This Week In Documentary
Theatrical & Streaming Releases - New & Recommended - February 27-March 5, 2026
While looking up documentaries celebrating big anniversaries in March, I saw that the video of the Rodney King beating turns 35 on Tuesday. The video has its own IMDb listing, which made me wonder about other singular recordings that are so momentous that they’re considered documentaries on their own. The Zapruder film of the John F. Kennedy assassination is another. We could go back to the time of actuality films, but outside of certain early examples being historic simply for being new, none have the same significance. Similarly, today we have viral videos that might be eventful but not consequential. Perhaps the videos of the killings of Eric Garner and George Floyd fit this category. The latter does have an IMDb listing. I hate that all of these are so tragic. I also hate that they’re on a site where you can rate them.
Now, 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. Please consider becoming a paid subscriber to receive more in-depth highlights and reviews in the future, plus full access to special posts like our best of and most anticipated lists, and to give me more time to watch more (if not everything) available. If you have a doc in need of coverage or a mention, you can reach me at christopherbartoncampbell (at) gmail.
Nonfics Pick Of The Week: Man On The Run (2025)
Not only do Elvis Presley and The Beatles continue to be viable film subjects, but their latest documentaries are among the best of the year. The previous Pick of the Week, EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert, is my number one for films released so far in 2026, and Man on the Run is a close second. The latter, helmed by Oscar-winning director Morgan Neville (20 Feet From Stardom), focuses specifically on one Beatle, Paul McCartney, following a decade in his life and career after the breakup of the Fab Four, and the formation of his next group, Wings. I wish I’d had more to say in my review of Man on the Run, but it’s one of those documentaries that’s near flawless enough to elicit few critical words, positive or negative. Here’s an excerpt:
“I may seem biased in my favor toward all-archival documentaries (though this isn’t technically one since it has a few newly shot bits and original animation). But it’s the best way to take the audience back, rather than having them look retrospectively through the points of view of its participants. Man on the Run isn’t a history of Wings, nor is it, thankfully, the sort of documentary where music critics and famous fans tell us why the band was great. It’s a story, played as it’s unfolding, of a man in heartache and in love, working out the next chapter of his life. If you appreciated Neville’s all-archival first half of Steve! (martin), a documentary in 2 pieces more than the second part, you should understand and enjoy what makes Man on the Run work so well.”
Man on the Run (a.k.a. Paul McCartney: Man on the Run) begins streaming exclusively on Prime Video on Friday, February 27, 2026.
Other Documentary Highlights
A Body To Live In (2025)
The artist Fakir Musafar gets the biographical documentary treatment with A Body to Live In, which will appeal to the kink culture crowd and fans of his pioneering work promoting piercing and other extreme body modification. While I don’t expect a lot of viewers to give it a look, I did find the film’s section on the AIDS crisis and the address of the modern primitivism movement’s cultural appropriation issue interesting beyond the stuff that I didn’t relate to or agree with. A Body to Live In also fits in well with the highlighted works of Monika Treut below, especially the ones that also feature artist and sexologist Annie Sprinkle.
A Body to Live In opens in Los Angeles on Friday, February 27, 2026, and in New York City on Wednesday, March 3, 2026.
Disaster: The Chernobyl Meltdown (2026)
The 40th anniversary of the Chernobyl disaster is coming up in April. That means it’s time for a bunch of historical documentaries commemorating the event with a mix of archival footage, firsthand testimony, and expert hindsight. Surprisingly, I haven’t heard of anything arriving soon from Netflix, but this week, we get a four-part series via CNN Originals and National Geographic. Disaster: The Chernobyl Meltdown is your standard look back at what, when, and how, but for the (unproven) why of it all, I recommend chasing it down with the stunningly brilliant 2015 documentary feature The Russian Woodpecker, available to stream on Kanopy.
Disaster: The Chernobyl Meltdown premieres its first two episodes on CNN on Sunday, March 1, with the final installments debuting one week later.
