- 11 months ago
These films shocked, outraged, and challenged audiences around the world... Join us as we examine the most politically and morally contentious documentaries ever released! From religious scandals and conspiracy theories to shocking exposés and propaganda pieces, these films pushed boundaries and sparked fierce debates that continue to this day.
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00:00Of course, not a single member of Congress wanted to sacrifice their child for the war in Iraq.
00:06And who could blame them?
00:07Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're looking at the most politically or morally contentious
00:12documentaries ever released.
00:30It seems like we have always known about the crimes committed by and covered up by the
00:38clergyman.
00:39While this documentary, directed by Alex Gibney, is not the first to do so, it perhaps is among
00:43the most controversial.
00:45The documentary follows four deaf men, as they sue the priest who assaulted them at Milwaukee
00:50School in the 60s.
01:02It turns out that this priest abused more than 200.
01:05Mayor Maxima Culpe won a Peabody Award and a few Primetime Emmys.
01:09Of course, the Catholic Church has insisted these are isolated incidents.
01:14We won't forget this expose on systematic abuse in a hurry.
01:17Nirvana and Kurt Cobain fans certainly know this infamous documentary.
01:30Directed by Nick Bloomfield, this documentary follows Cobain's troubled life and death.
01:34It also explores the dark theory that Cobain's wife, Courtney Love, conspired to kill him.
01:46Donald eventually sided against these conspiracy theories in the film, but his eschewing Cobain
01:50for an increasingly unflattering character portrait of Love raised many eyebrows.
01:56For her part, Love refused to license Nirvana's music for use in the documentary and perhaps
02:01understandably, tried to suppress the film.
02:03There was little love for this film and much controversy.
02:07Political polemics are always predictably contentious.
02:13Right-wing provocateur Dinesh D'Souza and John Sullivan created this documentary on the
02:18life and career of Barack Obama, drawing parallels between him and D'Souza's own life and immigrant
02:23experiences.
02:35Although a sleeper hit, critics lambasted the film as little more than character assassination.
02:41The film's claims that Obama harbored anti-colonious views from his Kenyan father, whom he had not
02:46seen since he was 10, were not looked on kindly either.
02:50The film's low critical ratings and fear-mongering make it among the most controversial political
02:54documentaries ever.
03:18This documentary, part one of a three-part series, follows family man Richard Kuklinski, who claimed
03:23to have killed over 200 people in his life.
03:26Kuklinski was a hitman working for the mob.
03:29Interviewed behind bars while serving a sentence for multiple homicide, Kuklinski details his
03:33life, including his difficult childhood, raised by his abusive father.
03:48Upon running away from home, he fell into a life of crime and was given a nickname for his
03:52cold-blooded approach, the Iceman.
03:54Both Kuklinski's normalcy and his sociopathy make this film a chilling one to watch.
04:01Directed by Louis Sohoyas, this film is an expose of Japanese dolphin hunting practices,
04:06and the country's whaling practices in general.
04:08Following former dolphin trainer Rick O'Barry, the crew goes to the port town of Taji, Japan.
04:25They seek to record the dolphin hunting there, only to be dogged and stonewalled by the locals
04:30and government officials.
04:32Although praised for its edge-of-your-seat thrills, the documentary's activist leanings were
04:36greeted with more skepticism.
04:38The film was also met with backlash from Taji locals and officials.
04:42SeaWorld had to confirm they did not purchase any wild dolphins from these hunts.
04:49This film follows the trial of the West Memphis Three, teenage youths accused of a grisly murder,
05:03seemingly as part of a satanic ritual.
05:18It turns out that one confession by Jessie Miss Kelly Jr. may have been false, and there
05:22was a lack of physical evidence overall.
05:24Miss Kelly quickly recanted his confession, citing coercion by the police, and a key witness
05:30also recanted her testimony.
05:42Directed by Joseph Behrlinger and Bruce Sanofsky, the film was commended for its exploration of
05:47grievous police misconduct, winning an Emmy.
05:52Talk about controversy.
05:54This Laura Poitras documentary is about her first contact with Edward Snowden, an NSA agent-turned-whistleblower.
06:01Upon receiving an encrypted email from Snowden, Poitras agrees to meet him at a Hong Kong hotel,
06:06with journalist Glenn Greenwald and intelligence reporter Ewan McCaskill in tow.
06:11Snowden reveals the illegal wiretapping practices of the NSA and other US intelligence agencies.
06:27This shocking documentary received both critical acclaim and backlash.
06:31Its producers were even subject to a lawsuit accusing them of aiding and abetting Snowden.
06:36It was dropped, but the film clearly hit a nerve.
