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MOVIEPIQ · DOCUMENTARY · CURATED LIST

Best Documentary Movies On A Sunday Afternoon From The 80S And 90S That Will Mess With Your Mind

The Moviepiq team picked these documentary films specifically for a slow Sunday afternoon. No filler. Every film on this list earns its place for exactly this occasion.

The best documentary movies on a sunday afternoon from the 80s and 90s that will mess with your mind. Includes Baraka, Paris Is Burning, Koyaanisqatsi and mo...

There's a particular kind of cinema that works best on a Sunday. Not too light, not too demanding. Something you'll be glad you watched by the time the evening comes.

The 80s and 90s remain a goldmine. Films that were commercially dismissed on release and now considered essential.

Documentaries work when they trust their subjects. The best ones get out of the way and let reality speak.

Baraka movie poster
1
1992 · ★★★★☆ 8.2/10

A paralysingly beautiful documentary with a global vision-an odyssey through landscape and time-that attempts to capture the essence of life.

Paris Is Burning movie poster
2
1991 · ★★★★☆ 8.0/10

Where does voguing come from, and what, exactly, is throwing shade? This landmark documentary provides a vibrant snapshot of the 1980s through the eyes of New York City's African American and Latinx Harlem drag-ball scene. Made over seven years, PARIS IS BURNING offers an intimate portrait of rival fashion "houses," from fierce contests for trophies to house mothers offering sustenance in a world rampant with homophobia, transphobia, racism, AIDS, and poverty. Featuring legendary voguers, drag queens, and trans women - including Willi Ninja, Pepper LaBeija, Dorian Corey, and Venus Xtravaganza.

Koyaanisqatsi movie poster
3
1983 · ★★★½☆ 7.9/10

Takes us to locations all around the US and shows us the heavy toll that modern technology is having on humans and the earth. The visual tone poem contains neither dialogue nor a vocalized narration: its tone is set by the juxtaposition of images and the exceptional music by Philip Glass.

Films that mess with your mind work best when they've earned your trust first. The disorientation only lands if you were fully in. These get you in.

After watching a great documentary, the world looks slightly different. That's not a small thing.

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