EPiC: Elvis Presley In Concert (2025)
Baz Luhrmann’s second Elvis film, which I mentioned above as being the best documentary release of 2026 so far, gets a bump down in the highlights section this week for two reasons. One is that EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert was already Pick of the Week in the last edition, and the other is that seeing it in IMAX was your best way to watch it. Fortunately, you can still see it in theaters, but not on the biggest screens.
EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert will be released on conventional cinema screens on Friday, February 27, 2026.
Ghost Elephants (2025)
Werner Herzog teams up with and spotlights another passionate scientific figure in Ghost Elephants. This feature, narrated by Herzog in his signature manner, follows naturalist Steve Boyes in his quest to prove the existence of an isolated herd of elephants in the Angola highlands. Is it an impossible dream, or is there more to the quest than a simple confirmation? Herzog packs the film with broader themes of ancestral history, man’s relationship to and threat to nature, and the filmmaker’s usual contemplations of mystical and mythical truth. It’s not a documentary where an answer is important within the narrative, nor is a point necessary to be gleaned, but it gives audiences a lot to feel and think about along the way.
Ghost Elephants will be released in theaters on Friday, February 27, 2026, ahead of its March 7 broadcast premiere on National Geographic and March 8 streaming release on Disney+ and Hulu.
Lou Reed: Berlin (2007)
The same year he made the powerful biopic The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, painter turned filmmaker Julian Schnabel gave us his only documentary, the underrated concert film Lou Reed: Berlin. Here’s an excerpt from my 2008 review of what was then released as Lou Reed’s Berlin with instructions from Lou Reed himself to play it at concert-level volume:
“Of course, this isn’t the kind of film that’s meant to be too notable for how artfully it’s shot. What’s more important is how well the concert is documented, as Reed and his backers are the real attraction. Fortunately, Schnabel’s camera operators (including Kuras and award-winning DP Declan Quinn) and his editor, Benjamin Flaherty, manage to show us everything we want and need to see as a concert attendee.”
Lou Reed: Berlin is currently available to stream for free on Fandango at Home. The film will begin streaming on The Criterion Channel on Sunday, March 1, 2026.
Mr. Nobody Against Putin (2025)
If The Perfect Neighbor has seemed like a shoo-in for the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature Film this year, one particular nominee could prove to be an upset come March 15. David Borenstein and Pavel Talankin’s Mr. Nobody Against Putin, which also ranks higher on our list of the best documentaries of 2025, just won the BAFTA Film Award for Best Documentary over Geeta Gandbhir’s odds-favorite. I’m anxious to see which one wins the PGA Award this weekend (I can’t imagine it’d be anything else). No other documentary has been as big an awards contender this season, save for 2000 Meters to Andriivka, yet that film was wrongfully denied a nomination by the Academy.
Mr. Nobody Against Putin is currently available to rent digitally via Amazon, Apple, and Fandango at Home.
Monika Treut Documentaries
Queer cinema icon Monika Treut is one of the directors showcased by The Criterion Channel in March, with documentaries making up more than half of the curated titles. Most of these involve trans subjects, at least partially. Her short film Max profiles trans writer Max Wolf Valerio, who is also one of four figures spotlighted in the otherwise unavailable anthology feature Female Misbehavior. Her other new additions include Gendernauts: A Journey Through Shifting Identities, which shows the lives of trans and intersex individuals in San Francisco, including Valerio, and its sorta sequel Genderation, which revisits the subjects of the earlier documentary. The fifth documentary in the program is Didn’t Do It For Love, about actress, sex therapist, and dominatrix Eva Norvind.
