HBOmax
Documentary
Years

Popular Documentary Movies

A La Calle
HBOmax
A La Calle
A firsthand account of the extraordinary efforts of ordinary Venezuelans to reclaim their democracy from the dictatorship of Nicolás Maduro, whose corrupt and brutal policies have plunged the country into economic ruin. Working with a network of clandestine camera crews, the filmmakers spent three years recording exclusive interviews with key opposition figures including Leopoldo López and grassroots activist Nixon Leal, as well as a host of everyday citizens, and captured the remarkable courage of the Venezuelan people as they unite to restore liberty to their country.
A La Calle 2020
The Newspaperman: The Life and Times of Ben Bradlee
HBOmax
The Newspaperman: The Life and Times of Ben Bradlee
An intimate portrait of Washington Post executive editor Ben Bradlee, tracing his remarkable ascent from a young Boston boy stricken with polio to the one of the most pioneering and consequential journalistic figures of the 20th century.
The Newspaperman: The Life and Times of Ben Bradlee 2017
Unlocking the Cage
HBOmax
Unlocking the Cage
Renowned filmmakers D A Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus follow determined animal rights activist Steven Wise into the courtroom for an unprecedented battle that seeks to utilize the writ of habeas corpus to expand legal “personhood” to include certain animals. Wise’s unusual plaintiffs—chimpanzees Tommy and Kiko, once famed showbiz stars—are now living in filth, struggling to survive. Wise and his impassioned legal team take us into the field, revealing gripping evidence of such abuse and plunging us into the intricacies of their case as they probe preconceived notions of what it means to be a non-human animal.
Unlocking the Cage 2016
The Cold Blue
HBOmax
The Cold Blue
A meditation on youth, war and stunning bravery, featuring footage, taken from the National Archives, from the documentary filmed in 1943 by legendary Hollywood director William Wyler about the famous Memphis Belle flying fortress and the gripping narration from some of the last surviving B-17 pilots.
The Cold Blue 2018
The Latin Explosion: A New America
HBOmax
The Latin Explosion: A New America
With more than 50 million Latinos now living in the United States, Latinos are taking their seat at the table as the new American power brokers in the world of entertainment, business, politics and the arts. As Latinos’ influence in American society has soared, they have entered mainstream American culture, and the proof is in the music. Executive produced by legendary music mogul Tommy Mottola, THE LATIN EXPLOSION: A NEW AMERICA features a dazzling array of artists at the center of Latino cultural power and influence, including Marc Anthony, Emilio Estefan Jr., Gloria Estefan, José Feliciano, Eva Longoria, George Lopez, Jennifer Lopez, Los Lobos, Cheech Marin, Ricky Martin, Rita Moreno, Pitbull, Romeo Santos, Shakira, Thalía and Sofía Vergara. Narrated by John Leguizamo.
The Latin Explosion: A New America 2015
One Nation Under Dog
HBOmax
One Nation Under Dog
.Americans have had a long love affair with dogs, with many of us referring to our canine companions as best friends, significant others, soul mates, even children. But lost amidst all the pampering and pedestaling are hard and often tragic truths surrounding dog ownership, care and commerce, not to mention the daunting odds continuing to face millions of unwanted shelter dogs. Divided into three parts – “Fear,” “Loss” and “Betrayal” – this 73-minute documentary is comprised of eight case studies that probe the complicated and conflicted relationship we have with canines. Collectively, the segments reveal the sobering realities behind our relationship with dogs, showing not only how far some dog lovers will go for their pets, but how far we as nation have to go in order to treat all dogs humanely.
One Nation Under Dog 2012
Homeschool Musical: Class of 2020
HBOmax
Homeschool Musical: Class of 2020
Inspired by the viral success of Tony-winner Laura Benanti's #sunshinesongs, this feel-good docu-special spotlights a talented group of high school seniors as they give show-stopping performances from home to capture their 2020 experiences.
Homeschool Musical: Class of 2020 2020
One Survivor Remembers
HBOmax
One Survivor Remembers
Co-produced by the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum Research Institute, this Academy Award-winning documentary relates the harrowing story of Gerda Weissmann Klein and her journey of survival and remembering both before and after the war.
One Survivor Remembers 1995
The Spirit of Salsa
HBOmax
The Spirit of Salsa
People from all over New York City meet in Spanish Harlem once a week at Santo Rico Dance School, where they learn the art of salsa.
The Spirit of Salsa 2010
Yusuf Hawkins: Storm Over Brooklyn
HBOmax
Yusuf Hawkins: Storm Over Brooklyn
The 30-year legacy of the murder of black teenager Yusuf Hawkins by a group of young white men in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, as his family and friends reflect on the tragedy and the subsequent fight for justice that inspired and divided New York City.
Yusuf Hawkins: Storm Over Brooklyn 2020
First Cousin Once Removed
HBOmax
First Cousin Once Removed
Filmmaker Alan Berliner documents his first cousin, the poet-translator Edwin Honig, as he succumbs to Alzheimer's.
