Best documentary, comedy, & drama shows on Max, ranked.

In April 1986, the city of Chernobyl in the Soviet Union suffers one of the worst nuclear disasters in the history of mankind. Consequently, many heroes put their lives on the line in the following days, weeks and months.

A documentary series on the wildlife found on Earth. Each episode covers a different habitat: deserts, mountains, deep oceans, shallow seas, forests, caves, polar regions, fresh water, plains and jungles. Narrated by David Attenbo...

A cynical expatriate American cafe owner struggles to decide whether or not to help his former lover and her fugitive husband escape the Nazis in French Morocco.

The Tramp struggles to live in modern industrial society with the help of a young homeless woman.

A film following the lives of two inner-city Chicago boys who struggle to become college basketball players on the road to going professional.

David Attenborough returns to the world's oceans in this sequel to the acclaimed documentary filming rare and unusual creatures of the deep, as well as documenting the problems our oceans face.

Larry David stars as an over-the-top version of himself in this comedy series that shows how seemingly trivial details of day-to-day life can precipitate a catastrophic chain of events.

With the aid of a wealthy erratic tippler, a dewy-eyed tramp who has fallen in love with a blind flower girl accumulates money to be able to help her medically.

David Attenborough returns with a new wildlife documentary that shows life in a variety of habitats.

A model discovers a retired judge is keen on invading people's privacy.

An old couple visit their children and grandchildren in the city, but receive little attention.

Two young Swedish children in the 1900s experience the many comedies and tragedies of their lively and affectionate theatrical family, the Ekdahls.

Several people try to talk 27-year-old Noriko into marrying, but all she wants is to keep on caring for her widowed father.

Former Daily Show host and correspondent John Oliver brings his persona to this weekly news satire program.

A horrific triple child murder leads to an indictment and trial of three nonconformist boys based on questionable evidence.

A family chooses a match for their daughter Noriko, but she, surprisingly, has her own plans.

The Tramp cares for an abandoned child, but events put their relationship in jeopardy.

Spike Lee documents the former Talking Heads frontman's brilliant, timely 2019 Broadway show, based on his recent album and tour of the same name.

A bureaucrat tries to find meaning in his life after he discovers he has terminal cancer.

In the midst of the Russian Revolution of 1905, the crew of the battleship Potemkin mutiny against the brutal, tyrannical regime of the vessel's officers. The resulting street demonstration in Odessa brings on a police massacre.

The Tramp finds work and the girl of his dreams at a circus.

The Roy family is known for controlling the biggest media and entertainment company in the world. However, their world changes when their father steps down from the company.

A chronicle of New York's drag scene in the 1980s, focusing on balls, voguing and the ambitions and dreams of those who gave the era its warmth and vitality.

Seven continents formed by Earth's splitting crust each have unique climates, terrain and wildlife. Journey across South America's paradise to Africa's heat, discovering unexpected stories and spectacular nature.

Following the death of her adoptive parents, a successful young black optometrist establishes contact with her biological mother -- a lonely white factory worker living in poverty in East London.

An elderly man and his dog struggle to survive on his government pension in Rome.

Focuses on life and the environment in both the Arctic and Antarctic.

A truck driver stops at a small family-run noodle shop and decides to help its fledgling business. The story is intertwined with various vignettes about the relationship of love and food.

A heartbreaking record of the thirteen-month struggle between a community fighting to survive and a corporation dedicated to the bottom line.

In post-war Italy, a working-class man's bicycle is stolen, endangering his efforts to find work. He and his son set out to find it.

30 years later, we're bringing the Banks family back together. Join Will Smith and his former co-stars for a funny and heartfelt night full of music and dancing in honor of the show that ran for six seasons and 148 episodes.

Guido seeks peace after his success but faces pressure from past collaborators. As he struggles with creativity, he reflects on his life and past romances.

A look at the final years in the life of Martin Luther King, Jr.

An orphaned young man in India pursues his dream of becoming a writer while navigating life's challenges and personal growth.