Max is currently available to stream on The Criterion Channel. Didn’t Do It For Love is currently available on Cineverse and will begin streaming on The Criterion Channel on Sunday, March 1, 2026. Female Misbehavior, Gendernauts: A Journey Through Shifting Identities, and Genderation begin streaming exclusively on The Criterion Channel on Sunday, March 1, 2026.
perfectly a strangeness (2024)
One of the last two Oscar-nominated documentary short films that have been unavailable except for the current theatrical program, perfectly a strangeness makes its streaming debut this week. The film follows three donkeys around a seemingly abandoned astrononimical observatory in Chile. In my ranking of the nominees in its category, I wrote, “It ranks so high for me partly because it’s so unique. I’ll admit that any or every idea it communicates is rather shallow, but the effort has some originality, and the film looks and sounds amazing.”
perfectly a strangeness begins streaming exclusively on The Criterion Channel on Sunday, March 1, 2026.
William Klein And Ja’Tovia Gary Documentaries
Two more filmmakers showcased on The Criterion Channel in March keep the Black History going beyond the brief month of February. William Klein was not Black, but his two nonfiction films joining the streaming platform, Eldridge Cleaver, Black Panther and Muhammad Ali, the Greatest, fall under the Black History umbrella. The African-American artist and filmmaker Ja’Tovia Gary makes comparatively more experimental archival documentaries that represent her Black feminist interests, especially with The Giverny Document and Quiet as It’s Kept, which are partly about what it’s like to be a Black woman. Her shorter An Ecstatic Experience deals with African-American oppression and incorporates archival footage of actress Ruby Dee. The Gary showcase makes a good transition between Black History Month and Women’s History Month.
William Klein’s Eldridge, Cleaver, Black Panther and Muhammad Ali, the Greatest and Ja’Tovia Gary’s The Giverny Documenty, Quiet as It’s Kept, and An Ecstatic Experience all begin streaming exclusively on The Criterion Channel on Sunday, March 1, 2026.
Documentary Release Calendar 2/27/26 - 3/5/26
Friday, February 27, 2026
EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert (2025) - A documentary feature directed by Baz Luhrmann starring Elvis as he returns to the stage in his later years. Read our review of EPiC: Elvis Presley in Theaters. *NONFICS PICK* (In Theaters)
Final Siren: Inside the AFL (2026) - A docuseries following stars of the Australian Football League. (Prime Video)
Formula 1: Drive to Survive Season 8 - The return of a hit racing docuseries with 10 new episodes. (Netflix)
Ghost Elephants (2025) - A documentary feature directed and narrated by Werner Herzog about a mysterious and elusive herd of elephants in Angola. Read our capsule review of Ghost Elephants above. *NONFICS PICK* (In Theaters)
Man on the Run (2025) - A documentary directed by Morgan Neville (Piece by Piece) about Paul McCartney post-Beatles as he formed the band Wings. Read our review of Man on the Run. *NONFICS PICK* (Prime Video)
Monsterquest Season 5, Episode 8: “Sightings in the Sky” - The latest episode of a docuseries about strange creatures spotted around the world. (History)
Neighbors Episode 3: “Patch of Grass” - The third installment of a six-part docuseries executive-produced by Josh Safdie and Ronald Bronstein about outrageous conflicts between neighbors. Read our review of Neighbors. (HBO Max)
On The Line: Where Sacrifice Begins (2016) - A documentary about a long-running voluntary desegregation program in Boston. (OVID)
Space Cowboy (2024) - A documentary about stunt performer and cameraman Joe Jennings, who specializes in skydiving scenes. (In Theaters)
Water Trix (1949) - An Oscar-nominated Pete Smith Specialty short showcasing water skiers performing tricks. (TCM)
The White House Episodes 7 & 8: “The British Are Coming” & “Burning Down the House” - The latest installments of a docudrama series about scandals in the U.S. presidential residency. These episodes involve the War of 1812. (Fox Nation)
Saturday, February 28, 2026
Born to Be Wild 3D (2011) - A re-release of a short nature documentary about orphaned orangutans and elephants. (An IMAX Theatrical Event)
