Documentaries

my single is dropping Sept. 8, 2020

If Janelle Monáe’s New Song Won’t Get You to the Polls, We Don’t Know What Will“Turntables” is for the voter-suppression documentary All In: The Fight for Democracy.

By Justin Curto

oh bless the lord my soul Aug. 31, 2020

Prepare Ye, a Stephen Schwartz Documentary ApproachesDefying Gravity chronicles the life’s work of the artist behind shows like Wicked and Godspell.

By Madison Malone Kircher

nxivm Aug. 24, 2020

What to Know About HBO’s The Vow and the NXIVM Sex CultA guide to the docuseries’ main players and the organization’s inner workings, subsequent trials and convictions, and ongoing work.

By Dan Reilly

trailer mix Aug. 19, 2020

Class Action Park Documentary Trailer: Amusement Parks, But Make It True CrimeSliding into HBO Max August 27.

By Rebecca Alter

documentaries Aug. 14, 2020

Can the Kids Can Save America?Steven Garza, the Texas teen star of the new documentary Boys State, isn’t so sure.

By Joseph Bien-Kahn

movie review Aug. 12, 2020

Boys State Is an Enthralling Doc About How the Kids Are (and Aren’t) All RightA mock state election among Texas teens ends up being an entertaining reflection of the American political id in this Apple TV+ documentary.

By Alison Willmore

documentaries Aug. 10, 2020

A George Carlin Documentary Directed by Judd Apatow Is in the WorksComing to HBO sometime in the future.

By Megh Wright

tv about movies Aug. 7, 2020

Ava DuVernay Is Making an HBO Max Show Based on One Perfect Shot Twitter AccountEach episode will take a deep dive into a director’s “most iconic shot,” as well as a seminal cinematic image that influenced their career.

By Halle Kiefer

movie review July 31, 2020

God Bless the Go-Go’s and This Documentary About the Go-Go’sThe Go-Go’s, debuting on Showtime, is a rollicking portrait of a seminal band, and an acute examination of female ambition.

By Jen Chaney

the legend July 17, 2020

Where Is Bill Bakula, Walter Mercado’s Ex-Manager, Now?The filmmakers behind Netflix’s Mucho Mucho Amor explain how they tracked down the man who made and destroyed the famous astrologer’s career.

By Maria Elena Fernandez

the most July 16, 2020

Charli XCX Releasing Doc About Her Quarantine Album As If She Hasn’t Done Enough6ft apart will follow the making of how i’m feeling now.

By Justin Curto

true crime June 29, 2020

What to Know About I’ll Be Gone in the Dark and the Golden State KillerA guide to Michelle McNamara’s investigation, the hunt for the Golden State Killer, and how he was finally caught.

By Dan Reilly

youtube originals June 25, 2020

A New Demi Lovato Docuseries Is Coming to YouTube to Break UsPlus, James Charles’s Instant Influencer is getting a second season!

By Zoe Haylock

the view from home June 22, 2020

Director Stanley Nelson Is Proud His Children Left Him to Go ProtestThe documentarian hopes the industry understands, “This is not an opportunity for white filmmakers to get another commission.”

By Stanley Nelson

As told to Nate Jones

documentaries June 18, 2020

How Lenox Hill Filmed a Special Coronavirus Episode Inside a HospitalFor 33 days over two months, the Netflix docuseries witnessed the pandemic erupt inside a Manhattan hospital.

By Maria Elena Fernandez

movie review June 7, 2020

Be Water Is a Sports Doc with Righteous RageIn fact, it doesn’t feel like a sports doc at all. You walk away convinced that Bruce Lee was an artist more than anything else.

By Bilge Ebiri

blackout tuesday June 2, 2020

12 Documentaries You Should Watch About Racism and Police Brutality in AmericaThey are worth watching today and always.

By Jason Bailey

movie review May 29, 2020

On the Record Is Imperfect, Provocative, and Utterly NecessaryThe documentary detailing accusations of sexual assault against Russell Simmons proves to be a compelling and uneven work of the Me Too era.

By Angelica Jade Bastién

documentaries May 22, 2020

In AKA Jane Roe, a ‘Deathbed Confession’ Was Never the Plan“I was shocked,” documentarian Nick Sweeney says of Norma McCorvey’s onscreen confession. “It was not what I expected.”

By Lisa Liebman

movie review May 8, 2020

Spaceship Earth Casts a Sympathetic Lens on a Much-Ridiculed Failed UtopiaMatt Wolf’s very entertaining documentary about Biosphere 2 sets out to liberate its architects and participants from their fate as a punch line.

By David Edelstein

in the dome May 7, 2020

The Strange-But-True Story Behind Spaceship EarthBiosphere 2, a 1990s experiment in quarantine, was regarded as a spectacular failure. Has its reputation been misunderstood?

By Charles Bramesco

coming soon May 1, 2020

Here’s a First Look at the Uncomfortably Relevant Doc Spaceship EarthIt tells the story of eight people tasked with quarantining inside of an experimental biosphere. How quaint!

By Rebecca Alter

trailer mix May 1, 2020

Netflix’s Trial by Media Trailer: Lights, Camera, Courtroom!The documentary examines six famous trials, each one more salacious than the last.