Nathan Fielder uses his business degree and life experiences to, in unorthodox ways, help real small businesses turn a profit.

A character study of five young men at crucial turning points in their lives in a small town in Italy.

Mary Shelley reveals the main characters of her novel survived: Baron Henry Frankenstein, goaded by an even madder scientist, builds his monster a mate.

A tale of ambition, family, love, and war set in the midst of the Japanese Civil Wars of the sixteenth century.

During the German occupation of Poland, an acting troupe becomes embroiled in a Polish soldier's efforts to track down a German spy.

A documentary of the notorious racial terrorist 1963 bombing by the Ku Klux Klan of the African American 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham during the Civil Rights Movement, which killed four young girls.

A drama about one of New York's most prestigious ad agencies at the beginning of the 1960s, focusing on one of the firm's most mysterious but extremely talented ad executives, Donald Draper.

A married Sicilian baron falls in love with his cousin and vows to wed her, but with divorce illegal he must concoct a crime of passion to do away with his wife.

Using extensive interviews with survivors and archival footage, an examination reveals the aftermath of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Impoverished priest Harihar Ray, dreaming of a better life for himself and his family, leaves his rural Bengal village in search of work.

A documentary of the successful career and assassination of San Francisco's first elected gay city supervisor.

A group of activists risk their lives fighting for LGBTQ+ rights in Chechnya.

A guide leads two men through an area known as the Zone to find a room that grants wishes.

Dictator Adenoid Hynkel tries to expand his empire while a poor Jewish barber tries to avoid persecution from Hynkel's regime.

The daily lives of healthcare professionals in a Pittsburgh hospital as they juggle personal crises, workplace politics, and the emotional toll of treating critically ill patients, revealing the resilience required in their noble ...

Africa, the world's wildest continent. David Attenborough takes an awe-inspiring journey through one of the most diverse places in the world. We visit deserts, savannas, and jungles and meet up with some of Africa's amazing wildlife.

Follows US president Josiah Bartlet and his administration as they tackle various political issues in order to maintain peace and harmony in the nation.

Documentary on the Friedmans, a seemingly typical, upper-middle-class Jewish family whose world is instantly transformed when the father and his youngest son are arrested and charged with shocking and horrible crimes.

HBO special featuring the folk duo from New Zealand performing live at the London Apollo.

A lonely widow meets a much younger Moroccan worker in a bar during a rainstorm. They fall in love, to their own surprise and to the outright shock of their families, colleagues, and drinking buddies.

Two rival hockey stars at the top of their game face an unexpected challenge when they develop feelings for each other, complicating their careers and the sport's expectations.

Explores the life and legacy of Mariska Hargitay's mother, Hollywood icon Jayne Mansfield, who died tragically in a car accident at age 34 when Mariska was only three years old.

Incarcerated men defy the odds to expose a cover-up in one of America's deadliest prison systems.

After being a victim of fraud, Johnny Rose and his family go from extremely wealthy to penniless overnight. The only asset left to them is a small, unsophisticated town: Schitt's Creek. They relocate there. Culture shock ensues.

Follows the struggle of Richard Hendricks, a Silicon Valley engineer trying to build his own company called Pied Piper.

A young ballet dancer is torn between the man she loves and her pursuit to become a prima ballerina.

Bret and Jemaine are Flight of the Conchords, a folk-rock band from New Zealand living in New York City in search of stardom.

A young African-American man grapples with his identity and sexuality while experiencing the everyday struggles of childhood, adolescence, and burgeoning adulthood.

As a reserved young graduate vacations in a seaside town, he hopes his girlfriend will join him. But he ends up bonding with a local young woman whose female friend is also smitten with him.

Q, Sal, Joe and Murr are real-life best friends who love challenging each other to the most outrageous dares and stunts ever caught on hidden camera.

An examination of the U.S. government's response to Hurricane Katrina.

Two sisters find out the existence of their long-lost mother, but the younger cannot take the truth of being abandoned as a child.

