When you’ve grown tired of binge-watching reality TV shows, I strongly recommend turning to Netflix documentaries. Though the idea of watching a documentary seems dull, more often than not, these films will end up being some of your favorites. With this said, I will offer this disclaimer: once you start watching Netflix documentaries, it can become extremely hard to stop (believe me, I know from experience).
1. "Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father."
This film tells the story of how a man named Andrew Bagby was murdered by his mentally unstable girlfriend, Shirley. Shortly after the murder, Shirley found that she was pregnant with Andrew’s child, which inspired filmmaker Kurt Kuenne to make this documentary. Kurt’s motive in filming was to show Andrew’s son how amazing his deceased father was. Kurt travelled across the entire United States finding people that were close to Andrew Bagby to describe him on camera so that his son could someday see what his father was like. An unexpected plot twist will leave you in tears, but "Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father" is hands-down my top must-see Netflix Documentary.
2. "Hot Girls Wanted."
Hot Girls Wanted looks takes an inside-look into the lives of young girls on the quest to make waves in the amateur porn industry. While this film is both shocking and disturbing, it opens your eyes to how thousands of girls (some even just out of high school) live their lives in pursuit of stardom. I highly recommend watching this documentary because it is brutally honest and discusses big issues that are not always addressed in today’s culture.
3. "The Queen of Versailles."
This documentary shows the lives of a multi-millionaire couple, Jackie and David Siegel, as they live their luxurious lives and begin to build their new home. Their house was to be one of the largest in the country and its design was based off of that of "The Palace of Versailles" in France. Unexpectedly, in the middle of making this documentary and the Siegels' outrageous new house, the U.S. economy took a turn for the worst and this family is forced to make huge budget cuts. The Siegels have no other option but to stop construction on their estate and viewers witness how their lives take a turn for the worse thereafter. Though it may not be what to watch when you’re in need of a pick-me-up, "The Queen of Versailles" is a personal Netflix favorite.
4. "Blackfish."
"Blackfish" features an Orca whale named Tilikum who is responsible for the death of three people. Though it may seem like Tilikum is the bad guy, after watching "Blackfish," you’ll see that years of captivity and harassment at various SeaWorld-like establishments are to blame. This film shows the deceit and bad intentions of these tourist attractions, and most importantly how poorly they treat the animals that are in their care. "Blackfish" exposed me to a huge controversy that I did not know even existed, and will show you exactly why SeaWorld has been under such public scrutiny lately.
