Lists that rank the most fascinating, most trusted documentaries on every subject, from poverty and addiction to Wall Street and the oil industry.

Documentaries You Need to See

Lists about some of the most shocking and upsetting documentary films & series that you should totally watch anyway.

Disturbing Documentaries

Trending on Ranker

True crime documentaries, if done well, elicit the same kind of emotions people feel&nbsp;after watching 10 episodes of <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/making-a-murderer-missing-evidence/candice-darden" target="_blank">Making a Murderer on Netflix</a>. From Ken Burns to Werner Herzog, the crime documentary has taken center stage in recent years, stepping beyond a mere headline and examining the details that can change public perception and, in many cases, the final outcome of a case.&nbsp;

Documentaries like Making a Murderer make viewers&#39; blood boil, divide them on just exactly who is right and wrong, and even&nbsp;cast doubt on the American justice system. Steven Avery served 18 years in prison for a rape he didn&rsquo;t commit&nbsp;and&nbsp;was then convicted of a murder many believe he also didn&rsquo;t commit. This fact&nbsp;fits hand in hand with the theme of documentaries like the Paradise Lost trilogy, The Central Park Five, and Serial.&nbsp;

Documentaries like The Jinx and The Thin Blue Line make headlines because the documentarian uncovers new evidence that sparks a new trial, with varying outcomes. Robert Durst incriminated himself on camera. A key witness in Randall Dale Adams&rsquo;s trial was enough to get him off death row and released from prison. Pressure from musical icons and filmmakers following the West Memphis Three case&nbsp;culminated in the release of&nbsp;Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin, and Jessie Misskelley 18 years later.&nbsp;

Why are viewers so fascinated with the true crime documentary and <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/true-crime-tv-shows-and-series/reference" target="_blank">true crime TV shows</a>? The <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/best-crime-documentaries-movies-on-netflix/reference" target="_blank">best crime documentaries</a> put the audience at the center of the story with access to information that may unlock an unsolved mystery. <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/best-true-crime-documentary-series/ranker-tv" target="_blank">True crime miniseries</a> offer more time to deeply examine the story. The documentarian has time on their side and they can focus on one story to uncover details and even evidence that was overlooked or hidden the first time around. In the hands of a seasoned and determined filmmaker or journalist, this access can be quite powerful.

If you&rsquo;re looking for <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/best-crime-documentary-series/ranker-tv" target="_blank">crime documentary series</a> like Making a Murderer or documentaries like The Jinx, you&#39;ll find them below. There are also other disturbing cases that haven&rsquo;t gotten that level of attention. Suffice it to say, there&rsquo;s plenty of true crime coverage out there to take in. Each of these great documentaries makes an emotional impact, so maybe throw on a comedy or take a break between viewings.

The Best True Crime Documentaries To Watch

General

True Crime Documentaries You Should Watch, Ranked

Lisa Waugh

True Crime

California has the infamous escape from Alcatraz&nbsp;and the unidentified Zodiac Killer of&nbsp;the late &#39;60s. Ted Bundy terrorized women in the Pacific Northwest in the &#39;70s.&nbsp;Florida even boasts a tale of spontaneous human combustion in the &#39;50s. Just like all of the other states in the US, Oklahoma, too, has its own unsavory secrets.&nbsp;

The Sooner State is known for many things - its football teams, its famous residents like Carrie Underwood and Blake Shelton,&nbsp;tornadoes, and the Great Plains. What many people don&#39;t realize is just how many disturbing <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/cases-solved-by-unsolved-mysteries/patrick-thornton?ref=profile_pub" target="_blank">unsolved crimes</a>&nbsp;have taken place&nbsp;in Oklahoma. If you&#39;re in the mood to be mildly disturbed, tuck into this list and vote up the most mysterious stories.

