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So you’re a documentary fan.  If you have Netflix, start browsing the Documentary category immediately.  If you don’t have Netflix, it’s time to get Netflix.

When it comes to documentaries, Netflix is special. So if you’re about to ask whether or not we’re trying to make a grandiose claim that it’s the single best place to find the most insightful, engaging, fascinating documentaries ever made, the answer is yes. Yes, we are. But can we prove it?  Of Course.

Oscar Winners:
I don’t see The Godfather or Forrest Gump or No Country For Old Men on Instant Watch, but almost half of the documentaries that won Oscars in the past ten years are available to stream online right now.

• 2009: The Cove – Activists go to Japan to expose brutal crimes against dolphins.
• 2008: Man on Wire – In 1974, Philippe Petit tightropes between the World Trade Centers.
• 2005: March of the Penguins - Gorgeous cinematography follows the journey of the Emperor Penguin as they march to their traditional breeding ground.
• 2000: Into the Arms of Strangers: Stories of the Kindertransport – Child refugees transported to England to escape the horrors of the Holocaust.

Brand New Documentaries:
Netflix is on top of its game when it comes to getting great docs to you super quickly.  The list below includes some of the really great documentaries to come out in the past three years.  Of the 358 documentaries on Netflix from 2008 – 2010, there is a high consistency of high quality and heavily buzzed about films.

2010:

• Babies – Everyone thought the trailer was super cute when it came out this summer. (So did you.)  This is the study of four babies growing up in different parts of the world.
• Restrepo – Won Best Documentary at Sundance this year.  Follows an author and photographer embedded in the Second Platoon in Afghanistan.
• Exit Through The Gift Shop – Just added to Netflix’s inventory today, this doc follows the mysterious career of one of the most infamous street artists of modern day, Banksy.

2009:

• Collapse – Political activist Michael Ruppert has a theory about our society and the fact that it WILL, not might, collapse.
• Cropsey – Explores the real-life Boogeyman that haunts Staten Island, and the five kids that went missing in the 70′s and 80′s.
• The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers – Oscar Nominated Doc on Daniel Ellsberg, a Pentagon Insider that leaked top-secret government documents revealing shocking truths about the Vietnam War and Nixon.
• No-Impact Man – Director Colin Beavan tries to leave as minimal of an environmental footprint as he possibly can.
• Sweetgrass – A gorgeous film following a sheepherder, just herding his sheep.
• The Yes Men Fix The World – The Yes Men use pranks to highlight the political and economic follies of our country.

2008:

• American Teen – The Hills meets the Breakfast Club in this study of five Indiana teenagers.
• Bigger, Strong, Faster – Follows athletes and their unapologetic steroid use.
• Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About his Father – A filmmaker’s friend dies and he decides to make a film chronicling his friend’s life for his unborn son.  NOTE: This is one of the only films that has ever made me cry.
• Food, Inc – An expose on industrial and corporate farming.
• I.O.U.S.A. – Highlights the massive American debt we are sinking into deeper and deeper.
• I Think We’re Alone Now – Two obsessed fans talk about their love for pop singer, Tiffany.
• The September Issue – A rare look inside Vogue’s famed “September Issue” and its influential editor, Anna Wintour.
• We Live in Public – A study on the effect that the Web has on our lives and in society.  (This is fitting to write about on the Internet. Hah!)

Famous Filmmakers:

Michael Moore:
The biggest documentary filmmaker of all time has both his first and his most recent documentaries on Netflix.  See how far he’s come within the span of his career:

• Capitalism: A Love Story - Michael Moore skewers the Wall Street Bailout.
• Roger & Me – Michael Moore just wants to ask GM Chairman Roger Smith why he shut down the plant in his hometown of Flint, Michigan.

Errol Morris:
Though maybe not as big a filmmaker as Michael Moore, Errol Morris is considered one of the luminaries of the art. Also, one of his films got a man off death row.  So there’s that.

• Gates of Heaven – Crazy pet owners and the pet cemetery they will go to are the focus of this human study.
• Fast, Cheap & Out of Control - About an obsessed wild animal trainer, an obsessed topiary gardener, an obsessed robot designer and an obsessed expert on the naked mole rat.  They are all really weird and really interesting.
• The Thin Blue Line - A man charged with murdering a Dallas Police officer was freed because Errol Morris proved his innocence through this documentary.
• Vernon, Florida - Explores the unique citizens of this backwoods Florida town, and the weirdness of their activities.

Great Genre Docs:
Rockumentaries, documentaries about movies, political docs, and sports docs.  There is a bevy of quality docs here as well.

Rock Docs

• When You’re Strange - The history of Jim Morrison and the Doors.
• It Might Get Loud - Jack White, The Edge and Jimmy Page jam out and talk music.
• Rolling Stones: Stones in Exile – The Rolling Stones are banned from England and have to record “Exile on Main Street” in exile in the South of France.
• Buena Vista Social Club – Legendary Cuban musicians reunite to record their Grammy award-winning album.
• Michael Jacksons’ This is It - Behind the scenes on the tour Michael Jackson was planning before his untimely death.
• Biggie & Tupac – Investigation into Hip-Hop’s two biggest unsolved murders.
• Heavy Metal in Baghdad – Iraqi Heavy Metal band Acrassicauda deals with the war in Iraq.
• I Am Trying To Break Your Heart -  The members of Wilco are dropped from their recording studio while recording their breakthrough album “Yankee Hotel Foxtrot.”
• Hype – An exploration on the emergence of grunge.
• We Jam Econo; The Story of the Minutemen - A great look at the relationship between D. Boon and Mike Watt, growing up together and playing as The Minutemen.
• Danielson: A Family Movie – A study of Christian musician Daniel Smith and his family, The Danielson Famile, who go on tour dressed in odd costumes.
• Kurt & Courtney – Investigating the death of Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love’s possible involvement.
• The Gits - Mia Zapata, the front woman for the Seattle grunge band The Gits was found raped and murdered shortly after their first major tour, forcing an abrupt end for the band.  Ten years later new evidence surfaces, re-opening the case.

