Letterboxd's Official Top 250 Documentary Films

Letterboxd's Official Top 250 Documentary Films's icon

Created by Chilton.

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LAST UPDATE: April 2024

A companion piece to Dave Vis' list of Letterboxd's official top 250 films of all-time, which excludes documentaries from consideration.

Ranked by average user rating. This list was extracted from here. Updated once a month. This is an official list progress project on all-time stats pages for Pro and Patron users. Expanded from a top 100 to a top 250 on June 27th, 2021, on the list's 3-year anniversary.

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ELIGIBILITY RULES:

• Documentaries must be feature-length (45+ minutes), with a theatrical and/or festival release in its entirety.
• TV series, miniseries, and episodes are excluded but docs listed as 'TV movie' on IMDb are eligible. Exceptions made for series and episodes that also had a limited theatrical release.
• No featurettes unless theatrically distributed, even if feature-length (featurettes are marked as 'Video' on IMDb, such as 'making of' docs).
• In an attempt to combat unintentional fan manipulation, all music-adjacent films must have screened at a film festival to qualify.
• No standup comedy marked as a documentary, nor any stage shows. Exceptions may be made for borderline exceptions.
• Skateboarding compilations are excluded.
• There is a 1,000 minimum ratings threshold.

NOT ON IMDB:
#112 Disintegration Loop 1.1 (2024, Basinski)

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  1. 248 -8

    My Winnipeg

    2007, in 9 top lists Check
  2. 244 -3

    Ethnic Notions

    1986, in 1 top list Check
  3. 243 -9

    Garlic Is as Good as Ten Mothers

    1980, in 2 top lists Check
  4. 238 +4

    Ram Ke Naam

    1992, in 0 top lists Check
  5. 234 -2

    Citizenfour

    2014, in 3 top lists Check
  6. 233 -3

    Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage

    2010, in 1 top list Check
  7. 230 -2

    4 Little Girls

    1997, in 1 top list Check
  8. 229 -2

    Comizi d'amore

    1964 — a.k.a. Love Meetings, in 1 top list Check
  9. 227 -2

    Italianamerican

    1974, in 2 top lists Check
  10. 226 -2

    Blackfish

    2013, in 0 top lists Check
  11. 219 -3

    Être et avoir

    2002 — a.k.a. To Be and to Have, in 8 top lists Check
  12. 218 -5

    The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons from the Life of...

    2003 — a.k.a. The Fog of War, in 6 top lists Check
  13. 217 +2

    La hora de los hornos: Notas y testimonios...

    1968 — a.k.a. The Hour of the Furnaces, in 9 top lists Check
  14. 214 -4

    The Cove

    2009, in 2 top lists Check
  15. 209 -4

    The King of Kong

    2007 — a.k.a. The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters, in 1 top list Check
  16. 208 -2

    Hands on a Hardbody: The Documentary

    1997, in 1 top list Check
  17. 206 +1

    American Dream

    1990, in 2 top lists Check
  18. 203 -4

    Titicut Follies

    1967, in 9 top lists Check
  19. 197 -12

    Ashes and Snow

    2005, in 2 top lists Check
  20. 192 -5

    Wattstax

    1973, in 1 top list Check
  21. 190 -

    21 Up

    1977, in 2 top lists Check
  22. 189 -3

    Häxan

    1922, in 17 top lists Check
  23. 187 +1

    Lake of Fire

    2006, in 1 top list Check
  24. 181 -

    Dark Days

    2000, in 1 top list Check
  25. 177 -3

    Nobody's Business

    1996, in 2 top lists Check
  26. 174 -2

    La région centrale

    1971, in 8 top lists Check
  27. 173 -10

    Il mio viaggio in Italia

    1999 — a.k.a. My Voyage to Italy, in 2 top lists Check
  28. 172 +1

    35 Up

    1991, in 2 top lists Check
  29. 171 -6

    Style Wars

    1983, in 0 top lists Check
  30. 170 -1

    Encounters at the End of the World

    2007, in 2 top lists Check
  31. 166 -9

    Big Time

    1988, in 0 top lists Check
  32. 161 -5

    Gimme Shelter

    1970, in 8 top lists Check
  33. 159 -4

    The Last Days

    1998, in 2 top lists Check
  34. 158 -7

    Vals Im Bashir

    2008 — a.k.a. Waltz with Bashir, in 11 top lists Check
  35. 156 -4

    Depeche Mode: 101

    1989, in 0 top lists Check
  36. 153 -3

    Grey Gardens

    1975, in 10 top lists Check
  37. 151 +15

    Microcosmos: Le peuple de l'herbe

    1996 — a.k.a. Microcosmos, in 3 top lists Check
  38. 149 -2

    Cinéma, de notre temps: Où gît votre sourire...

    2001, in 3 top lists Check
  39. 148 -2

    49 Up

    2005, in 2 top lists Check
  40. 147 -2

    Land des Schweigens und der Dunkelheit

    1971 — a.k.a. Land of Silence and Darkness, in 5 top lists Check
  41. 146 -6

    It Felt Like a Kiss

    2009, in 1 top list Check
  42. 141 -6

    42 Up

    1998, in 2 top lists Check
  43. 140 -3

    Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers: Runnin' Down a...

    2007, in 1 top list Check
  44. 138 +3

    Obyknovennyy fashizm

    1965 — a.k.a. Triumph Over Violence, in 6 top lists Check
  45. 137 -1

    Mashgh-e Shab

    1989 — a.k.a. Homework, in 4 top lists Check
  46. 136 -3

    Jazz on a Summer's Day

    1959, in 2 top lists Check
  47. 135 -3

    Burden of Dreams

    1982, in 4 top lists Check
  48. 133 -4

    The Thin Blue Line

    1988, in 12 top lists Check
  49. 130 -4

    Hospital

    1970, in 5 top lists Check
  50. 126 -1

    102 Minutes That Changed America

    2008, in 0 top lists Check
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Last updated on Apr 24, 2024 by Chilton; source