Exposing her role behind the camera, Kirsten Johnson reaches into the vast trove of footage she has shot over decades around the world. What emerges is a visually bold memoir and a revelatory interrogation of the power of the camera.

In this silent predecessor to the modern documentary, film-maker Robert J. Flaherty spends one year following the lives of Nanook and his family, Inuits living in the Arctic Circle.

Meeting a stranger in a railway station, a woman is tempted to cheat on her husband.

Follows the man who survived an assassination attempt by poisoning with a lethal nerve agent in August 2020. During his months-long recovery he makes shocking discoveries about the attempt on his life and decides to return home.

Two shoeshine boys in postwar Rome, Italy save up to buy a horse, but their involvement as dupes in a burglary lands them in juvenile prison; the experience take a devastating toll on their friendship.

Recently released from a mental hospital, Karin rejoins her emotionally disconnected family in their island home, only to slip from reality as she begins to believe she is being visited by God.

A care-free girl is sold to a traveling entertainer, consequently enduring physical and emotional pain along the way.

Following his father's death, a boy leaves home to study in Calcutta, while his mother must face a life alone.

A look at the life, work, activism and controversies of actress and fitness tycoon, Jane Fonda.

Newly-discovered archive footage and witness accounts to lay bare the tragedy and heroic efforts made to prevent another explosion.

When death is your business, what is your life? Laced with irony and dark situational humor, the show approaches the subject of death through the eyes of the Fisher family, who owns and operates a funeral home in Los Angeles.

After living a life marked by coldness, an aging professor is forced to confront the emptiness of his existence.

A documentary looking at the inner-workings of the Church of Scientology.

An aging widower arranges a marriage for his only daughter.

A phonetics and diction expert makes a bet that he can teach a cockney flower girl to speak proper English and pass as a lady in high society.

Monsieur Hulot comes to a beachside hotel for a vacation and accidentally, but good-naturedly, causes havoc.

A woman struggles to find a way to live her life after the death of her husband and child.

Cast and crew members from all "Harry Potter" films reunite in a retrospective special to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001).

Reeve's rise to becoming a film star follows with a near-fatal horse-riding accident in 1995 that left him paralyzed from the neck down. After the accident, he became an activist for spinal cord injury treatments and disability ri...

A nature documentary series on five vulnerable or endangered species known to form enduring populations: chimpanzee, emperor penguin, lion, tiger and African wild dog.

A group of nuns struggle to establish a convent in the Himalayas, while isolation, extreme weather, altitude, and culture clashes all conspire to drive the well-intentioned missionaries mad.

A mother personally challenges the local authorities to solve her daughter's murder when they fail to catch the culprit.

Film star, Vince Chase, navigates the vapid terrain of Los Angeles with a close circle of friends and his trusty agent.

A knight returning to Sweden after the Crusades seeks answers about life, death, and the existence of God as he plays chess against the Grim Reaper during the Black Plague.

A group of teenagers in Hawaii enter the world of professional competitive surfing in the 1990s and rise to super stardom.

In Charles Dickens' classic tale, an orphan wends his way from cruel apprenticeship to den of thieves in search of a true home.

A New Yorker's life is thrown into a tailspin when his younger cousin surprise-visits him, starting a strange, unpredictable adventure.

Follows the life of artist Nan Goldin and the downfall of the Sackler family, the pharmaceutical dynasty who was greatly responsible for the opioid epidemic's unfathomable death toll.

A son creates a list of things worth living for--all in an attempt to raise the spirits of his chronically depressed mother--in this adaptation of the acclaimed one-character show.

An intimate portrait of actress Debbie Reynolds and her relationship with her beloved children, Carrie and Todd.

Following the suspicious death of the Bongomian king, his disregarded prince assumes the throne, initiating an intricate tale.

Chris Rock's 2008 comedy tour visits London, New York and Johannesburg. Various parts of this tour are edited together to create his fifth HBO stand-up special.