06:46This seminal documentary, which was marked for preservation by the Library of Congress, was
06:53directed by Errol Morris.
06:55The film follows the trial of Randall Dale Adams, accused of shooting and killing Robert
06:59W. Wood, a Dallas police officer.
07:02This even discovers the real murderer, David Harris, proving Adams' innocence.
07:17The documentary was controversial for its use of dramatic reenactments and film score, unusual
07:22for documentaries at the time.
07:24It was even disqualified for the category and thus unable to be considered for an Academy
07:28Award.
07:29Regardless, The Thin Blue Line went on to win several awards, inspiring other filmmakers.
07:49The true crime documentary about an Idaho minor kidnapped in the 1970s by a neighbour is one
07:54of many twists and turns.
07:56Jan Broberg was abducted by family friend Robert Birchtold, who groomed her into accepting
08:01her assault.
08:02Not only that, but Birchtold blackmailed her parents into signing an affidavit, claiming
08:19he had gotten permission from them to take Jan.
08:22Birchtold then kidnapped Jan a second time for even longer, before the FBI finally put him
08:27behind bars for good.
08:28How did Birchtold manage all this?
08:30Well, he convinced the Broberg family that alien abductions and UFOs existed.
08:35It's a shocking tale of not just abuse, but denial as well.
08:46It seems that catfish as a term has been around forever, but it was really this documentary that
08:53coined it.
08:54Photographer Niamh Shulman becomes online friends with Abby, an eight-year-old prodigy artist,
08:59and starts a romance with her older half-sister Meghan.
09:06Of course, things aren't always what they seem.
09:12Shulman and his siblings quickly find out about the lies spun by the mother, Angela Wesselman
09:17Pierce, who was the one creating separate fake Facebook accounts.
09:21Since its release, the documentary has been accused of being fake, although Angela Wesselman
09:25Pierce's family and life were confirmed to be real.
09:28It's all very strange.
09:57This grim documentary, directed by Andrew Jurecki, follows Arnold Friedman and his son, Jesse,
10:03in their criminal trial.
10:05This duo, who taught computer classes to young children, were accused of sexual violence
10:09against them.
10:10Although the Friedmans pleaded guilty, they claimed they had done so under fear of going
10:14to trial and getting harsher sentences, and that no crime had been done.
10:27Did they abuse anyone?
10:28Was this a case of moral panic run amok?
10:30Jurecki's even-handed impartiality received criticism, as well as the director's eventual
10:36belief in the pair's innocence.
10:37Plus, when the film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature,
10:50some of Friedman's alleged victims protested.
10:52It is a riddling case, alright.
10:59I can't see any reason why we shouldn't be in the media with this.
11:12Chilling and sinister, this documentary about a charismatic Christian summer camp is scarier
11:17than most horror films.
11:18The documentary follows children Levi, Rachel and Tori as they attend Kids on Fire, run by
11:24Becky Fisher and her ministry.
11:34Fisher is open about her attempts to indoctrinate children into conservative Christian beliefs,
11:40employing tactics used by Islamic fundamentalists.
11:43These include the denial of evolution, among other scientific theories, as well as hateful
11:47preaching against homosexuality and abortion.
12:00The outrage and controversy over this camp following the documentary led to its shutting down.
12:05Sadly, questions about indoctrination being a form of abuse are still relevant.
12:29In one of the first feature-length documentaries, Robert J. Flaherty's film proved contentious.
12:34Initially beginning as a travelogue, the resulting film focuses on the life and practices of an
12:39Inuit family, led by the titular Nanook, in the Canadian Arctic.
12:49Soon however, accusations of fictionalising, staged events and even falsification arose.
12:55The book was actually named Alakari Alak, and his wife was actually Flaherty's wife.
13:00And although the Inuit had already begun using guns and other Western technology, Flaherty
13:04encouraged them to hunt traditionally, for the purposes of the film.
13:13Despite its technical achievements, the controversy over indigenous representation and misrepresentation
13:19continues on.
13:30Directed by Gabriella Cowperthwaite, this film follows orca Tilikum, and the plight of orcas
13:35at SeaWorld in general.
13:47Captured and harassed by his fellow orcas, Tilikum developed patterns of aggression, even
13:52attacking and killing trainers.
13:54The documentary also captures harrowing footage of orcas being captured and taken away.
13:58SeaWorld was also scrutinised for its practices and claims, including that their orcas had
14:03a lifespan comparable to those in the wild.
14:15The theme park came out against the film, claiming inaccuracy, exaggeration and even exploitation.
14:20I mean, who is exploiting whom?
14:22Valid expose or not, it is a film searing in its condemnation.
