-
The 2026-2027 DO School Specific Threads are now available in the School Specific Discussions forum. The 2025-2026 discussions are now available in the prior year discussions forum.
Documentary recommendations?
Started by Queen_B
HBO has an excellent documentary on Coma Patients. Also PBS Cancer documentary Emperor of all Maladies.
Then unwind with a few episodes of Scrubs. 🙂
Then unwind with a few episodes of Scrubs. 🙂
I love watching documentaries on epidemiology cases tracking down patient zero--I recommend the SARS documentary and the HCV and HIV documentaries. There is another documentary about advances in science that allows in vitro growth of cancer cells and so on. I am a documentary addict.
Medical Mavericks is a pretty good series, focusing mostly on "self-experimenters." For non-medical specific shows, definitely check out Through the Worm Hole on the science channel.
I watched a really good one about fetal surgery on Netflix. It's a mini series, called Twice Born
Do you have netflix? If so, there's a category for just documentaries. Lots of them, so start watchin!
You should check out Inside Assad's Syria. If you know anything about the current situation in Syria, or want to know, I'd highly recommend it. It's very interesting and well put together.
Advertisement - Members don't see this ad
I think Waiting for Superman is on Netflix. It's awesome. As is Fresh. And anything by Michael Moore is ridiculous, but really entertaining.
Well, don't call me weird, but I love watching documentaries about serial killers and just crazy psychopaths. I think they are very odd and interesting to study. Some of my favorite documentaries had to do with Richard Kuklinskie ("Ice Man"), The Highway Bandit, Ted Bundy, Charles Manson (he is oddly very funny). I also liked the documentary on Tupac Shacur because I truly feel he had a deep connection that would eventually lead him to be a revolutionary for the younger underserved kids of today's day and age. There is an amazing documentary that has to due with the FSA (Free Syrian Army) which includes many soldiers who voluntarily flew to Syria from the U.S., U.K., Russia, etc. to fight for no compensation so they can stand for what they believe in. There are so many other documentaries I could lead you to!! Just give me a topic. I love documentaries.
Me too! Also the show Save my Life was awesome. There was a documentary on history channel about the guys that escaped alcatraz that has a pretty interesting ending.
Watch ESCAPE FIRE!! It was amazing for my med school interview!!
Stress: Portrait of a killer. That's a super interesting one of you haven't seen it. It is a little scary, but has made me reevaluate the things I stress about! It's also available on YouTube for freeeeeeee.
Brainman:
There was a very interesting one on auschwitz on Netflix. A multi-part series mainly focusing on the man who was assigned to lead the camp.
Also, one about treblinka which was horrifying but very interesting as well I think it was called "death camp treblinka, survivor stories"
Also, one about treblinka which was horrifying but very interesting as well I think it was called "death camp treblinka, survivor stories"
Last edited:
I'm surprised this hasn't come up yet, but I recently became addicted to the Vice series...it's a bit more journalism than documentary, I suppose, with a fair amount of commentary, but some of the episodes are ridiculously enthralling. If you're looking for something more medical, The Widowmaker is a really good one about the history of cardiac caths and the business side of hospitals. I believe both are available on Amazon Prime fo free!
Advertisement - Members don't see this ad
The House That I Live In (documentary about the drug war and its impact on low-income areas), Lost Angels (about the inhabitants of Skid Row), Fed Up (childhood obesity), Jiro Dreams of Sushi (about a sushi chef in Japan, warning it will make you SO hungry), and First Position (ballet competition) are all really good if you have Netflix! I basically always watch documentaries, but those are some of my favorites on Netflix right now.
If you're looking for a documentary-like series 30 Days by Morgan Spurlock is pretty good. I've only seen one episodes (he and his girlfriend had to live on minimum wage I think?), but it was really really good.
If you're looking for a documentary-like series 30 Days by Morgan Spurlock is pretty good. I've only seen one episodes (he and his girlfriend had to live on minimum wage I think?), but it was really really good.
I came across Fed Up recently. It truly never ceases to amaze me how much of what we know is actually misinformation and how vulnerable to corruption the scientific community is. Makes you wonder…
But to add something new, the Big Picture With Kal Penn is alright.
But to add something new, the Big Picture With Kal Penn is alright.
D
deleted407021
Here's an interesting (yet a bit lengthy) Science Based Medicine article regarding that documentary.
To address the article: the film never said that sugar was the sole cause of the obesity epidemic although one could erroneously infer that. It started out by linking the growing obesity, diabetes, etc. epidemic to growing consumption of high-calorie foods and overall unhealthy eating habits. It then talked about how food companies started offering low-fat and low-calorie alternatives and hyped them up as being healthier using clever marketing ploys. However, these supposedly healthy alternatives offset their decreased fat and calorie content by increasing the sugar content. The overall net effect: nothing was actually healthier, despite what the label said and people kept getting fat. The people interviewed in the movie do say a few naive things here and there but overall I found the movie accurate and informative. The article, on the other hand, was full of hot air and improperly drawn conclusions. One of the few peer-reviewed studies it referenced talked about how sugar consumption is down but still says in its conclusion section that the “mean intakes continue to exceed recommended limits.” Either Ms. Hall is incapable of interpreting data (or a movie plot for that matter) or she’s cherry-picking data and on someone’s payroll. If the WHO and AAFP could let itself be corrupted by the food industry as the movie points out, what makes you think Science-Based Medicine is impervious?
Last edited:
D
deleted407021
Idk dude, I thought it was pertinent. Probably not a conspiracy, though.
Last edited by a moderator:
You're sure you weren't stating your opinion through a poorly-written article? No? Guess I misread the situation, my bad.Idk dude, I thought it was pertinent. Probably not a conspiracy, though.
But in your defense, with a name like Science Based Medicine how could it possibly be wrong? It has science right in the name 🙄
Last edited:
Advertisement - Members don't see this ad
If you enjoyed the Planet Earth series I would recommend Human Planet. It's basically the anthropological planet earth.
It's similar in format to Planet Earth, but focuses on how humans have adapted to live in different environments. Currently on Netflix.
It's similar in format to Planet Earth, but focuses on how humans have adapted to live in different environments. Currently on Netflix.
If you have any interest in the military, or have served, I recommend "Vietnam in HD" narrated by Michael C. Hall (there's also a WWII version but I haven't seen it). It is very pro-American military so if that bothers you, you may want to skip this.
Also, although this isn't exactly a documentary, I liked Dan Carlin's recent Hardcore History podcast series on WWI. I should mention though that although I like him, a lot of historians don't like him for whatever reason (something about not sourcing his sources properly?), so be advised.
Also, although this isn't exactly a documentary, I liked Dan Carlin's recent Hardcore History podcast series on WWI. I should mention though that although I like him, a lot of historians don't like him for whatever reason (something about not sourcing his sources properly?), so be advised.
D
deleted407021
"Inside Pediatrics" is a good series that can be found on YouTube.