Kon Ichikawa examines the beauty and rich drama on display at the 1964 Summer Games in Tokyo, creating a record of observations that range from the expansive to the intimate.

A suave but cynical man supports his family by marrying and murdering rich women for their money, but the job has some occupational hazards.

Former Senator Selina Meyer finds that being Vice President of the United States is nothing like she hoped and everything that everyone ever warned her about.

Decades of a love triangle concerning two friends and an impulsive woman.

An exploration of the history of the Bee Gees, featuring revealing interviews with oldest brother Barry Gibb, and archival interviews with the late twin brothers Robin and Maurice.

The exploits of various guests and employees of a luxury resort over the span of a week.

The story of the discovery of the AIDS epidemic, and the political infighting of the scientific community hampering the early fight with it.

An in-depth look at various NASA moon landing missions, starting with Apollo 8.

Discover amazing landscapes, the most amazing fights of animals on our planet, from the highest mountains to the deepest oceans, from the darkest caves to the hottest deserts with new technology.

A war-hardened general, egged on by his ambitious wife, works to fulfill a prophecy that he would become lord of Spider's Web Castle.

Four dogged door-to-door Bible salesmen travel from Boston to Florida on a seemingly futile quest to sell luxury editions of the Good Book to working-class Catholics.

A little boy is held captive in a room with his mother since his birth, so he has never known the world outside.

A single mother and the manager of a roadside motel do their utmost to maintain the innocence of a six-year-old girl's life.

The personal and professional lives of six friends living in the Manhattan borough of New York City.

Anthony Bourdain visits countries, delving into their political issues as well as indigenous food and culture.

A surgeon causes a car accident which leaves his daughter disfigured and goes to extreme lengths to give her a new face.

Depicts the end days of a decadent zamindar (landlord) in Bengal, and his efforts to uphold his family prestige even when faced with economic adversity.

When three hundred thousand members of the Love Generation collided with a few dozen Hells Angels at San Francisco's Altamont Speedway, the bloody slash that transformed a decade's dreams into disillusionment was immortalized on t...

Features Jerrod Carmichael in a standup comedy show at the legendary Blue Note Jazz Club in New York City.

A users guide to the cosmos from the big bang to galaxies, stars, planets and moons. Where did it all come from and how does it all fit together. A primer for anyone who has ever looked up at the night sky and wondered.

Cleo, a singer and hypochondriac, becomes increasingly worried that she might have cancer while awaiting test results from her doctor.

An authorized documentary on the late musician Kurt Cobain, from his early days in Aberdeen, Washington to his success and downfall with the grunge band Nirvana.

A hotshot Hollywood studio executive starts receiving death threats from a rejected writer.

A devout Catholic man's rigid principles are challenged during a one-night stay with Maud, a divorced woman with an outsize personality.

Travis Henderson, an aimless drifter who has been missing for four years, wanders out of the desert and must reconnect with society, himself, his life, and his family.

Documentary covering Bob Dylan's 1965 tour of England, which includes appearances by Joan Baez and Donovan.

An unhappily married couple attempts to find direction and insight while vacationing in Naples.

A comedic behind the scenes look at a late night talk show.

This documentary explores the murder of DeeDee Blanchard by her daughter Gypsy Rose, as well as the circumstances leading up to the event.

An anxious New Yorker attempts to give everyday advice while dealing with his own personal issues.

When an aristocratic woman known only as "Madame de . . ." sells a pair of earrings given to her by her husband in order to pay some debts, she sets off a chain reaction of financial and carnal consequences that can end only in de...

Two neighbors form a strong bond after both suspect extramarital activities of their spouses. However, they agree to keep their bond platonic so as not to commit similar wrongs.

Filmmaker Andrew Jarecki examines the complicated life of reclusive real estate icon Robert Durst, the key suspect in a series of unsolved crimes.

A lonely widowed housewife does her daily chores, takes care of her apartment where she lives with her teenage son, and turns the occasional trick to make ends meet, but something happens that changes her safe routine.