First Cousin Once Removed 2012
Say Her Name: The Life and Death of Sandra Bland
HBOmax
Say Her Name: The Life and Death of Sandra Bland
Sandra Bland was a bright, energetic activist whose life was cut short when a traffic stop resulted in a mysterious jail cell death just three days later.
Say Her Name: The Life and Death of Sandra Bland 2018
The Strange History of Don't Ask, Don't Tell
HBOmax
The Strange History of Don't Ask, Don't Tell
The strange history of the now abandoned American 1993-bill, «Don't ask, don't tell» where sexual orientation was a "non-talk" policy in the American forces, leading to 13.368 getting kicked out before 2011.
The Strange History of Don't Ask, Don't Tell 2011
Bleed Out
HBOmax
Bleed Out
After a routine partial hip replacement operation leaves his mother in a coma with permanent brain damage, what starts as a son's video diary becomes a citizen's investigation into the future of American health care.
Bleed Out 2018
Bananas!*
HBOmax
Bananas!*
Juan “Accidentes” Dominguez is on his biggest case ever. On behalf of twelve Nicaraguan banana workers he is tackling Dole Food in a ground-breaking legal battle for their use of a banned pesticide that was known by the company to cause sterility. Can he beat the giant, or will the corporation get away with it?
Bananas!* 2009
Hear and Now
HBOmax
Hear and Now
Filmmaker Irene Taylor Brodsky aims her camera at her own life to capture the remarkable transformation of her deaf parents, who decided to undergo a life-changing procedure to restore their hearing after spending 65 years in silence. Chronicling her parents' experiences over their first year of having sound in their lives, Brodsky tells a deeply personal tale that moved viewers to bestow it with the Documentary Audience Award at Sundance 2007.
Hear and Now 2007
Citizen Ashe
HBOmax
Citizen Ashe
Follows the life and career of Arthur Ashe.
Citizen Ashe 2021
Swiped: Hooking Up in the Digital Age
HBOmax
Swiped: Hooking Up in the Digital Age
A look at the evolving nature of sex and dating in the digital age that offers candid insights from twentysomethings and experts in the field.
Swiped: Hooking Up in the Digital Age 2018
Buzz
HBOmax
Buzz
Pulitzer prize-winning reporter and author, Buzz Bissinger, experiences a sexual awakening while collaborating with Caitlyn Jenner on her tell-all memoir.
Buzz 2019
The Number on Great-Grandpa's Arm
HBOmax
The Number on Great-Grandpa's Arm
When ten-year-old Elliott asks his 90-year-old great-grandfather, Jack, about the number tattooed on his arm, he sparks an intimate conversation about Jack’s life that spans happy memories of childhood in Poland, the loss of his family, surviving Auschwitz and finding a new life in America.
The Number on Great-Grandpa's Arm 2018
Dionne Warwick: Don't Make Me Over
HBOmax
Dionne Warwick: Don't Make Me Over
The story of the iconic singer's fascinating six-decade career in both music and Black and LGBTQ activism.
Dionne Warwick: Don't Make Me Over 2021
Thin
HBOmax
Thin
The story of four women suffering from anorexia and bulimia in South Florida.
Thin 2006
Liberty: Mother of Exiles
HBOmax
Liberty: Mother of Exiles
A look at the history of the Statue of Liberty and the meaning of sculptor Auguste Bartholdi's creation to people around the world.
Liberty: Mother of Exiles 2019
Moonlight Sonata: Deafness in Three Movements
HBOmax
Moonlight Sonata: Deafness in Three Movements
A deeply personal portrait of three lives, and the discoveries that lie beyond loss: a deaf boy growing up, his deaf grandfather growing old, and Beethoven the year he was blindsided by deafness and wrote his iconic sonata.
Moonlight Sonata: Deafness in Three Movements 2019
Stolen Daughters: Kidnapped By Boko Haram
HBOmax
Stolen Daughters: Kidnapped By Boko Haram
The story of the freed female hostages of Boko Haram, detailing their lives in captivity and since their release.
Stolen Daughters: Kidnapped By Boko Haram 2018
Finding the Way Home
HBOmax
Finding the Way Home
A look at the distressing circumstances for millions of children living in orphanages and other institutions around the world as J.K. Rowling's LUMOS foundation works to reunite them with family members or place them in foster homes.
Finding the Way Home 2019
Terror at the Mall
HBOmax
Terror at the Mall
A documentary detailing an indiscriminate terrorist attack that left 71 dead in Kenya.
Terror at the Mall 2014
Transhood
HBOmax
Transhood
Filmed over five years in Kansas City, this documentary follows four transgender kids – beginning at ages 4, 7, 12, and 15 – as they redefine “coming of age.” These kids and their families show us the intimate realities of how gender is re-shaping the family next door in a unique and unprecedented chronicle of growing up transgender in the heartland.
