It’s the hardest Oscar category to predict as this branch in particular tends to find 5 documentaries no one but they have seen and no awards prognosticator has on their nominee predictions. It’s always a weird world in documentary feature, but most of the time there’s a spoil of riches in true stories. So many, in fact, that I have to create a whole new “Best of” list just for docs. Most likely none of these will make it all the way to the Oscar 5, but there were so many great stories being told that deserve to be highlighted.
There’s plenty of high profile docs I haven’t had a chance to see yet; “Cover-Up,” “My Undesirable Friend Part 1 – Last Air In Moscow,” “Love+War,” “The Tale of Silyan” and “Put Your Hands on Your Soul and Walk” to name a few. In addition, this list won’t include incredible biodocs like “Sly LIves! AKA the Burden of Black Genius,” “John Candy: I Like Me,” or “It’s Never Over, Jeff Buckley,” nor will it include docuseries like “Mr. Scorsese” or “Pee-Wee: As Himself.” Not that any of those are lesser than or not great docs that you should definitely see. Just that we’d be here all day listing great biodocs and docuseries and they should honestly be a category unto itself.
So now that there’s now need to scream at your screen because your favorite Netflix “Trainwreck” episode isn’t on the list, let’s get into the 10 best documentaries we saw in 2025!
10. “Megadoc“
A documentary about the making of one of the worst films of the decade, the making of “Megalopolis” is shockingly better and far more interesting than the film itself. “Megadoc” is suprisingly vulnerable and honest about disasterous filmmaking and complicated film sets, capturing all sides of Francis Ford Coppola (almost) and dislaying the constant tension that comes with such an ambitious, singular passion project. The little quirks and reveals of character is fascinating, and the unfettered access filmmaker Mike Figgis is granted is simply incredible. Regardless of how you feel about the movie itself, “Megadoc” is a must watch for any curious about what the hell went wrong behind the scenes and exploring how things like this get made.
9. “Zodiac Killer Project“
When I first watched “Zodiac Killer Project,” I was sick in bed with 100 degree fever and desperately trying to recover from Sundance. Needless to say I wasn’t in the right head space for it, and gave it about 20 minutes and turned it off once I got the gist. Deciding it needed a revisist and true watch, I decided to give it another try with the right mindset and no virus. I’m so glad I did, because “Zodiac Killer Project” is a seldgehammer to the entire True Crime genre. It is a funny, snarky, wry deconstruction of our murder obsessions, and beautifully shows how little variance their is in their unfolding across countless examples. As Charlie Shackelton walks us through his abandoned project, we learn in realtime just how common all true crime docs actually are and “Zodiac Killer Project” transforms into something else entirely. It also gives us the best phrase I’ve heard: Evocative B Roll. It makes sense when you watch the film, but after that you’ll never watch a true crime show the same again. It is to true crime what “Walk Hard” is to music biopics.
8. “Orwell 2+2=5“
Funnily enough at the time of this writing I just watched the trailer for Andy Serkis’ animated adaption of “Animal Farm,” a film that clearly misses the point of Orwell’s work and is hilariously ironically released by Angel Studios. Orwell would burn that shit to the ground, and “Orwell 2+2=5” claws back misinterpretations of his words by letting HIM speak for himself. It’s the kind of doc that feels deeply vital and necessary as we literally descend into his greatest fears of authoritarianism, and “Orwell 2+2=5” will make you squirm at how much we’re getting wrong and not heeding his warnings. The only problem is the people that need to see it probably won’t and the people who will see it probably don’t need to. “Orwell 2+2=5” is a repetitive red alert that, for those of us that see the truth everywhere feels more like an echo chamber rather than the true call for change. Still, the reclamation of Orwellian is needed and serves a direct challenge to the rising fascist regimes and reminder that even from the grave he’s trying to warn us. We aren’t listening, but at least “Orwell 2+2=5” is screaming it loudly.
7. “Secret Mall Apartment“
I love a good discovery, and “Secret Mall Apartment” wasn’t on my radar until I randomly caught it at the recommendation of fellow colleagues. What begins as something inconsequential – bored art hippies discovering negative space inside a newly constructed mall and decide to build an apartment in the walls – transforms into a profound commentary on gentrification, artistic expression and freedom, capitalism and class disparity. “Secret Mall Apartment” never gives itself over to being too heavy handed, always relishing in the unbelievable creation of the apartment first and the people who participated in the project. It has so much to say about so much, something you wouldn’t expect from its initial premise. “Secret Mall Apartment” expands far beyond the small Providence setting and leaves us with reminder of the power of art. Also a huge rebuke of AI without ever mentioning it once.
6. “The Librarians“
It’s pretty harrowing to watch a film like “The Librarians” in January at Sundance only to fast forward to the end of the year to discover that ALL of the warnings present here were ignored. 2025 has been a year of warnings, revelations, and examinations of the horrible events happening around the world, and “The Librarians” takes us to the frontlines of those often in the shadows being forced into a battle Christian Nationalist ideology and a hostile takeover of education. See, fascism doesn’t happen overnight. It’s a thousand needles and small, seemingly meaningless changes to things we would never even think of being so vital to our freedoms. Blood isn’t shed until it’s too late, and “The Librarians” is a beacon of what can happen when we aren’t paying attention. It’s a hard, sometimes sickening watch but one that is necessary to understanding the hellscape we’ve let happen under or very nose, in the quiet halls of bookshelves.