Haunting Unsolved Crimes From Oklahoma

Chrissy Rose

From Agatha Christie to Clue, everybody loves a good &quot;whodunit&quot; mystery&nbsp;with a surprise&nbsp;ending. But sometimes, <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/little-known-mysteries-with-answers/jason-f-collins" target="_blank">truth is even stranger than fiction</a>. Many of these true crime stories seemed like open-and-shut cases. Too often, though,&nbsp;the public can jump to conclusions, ignoring all other possibilities. When investigators do the same, they set themselves up for major plot twists and sometimes even wrongful convictions.&nbsp;

True crime junkies may have heard of some of these <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/unexplained-mysteries-that-were-solved/setareh-janda" target="_blank">mind-boggling&nbsp;mysteries</a> in the many rabbit holes of the internet, but others have flown completely under the radar. From the disturbing cases, to the ones with happy endings, to the&nbsp;multiple cases&nbsp;involving bubble gum, all of these unbelievable true crime plot twists will leave your head spinning.&nbsp;

12 True Crime Cases With Unexpected Plot Twists

True Crime Cases With Unexpected Plot Twists

Statistically speaking, you will walk past a murderer 10.76 times in your life. But what if you didn&#39;t just <a href="http://www.leozqin.me/how-many-murderers-will-you-walk-past/" target="_blank">walk past a murderer</a>&nbsp;- what if they were a part of your family and&nbsp;you&nbsp;didn&#39;t know it? These stories of the children of serial killers show just how well their parents hid their disturbing behavior.

&nbsp;

Some of these offspring of serial killers had an inkling their parent was up to something, usually&nbsp;a general sense of something not being quite right. Others&nbsp;had no idea what was happening, sometimes under their own roof.

What The Children Of Serial Killers Have Publicly Said About Their Parents

Person

Stefanie Hammond

Pop Culture

Possible Trigger Warning

Over on <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/qtkf3y/murder_attempt_survivors_what_happened/?sort=top" target="_blank">Reddit</a>, <a class="edS-cl" href="https://www.ranker.com/list/intense-survival-stories/lea-rose-emery?ref=internalCrossLinking_keyword">people who survived</a> an attempt on their lives&nbsp;share their&nbsp;stories of their survival.&nbsp;

People Who Survived An Attempt On Their Lives Share Their Disturbing And Haunting Stories

Damon Davis

Horrifying facts and disturbing details about real cases that shocked.

In Cold Blood

The&nbsp;assault and&nbsp;homicide of 21-year-old Brandon Teena in 1993 is&nbsp;one of the most shocking hate crimes in living memory. Hilary Swank won her first <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/best-actresses-to-win-oscar-for-best-actress/ranker-film" target="_blank">Best Actress Oscar</a> in 2000 for portraying the transgender young adult&nbsp;whose life was tragically cut short, but the true story behind&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/full-cast-of-boys-don_t-cry-actors-and-actresses/reference" target="_blank">Boys Don&#39;t Cry</a>&nbsp;is more complicated and detailed than the Hollywood version audiences saw.

Brandon Teena&nbsp;was designated female at birth, born&nbsp;to an extremely impoverished&nbsp;single teen&nbsp;mother in&nbsp;Lincoln, NE, in 1972.&nbsp;As a high schooler, he began identifying as male, dressing in traditionally male clothing, binding his chest, dating women, and assuming a provider&nbsp;status in his relationships.

When Teena&nbsp;dropped out of&nbsp;high school,&nbsp;his love life eventually drew him into a social sphere&nbsp;that included the two offenders who eventually ended his life,&nbsp;his girlfriend, and another mutual friend because of Teena&#39;s identity. Though the men had attacked&nbsp;Teena&nbsp;previously, the sheriff refused to arrest them. This neglect eventually proved lethal. Because of the lack of legal protection and understanding surrounding trans people at the time, the law did very little to advocate justice on behalf of Teena. His&nbsp;story continued to be misunderstood and simplified&nbsp;long after his slaying - even by the most well-meaning parties, including the journalist who wrote the original story on which Boys Don&#39;t Cry was based.

Although dialogues and education about <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/transgender-people-in-history/devon-ashby" target="_blank">trans&nbsp;people</a> and the disproportionate struggles they face&nbsp;are slowly&nbsp;being elevated, there is still a long way to go in creating legal protections and de-stigmatizing&nbsp;conversation around those who identify as trans or simply don&#39;t identify on the traditional gender binary. Brandon Teena&#39;s story is a tragic, but important&nbsp;cornerstone to starting that conversation.&nbsp;

The Tragic Story Of Brandon Teena, Whose Case Inspired 'Boys Don't Cry'

The Tragic Murder Of Brandon Teena, Whose Case Inspired 'Boys Don't Cry'

Jodi Smith

Lists about what's going on on Capitol Hill and in your own backyard.

