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Best Documentary Movies After A Breakup From The 2010S You Have Probably Never Heard Of

These documentary films were selected by the Moviepiq editorial team for after a breakup. Popularity and critic scores don't factor in here. Emotional fit does.

The best documentary movies after a breakup from the 2010s you have probably never heard of. Includes One Direction: This Is Us, Senna, The Salt of the Earth...

After a breakup, the wrong film makes everything worse. The right one doesn't fix anything - but it reminds you that other people have survived worse, and come out the other side.

The 2010s were defined by a wave of filmmakers who understood that the best genre films work on multiple levels simultaneously.

A great documentary finds the universal in the specific. One person's story becomes everyone's story.

One Direction: This Is Us movie poster
1
2013 · ★★★★☆ 8.2/10

"One Direction: This Is Us" is a captivating and intimate all-access look at life on the road for the global music phenomenon. Weaved with stunning live concert footage, this inspiring feature film tells the remarkable story of Niall, Zayn, Liam, Harry and Louis' meteoric rise to fame, from their humble hometown beginnings and competing on the X-Factor, to conquering the world and performing at London's famed O2 Arena. Hear it from the boys themselves and see through their own eyes what it's really like to be One Direction.

Senna movie poster
2
2010 · ★★★★☆ 8.1/10

The remarkable story of Brazilian racing driver Ayrton Senna, charting his physical and spiritual achievements on the track and off, his quest for perfection, and the mythical status he has since attained, is the subject of Senna, a documentary feature that spans the racing legend's years as an F1 driver, from his opening season in 1984 to his untimely death a decade later.

The Salt of the Earth movie poster
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2014 · ★★★★☆ 8.1/10

During the last forty years, the photographer Sebastião Salgado has been travelling through the continents, in the footsteps of an ever-changing humanity. He has witnessed the major events of our recent history: international conflicts, starvations and exodus... He is now embarking on the discovery of pristine territories, of the wild fauna and flora, of grandiose landscapes: a huge photographic project which is a tribute to the planet's beauty. Salgado's life and work are revealed to us by his son, Juliano, who went with him during his last journeys, and by Wim Wenders, a photographer himself.

Samsara movie poster
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2011 · ★★★★☆ 8.1/10

Filmed over nearly five years in twenty-five countries on five continents, and shot on seventy-millimetre film, Samsara transports us to the varied worlds of sacred grounds, disaster zones, industrial complexes, and natural wonders.

Won't You Be My Neighbor? movie poster
5
2018 · ★★★★☆ 8.0/10

For more than thirty years, and through his television program, Fred Rogers (1928-2003), host, producer, writer and pianist, accompanied by his puppets and his many friends, spoke directly to young children about some of life's most important issues.

A great documentary doesn't tell you what to think. It shows you something true and gets out of the way.

Free Solo movie poster
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2018 · ★★★½☆ 7.9/10

Follow Alex Honnold as he attempts to become the first person to ever free solo climb Yosemite's 3,000 foot high El Capitan wall. With no ropes or safety gear, this would arguably be the greatest feat in rock climbing history.

Searching for Sugar Man movie poster
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2012 · ★★★½☆ 7.9/10

Two South Africans set out to discover what happened to their unlikely musical hero, the mysterious 1970s rock 'n' roller, Rodriguez.

Apollo 11 movie poster
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2019 · ★★★½☆ 7.9/10

A look at the Apollo 11 mission to land on the moon led by commander Neil Armstrong and pilot Buzz Aldrin.

13th movie poster
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2016 · ★★★½☆ 7.9/10

An in-depth look at the prison system in the United States and how it reveals the nation's history of racial inequality.

Blackfish movie poster
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2013 · ★★★½☆ 7.8/10

Notorious killer whale Tilikum is responsible for the deaths of three individuals, including a top killer whale trainer. Blackfish shows the sometimes devastating consequences of keeping such intelligent and sentient creatures in captivity.

The best-kept secrets in cinema aren't obscure for lack of quality. They're obscure because distribution is cruel and algorithms are indifferent.

The best documentaries don't resolve neatly. They give you something to carry. These do that.

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