Every year there are a huge number of movies that fly right under the radar of the average movie fan. movies that are great but just not that well known.
There are plenty of movie gems out there and hopefully this list will help you find some.
Feel free to submit new movies in the comments below.
This list contains movies/documentaries and short films. The list was originally created on IMDb. http://goo.gl/gHles
This isn't intended to be a comprehensive list. I'm just going to be periodically updating this list with titles from the following IMDB search parameters:
UPDATED: 5/20/24
This is it. The end of the lists. Finally! So the other day I posted the best documentaries of the decade as selected by a group of acclaimed documentary filmmakers. Now, we’ve got The Documentary Blog’s own top 50 docs of the decade. I was originally aiming for 25 but I just couldn’t cut it down, so 50 will have to do. Let me stress that this list represents my own personal opinion and nothing more. Hopefully some people can use this as a starting point to check out some great films. Feel free to share your own lists in the comments and let me know what I missed! One thing’s for sure; it has been a great decade for documentaries!"
Source: http://www.thedocumentaryblog.com/index.php/2010/01/05/the-documentary-blogs-top-25-documentaries-of-the-decade/. TDB is Jay Cheel who is a Co-Host of the Filmjunk-Podcast.
True crime documentaries and docuseries. Updated regularly.
Last update: 5/7/2024
The greatest films ever made, as voted by MUBI’s global community of film lovers.
https://mubi.com/lists/the-top-1000
amazon movies
Based on the book by Jennifer Eiss
Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature (Winners & Nominees)
The top films in the 2012 Sight and Sound Poll from the combined votes of 846 critics and 359 directors. Contains films with 3 or more votes. In order by number of votes.
The following is a list of positions and the number of corresponding votes. 21-22 (66 votes), 27-28 (55 votes), 29-30 (54 votes), 36-37 (46 votes), 39-42 (44 votes), 43-46 (43 votes), 47-50 (41 votes), 51-52 (40 votes), 53-55 (39 votes), 56-57 (38 votes), 59-60 (35 votes), 62-74 (33 votes), 75-77 (32 votes), 78-79 (31 votes), 82-88 (28 votes), 89-90 (27 votes), 91-93 (26 votes), 94-99 (25 votes), 100-103 (24 votes), 104-106 (23 votes), 107-110 (22 votes), 111-118 (21 votes), 119-127 (20 votes), 128-139 (19 votes), 140-146 (18 votes), 147-153 (17 votes), 154-166 (16 votes), 167-182 (15 votes), 183-193 (14 votes), 194-206 (13 votes), 207-228 (12 votes), 229-243 (11 votes), 244-271 (10 votes), 272-302 (9 votes), 303-330 (8 votes), 331-375 (7 votes), 376-423 (6 votes), 424-497 (5 votes), 498-624 (4 votes), 625-817 (3 votes)
Source: http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/sightandsoundpoll2012
Movies with a perfect Tomatometer Score
From the book by Jennifer Eiss. The list is arranged by chapter. Each chapter starts with a top 10 (in alphabetical order), followed by the "best of the rest" (in alphabetical order).
#1-83: Dramatic Situatons
#84-133: Gripping Tales
#134-165: Lights, Camera…!
#166-228: Visionary Universes
#229-280: Criminal Underworlds
#281-360: Tales of Terror
#361-432: Cult Humor
#433-453: The Wild Wild West
#454-502: Film Lab
Source: https://www.amazon.com/500-Essential-Cult-Movies-Ultimate/dp/1402774869
Since the 2015 TSPDT has released a companion to their greatest 1000 films, consisting of the films ranked 1001-2000. This list contains the most recent version of this list, with all the previous lists in the history.
Source: http://www.theyshootpictures.com/gf1000_films1001-2000.htm
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts' Best British Film Award, originally given from 1948 to 1968. In 1993, an award for Best British Film was restored with the creation of the Alexander Korda Award for Best British Film, named after the important British film director.
This isn't intended to be a comprehensive list. I'm just going to be periodically updating this list with titles from the following IMDB search parameters:
https://www.imdb.com/search/title/?genres=documentary,sport
UPDATED: 5/29/24
The 21st Century's Most Acclaimed Films list serves as a companion to the They Shoot Pictures, Don't They? 1,000 Greatest Films of all time list which, - by its nature - tends to have very few films from the 21st century in it. The 21st Century's Most Acclaimed Films list attempts to highlight and honour this century's most critically revered films and act as a sort of 'resting bay' for many great films that are likely to be included in the 1,000 Greatest Films list sooner or later.
Source: http://www.theyshootpictures.com/21stcentury.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_films_based_on_actual_events
All the movies with "Must-See" badge on Metacritic. Movie gets the badge when it has a score of 81 or higher and has been reviewed by at least 15 pro critics.
All credits go to IMDb user: RDLongoria
List of Academy Award-winning since 1994 in:
- Best Picture - Best Director
- Best Actor/Actress - Best Supporting Actor/Actress
- Best Original Screenplay - Best Adapted Screenplay
- Best Animated Feature Film - Best Animated Short Film
- Best Documentary Feature - Best Documentary Short Subject
- Best Live Action Short Film - Best International Feature Film
- Best Original Score - Best Original Song
- Best Sound Editing - Best Sound Mixing
- Best Production Design - Best Cinematography
- Best Makeup and Hairstyling - Best Costume Design
- Best Film Editing - Best Visual Effects
The list includes also nominations in the same categories.
All credits go to IMDb user: RDLongoria
Great Movies You May Have Never Heard Of
by Lars