US Government & Politics

Laws named after victims remain a source of debate. While plenty of <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/crimes-by-rich-white-women/elle-tharp" target="_blank">brutal crimes</a> occur within any given year, only a very small percentage&nbsp;lead to changes to our legal system. When it comes to US laws created because of crimes, public outrage is key. Particularly <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/crimes-by-rich-white-women/elle-tharp" target="_blank">horrifying kidnappings</a>, murders, and suicides receive&nbsp;an unusual amount of press coverage, often resulting in&nbsp;the widespread backlash needed to pressure politicians into reforming the legal system.&nbsp;The crimes that resulted in new laws&nbsp;were already illegal when they were committed. The resulting legislation is usually seen&nbsp;as closing a loophole or addressing a unique aspect of the crime. However, there is much public debate on whether such laws are ethical or effective. People who have laws named after them are honored and memorialized, on the one hand, but critics argue such laws are often too reactionary to be truly effective.&nbsp;If you're unsure where you stand on the issue, browse this list. It will help you develop a more detailed understanding of how and why some crimes lead to new laws.&nbsp;

Every US Law Named After A Victim And What It Does

Wrestling

Chris Benoit was one of the biggest stars in professional <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/best-wwe-superstars-of-all-time/ranker-wrestling" target="_blank">wrestling</a> in the 2000s. A two-time world champion, he never depended on gimmicks for his fame and success. But what the public didn&#39;t know was that&nbsp;his life had been crumbling around him ever since the death of his friend Eddie Guerrero in late 2005. Then, over the&nbsp;three-day period of June 22-24, 2007, the 40-year-old Chris killed his wife and 7-year-old son before taking his own life.

The WWE&nbsp;quickly distanced itself from the champion wrestler and his surviving family, while the federal government used Chris&#39;s death as a catalyst to open a probe into the use of steroids and other drugs in pro wrestling.

The tragedy&nbsp;remains one of the biggest scandals in all of pro wrestling, with no clear consensus as to&nbsp;what exactly led Benoit to kill himself, his wife, and his son - or what role the WWE&nbsp;may have played in the wrestler&#39;s actions.

Chris Benoit's Passing Is A Pro-Wrestling Tragedy That Will Never Be Forgotten

TGWrites

Mysteries

Gabby Petito&#39;s <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/unsolved-mysteries-families/mike-bedard" target="_blank">disappearance</a> garnered almost-instant media attention when the 22-year-old Long Island native was reported missing by her family on September 11, 2021. Petito was on <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/16/us/gabby-petito-timeline-missing-case/index.html" target="_blank">a summer road trip</a> with her fiance, 23-year-old Brian Laundrie, and the couple was documenting their travels via YouTube and Instagram. Petito&#39;s family told authorities that she had stayed in close contact with them throughout the summer, but communication stopped in late August. A little over a week into the search for Petito, investigators discovered her remains&nbsp;in Wyoming&#39;s Grand Teton National Park.

The last known person to see Gabby Petito alive was Brian Laundrie, whose remains were found in Florida&#39;s Carlton Reserve on October 20 following a month-long manhunt.&nbsp;Prior to this discovery, there were multiple unconfirmed&nbsp;<a href="https://abc7ny.com/gabby-petito-brian-laundrie-joseph-instagram-updates/11088520/" target="_blank">sightings of Laundrie</a> in North Carolina, and neighbors claimed they saw him <a href="https://radaronline.com/p/brian-laundrie-seen-running-backyard-parents-neighbors/" target="_blank">running from his home</a> days after his parents said he initially left.

The internet and the general public wait with bated breath for answers&nbsp;in the case. Here are all the facts we know so far about what happened to Gabby Petito and Brian Laundrie.

