Documentary AreaSimply the best Documentaries

Rainforests face more threats than ever before, but remain the last stronghold for some truly astonishing animal families. Today we know rainforests are some of the most wondrous and important habitats on Earth. It is the richest habitat on earth, teeming with millions of dramatic plants and animals. From giant landscape gardeners to a whole family supported by a single leaf, there are surprises at every turn.

Children who endured the October 7 attacks open up with raw honesty about moments that changed their lives forever. They recall armed men breaking into their homes, terrifying hours in hiding, the nightmare of captivity, and the unbearable loss of parents torn from them in an instant. Guided by activist Montana Tucker, their stories weave together fragments of fear, grief, and resilience, showing not only what was stolen but also the strength it takes to keep going. Without sensationalism, their voices confront viewers with the reality of trauma through the eyes of the youngest survivors, leaving a lasting reminder of both human cruelty and human courage.

Click CC for subtitles. Oscar-nominated director Petra Costa presents a gripping investigation into the rise of evangelical power in Brazil, revealing how religious leaders have gained unprecedented political influence. With extraordinary access to President Lula, former President Bolsonaro, and Silas Malafaia, the country’s most powerful televangelist, the film uncovers a dramatic power struggle where apocalyptic faith becomes a political force. What emerges is a haunting portrait of a nation at a crossroads, where spiritual warfare is not just metaphor — it’s policy.

A searing and courageous feature-length documentary delves into one of the most painful and under examined chapters in collegiate athletics history. Through raw, emotional interviews with former student-athletes—including wrestlers and other victims—it confronts the decades of abuse inflicted by Dr. Richard Strauss at Ohio State University, and the systemic failures that allowed him to prey on vulnerable young men across nearly two decades.
The film doesn’t just recount trauma; it exposes the deep institutional complicity and silencing, featuring voices demanding truth, accountability, and justice.

Andrew Marr sets off on an epic journey through 70,000 years of human history. Using dramatic reconstructions, documentary filming around the world and cutting-edge computer graphics, he reveals the decisive moments that shaped the world we live in today, telling stories we thought we knew and others we were never told." Starting with our earliest beginnings in Africa, Marr traces the story of our nomadic ancestors as they spread out around the world and settled down to become the first farmers and townspeople. He uncovers extraordinary hand-prints left in European caves nearly 30,000 years ago and shows how human ingenuity led to inventions which are still with us today. He also discovers how the first civilisations were driven to extremes to try to overcome the forces of nature, adapting and surviving against the odds, and reveals how everyday life in ancient Egypt had more in common with today's soap operas than might be imagined.

The dome that crowns Florence's great cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, the Duomo, is a masterpiece of Renaissance ingenuity and an enduring source of mystery. Still the largest masonry dome on earth, it is taller than the Statue of Liberty and weighs as much as an average cruise ship. Historians and engineers have long debated how its architect, Filippo Brunelleschi, kept the dome perfectly aligned and symmetrical as the sides rose and converged toward the center." More than four million bricks could collapse at any moment -- and we still don't understand how Brunelleschi prevented it. To test the latest theories, a team of U.S. bricklayers will help build an experimental "mini-Duomo" using period tools and techniques.