Best war, documentary, & crime shows streaming, ranked.
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- #3100

Planet Earth
2006– · Series · 1 seasonDocumentary · Family
4 EmmysBest Documentary SeriesA 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...
MAX - #1298
Ocean with David Attenborough
2025 · Movie · 1h 35mDocumentary
Attenborough explores the planet's undersea habitats, revealing the greatest age of ocean discovery and emphasizing the ocean's vital importance while exposing its problems and highlighting opportunities for marine life recovery.
Disney+Hulu - #3596
Man on Wire
2008 · Movie · 1h 34mDocumentary · Biography · Crime
1 OscarA look at tightrope walker Philippe Petit's daring, but illegal, high-wire routine performed between New York City's World Trade Center's twin towers in 1974, what some consider, "the artistic crime of the century".
Prime Video - #5695
David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet
2020 · Movie · 1h 23mDocumentary · Biography
3 EmmysIn this documentary David Attenborough, the celebrated naturalist, reflects upon both the defining moments of his lifetime and the devastating changes he has seen. The film provides a snapshot of global nature loss in a single lif...
Netflix - #7294

Capturing the Friedmans
2003 · Movie · 1h 47mDocumentary · Biography · Crime
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.
MAX - #8494
Music by John Williams
2024 · Movie · 1h 45mDocumentary · Biography
1 EmmyHis unforgettable scores are an essential part of some of the most beloved movies of our time, over a career that spans decades. See and hear maestro John Williams' own story, with insights from filmmakers, musicians, and others he has inspired, complete with rare behind-the-scenes looks at the making of movie history.
Disney+ - #8693

Cameraperson
2016 · Movie · 1h 42mDocumentary · Biography · History
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.
MAX - #9893
Paatal Lok
2020– · Series · Hindi · 2 seasonsCrime · Drama · Thriller
A down-and-out cop lands the case of a lifetime when four suspects are nabbed in the assassination attempt of a journalist. The pursuit leads him to 'Paatal Lok' and to shocking discoveries in the four suspects' pasts.
Prime Video - #10493
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story
2024 · Movie · 1h 44mDocumentary · Biography
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...
MAX - #10593

Gleason
2016 · Movie · 1h 50mDocumentary · Biography
After he is diagnosed with ALS, former professional football player Steve Gleason begins making a video diary for his unborn son, as he, his wife, and their friends and family work to raise money for ALS patients as his disease pr...
Prime Video - #10793
The Endless Summer
1966 · Movie · 1h 35mDocumentary · Sport
The crown jewel to ten years of Bruce Brown surfing documentaries. Brown follows two young surfers around the world in search of the perfect wave, and ends up finding quite a few in addition to some colorful local characters.
Prime Video - #11393

Hell or High Water
2016 · Movie · 1h 42mCrime · Drama · Thriller
Toby is a divorced father who's trying to make a better life. His brother is an ex-con with a short temper and a loose trigger finger. Together, they plan a series of heists against the bank that's about to foreclose on their fami...
MAX - #12892
20 Feet from Stardom
2013 · Movie · 1h 31mDocumentary · Biography · History
1 OscarBackup singers live in a world that lies just beyond the spotlight. Their voices bring harmony to the biggest bands in popular music, but we've had no idea who these singers are or what lives they lead, until now.
Prime Video - #12992
Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession
2004 · Movie · 2h 2mDocumentary · Biography · History
The story of Z Channel, one of the first U.S. pay cable stations and its programming chief, Jerry Harvey. Debuting in 1974 in LA, their eclectic slate of movies became a prime example of the untapped power of cable television.
Prime Video - #13892
Little Dieter Needs to Fly
1997 · Movie · 1h 20mDocumentary · Biography · Drama
German-American Dieter Dengler discusses his service as a U.S. naval pilot in the Vietnam War. Dengler also revisits the sites of his capture and eventual escape from the hands of the Viet Cong, recreating many events for the camera.
Prime Video - #15092
Lost Soul: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley's Island of Dr. Moreau
2014 · Movie · 1h 37mDocumentary · Action
A behind the scenes chronicle of how clash of vision, bad creative decisions, lack of interest and really bad weather plagued the disastrous production of the infamous The Island of Dr. Moreau (1996).
Prime Video - #16191
Jim Gaffigan: Obsessed
2014 · Movie · 1hDocumentary · Comedy
Jim Gaffigan bursts back on the scene with this eagerly anticipated fourth comedy special. Dubbed the "King of Clean Comedy" by The Wall Street Journal, Jim's obsession with all things food comes to fruition on "Obsessed" as he ta...
Netflix - #16891
Tony Hawk: Until the Wheels Fall Off
2022 · Movie · 2h 15mDocumentary · Biography · Sport
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.
MAX - #17191