Everything We Know About The Tragic Gabby Petito Case

What Happened To Gabby Petito? Here's Everything We Know

Patrick Thornton

The mysterious kidnapping of supermom Sherri Papini rocked northern California in 2016. People throughout the area&nbsp;were shocked to see a <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/scary-abduction-stories/amandasedlakhevener" target="_blank">frightening abduction story</a> play out with a nice mom in the Shasta County suburbs.&nbsp;

For three weeks, Sherri&#39;s&nbsp;family&nbsp;worked to get Sherri back in one piece while the Shasta County Sheriff&rsquo;s Department pursued a silent investigation.&nbsp;Out of nowhere,&nbsp;the beloved wife and mother&nbsp;returned home, but&nbsp;she wasn&#39;t forthcoming with details and didn&#39;t want to talk about the previous&nbsp;three weeks. Because of this, many believed the whole ordeal was nothing but a <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/facts-about-fake-kidnapping-of-jennifer-carol-wilbanks/amandasedlakhevener" target="_blank">fake kidnapping</a>.

Hundreds of unsolved abduction stories play out just like&nbsp;Sherri Papini&#39;s, but most subjects don&#39;t return so unscathed. Sherri&#39;s disappearance and subsequent return play&nbsp;out like a protracted version of a made-for-TV movie, including&nbsp;quirky side characters, mysterious men with money, and a cadre of internet spectators&nbsp;ready to add their opinions to the mix. 

Here is everything we know about the mysterious disappearance and reappearance of Sherri Papini.

A 'Super Mom' Vanished In Broad Daylight And Mysteriously Reappeared, But The Details Don't Add Up

The Mysterious Story of Sherri Papini Who Vanished and Came Back

Jacob Shelton

Lists about real and fictional policemen & women, detectives, and other law enforcement.

Police: Blue Lives  on Patrol

Given the nature of many offenses, it may seem like we are better off not knowing who had committed them. Sometimes the answer may be too hard to bear or it&nbsp;may <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/do-not-google-crimes/chuck-stern" target="_blank">not result in the desired outcome</a>.&nbsp;The&nbsp;real-life police detectives here discuss&nbsp;the acts&nbsp;that they wished they had never seen, whether for tragic reasons, humorous ones,&nbsp;or gruesome ones. These stories, <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/5a9fou/seriousdetectivespolice_officers_of_reddit_what/?limit=500" target="_blank">all from Reddit</a>, are of real-life&nbsp;stories, leading&nbsp;you to the&nbsp;answer that, yes, there are&nbsp;answers that even law enforcement didn&#39;t wish to find.

Police Detectives Discuss Disturbing Cases They Wish They Never Saw

20 Police Detectives Discuss Their Most Disturbing Unsolved Cases

Amanda Sedlak-Hevener

First-hand accounts from real people who have met very creepy people and done very unsettling things.

People Who Give You the Creeps

Relationships

MTV struck gold when they picked up Nev Schulman and Max Joseph&#39;s&nbsp;show&nbsp;Catfish: The&nbsp;TV&nbsp;Show&nbsp;in 2012; the network televised many of the <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/how-catfish-changed-peoples-lives/jessica-bedewi" target="_blank">craziest catfish stories</a>. However, there are tons of other <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/online-flirting-that-ended-in-murder/jacob-shelton" target="_blank">tales of failed romance</a> that never get told. Reddit is the place where many lied-to-lovers flock&nbsp;to air their grievances about fake dates and liars.

Occasionally, these people even find themselves in dangerous situations. Maybe it&#39;s about time for people to stop&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/people-describe-their-tinder-horror-stories/katia-kleyman" target="_blank">the disastrous Tinder dates</a> and meet each other in random bars, like the good old&nbsp;days.

People Share Their Craziest, Borderline-Dangerous Catfish Stories

Craziest Catfish Stories That Are Borderline Dangerous

Lowe Saddler

Brittanee Drexel told her parents she was staying with a friend for spring break before she went <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/lost-children-who-were-found/anabel-conner" target="_blank">missing</a> in 2009. Leading up to her disappearance, the 17-year-old high school senior from Rochester, NY,&nbsp;was under an immense amount of stress from&nbsp;her parents&#39; separation. While her vanishing&nbsp;may at first sound like the case of a runaway teen, Brittanee Drexel&#39;s disappearance quickly turned ominous.

