Here's my ten favorite nonfiction films from 2024.
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It's been a wild year for nonfiction filmmaking. True crime in particular was notably over-the-top thanks to a resurgent interest of true crimes past including multiple films and shows about the Menendez Brothers, Jobenet Ramsey, and a bevy of child actors looking back at what they endured. What really stood out to me, however, is how so many of the high profile additions (i.e. the Netflix series on Vince McMahon) failed where smaller stories of injustice succeeded. With that in mind here's my ten favorite documentary films from 2024.
As always these are just the films I've seen. So a number of critically acclaimed films including Will & Harper, DaHomey, The Bibi Files and No Other Land aren't here because I haven't had the pleasure of watching them yet.
These lists are mostly ones I've liked from this year and meant as a snapshot of my current opinions.
American Nightmare
In March of 2015, Denise Huskins was kidnapped from her home in Vallejo, California. When Huskins was later found and returned home, she and her boyfriend Aaron Quinn were dumbfounded to hear that the police thought that they staged the whole thing.
As much as many true crime series either sensationalize or loose sight of the victim experience, Nightmare does the opposite by allowing Huskins to speak to the dual trauma of being abducted and then not being believed and even vilified by the local police and national news media.
As much as many true crime series either sensationalize or loose sight of the victim experience, Nightmare does the opposite by allowing Huskins to speak to the dual trauma of being abducted and then not being believed and even vilified by the local police and national news media.
Because the as much as the man who abducted Huskins was and is monstrous, the most monstrous thing the series says about us, is how quick we and the institutions we rely on for justice, will turn on victims, especially women, if we find their story hard to believe.
Available On: Netflix
The Remarkable Life of Ibelin
Online gaming and online gaming communities are frequently maligned at cesspools filled with bullies and anonymous cruelty. But for some, they are vitally important parts of their life that allow them to connect in ways that might not be accessible to them otherwise.
This is the premise of the film and its subject Mats Steen, a young man born with muscular dystrophy that finds a sense of community and belonging in World of Warcraft as Ibelin.
There's a lot of clever and heart-rending things about the film, including loving testimonials from Ibelin's friends, numerous stories of connecting through gaming, and beyond. But its smartest and most empathetic choice is to animate Mat's adventures through the lens he was best known and wanted to be: as Ibelin in Warcraft.
Not only is this a great way to show the audience the appeal of this community, but it also means we get to see Mats as everyone else saw him, whether it was his moments of radical empathy or emotional outbursts. We see Ibelin and Mats as one.
Available on: Netflix
This is the premise of the film and its subject Mats Steen, a young man born with muscular dystrophy that finds a sense of community and belonging in World of Warcraft as Ibelin.
There's a lot of clever and heart-rending things about the film, including loving testimonials from Ibelin's friends, numerous stories of connecting through gaming, and beyond. But its smartest and most empathetic choice is to animate Mat's adventures through the lens he was best known and wanted to be: as Ibelin in Warcraft.
Not only is this a great way to show the audience the appeal of this community, but it also means we get to see Mats as everyone else saw him, whether it was his moments of radical empathy or emotional outbursts. We see Ibelin and Mats as one.
Available on: Netflix
The Truth vs. Alex Jones
As someone who listens to the very good podcast Knowledge Fight, that deconstructs conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and all of his nonsense, old and new, I probably knew more than the average person going in about Jones and his involvement in perpetuating conspiracies around Sandy Hook and the subsequent attacks on the grieving families.
But it's still something else to see Jones obfuscate in open court.
But it's still something else to see Jones obfuscate in open court.
Centered around the civil trial against Jones, filed by many of the victim's families, the film not only provides a damning blow by blow for how Jones fueled the fires that led to death threats to the parents of murdered children, but also gives up Jones' entire game. That he's a conspiracy theorist carnival barker who claims to fight for "the people" while having no empathy for anyone. He will talk about the families with love one moment and then go outside the courthouse and call all of the proceedings a withchunt.
If the worst thing that happens to him is InfoWars being bought by The Onion, this piece of s*** is getting off easy.