The family of an older man who runs a small sake brewery become concerned with his finances and his health after they discover him visiting an old mistress from his youth.

One of the most iconic figures in athletic history, Muhammad Ali's incredible story from world champion boxer to inspiring social activist is explored through his own voice and never-before-seen archival material.

In the late '50s, young Ingemar learns a lot about life and himself when he is sent away from his sick mother to live with his aunt and uncle in a town full of eccentrics.

Chronicles the life of an iconic musical performer, from childhood musical talent to worldwide fame. Explores his collaborations, influences, character and relationships with family, friends and fans.

An intimate and candid look at the life and art of the legendary composer-lyricist.

A young man and his wife struggle within the confines of their passionless relationship while he has an extramarital romance.

After his wife divorces him, a Polish immigrant plots to get even with her.

Alex Gibney explores the charged issue of pedophilia in the Catholic Church, following a trail from the first known protest against clerical sexual abuse in the United States and all the way to the Vatican.

A film about the greatest pre-Woodstock rock music festival.

Centers on families of the victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook shooting. They take Alex Jones, a conspiracy theorist, to court for spreading lies about the event being a hoax.

Follows famous skater Tony Hawk's personal life, career and relationship with skateboarding, including never-before-seen footage and unprecedented access to Hawk, along with interviews with figures from the skateboarding world.

Life at home changes when a house-wife from a middle-class, conservative family in Calcutta gets a job as a saleswoman.

Meet a mother and daughter, high-society dropouts, reclusive cousins of Jackie O., managing to thrive together amid the decay and disorder of their East Hampton, NY, mansion, making for an eerily ramshackle echo of the American Ca...

Jon Wertheim's cover story detailing the decades-long abuse scandal in the athletic department at Ohio State University.

The head of a Japanese theatre troupe returns to a small coastal town where he left a son who thinks he is his uncle, and tries to make up for the lost time, but his current mistress grows jealous.

A nurse is put in charge of a mute actress and finds that their personae are melding together.

Police arrested seven women who were part of a clandestine network. Using code names, blindfolds and safe houses, they built an underground service for women seeking safe, affordable, illegal abortions calling themselves JANE.

A newsroom undergoes some changes in its workings and morals as a new team is brought in, bringing unexpected results for its existing news anchor.

Follows events and characters surrounding the January 6th, 2021 insurrection of the U.S. Capital Building in the days preceding the attack.

Amidst the darkening backdrop of Delhi's apocalyptic air and escalating violence, two brothers devote their lives to protect one casualty of the turbulent times: the bird known as the Black Kite.

A romance between young Parisians, shown through a series of vignettes.

After a tragic event, a woman finds herself alone while everyone else continues with their lives as if nothing had happened.

Impersonal and beautiful images of Akerman's life in New York are combined with letters from her loving but manipulative mother, read by Akerman herself.

A tribute to one of the world's great filmmakers and the men of the 8th Air Force who flew mission after suicidal mission in the Second World War.

Exclusive access to the Grammy Award-winning artist to celebrate her career.

A young German boy faces the problems of the tough life in the immediate post-WWII Berlin.

Monsieur Hulot visits the technology-driven world of his sister, brother-in-law, and nephew, but he can't quite fit into the surroundings.

A deeply intimate and raw portrait of Selma Blair after she is diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis and tries to slow the progression of her disease.

The story of four women suffering from anorexia and bulimia in South Florida.

Features never-before-seen archival footage of the historic confrontation at Kabul airport, from the U.S. withdrawal of its troops from Afghanistan through the subsequent evacuation of Afghan citizens after the Taliban seized the ...

An examination of the prisoner abuse scandal involving U.S. soldiers and detainees at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison in the fall of 2003.

Divine G, imprisoned at Sing Sing for a crime he didn't commit, finds purpose by acting in a theatre group alongside other incarcerated men in this story of resilience, humanity, and the transformative power of art.