Buried in the Backyard Season 6, Episode 11: “Bones from the Flood” - The latest installment of a true-crime docuseries about the odd locations where murder victims were found. This episode involves a missing person and a dark family secret in a small town. (Oxygen True Crime)
Iyanla: The Inside Fix Season 1, Episode 7: “Authenticity is Sacred” - The latest installment of a nonfiction series that revisits Iyanla Vanzant’s show Fix My Life. (OWN)
Kingdom Season 1, Episode 6 - The sixth installment of a nature series narrated by Sir David Attenborough that follows rival families of leopards, hyenas, wild dogs, and lions. (AMC+ and BBC America)
Maxxed Out Season 1, Episode 8: “Great Cakes, Bad Habits” - The latest episode of a docuseries focused on people currently having financial troubles. (OWN)
Sunday, March 1, 2026
American Dharma (2018) - A documentary by Errol Morris about political strategist Steve Bannon. Read our review of American Dharma. (The Criterion Channel)
Didn’t Do It for Love (1997) - A documentary by Monika Treut about Norwegian sex therapist, writer, and dominatrix Eva Norvind. (The Criterion Channel)
Disaster: The Chernobyl Meltdown Episodes 1 & 2 - The first half of a four-part docuseries commemorating the 40th anniversary of the Chernobyl disaster. (CNN)
An Ecstatic Experience (2015) - A short archival documentary by Ja’Tovia Gary focused on African-American oppression and resistance. (The Criterion Channel)
Eldridge Cleaver, Black Panther (1970) - A documentary by William Klein about the titular Black Panther leader. (The Criterion Channel)
Female Misbehavior (1992) - A documentary feature directed by Monika Treut consisting of four parts, spotlighting feminist academic Camille Paglia, sexologist and performing artist Annie Sprinkle, transgender poet Max Wolf Valerio, and a sadomasochist named Carol. (The Criterion Channel)
Genderation (2021) - A documentary feature directed by Monika Treut that looks back at trans culture at the turn of the century. (The Criterion Channel)
Gendernauts: A Journey Through Shifting Identities (1999) - A documentary feature directed by Monika Treut focused on the lives of several transgender individuals in San Francisco. (The Criterion Channel)
The Giverny Document (2019) - A short documentary by Ja’Tovia Gary on the safety and physical integrity of Black women. (The Criterion Channel)
History’s Greatest Picks with Mike Wolfe Season 1, Episode 2: “Bad Money” - The second installment of a docuseries about legendary treasures, relics, and artifacts from history. (History)
Lou Reed: Berlin (2007) - A concert film directed by Julian Schnabel starring Lou Reed. Read our review of Lou Reed: Berlin. *NONFICS PICK* (The Criterion Channel)
Muhammad Ali, the Greatest (1974) - A documentary by William Klein about the titular boxer. (The Criterion Channel)
Oh Yeah! (2025) - A short documentary about the music duo Yello and their iconic song “Oh Yeah.” (The Criterion Channel)
perfectly a strangeness (2024) - An Oscar-nominated short documentary following three donkeys around an abandoned astronomical observatory in Chile. Read our review of perfectly a strangeness. *NONFICS PICK* (The Criterion Channel)
Quiet as It’s Kept (2023) - A short nonfiction film directed by Ja’Tovia Gary on the themes of Toni Morrison's book The Bluest Eye, including the solidarity of Black women. (The Criterion Channel)
The Storms of Jeremy Thomas (2021) - A documentary feature by Mark Cousins about the titular film producer. (The Criterion Channel)
Videoheaven (2025) - A documentary by Alex Ross Perry narrated by Maya Hawke about the importance of video stores to film culture. (The Criterion Channel)
Monday, March 2, 2026
120 Hours Behind Bars Season 1, Episode 7: “Butler County Jail” - The latest installment of a nonfiction series that looks at America’s toughest jails. (Discovery)
Fatal Attraction: I’d Kill to Be You Season 1, Episode 6: “Rundown by Rage” - The latest installment of a true-crime series about cases involving jealousy. (TV One)
History’s Deadliest with Ving Rhames Season 1, Episode 5: “Water’s Wrath” - The latest installment of a docuseries about history’s most devastating killers, weapons, battles, and disasters. (History)