5. “Come See Me in the Good Light“
There’s a terrible version of “Come See Me in the Good Light” that exists in countless examinations like this. Thankfully, this is quite possibly the best version of this that could exist, and a beautiful ode to the life and work of Andrea Gibson. Though she passed recently, “Come See Me in the Good Light” is a stunning testament of resilience and life and love told through the beautiful struggle of Gibson battling terminal cancer and perservering through countless challenges and set backs with her loving, supportive partner Megan Falley by her side. “Come See Me in the Good Light” is a celebration of life in the face of death, and gorgeously rendered, heartbreaking story of poetry and expression. There’s so rawness here, solidifying Gibson as someone I didn’t know before but will never forget now. You will laugh, you will cry, you will cheer, but best of all you will remember Andrea Gibson. “Come See Me in the Good Light” is a true triumph of hope, and I encourage you to seek this one out immediately.
4. “Predators“
Totally me coded, “Predators” pulls back the curtain of the ubiquitous show that laid the foundation for true culture and not always for the better. I won’t go into too many details, but I did have a teacher in high school who ended up on this show at one point, so watching “Predators” deconstruct its actual operation and the overall more harm than good it left in its wake hit me more personally than most. The all sides approach will typically crumble most docs – trying to have its cake and eat it too – but “Predators” manages to pull it off with great effect and leaves a chilling after effect as it reflects on the sensationalism of justice and the psychological damage it leaves as well as its overall ineffectiveness. I truly never thought there would be so many layers to a relatively straight forward show, but “Predators” really points the finger back at us and shines a spotlight on the massive, negative impact the blending of media and criminal justice can create. It’s a hard watch, but a good one.
3. “2000 Meters to Andriivka“
This will probably end up being herald as one of the best docs of the year on a lot of lists, and rightfully so. a follow up to the award winning “20 Days in Mariupol,” documentarian Mstyslav Chernov takes us back to the war in Ukraine, this time directly to the frontlines in “2000 Meters to Andriivka.” War has never been so tactile and tangible, and when robbed of all its hollywoodization and cinematic highlights, war is a brutal, deadly, grinding, often fruitless affair. The stunning access Chernov gets as he follows an army troupe tasked with reclaiming a small country village on the outskirts of Ukraine is nothing short of astonishing. “2000 Meters to Andriivka” left me speechless most of the time, watching actual war unfold in real time all captured with helmet footage and a man and his camera as bullets wiz by and explosions rock the surroundings. Nothing Chernov does is easy to experience, and “2000 Meters to Andriivka” is a sort of one and done kind viewing experience. It will leave you with a sense of how senseless war often is, the needless sacrifices of men and women and the unsettling violence and death that litters battlefields. In the end, nothing is solved and lives are lost. The cost of war has never felt so high, and “2000 Meters to Andriivka” is a must watch if you can make it through.
2. “Deaf President Now!“
I thought long and hard about where to put “Deaf President Now!” on the list. Not that it doesn’t deserve to be on the list, just how high should it be given the crowded company it keeps. Ultimately I decided that #2 is the right move, a stellar doc that is also uplifting – something often lacking from this particularly category. Light on its feet but nonetheless impactful, “Deaf President Now!” explores the power of representation and revolution, how protests and rebellion and demand to be heard can bring meaningful change and what can happen when a spark becomes a flame. “Deaf President Now!” is a triumphant display of standing your ground, told through the revolutionaries who lead the charge (with authentic vulnerability) and constructed with some of the best sound work of year, period. Sometimes it’s ok to feel good and watch a story brimming with hope and success. “Deaf President Now!” is feel good story at its core, but as it unfolds ends up digging at something more powerful and meaningful. Really loved this one.
1. “The Perfect Neighbor“
I don’t think “The Perfect Neighbor” being the number 1 documentary of 2025 should surprise anyone. A masterclass in editing and storytelling, reconstructing hours and hours of body cam, dash cam and security footage to create a riveting, frustrating, sickening, but ultimately vital story that challenges the status quo and controversial Stand Your Ground Laws in Florida. Like many of the best documentaries, “The Perfect Neighbor” isn’t easy to watch and will probably not be stomached by everyone. It is unflinching in its storytelling, and doesn’t have a happy ending. There is some solace in justice being served and the doc does do rigth by the victims, but to say everyone can make it through “The Perfect Neighbor” would be an overstatement. Still, it is the best documentary I saw all year. One that will stick with me and haunt me indefinitely. It very well might be a perfect documentary, and if you think you can make it through, it is by far and away an unmissable viewing experience.
Honorable Mentions
Making this list, there were obviously a ton of darlings I had to kill, and I could be convinced to reorder a lot of the final picks with a strong enough argument. Alas, the honorable mentions is filled with some great picks, so here’s a quick list of docs that just barely missed the cut that you should seek out if you can: “Modern Whore,” an incredibly vulnerable, humorous look at sex work, “Folktales,” Norway’s youth discovering themselves in the wilderness by befriend sled dogs, “Grand Theft Hamlet” an incredible feat of artistry as two out of work actors recreate “Hamlet” INSIDE of a Grand Theft Auto game, “Wick is Pain” a wonderful look at the making of the Wick series from the people who made it and almost made the list more than the others, “Andre is an Idiot” a life affirming journey through a very strange but intriguing man’s battle with stage 4 colon cancer (I promise it’s funnier than the premise suggests) and “Apocalypse in the Tropics,” a surefire Oscar nominee about fascism and religious nationalism in Brazil that eerily signals where America is headed (or already at if we’re being honest).
