOD)

• The Idaho Murders: College Nightmare (Available to Stream on Netflix)

• A Killer Story (Available to Stream on HBO Max)

• Lost Women of Alaska (Available to Stream on HBO Max)

• Murder in Glitterball City (Available to Stream on HBO Max)

BEST SHORT DOCUMENTARY

• The Baddest Speechwriter of All (Coming Soon to Netflix)

• A Derailment

• Escalation

• Miller Night Football (Available to Stream on HBO Max)

• Oh Whale

• The Second Life of Freddie Nole

• A Short Documentary About a Giant Pencil

• They’re Here

BEST LIMITED DOCUMENTARY SERIES

• 9/11: Reunited (Available to Stream on Hulu)

• The Dark Wizard (Available to Steam on HBO Max)

• The Dynasty: UConn Huskies (Available to Stream on Apple TV)

• High Horse: The Black Cowboy (Available to Stream on Peacock)

• Lion (Available to Stream on Hulu)

• The Man Will Burn (Available to Stream on HBO Max)

• Rafa (Available to Stream on Netflix)

BEST ONGOING DOCUMENTARY SERIES

• 30 for 30 (Available to Stream via ESPN)

• American Masters (Available to Stream via PBS)

• America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders (Available to Stream on Netflix)

• The Food That Built America (Available to Stream via History)

• Hazardous History with Henry Winkler (Available to Stream via History)

• Independent Lens (Available to Stream via PBS)

• Untold (Available to Stream on Netflix)

My favorite streaming service, even though I don’t use it the most, or even enough, is Kanopy. Every year, I travel to another county to pay for a non-resident public library card just so I have access to the service, which is otherwise supposed to be free. Most of their catalog is made up of titles available on major streaming services, but they’re als…

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As I enter the final quarter of the second year of Nonfics as a newsletter, I’m amazed at myself for never missing a week. There have definitely been times when I wondered about my ability to keep it up without missing a week here or there, whether because of other work commitments or family vacations, or burnout from watching so many documentaries, or …

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One of the scariest lines I’ve heard spoken in a movie in a long time (and I might be paraphrasing) comes early on in Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor’s sophomore documentary feature, NAZA: “Having AI decide who lives and dies is better than the person whose friend was killed by Hamas last week.” While there’s some truth to the fact that the latter option …

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Last week, I was off for a few days. While enjoying family time in a cabin in the mountains, a tree limb (or maybe two?) crashed through the roof and woke us all up in the middle of the night. We fled the rental and altered our brief holiday, and as we dealt with that, I didn’t get to all the screeners I’d hoped to during this brief break. Additionally,…

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This week’s documentary highlights are all essentially add-ons. The top pick is a series with its first new episodes in 23 years. Another we review is kind of a feature-length spinoff of a TV show. There’s also a concert film, a biography, and a historical feature that all feel like supplements to earlier documentaries. We also spotlight some older film…

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Don Siegel, the Hollywood journeyman director best known for helming Dirty Harry and the original Invasion of the Body Snatchers, never won an Oscar. He technically was never even nominated. Yet he began his directorial career with two short films that won Academy Awards in 1946. Warner Bros. staff producer Gordon Hollingshead received credit for the honors, which went to Siegel’s directorial debut, the drama Star in the Night, for Best Short Subject (Two-Reel), and to Hitler Lives, for Best Documentary (Short Subject). Hollingshead was also nominated that year for Best Short Subject (One-Reel) for the documentary Story of a Dog, which did not win.

Hitler Lives was certainly the easier production of the two for Siegel and Hollingshead, as it’s a slight reworking of a short documentary that already existed called Your Job in Germany. Written by Theodor “Dr. Seuss” Geisel and directed by Frank Capra, the original version was made for the United States War Department, for military eyes only. Warner Bros. acquired the rights to release the film to the public but had to give it a new name and change the narration and music (RKO did the same thing with Geisel and Capra’s Our Job in Japan for the Oscar-winning feature Design for Death, which I’ll write about in a future column). The studio also added a few new sequences.

The initial film’s purpose was to train soldiers heading to Allied-occupied Germany. Reminding viewers that the country’s leaders had already attempted grand imperial conquests in Europe three times over the last century, the documentary warned that a Fourth Reich could be around the corner. Americans sent to Germany were urged not to trust, let alone befriend, its citizens because they’re all a “potential source of trouble.” Youth were especially suspect due to the assumption that they were all brainwashed their whole lives by Nazi propaganda. But in general, it was thought safer for the U.S. to be cautious of all, disbelieving that a nation’s worth of people could suddenly change their allegiance after defeat, especially given Germany’s history.