Tuesday, March 3, 2026
928 Nukes! The Fallout Continues... (2025) - A documentary about the deadly effects of atomic bomb tests in Nevada from 1952 to 1992. (DVD and Blu-ray)
Anything You Want to Be (1972) - A short documentary by Liane Brandon on feminine identity. (OVID)
Beam Me Up, Sulu (2025) - A documentary feature about a lost student fan film starring Star Trek’s George Takei. (Blu-ray)
Betty Tells Her Story (1972) - A short documentary by Liane Brandon on body image in our culture. (OVID)
The Big Johnson (2025) - A documentary feature about the life and tragic death of LGBTQI pioneer Dean Johnson. (DVD)
Dark Legacy (2009) - A documentary defending the conspiracy theory that George H.W. Bush was heavily involved in John F. Kennedy’s assassination. (DVD)
Endgame 2050 (2020) - A documentary feature starring Moby about impending ecological destruction. (DVD)
Equality U (2008) - A documentary feature about colleges with anti-gay policies and the activists protesting against them. (DVD)
Gandhi (2021) - A documentary feature about Mahatma Gandhi’s message of nonviolence. (DVD)
The Earthing Movie (2019) - A documentary about the healing power of standing barefoot on the earth. (DVD)
Elvis & Priscilla: Conditional Love (2023) - A medium-length documentary about the toxic marriage of Elvis and Priscilla Presley. (DVD)
Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates Jr. Season 12, Episode 9: “Song of the South” - The latest installment of a docuseries presenting celebrities with their ancestral history. Actress Danielle Deadwyler and musician Rhiannon Giddens are the participants in this episode. (PBS)
Forgetting Dad (2008) - A documentary feature about a man with amnesia. (DVD)
Inside the World’s Most Haunted Houses (2020) - A documentary touring haunted houses. (DVD)
JFK X: Solving the Crime of the Century (2023) - A documentary feature that looks at the Zapruder film of John F. Kennedy’s assassination through new technology. (DVD)
Kingdom Season 1 - A nature series narrated by Sir David Attenborough that follows rival families of leopards, hyenas, wild dogs, and lions. (Blu-ray)
The Life After Death Project 2: Personal Encounters (2013) - A documentary that shares accounts of personal encounters with life after death. (DVD)
Life·Love·Dogs (2019) - A documentary on the emotional bonds between people and their dogs. (DVD)
Operation Anaconda: The Battle of Roberts’ Ridge (2004) - A medium-length documentary following Army Rangers in Afghanistan. (DVD)
Panthera Britannia Declassified (2023) - A documentary about mysterious large cats living in the UK wilderness. (DVD)
Risky Business: A Look Inside America’s Adult Film Industry (2013) - A documentary feature that examines the social, psychological, and economic impacts of performing in adult films. (DVD)
Shackleton’s Captain (2012) - A medium-length documentary about the captain of the Endurance in its famed voyage to Antarctica. (DVD)
Secret Space UFOs: Fastwalkers (2023) - A documentary about NASA UFO sightings. (DVD)
Severe Clear (2009) - A documentary about life on the battlefield through the experiences of First Lieutenant Mike Scotti, who fought in Iraq and Afghanistan. (DVD)
Square One: Michael Jackson (2019) - A documentary about the 1993 sexual assault allegations against Michael Jackson. (DVD)
Tax Broke (2024) - A medium-length documentary about Baltimore’s development problems. (DVD)
Tomcat Tales (2020) - A documentary feature about the F-14 Tomcat jet. (DVD)
Travis: The True Story of Travis Walton (2015) - A documentary feature about UFO abductee Travis Walton. (DVD)
Wednesday, March 4, 2026
Alaska State Troopers Season 9, Episode 9: “Winter is Coming” - The latest installment of a docuseries about state troopers in Alaska. (A&E)
Aurora: What Happened to the Earth? (2026) - A concert film starring the titular Norwegian singer. (In Theaters)
Blue Therapy (2026) - A docuseries following couples in therapy. (Netflix)
Carved from the Heart (1997) - A short documentary about the carving of the Healing Heart totem pole in Alaska. (OVID)
Dirty Rotten Scandals: The Dr. Phil Show (2026) - The first installment in a trilogy of investigative documentaries about scandals involving TV shows. (E!)
