Favorite Documentaries
Items in this hypelist
Movies
Industrial Accident: The Story of Wax Trax! Records
Julia Nash · 2018
The true story of punks, queers, & criminals on a ride with two men who accidentally changed music along the way.
The Punk Singer
Sini Anderson · 2013
A look at the life of activist, musician, and cultural icon Kathleen Hanna, who formed the punk band Bikini Kill and pioneered the "riot grrrl" movement of the 1990s.
Lynch/Oz
Alexandre O. Philippe · 2023
Victor Fleming’s 1939 film The Wizard of Oz is one of David Lynch’s most enduring obsessions. This documentary goes over the rainbow to explore this Technicolor through-line in Lynch’s work.
Kim's Video
David Redmon · 2023
Since 1987, and for almost three decades, New York cinephiles had access to a vast treasure trove of rare films thanks to Kim's Video, a small empire run by Yongman Kim, an enigmatic character who amassed more than fifty thousand VHS tapes.
Pee-wee as Himself
2025
A kaleidoscopic portrait told in two parts tracing the life of the imaginative artist.
Crumb
Terry Zwigoff · 1994
This movie chronicles the life and times of R. Crumb. Robert Crumb is the cartoonist/artist who drew Keep On Truckin', Fritz the Cat, and played a major pioneering role in the genesis of underground comix. Through interviews with his mother, two brothers, wife, ex-wife and ex-girlfriends, as well as selections from his vast quantity of graphic art, we are treated to a darkly comic ride through one man's subconscious mind.
Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Radiant Child
Tamra Davis · 2010
A thoughtful portrait of a renowned artist, this documentary shines the spotlight on New York City painter Jean-Michel Basquiat. Featuring extensive interviews conducted by Basquiat's friend, filmmaker Tamra Davis, the production reveals how he dealt with being a black artist in a predominantly white field. The film also explores Basquiat's rise in the art world, which led to a close relationship with Andy Warhol, and looks at how the young painter coped with acclaim, scrutiny and fame.
The Decline of Western Civilization Part III
Penelope Spheeris · 1998
A musical study of Los Angeles in the late 90s, where homeless teens roam the streets and profess to live a punk lifestyle of music, drugs, and flouting authority.
The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years
Penelope Spheeris · 1988
An exploration of the heavy metal scene in Los Angeles, with particular emphasis on glam metal. It features concert footage and interviews of legendary heavy metal and hard rock bands and artists such as Aerosmith, Alice Cooper, Kiss, Megadeth, Motörhead, Ozzy Osbourne and W.A.S.P..
The Decline of Western Civilization
Penelope Spheeris · 1981
The Los Angeles punk music scene circa 1980 is the focus of this film. With Alice Bag Band, Black Flag, Catholic Discipline, Circle Jerks, Fear, Germs, and X.
I Am Divine
Jeffrey Schwarz · 2014
Harris Glenn Milstead, aka Divine (1945-1988) was the ultimate outsider turned underground hero. Spitting in the face of the status quos of body image, gender identity, sexuality, and preconceived notions of beauty, Divine succeeded in becoming an internationally recognized icon, recording artist, and character actor of stage and screen. Glenn went from the often-mocked, schoolyard fat kid to underdog royalty, standing up for millions of gay men and women, drag queens and punk rockers, and countless other socially ostracized misfits and freaks. With a completely committed in-your-face style, he blurred the line between performer and personality, and revolutionized pop culture.
David Lynch: The Art Life
Jon Nguyen · 2017
An intimate journey through the formative years of David Lynch's life. From his idyllic upbringing in small town America to the dark streets of Philadelphia, we follow Lynch as he traces the events that have helped to shape one of cinema's most enigmatic directors.
Pretty as a Picture: The Art of David Lynch
Toby Keeler · 1997
An in-depth look at artist/filmmaker David Lynch's movies, paintings, drawings, photographs, and various other works of art. Features interview footage and commentary by family members, friends, fans, and people he's worked with, as well as behind-the-scenes antics of some of his most critically praised efforts.