Available On: Max
Available On: Max
Faye
Done correctly, documentary filmmaking can enlighten, enhance or recontextualize our understanding of events and people. Laurent Bouzereau's film manages to do all three for the famed and frequently maligned actress Faye Dunaway.
While the film is more or less a straight line from Dunaway's start in theater into film stardom and beyond, the movie's greatest strength is constantly reflecting on how Dunaway's at the time undiagnosed bipolar disorder both were a great asset to her as an actress and a detriment to her personal and professional reputation.
And thanks to Bouzereau earning her trust and getting direct access to Dunaway, we also get to hear straight from the subject herself about how her prolific and acclaimed film work and how her life may have been different if she had either had the help or medication she needed in her heyday.
And thanks to Bouzereau earning her trust and getting direct access to Dunaway, we also get to hear straight from the subject herself about how her prolific and acclaimed film work and how her life may have been different if she had either had the help or medication she needed in her heyday.
Available on: Max
Bad Faith
Essential viewing for anyone who wonders how/why the evangelical movement has put all of its weight behind someone like Donald Trump.
Using Trump's initial election and embrace from Christian nationalists as a springboard, Stephen Ujlaki and Chris Jones unpack the last half century of political maneuvering undertaken by the religious right to create a government and society governed by their interpretation of faith.
What the film alludes to, and successfully conveys in my opinion, is that many of the church's most public fights, causes and figures have not been chosen for their alignment with the faith, but because embracing certain fights and certain figures would bring them closer and closer to power. All before Project 2025, which the religious right has every intention of carrying out.
Using Trump's initial election and embrace from Christian nationalists as a springboard, Stephen Ujlaki and Chris Jones unpack the last half century of political maneuvering undertaken by the religious right to create a government and society governed by their interpretation of faith.
What the film alludes to, and successfully conveys in my opinion, is that many of the church's most public fights, causes and figures have not been chosen for their alignment with the faith, but because embracing certain fights and certain figures would bring them closer and closer to power. All before Project 2025, which the religious right has every intention of carrying out.
The title is also clever because it gives up the game that many political commentators and citizens get caught up in playing: assuming that the religious zealot in front of them is being honest about their intentions and even their beliefs.
Available On: Tubi and Peacock
Available On: Tubi and Peacock
Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV
After watching this series, I'm convinced that live action children's TV should be burnt to the f***ing ground. The series tracks the heyday of live-action kids television in the early 2000s, especially on Nickelodeon, run by Dan Schneider including shows like iCarly and Drake and Josh. The main argument being that while financially successful, these shows were ultimately damaging and detrimental to far too many of the young people involved in the shows.
And while there are plenty of troubling elements and reveals, including mashup cuts of all of the suggestive images, poses and lines given to underage actors and outright physical and mental abuse being carried out by producers on and off set, what I think the series highlights so well is how the reward structure puts all of these kids in a dangerous position.
If you are the primary breadwinner for your entire family, and you're 12 years old, there's a good chance you will feel obligated to hide abuse or that your parent will gloss it over to ensure that the family's fortunes stay the same.
Combine this with Jeanette McCurdy's incisive memoir, I'm Glad My Mom Died to get super duper furious.
And while there are plenty of troubling elements and reveals, including mashup cuts of all of the suggestive images, poses and lines given to underage actors and outright physical and mental abuse being carried out by producers on and off set, what I think the series highlights so well is how the reward structure puts all of these kids in a dangerous position.
If you are the primary breadwinner for your entire family, and you're 12 years old, there's a good chance you will feel obligated to hide abuse or that your parent will gloss it over to ensure that the family's fortunes stay the same.
Combine this with Jeanette McCurdy's incisive memoir, I'm Glad My Mom Died to get super duper furious.
Available on: Max
Sugarcane
This award-winning documentary opens with the following text on screen as it overlooks the infamous St. Joseph school that taught indigenous children for almost 100 years.
"Beginning in 1894, the Canadian government forced Indigenous children to attend segregated boarding schools. The schools were designed to "get rid of the Indian problem." Most were run by the Catholic Church. For years, students spoke of abuse and whispered about missing classmates."
"Beginning in 1894, the Canadian government forced Indigenous children to attend segregated boarding schools. The schools were designed to "get rid of the Indian problem." Most were run by the Catholic Church. For years, students spoke of abuse and whispered about missing classmates."