Transhood 2020
No Contract, No Cookies: The Stella D'Oro Strike
HBOmax
No Contract, No Cookies: The Stella D'Oro Strike
Follows the struggle of 138 mostly immigrant workers who strike to save their jobs at a famous bakery in the Bronx when a private equity firm buys the bakery and demands wage cuts of up to 30%.
No Contract, No Cookies: The Stella D'Oro Strike 2010
Shouting Fire: Stories from the Edge of Free Speech
HBOmax
Shouting Fire: Stories from the Edge of Free Speech
A documentary look at the changing interpretations of the first amendment of the U.S. Constitution - laws and court cases that have alternatively broadened and narrowed the amendment's protection of free speech and assembly. The film's thesis is that post-9/11 the government has seized unprecedented license to surveil, intimidate, arrest, and detain citizens and foreigners alike. The film also looks back to the Pentagon Papers' case and compares it to cases since 9/11 dealing with high school students' speech and protesters marching in New York City during the 2004 Republican convention. Comment comes from a range of scholars, pundits, and advocates.
Shouting Fire: Stories from the Edge of Free Speech 2009
Afghan Star
HBOmax
Afghan Star
This documentary on the effect the talent competition "Afghan Star" has on the incredibly diverse inhabitants of Afghanistan affords a glimpse into a country rarely seen. Contestants risk their lives to appear on the television show that is a raging success with the public and also monitored closely by the government.
Afghan Star 2009
Hood River
HBOmax
Hood River
In a small Oregon community, a high school soccer team struggles to overcome class and racial divide in a quest for both individual and team success. While Domingo deals with the deportation of his father to Mexico, and Eric painfully learns how to become a captain and command the respect of his Mexican-American teammates, Coach Riviera struggles to keep the team together amidst the pressure of academics and athletics. This coming-of-age feature documentary focuses on the friendship and maturation of three characters and is set against the backdrop of a segregated American town. Will Domingo graduate? Will Eric become a leader? Will the Eagles win a state championship?
Hood River 2021
Heroin: Cape Cod, USA
HBOmax
Heroin: Cape Cod, USA
An unvarnished look at the heroin epidemic sweeping America's small towns and communities, focusing on on eight young addicts in idyllic Cape Cod, Mass.
Heroin: Cape Cod, USA 2015
Michigan vs. Ohio State:  The Rivalry
HBOmax
Michigan vs. Ohio State: The Rivalry
Steeped in a rich tradition dating back to their inaugural meeting in 1897, this rivalry extends beyond the pursuit of a Big Ten title, and is renewed each year through the pageantry and colliding cultures that distinguish the two schools.
Michigan vs. Ohio State: The Rivalry 2007
The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant
HBOmax
The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant
The inside story of the last days of a General Motors plant in Moraine, Ohio, as lived by the people who worked the line.
The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant 2009
The Infamous Future
HBOmax
The Infamous Future
The untold story of New York City's Eagle Academy.
The Infamous Future 2019
Homegrown: The Counter-Terror Dilemma
HBOmax
Homegrown: The Counter-Terror Dilemma
An insider’s account from the perspectives of those who helped construct America’s counter-terrorism machine -- and of its targets.
Homegrown: The Counter-Terror Dilemma 2016
How to Dance in Ohio
HBOmax
How to Dance in Ohio
In Columbus, Ohio, a group of autistic teenagers and young adults role-play this transition by going through the deceptively complex social interactions of preparing for a spring formal. Focusing on several young women as they go through an iconic American rite of passage, we are given intimate access to people who are often unable to share their experiences with others. With humor and heartbreak, How to Dance in Ohio shows the daily courage of people facing their fears and opening themselves to the pain, worry, and joy of the social world.
How to Dance in Ohio 2015
For Neda
HBOmax
For Neda
On June 20, 2009, Neda Agha-Soltan was shot and killed on the streets of Tehran during the turmoil that followed the Iranian presidential contest. Within hours, images of her dying moments, captured on cell phones, appeared on computer screens across the world, focusing the world's attention on mass protests against the rigged elections in Iran. Featuring previously unseen footage of Neda with friend and family, as well as exclusive video of her recorded the day she died, "For Neda" debuts just before the anniversary of her death.
For Neda 2010
Requiem for the Dead: American Spring 2014
HBOmax
Requiem for the Dead: American Spring 2014
From directors Nick Doob and Shari Cookson, "Requiem for the Dead" is made entirely from found footage, including social media posts, 9-1-1 calls, news stories and police files. The film tells the stories of those who have been killed by gunfire, whether from accidental violence, random shootings, family disputes or suicide. Hear those stories of those who have died, which is only a fraction of the 32,000 people killed in America each year, 88 per day, from gun violence.
Requiem for the Dead: American Spring 2014 2015