While the whole film feels uncomfortably xenophobic and presumptuously fear-mongering, at that time it was probably effective in defending the occupation, particularly if it were meant to sell the idea of a longer stay than the one after World War I. Geisel and Capra argue that we were duped into thinking, “Why, these people are okay! It was just that Kaiser we had to get rid of.” Hollingshead and Siegel, with writer Saul Elkins, kept that line along with admitted recognition of Germany’s cultural supremacy, and then this segment: “We bit. We poured in our sympathy. We pulled out our armies. And they flung Chapter 3 in our faces.” The publicly sanctioned version removes a subsequent expletive but retains the sentiment of deja vu and a tease of a Chapter 4. “It can happen again,” the films suggest. Hitler Lives adds, “The voices of millions of dead cry out, ‘This time we must not have died in vain. This time Germany must not rise again.’”

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We begin this week with the 25th anniversary of 9/11, so I have to recommend the best documentaries on the attacks and their aftermath. Gédéon and Jules Naudet’s very quickly produced film 9/11 (co-directed with former FDNY firefighter James Hanlon) remains the most immersive look at the day’s events as they happened. Jim Whitaker’s Rebirth (available o…

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Coming up with original or unused titles must be one of the hardest parts of making a true-crime documentary. A Killer Story sounds a lot more generic than this three-part series really is, but it’s difficult to sum up the documentary in just a handful of words. The gist is that it centers around a double-homicide case in which a woman is accused of mur…

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It’s fall film festival season! This is a time I currently hate because I keep hearing about documentaries I have no way of seeing, and more importantly, neither do you. I also miss the days when I had the time and clout to attend several film festivals around the world, mostly on their dime (I could never really afford most of them). Now, due to family…

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Many documentarians, especially those prone to first-person narration, reach a point where they make a film about mortality. Maybe it’s because they get to a certain age, or they receive an unfortunate diagnosis, or a parent or other loved one dies. Or they have children — which I know from experience can really alter your sense of time — and film them …

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More documentaries need soundtrack album releases. I’m mostly talking about their original music scores. You can tell a studio knows it's got a great documentary score because it releases the album commercially. Looking at the winners of the Critics Choice Documentary Award for Best Score since its inception, all but (ironically) Jon Batiste’s American …

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I needed a positive documentary after a week of watching 9/11 commemorations, depressing political films on the current state of the world, and a handful of disappointments, and The Cycle of Love arrived just in time. It still brought me to tears, but out of joy. Directed by Orlando von Einsiedel (Oscar winner for The White Helmets and nominee for Virun…

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Once the Oscars began awarding two documentary-specific categories, the honored features and shorts could represent contrasting approaches to nonfiction cinema. There’s a big difference between telling a true story in a film lasting more than an hour versus doing so in less than 40 minutes (sometimes, as in the case of the 1944 winner December 7th, the disparity between a feature and short version of the same film is night and day). With a few years in the history of documentaries at the Oscars, the feature and short winners corresponded fairly well: in 1946, the two films dealt with the World War II victory over the Nazis; in 1983, both involved ballet schools; the two 1995 films focused on the Holocaust. In 1945, however, the duo of documentary Oscar winners, the feature-length The Fighting Lady and the short With the Marines at Tarawa, were a particularly perfect pair for their similarities and differences.

The two films depict parts of the Pacific Theater of World War II in full color, with the feature covering multiple battles over a year in the life of an aircraft carrier. The short offers a look at one battle not shown in The Fighting Lady — even though that film’s carrier, the USS Yorktown (CV-10), was involved — which took place within that time frame. If you wanted to watch the pair together and preferred to do so chronologically, you’d have to pause The Fighting Lady around the 26-minute mark, put on With the Marines at Tarawa for its entire 18-minute runtime, and then continue the remaining 36 minutes of the feature. I wouldn’t recommend that. The films go together much better sequentially. I prefer the way I watched them: The Fighting Lady before With the Marines at Tarawa, even though the latter was released 10 months earlier and could be considered on par with receiving bad news first.

The short film was famously graphic in its portrayal of the Battle of Tarawa, which the U.S. won but at a tremendous cost in terms of American lives lost. Later victories in the Pacific saw more casualties, but this one was more surprising in its toll and, in some respects, was deemed a failure the Allies had to quickly learn from if they were going to succeed in the long run. The documentary doesn’t shy away from the facts, from its opening statement that some of the men we see on screen “will be dead tomorrow” to its climactic montage of floating bodies, additional fallen men dotting the island, and confirmation that “these are Marines dead.” Earlier, the film’s narration (voiced by actor William Lundigan) acknowledges that the casualties at Tarawa are high, which notably contrasts with a line from The Fighting Lady (narrated by actor Robert Taylor) proudly asserting after one battle, “Our losses are astonishingly light.”

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