Set briefly after the discovery of numerous graves for children that were either neglected, completed suicide, or murdered at these schools, the film follows tribal chief Julian Brave NoiseCat as he and his team of investigators methodically uncover years of trauma and abuses suffered by children at the St. Joseph school.
But perhaps the smartest and most impactful choice the film makes is how it unfurls all of this information. Unlike similar documentaries that want to craft a story with a beginning, middle and end, NoiseCat and his co-director Emily Kassie allow the audience to take in the schools' impact through NoiseCat's investigation and life in real time.
Which in turn allows the audience to see how many of the systemic issues that media outlets latch onto in indigenous communities (including suicide and substance abuse) have their roots in continued colonial efforts to snuff out indigenous culture and the Catholic church's refusal to address its epidemic of abuse.
Available On: Hulu & Disney+
But perhaps the smartest and most impactful choice the film makes is how it unfurls all of this information. Unlike similar documentaries that want to craft a story with a beginning, middle and end, NoiseCat and his co-director Emily Kassie allow the audience to take in the schools' impact through NoiseCat's investigation and life in real time.
Which in turn allows the audience to see how many of the systemic issues that media outlets latch onto in indigenous communities (including suicide and substance abuse) have their roots in continued colonial efforts to snuff out indigenous culture and the Catholic church's refusal to address its epidemic of abuse.
Available On: Hulu & Disney+
Fanatical: The Catfishing of Tegan and Sara
For over ten years, the beloved indie pop duo Tegan and Sara have dealt with a serious problem: Fagan. A fake Tegan that has been impersonating and catfishing a large number of the duo's fans with startling amounts of personal information in the mix.
While the investigation and all of the "Fagan" exploits are the film's most enticing elements, the movie smartly uses the situation as a spring board to address the complicated relationships between performers and fans, especially when it intersects with issues like queer acceptance, toxic fandom and the line between being accessible and fan friendly vs. safety.
What the film never loses sight of though, is the ripple effect that this kind of impersonation has on all parties involved. How Tegan in particular began to suspect everyone in her life. Or how her former partners were being targeted. Or how queer fans who thought they had a personal relationship with Tegan would realize, with horror, that Tegan had no idea who they were.
It's far less sensationalized and even handed then about 10 other docs of its ilk, and that's a credit both to the filmmakers and to Tegan.
Available on: Hulu
Daughters
The premise for Natalie Rea and Angela Patton's documentary sounds predetermined to emotionally wreck its audience: the preparation and lead up to a Daddy Daughter Dance at a Washington D.C. jail. And it absolutely does.
The movie spends its time going back and forth between the two parties, the daughters, mothers and families on the outside and the fathers in prison, as they prepare for the big day and talk about how having a father in prison or being in prison affects them.
And as heartwarming the eventual reunions are, the film never loses sight of the fact that crucial emotional anchors like these are the exception, not the rule, in a criminal justice system that allegedly cares about reform and improving communities. It's a hard needle to thread, and the film does so with grace and empathy.
Available On: Netflix
Reform!
As the GOP put its weight behind Trump once again and the Democratic Party did everything in it's power to push further towards the center, 2024 was a perfect time to talk about the efforts to create a third party in America, and why its most successful incarnation led by Ross Perot, never took hold. All from a filmmaker that has searched for the "Most Cowardly Punt in NFL History" or asked questions like "What If Barry Bonds Never Picked Up A Bat?" But an unexpected deep dive into a topic you never knew could be so fascinating is exactly what fans of Secret Base, and in particular of one of their signature voices, Jon Bois, have come to expect.
The three part series is everything fans like about Bois' work. The meticulous research. The carefully crafted stories that foreshadow their eventual outcome thanks to Bois' knack for narrative flow. And of course some of the greatest deadpan dismissals and reactions you'll come across on God's internet.
And as fascinating and oddly nostalgic as it is to look back at a time when third party candidates looked viable for perhaps the first time in American history, Bois' real strength is highlighting how ego and capitulating to cranks and ideologues kill almost as many movements that had an opportunity to speak to and for the people as money.
Available On: YouTube
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