Dave Chappelle returns to D.C. and riffs on politics, police, race relations, drugs, Sesame Street and more.

An aspiring photographer develops an intimate relationship with an older woman in 1950s New York.

An angel meets Peter Falk, and loves a French trapeze artist in Berlin.

Marty Mauser, a young man with a dream no one respects, goes to hell and back in pursuit of greatness.

A kabuki actor's mistress hatches a jealous plot to bring down her lover's son.

An intimate look into the life and work of the revered master comedian and actor, Robin Williams.

A fading comedian and a suicidally despondent ballet dancer must look to each other to find purpose and hope in their lives.

Chronicles the creation of Game of Thrones (2011)'s final season, its most ambitious and complicated one.

Many years after he turned his back on his hometown, a burned-out major league ballplayer returns to teach Physical Education at his old middle school.

Nathan Fielder gives people a chance to rehearse for their own lives in a world where nothing ever works out as expected.

Cassavetes' jazz-scored improvisational film explores interracial friendships and relationships in Beat-Era (1950s) New York City.

A look at the life and career of professional wrestler André Roussimoff, who gained notoriety in the 1980s as Andre the Giant.

How did the Chinese government turn pandemic cover-ups in Wuhan into a triumph for the Communist party?

Explores a dark mentorship that forms between Deborah Vance, a legendary Las Vegas comedian, and an entitled, outcast 25-year-old.

A documentary about fraud and fakery.

Fictionalized documentary showing the evolution of witchcraft, from its pagan roots to its confusion with hysteria in Eastern Europe.

A workplace comedy centered on a group of dedicated teachers - and an oblivious principal - in a Philadelphia public school where, despite the odds stacked against them, they are determined to help their students succeed in life.

Two old friends meet for dinner; as one tells anecdotes detailing his experiences, the other notices their differing worldviews.

Although wife and mother Mabel is loved by her husband Nick, her mental illness places a strain on the marriage.

A woman recounts the lifelong friendship and conflicts with a girl she met at primary school in Naples during the early 1950s.

On an empty road in the middle of the night, Shula stumbles across the body of her uncle. As funeral proceedings begin around them, she and her cousins bring to light the buried secrets of their middle-class Zambian family.

Aging Cuban musicians whose talents had been virtually forgotten following Castro's takeover of Cuba, are brought out of retirement by Ry Cooder, who travelled to Havana in order to bring the musicians together, resulting in trium...

During the late 19th century, a strict religious community in a Danish village takes in a French refugee from the Franco-Prussian War as a servant to the late pastor's daughters.

Lucy Honeychurch shares a brief romance with George Emerson in Florence. Yet as she tries to move on with her life and look for marriage elsewhere, can she truly forget the events of that summer?

When a woman dying of cancer in early twentieth-century Sweden is visited by her two sisters, long-repressed feelings between the siblings rise to the surface.

A schoolteacher struggles to raise his son Ryohei by himself, having neither money nor future prospects.

Three best friends living in San Francisco share the nuances and complexities of contemporary gay relationships as they explore a variety of options, both in love and in life.

An investigation into the way sexual assault cases are handled by police departments across the United States.

A French playboy and an American former nightclub singer fall in love aboard a ship.

Two couples spend an interesting day together.

A servant in the house of Wuthering Heights tells a traveler the unfortunate tale of lovers Cathy and Heathcliff.

A couple pick up a hitchhiker on the way to their yacht. The husband invites the young man to come along for their day's sailing. As the voyage progresses, the antagonism between the two men grows. A violent confrontation is inevi...

A woman disappears during a Mediterranean boating trip. During the search, her lover and her best friend become attracted to each other.

Jep Gambardella has seduced his way through the lavish nightlife of Rome for decades, but after his 65th birthday and a shock from the past, Jep looks past the nightclubs and parties to find a timeless landscape of absurd, exquisi...

A former hip hop executive decides whether to make public her rape by one of the most powerful men in the music industry.