Movie Docs

• Not Quite Hollywood - An exploration of Australia’s exploitation films, dubbed ‘Ozpolitation.’  If you are a fan of horror/sci-fi/exploitation films you will want to see every film they mention here.
• Burden of Dreams – The making of Werner Herzog’s Fitzcarraldo.  It involves firing Mick Jagger and LITERALLY pulling a boat over a mountain.
• Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired – Examines the personal life of Roman Polanski. Includes Charlie Manson’s murder of his pregnant wife, surviving the Holocaust, and his sex scandal.
• Tales From The Script – Screenwriters recount their industry horror stories.
• Don’t You Forget About Me – Four filmmakers try to find the reclusive John Hughes.
• Inside Deep Throat - The behind the scenes look at the most famous porno film of all time, Deep Throat.
• Lost in La Mancha - The train-wreck that was the production of Terry Gilliam’s Man of La Mancha, starring Johnny Depp.  Wondering why you never saw that movie? Watch this doc.
• Monty Python: Almost the Truth - A six part series on the history of Monty Python.  Half of the episodes deal with their movie career.
• This Film is Not Yet Rated – An expose on the MPAA and their ratings process.
• Lynch - Rumored to be directed by David Lynch, himself.  Apparently this documentary on the filmmaker is just as weird as any of his films.
• Champion - Danny Trejo started his adult life as criminal in jail and is now one of the most in-demand character actors in Hollywood.

Poitical/Social Docs

• Howard Zinn: You Can’t Be Neutral on a Moving Train – A biographical portrait on activist and historian Howard Zinn.  He is a fascinating man: learn as much about him as you can.
• No End in Sight – Oscar nominated doc dealing with the decisions that led to the 2003 U.S. Invasion of Iraq.
• Wal-Mart; The High Cost of Low Price – Studies Wal-Mart, the juggernaut retail’s store, and its mistreatment of families and of American values.
• Ralph Nader: An Unreasonable Man – Ralph Nader, one of the most famous liberals of all time (and an “election spoiler”) discusses idealism and democracy in today’s society.
• Casino Jack and the United State of Money – Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff brings us a tale of international intrigue ripe with Russian spies, Chinese sweatshops, and a mob killing.  This is a story about money corrupting politics.
• The Weather Underground – About American radicals known as the Weathermen, who bombed targets in the 70′s in an attempt to overthrow the American Government and the “real violence” they were imparting on our country.
• The Prisoner, Or How I planned to Kill Tony Blair - Iraqi journalist Yunis Abbas was taken prisoner for his planned assassination attempt on Tony Blair.  Except he was innocent.
• South of The Border – Oliver Stone speaks to the South American Presidents to gain perspective on their depiction in the U.S. Media.
• Enron: The Smartest Guys in The Room – The downfall of Enron shaped the modern business world.  A behind-the-scenes look at the incredibly powerful energy company and its downfall.
• The Corporation – Corporations are given the same legal rights as citizens.  This documentary explores the roll of the corporation in modern America.
• Outfoxed: Murdoch’s War on Journalism – An in-depth look at Rupert Murdoch and Fox News: how one man is essentially in charge of what the public can and can’t know on Fox News.
• Jesus Camp - A camp where Christian youngsters are bred to be the fundamentalist leaders of the future.

Sports Docs

• Kicking It - Six homeless people are followed as they compete in the Annual Homeless World Cup in Cape Town, South Africa.
• More Than a Game – Follows Lebron James’s high school team to the National High School Championship.
• Gunnin’ for That #1 Spot - The country’s most gifted high school basketball players compete at the 2006 Elite 24 All-Star Game in Harlem.  Directed by The Beastie Boys’ Adam Yauch.
• Harvard Beats Yale 29-29 – The legendary 1968 College Football game between Harvard and Yale.
• Tyson – James Toback’s Interview with Mike Tyson on his life and career.
• Hoop Dreams – Steve James’s documentary on Arthur Agee and William Gates, two young boys from rough Chicago neighborhoods trying to make it out of the ghetto with basketball.
• A League of Ordinary Gentlemen -  A fun behind-the-scenes on the world of Professional Bowling.
• Dogtown and Z-Boys – The Z-Boys revolutionize skateboarding  in Venice, CA by using surf techniques in skateboarding.  Their techniques changed the way skateboarding has been done since.
• Surfwise – Dorian “Doc” Paskowitz, a famous surfer, and his wife raise their nine children in a camper on the beach, home schooling them and having them follow a strict lifestyle regimen.

Other Favorites
These don’t fit in any other category, but they’re fantastic, must-see gems.  Maybe the best four on the list.  WATCH THEM.

• Super Size Me – Morgan Spurlock goes a month only eating McDonalds.  His body and life start to fall apart.
• Capturing the Friedmans – In 1987, a father and son are accused of child molestation.  It is captured through home footage of the family and it is fascinatingb.
• The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters – Billy Mitchell (BOOO!) and Steve Wiebe (YAY!) compete for the world record on Donkey Kong.
• Tarnation - Jonathan Caouette’s autobiographical documentary on his mother’s schizophrenia and his own homosexuality.

After all of this I have to ask how long you think it will take to get current documentary buzz movies like Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work, Catfish, Marwencol, or Inside Job to go to Netflix Watch Instantly?  I’m putting my money on sooner rather than later.