The 25 best documentaries, ranked by critics

Ranked by Rotten Tomatoes critic score (Tomatometer), then Metacritic score. Only movies with a Rotten Tomatoes score of 70% or higher make the list. Scores as recorded in Wikidata.

1. 1
   Shoah1985

   Shoah (1985)

   Rotten Tomatoes 100% · Metacritic 99

   Directed by Claude Lanzmann

   Search on Amazon for Shoah (search results, opens a new tab)
2. 2
   Woodstock1970

   Woodstock (1970)

   Rotten Tomatoes 100% · Metacritic 95

   Directed by Michael Wadleigh, Thelma Schoonmaker and Martin Scorsese

   Search on Amazon for Woodstock (search results, opens a new tab)
3. 3
   Virunga2014

   Virunga (2014)

   Rotten Tomatoes 100% · Metacritic 95

   Directed by Orlando von Einsiedel

   Search on Amazon for Virunga (search results, opens a new tab)
4. 4
   No Other Land2024

   No Other Land (2024)

   Rotten Tomatoes 100% · Metacritic 93

   Directed by Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Hamdan Ballal and Rachel Szor

   Search on Amazon for No Other Land (search results, opens a new tab)
5. 5
   Man on Wire2008

   Man on Wire (2008)

   Rotten Tomatoes 100% · Metacritic 89

   Directed by James Marsh

   Search on Amazon for Man on Wire (search results, opens a new tab)
6. 6
   Honeyland2019

   Honeyland (2019)

   Rotten Tomatoes 100% · Metacritic 85

   Directed by Ljubomir Stefanov and Tamara Kotevska

   Search on Amazon for Honeyland (search results, opens a new tab)
7. 7

   20 Days in Mariupol (2023)

   Rotten Tomatoes 100% · Metacritic 83

   Directed by Mstyslav Chernov

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8. 8
   Roger & Me1989

   Roger & Me (1989)

   Rotten Tomatoes 100% · Metacritic 70

   Directed by Michael Moore

   Search on Amazon for Roger & Me (search results, opens a new tab)
9. 9
   Mr. Nobody Against Putin2025

   Mr. Nobody Against Putin (2025)

   Rotten Tomatoes 100%

   Directed by David Borenstein and Pavel Talankin

   Search on Amazon for Mr. Nobody Against Putin (search results, opens a new tab)
10. 10
    I Am Not Your Negro2016

    I Am Not Your Negro (2016)

    Rotten Tomatoes 99% · Metacritic 95

    Directed by Raoul Peck

    Search on Amazon for I Am Not Your Negro (search results, opens a new tab)
11. 11
    Collective2019

    Collective (2019)

    Rotten Tomatoes 99% · Metacritic 95

    Directed by Alexander Nanau

    Search on Amazon for Collective (search results, opens a new tab)
12. 12
    They Shall Not Grow Old2018

    They Shall Not Grow Old (2018)

    Rotten Tomatoes 99% · Metacritic 91

    Directed by Peter Jackson

    Search on Amazon for They Shall Not Grow Old (search results, opens a new tab)
13. 13
    The Missing Picture2013

    The Missing Picture (2013)

    Rotten Tomatoes 99% · Metacritic 87

    Directed by Rithy Panh

    Search on Amazon for The Missing Picture (search results, opens a new tab)
14. 14
    Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour2023

    Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour (2023)

    Rotten Tomatoes 99% · Metacritic 82

    Directed by Sam Wrench

    Search on Amazon for Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour (search results, opens a new tab)
15. 15
    Inside Job2010

    Inside Job (2010)

    Rotten Tomatoes 98% · Metacritic 88

    Directed by Charles Ferguson

    Search on Amazon for Inside Job (search results, opens a new tab)
16. 16
    Leaving Neverland2019

    Leaving Neverland (2019)

    Rotten Tomatoes 98% · Metacritic 84

    Directed by Dan Reed

    Search on Amazon for Leaving Neverland (search results, opens a new tab)
17. 17

    The Last Waltz (1978)

    Rotten Tomatoes 98% · Metacritic 84

    Directed by Martin Scorsese

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18. 18
    Blackfish2013

    Blackfish (2013)

    Rotten Tomatoes 98% · Metacritic 83

    Directed by Gabriela Cowperthwaite

    Search on Amazon for Blackfish (search results, opens a new tab)
19. 19
    Kedi2016

    Kedi (2016)

    Rotten Tomatoes 98% · Metacritic 78

    Directed by Ceyda Torun

    Search on Amazon for Kedi (search results, opens a new tab)
20. 20
    Paris Is Burning1990

    Paris Is Burning (1990)

    Rotten Tomatoes 98%

    Directed by Jennie Livingston

    Search on Amazon for Paris Is Burning (search results, opens a new tab)
21. 21
    Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck2015

    Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck (2015)

    Rotten Tomatoes 97% · Metacritic 83

    Directed by Brett Morgen

    Search on Amazon for Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck (search results, opens a new tab)
22. 22
    Zelig1983

    Zelig (1983)

    Rotten Tomatoes 97%

    Directed by Woody Allen

    Search on Amazon for Zelig (search results, opens a new tab)
23. 23
    The Tinder Swindler2022

    The Tinder Swindler (2022)

    Rotten Tomatoes 97%

    Directed by Felicity Morris

    Search on Amazon for The Tinder Swindler (search results, opens a new tab)
24. 24
    Taxi2015

    Taxi (2015)

    Rotten Tomatoes 96% · Metacritic 91

    Directed by Jafar Panahi

    Search on Amazon for Taxi (search results, opens a new tab)
25. 25

    Citizenfour (2014)

    Rotten Tomatoes 96% · Metacritic 88

    Directed by Laura Poitras

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