By Devon Ivie

trailer mix Apr. 30, 2020

Thomas Piketty the Movie Is Coming to a Virtual Theater Near YouCapital in the Twenty-First Century will be released via the newly launched digital-cinema platform Kino Marquee on May 1.

By Michael Kaler

documentaries Apr. 30, 2020

A Documentary on Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Freestyle Love Supreme Is Coming to HuluThe film premiered at Sundance this spring.

By Jackson McHenry

coronavirus Apr. 30, 2020

The Race to Make the First Coronavirus Documentary Has BegunAlex Gibney is producing one. David France is directing another. At least 20 documentarians agree: “It is the most important story of my lifetime.”

By Chris Lee

first look Apr. 27, 2020

Michelle Obama’s Becoming Doc Hits Netflix This MayThe former First Lady joins the Tiger King.

By Zoe Haylock

the last dance Apr. 27, 2020

A Mortified Carmen Electra Recalls Hiding From Michael JordanOn night two of The Last Dance, Electra recalled the time the greatest basketball player in the world walked in on her and Dennis Rodman.

By Zoe Haylock

vulture sports Apr. 20, 2020

Huh, That Former Chicago Resident Sure Does Look FamiliarThe new Michael Jordan doc got creative in identifying subjects.

By Hunter Harris

tv review Apr. 17, 2020

The Last Dance Is a Perfect Remedy for Sports WithdrawalA ten-part ESPN docuseries about Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls would have been great under any circumstances. Right now, it feels like a gift.

By Jen Chaney

cool cats only Apr. 13, 2020

Joe Exotic’s Fear of Tigers and 5 More Highlights From the Tiger King ReunionJoel McHale caught up with the remarkably chill cast of Netflix’s Tiger King.

By Zoe Haylock

coronavirus Apr. 2, 2020

Iranian Filmmaker Mehrdad Oskouei Awaits a Prison Sentence in QuarantineThe documentarian has been sentenced to a year in prison. He wonders if he were there now, amid the coronavirus, how would he spend his time?

By Mehrdad Oskouei

As told to Bilge Ebiri

vulture recommends Apr. 1, 2020

Meghan Markle Makes Glorious Return to Acting by Narrating Elephant Farts“Oh, dear. Ah, who did that?”

By Devon Ivie

so many questions Apr. 1, 2020

Florida Sheriff Is Here to Debunk Your Tiger King Cold-Case TheoriesFans of the Netflix series are sending in tips about Carole Baskin’s ex-husband every day. Here’s what’s new with Don Lewis’s missing-person case.

By Maria Elena Fernandez

movie review Mar. 27, 2020

Crip Camp Is a Transcendent Celebration of Activist CultureIt’s a shame this Netflix movie can’t be seen with a large, boisterous audience. It’ll make you want to dance and light up a joint.

By David Edelstein

documentaries Mar. 6, 2020

Hillary Clinton Has a Theory on Why People Love Her Most When She’s LosingAhead of the Sundance premiere of her new Hulu docuseries, Clinton spoke to Vulture about concession speeches and supporting Bernie Sanders.

By Bilge Ebiri

chat room Feb. 11, 2020

Dick Cavett Still Feels Like Muhammad Ali’s ‘Main Man’The veteran host reflects on some highlights from his friendship with The Greatest, compiled in the new doc Ali & Cavett: The Tale of the Tapes.

By Will Harris

documentaries Feb. 10, 2020

An Ava DuVernay-Directed Documentary About Nipsey Hussle Is Headed to NetflixThe director introduced this year’s Grammy tribute to the late rapper and activist, who was killed last March.

By Halle Kiefer

the gold rush Feb. 8, 2020

All 53 Movies Nominated for an Oscar This Year, RankedThis ranking of 2020 Academy-anointed films is subjective and based on nothing but personal evaluation. But it is right.

By Joe Reid

hbo max Feb. 3, 2020

Russell Simmons Accuser Documentary On the Record Headed to HBO MaxIn January, Oprah stepped away from the Amy Ziering and Kirby Dick film ahead of its Sundance premiere.

By Halle Kiefer

sundance 2020 Jan. 31, 2020

When Documentaries Make You Question EverythingThis year’s slate of Sundance docs is unusually focused on narrative control: who has it, who demands it, and what happens when it changes hands.

By Bilge Ebiri

miss americana Jan. 31, 2020

18 Things We Learn About Taylor Swift in Her Documentary Miss AmericanaThe superstar’s new doc, directed by Lana Wilson, reveals a lot: An eating disorder, the story behind her political awakening, and a cat backpack.

By Rachel Handler

radio vulture Jan. 30, 2020

Taylor Swift Finally Invites You Into Her Narrative on Miss AmericanaMiss Americana peels away some of Taylor Swift’s complexities to reveal even more complexities.

By Craig Jenkins

sundance 2020 Jan. 29, 2020

Kirsten Johnson on Fake-Killing Her Dad (Over and Over) in Dick Johnson Is DeadThe documentarian explains how and why she filmed a sob-inducing, wildly funny, preemptive eulogy for her beloved father.

By Rachel Handler

true crime Jan. 22, 2020