Expedition X Season 11, Episode 9: “The Spanish Boogeyman” - The latest installment of a paranormal investigation series. (Discovery)
Hunt for the Missing: Chicago Episode 1: “Shadows from the Southside” - The first installment of a six-part series following a retired police detective as she re-investigates cold cases. This episode involves a missing pregnant woman. (Investigation Discovery)
Nature: Parenthood Episode 5: “The Greatest Adventure” - The fifth installment of a docuseries narrated by Sir David Attenborough that showcases animal parents around the world. (PBS)
Scattering CJ (2019) - A documentary feature about a woman grieving her son. (OVID)
Thursday, March 5, 2026
Break the Silence: Reproductive & Sexual Health Stories (2018) - A medium-length documentary in which women discuss their sexual education and experiences. (OVID)
David: King of Israel Episode 2: “The Giantkiller” - The second installment of a docudrama series hosted by Zachary Levi about the titular biblical figure. (Fox Nation)
A Friend, A Murderer (2026) - A true crime docuseries set in a rural community in Denmark. (Netflix)
Mysteries Unearthed with Danny Trejo Season 2, Episode 12: “Digging Up Trouble” - The latest installment of a docuseries exploring hidden worlds. (History)
Predator Hunters Episode 1 - A docuseries produced by Louis Theroux following the work of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. (A&E)
True Crime Story: It Couldn’t Happen Here Season 3, Episode 3: “Brownstown, Indiana” - The latest installment of a true-crime series focused on murders in small towns. (Sundance TV)
Sneak Peek At What’s Coming Soon
3/6 - Friends Like These: The Murder of Skylar Neese - A three-part true-crime series about a teenager in West Virginia murdered by her friends. Watch the new trailer for the series below. (Hulu)
3/11 - Dirty Rotten Scandals: America’s Next Top Model - The second installment in a trilogy of investigative documentaries about scandals involving TV shows. (E!)
3/16 - The Plastic Detox - A documentary about couples who try to reduce their exposure to plastics. (Netflix)
3/20 - Marc by Sofia - A documentary by Sofia Coppola about fashion designer Marc Jacobs. Watch the new trailer for the film below. (In Theaters)
3/27 - Homecoming: The Tokyo Series - A documentary feature about the 2025 MLB season opener held in Japan between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Chicago Cubs. (CNN All Access)
3/31 - Secrets of the Bees - A nature docuseries about bees starring Bertie Gregory. (National Geographic)
4/3 - My Undesirable Friends: Part I - Last Air in Moscow - A documentary about a political threat against independent journalists in Russia. (Mubi)
4/10 - Steal This Story, Please! - A biographical documentary about investigative journalist and Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman. (In Theaters)
4/17 - Robert Wilson and the Civil Wars - A 4K restoration re-release of a 1985 documentary about Robert Wilson’s effort to stage an epic opera for the 1984 Summer Olympics. (In Theaters)
Your last post encouraged me to go see EPiC in IMAX with a friend who I learned was a huge Elvis fan, the same night I read your mention of it. I knew nothing about Elvis before attending, but I greatly appreciated the watch. Thanks!