Grey Gardens
1976 · Movie · 1h 35mDocumentary · Comedy · Drama
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...
MAX - #19491
Birds of Passage
2018 · Movie · Spanish · 2h 5mCrime · Drama
During the marijuana bonanza, a violent decade that saw the origins of drug trafficking in Colombia, Rapayet and his indigenous family get involved in a war to control the business that ends up destroying their lives and their cul...
Prime Video - #20191
And Then There Were None
1945 · Movie · 1h 37mCrime · Drama · Mystery
Seven guests, a newly hired secretary and two staff are gathered at a manor house on an isolated island by an unknown absentee host and are killed off one-by-one. They work together to determine who the killer is before it's too l...
Prime Video - #20491
Escape from Kabul
2021 · Movie · 1h 13mDocumentary · History
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 ...
MAX - #20591

Long Way Round
2004–2010 · Series · 1 seasonDocumentary · Action
Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman embark on a grueling quest to motorbike from London to New York. Going east through Europe, Asia and then to Alaska, they experience different cultures and have to overcome the elements and advers...
Apple TV+ - #21690
Dexter: Resurrection
2025– · Series · 1 seasonCrime · Drama · Thriller
Dexter Morgan awakens from a coma and sets out for New York City, determined to find Harrison and make things right. But when Miami Metro's Angel Batista arrives with questions, Dexter realizes his past is catching up to him fast.
Paramount+ - #21890
Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame Street
2021 · Movie · 1h 47mDocumentary · Family · History
Take a stroll down Sesame Street and witness the birth of the most impactful children's series in TV history. From the iconic furry characters to the songs you know by heart, learn how a gang of visionary creators changed our world.
Prime Video - #23590
To Hell and Back: The Kane Hodder Story
2017 · Movie · 1h 48mDocumentary · Biography
To Hell and Back: The Kane Hodder Story is the harrowing story of a stuntman overcoming a dehumanizing childhood filled with torment and bullying in Sparks, Nevada. After surviving a near-death burn accident, he worked his way up through Hollywood, leading to his ultimate rise as Jason Voorhees in the Friday the 13th series and making countless moviegoers forever terrified of hockey masks and summer camp. Featuring interviews with cinema legends, including Bruce Campbell (Ash vs. Evil Dead), Robert Englund (Freddy Krueger), and Cassandra Peterson (Elvira: Mistress of the Dark), To Hell and Back peels off the mask of Kane Hodder, cinema's most prolific killer, in a gut-wrenching, but inspiring, documentary. After decades of watching Kane Hodder on screen, get ready to meet the man behind the mask in To Hell and Back - an uniquely human story about one of cinema's most vicious monsters.
Prime Video - #24990
Beastie Boys Story
2020 · Movie · 1h 59mDocumentary · Biography
Here's a little story they're about to tell... Michael Diamond and Adam Horovitz share the story of the band, Beastie Boys, and 40 years of friendship in a live documentary experience directed by friend and collaborator, Spike Jonze.
Apple TV+ - #25690
City of Joy
2016 · Movie · 1h 14mDocumentary · Crime · Drama
This film follows the first class of students at a remarkable leadership center in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, a region often referred to as "the worst place in the world to be a woman." These women have been through...
Netflix - #27989