The Brittanee Drexel case has remained unsolved since she was last seen on April 25, 2009, though the investigation fluctuated between hot and cold throughout the 2010s. While murder and human trafficking are the two leading theories in Brittanee&#39;s disappearance, the events of April 25&nbsp;remain just as perplexing now as they were in 2009.

Here are the facts of the case and a general timeline of events. We&#39;ll also explore plausible theories and suspects in Brittanee Drexel&#39;s confounding disappearance.

Brittanee Drexel Was On Spring Break When She Vanished In 2009, And Her Case Is Still Unsolved

Fascinating facts and interesting stories about organized crime: gangs, gangsters, mobsters, the mafia, and other criminals & crime syndicates all over the world.

Feels Good to Be a Gangster

Life in the American Mafia typically ends in one of two ways: death or prison. In a perpetual struggle over illegal power and money, murder is practically an occupational hazard. From the very first days of organized crime, mafia hits, brutal assassins, and crime&#39;s most horrifying killers underlined the fundamentally violent lifestyle of this uniquely American entity. In a world where violence is practically second nature, these are some of the most brutal killers and gruesome murders associated with the Mafia.

Some of the people on this list are classic gangsters like <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/al-capone-trivia-facts/jeffrichard" target="_blank">Al Capone</a>. Others weren&#39;t even in the mob, but pissed off <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/funny-wrong-number-texts/ariel-kana?ref=internalCrossLinking_keyword" target="_blank">the wrong</a> people. In either case, the lesson is clear: Stay clear of the mob and definitely don&#39;t make a gangster mad. Keep reading below to see some of the most violent murders ever committed by the Mafia.

The Most Gruesome And Terrifying Murders Committed By The Mafia

The Most Gruesome and Terrifying Murders Committed by the Mafia

Phil Gibbons

Real tales of terror from real people doing normal things, like playing the Powerball and using tampons.

Crazy True! Horror Stories

<a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/list-of-all-detective-movies/reference">TV shows and movies</a> teach&nbsp;us that relentless detectives always solve the case. Sadly, however, this is not always true. Many cases remain not only unresolved, but shrouded in mystery, rife with eerie, unsettling details that continue to raise questions. Several real-life detectives, police officers, and dispatchers took to Reddit&nbsp;to share some of their most bizarre and hair-raising stories concerning cases that were never officially solved, and incidents where &quot;justice was served,&quot; despite a host of loose ends. Here is a collection of the most startling unsolved cases.&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/1h5k7f/law_enforcement_and_detectives_of_reddit_have_you/" target="_blank">Source</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/19uxzk/copsdetectives_of_reddit_have_you_ever_obsessed/?" target="_blank">Source</a>, <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/5a9fou/seriousdetectivespolice_officers_of_reddit_what/" target="_blank">Source</a>&nbsp;

Real Police Officers Describe Their Creepiest Unsolved Cases

Real Detectives Describe Their Creepiest Unsolved Mysteries

Christopher Shultz

On June 7, 1992, three women in Springfield, MO, went missing under mysterious circumstances. Recent high school graduates Suzanne &quot;Suzie&quot; Streeter and Stacy McCall were staying at the home of Sherrill Levitt, Streeter&rsquo;s mother, after a night of post-graduation festivities. The two grads&nbsp;had plans to go to a waterpark with friends the next day. When their friends arrived to pick up Streeter and McCall, the three women&nbsp;were nowhere to be found.&nbsp;

With no leads, no evidence, and thousands of tips going nowhere, the Springfield police and the FBI have never been able to locate the women, figure out who (if anyone) abducted them, or determine if they&#39;re still alive. Various theories and possibilities have been floated over the years, but with no concrete evidence, this strange disappearance remains an&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/unsolved-mysteries-of-missing-or-murdered-families/mike-bedard" target="_blank">unsolved mystery</a>&nbsp;unlikely to ever&nbsp;be cleared up.

Investigators Still Haven't Solved The Disappearance Of The Springfield Three

What Happened To The Springfield Three?

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