14:26In the end, you know, he basically just completely mutilated that poor girl.
14:43Inspired by a 2003 article of the same theme, this grisly film follows jumpers off the Golden
14:49Gate Bridge, most of whom die in the process.
14:52Director Eric Steele filmed the bridge for a full year, avoiding publicity to lessen the
15:07chances of notoriety jumps, and even interviewing one survivor.
15:11The film did save people from jumping when they could, with the trained film crew successfully
15:15preventing six jumps.
15:17Still, bridge officials accused Steele of lying to them about his project, with Steele defending
15:22himself, saying it would have been rejected if he had told the truth.
15:26After the documentary, there have been reports of an increase in jumping.
15:30Exposure is always a double-edged sword.
15:33This Frederick Wiseman expose on mental health hospitals and institutions is undoubtedly a
15:50controversial one.
15:51Following inmates at Bridgewater State Hospital, the film captures horrific scenes of cruelty,
15:56including force-feeding, nudity, barren cells, and even bullying from members of staff.
16:08Even before Wiseman's film was released, the Massachusetts state government tried to prevent
16:12its release, claiming the documentary violated the privacy and dignity of the inmates.
16:17Then, in 1987, the families of seven inmates sued both the hospital and the state for abuses.
16:27The film was allowed to be seen by healthcare professionals, and finally released in 1992 to the public,
16:33on TV.
16:34This one really touched a nerve.
16:40One of the most well-known documentaries of the early aughts is also one of the most contentious.
16:56The film follows director Morgan Spurlock in his experiments, eating only from McDonald's
17:01three times a day for one month.
17:10Spurlock captured his deteriorating health for that month, in a dazzling expose on the
17:15fast food industry.
17:16What the documentary didn't disclose was the director's heavy drinking during its filming.
17:20Other people have attempted to replicate Spurlock's experiment with much less dramatic results.
17:25As in, some even lost weight while on this diet.
17:28McDonald's retired the supersize option, even while defending themselves against the director's
17:41claims.
17:42It is a mixed bag, but this documentary's influence cannot be denied.
17:46You're sick.
17:47You're sick and you're making yourself sick, and you can make yourself unsick by stopping
17:51doing what you're doing.
17:53The act of killing.
17:59This film follows the Indonesian coup of 1965, which led to the killing of communists and others
18:04opposed to the new regime.
18:06Director Joshua Oppenheimer went to Medan to interview some of the participants in the slaughter,
18:11who either brag about the killings or deny it altogether.
18:24He even asked two of them, Anwar Kongo and Herman Koto, to re-enact their killings.
18:29This searing insight into these murderers inevitably sparked criticism, specifically on indulging
18:35the killer's twisted perspectives.
18:41Kongo and Koto have come out to say the film was honest and true.
18:45This provocative take on these familiar crimes shows the psychology of killing.
18:50Michael Moore had already generated massive criticism for the alleged inaccuracies in his documentary,
19:14Bowling for Columbine, about the Columbine school shooting.
19:17But this award-winning film about the Bush presidency proved to be even more controversial,
19:22especially among conservative groups.
19:24The documentary posited that the reasons for the US invasion of Iraq ultimately followed
19:36the logic of American oil interests, rather than the tragedy of the 9-11 attacks.
19:40The documentary's claim that the Bush administration flew members of Bin Laden's family out of the
19:45country was also contentious.
19:47Although many of its claims are largely tamed today, its conclusions still have the power
19:52to unsettle.
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20:31No documentary, however inaccurate or grisly, can ever come close to this infamous one.
20:36This beautifully shot film is an ugly propaganda piece on the Nazi Party in Germany.
20:48Directed by Lenny Riefenstahl, with Adolf Hitler himself as the unofficial producer, the film
20:52follows the Nazi Party congress in Nuremberg in 1934.
20:56Needless to say, the film was criticised, mocked and lampooned almost from its inception.
21:11Riefenstahl herself was a participant at the rally, although she claimed she didn't know
21:15about the Nazi's antisemitism.
21:17Apart from its obviously despicable politics, many just deem the documentary boring and
21:22unconvincing to anyone but a true believer.
21:25Still, its influence in filmmaking, with its use of now-standard cinematic techniques, lives
21:30on.
21:39So, which other documentary do you know stared some major controversy?
21:43Let us know in the comments down below.
21:50I personally Mongole MB.
21:59Let us know in the comments below!
22:01I want to make sure the movie acts really well!
22:04I sure look forward to it.
22:08Game on Twitter!
22:10We marketplace, TV, TV, and the news is Ruras.
22:12We walk from the Face Song poorly.
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