Dirtbag: The Legend of Fred Beckey
2017 · Movie · 1h 36mDocumentary · Action · Biography
Fred Beckey is the legendary American "Dirtbag" mountaineer whose name is spoken in hushed tones around campfires. This rebel climber's pioneering ascents and lifestyle form an iconic legacy that continues to inspire generations.
Prime Video - #29489
The Disappearance of Shere Hite
2023 · Movie · 1h 58mDocumentary
Shere Hite's bestselling book The Hite Report liberated female orgasm by revealing the most private experiences of thousands of anonymous surveys. Her findings rocked the American establishment and conversations about gender and s...
Hulu - #29689
After Truth: Disinformation and the Cost of Fake News
2020 · Movie · 1h 35mDocumentary
A look at the ongoing threat caused by the phenomenon of "fake news" in the U.S., focusing on the real-life consequences that disinformation, conspiracy theories and false news stories have on the average citizen.
MAX - #30689
Ballard
2025– · Series · 1 seasonCrime · Drama
Detective Renée Ballard plunges into a web of murder and corruption as she hunts a ruthless serial killer and uncovers a sinister police conspiracy that threatens everything she stands for. With her own demons nipping at her heels, Ballard must outwit both criminals and colleagues to bring long-overdue justice to the victims and their families.
Prime Video - #32689
The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness
2013 · Movie · Japanese · 1h 58mDocumentary
Follows the routines of those employed at Studio Ghibli, including filmmakers Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata, and Toshio Suzuki as they work to release two films simultaneously, The Wind Rises and The Tale of the Princess Kaguya.
MAX - #32888
The Universe
2007–2015 · Series · 9 seasonsDocumentary · History
This educational show explores many scientific questions and topics about the universe (Big Bang, the Sun, the planets, black holes, other galaxies, astrobiology etc.) through latest CGI, data and interviews with scientists.
Prime Video - #33588
The Sparring Partner
2022 · Movie · Cantonese · 2h 18mCrime · Drama
Based on a shocking case in real life, a young man partners with his friend to murder and dismember his parents. Pleading not guilty to the crime, defense attorneys face each other as nine jurors grapple with the truth.
Prime Video - #34188
A Simple Plan
1998 · Movie · 2h 1mCrime · Drama · Thriller
Two brothers and a friend, all blue-collar workers, come across millions of dollars in lost cash and make a plan to keep their find from the authorities, but it isn't long before complications and mistrust weave their way into the...
Prime Video - #34488
Lucy and Desi
2022 · Movie · 1h 43mDocumentary · Biography · Comedy
2 EmmysThis film explores the rise of comedy icon Lucille Ball, her relationship with Desi Arnaz, and how their groundbreaking sitcom "I Love Lucy" forever changed Hollywood, cementing her legacy long after her death in 1989.
Prime Video - #34688
Winter on Fire: Ukraine's Fight for Freedom
2015 · Movie · 1h 42mDocumentary · History
A documentary on the unrest in Ukraine during 2013 and 2014, as student demonstrations supporting European integration grew into a violent revolution calling for the resignation of President Viktor F. Yanukovich.
Netflix - #35088
Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles
2019 · Movie · 1h 37mDocumentary
The origin story behind one of Broadway's most beloved musicals, Fiddler on The Roof, and its creative roots in early 1960s New York, when "tradition" was on the wane as gender roles, sexuality, race relations and religion were ev...
Prime Video - #36088

Homicide Hunter: Lt Joe Kenda
2011–2023 · Series · 9 seasonsDocumentary · Crime
Through re-enactments, discussions with investigation teams, and interviews with victims' families and other involved persons, the show highlights Lt. Joe Kenda's successes with his 387 homicide case history and 92% solution rate.
MAXHulu - #37988
Silicon Cowboys
2016 · Movie · 1h 17mDocumentary · History
Three friends dream up the Compaq portable computer at a Texas diner in 1981, and soon find themselves battling mighty IBM for PC supremacy. Their improbable journey altered the future of computing and shaped the world we now know.
Prime Video - #38988
Before the Devil Knows You're Dead
2007 · Movie · 1h 57mCrime · Drama · Thriller
When two brothers organize the robbery of their parents' jewelry store, the job goes horribly wrong triggering a series of events that send them, their father and the wife of one brother barreling toward a shattering climax.
HuluPrime Video - #39987

George Carlin: It's Bad for Ya!
2008 · Movie · 1h 10mDocumentary · Comedy
It's Bad For Ya, Carlin's Emmy-nominated 14th and final HBO special from March of 2008 features Carlin's noted irreverent and unapologetic observations on topics ranging from death, religion, bureaucracy, patriotism, overprotected...
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