02 Nov 1978
Scared Straight!
The filmed depiction of a program where convicts tell troubled kids about the horrors of prison life. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2007.
Sikkim
Satyajit Ray's poetic documentary was commissioned by the Chogyal (King) of Sikkim at a time when he felt the sovereignty of Sikkim was under threat from both China and India. Ray's documentary is about the sovereignty of Sikkim. The film was banned by the government of India when Sikkim merged with India in 1975. The ban was finally lifted by the Ministry of External Affairs in September 2010. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2007.
Top Billed Cast
Similar movies
Scared Straight! Scared Straight! La Voie Terray 
La Voie Terray 20 Jun 2007
La Voie Terray
Terray. This name sounds like a challenge and evokes deep respect in the memory of every mountaineer. For all, Lionel Terray remains forever the "Conqueror of the useless", the example of a generous and mature mountaineer, far from any egocentrism and any ambition. Not only a pioneer and witness to the history of mountaineering, Terray is also remembered as a man and a master more than an athlete. Forty years after the tragic death of this extraordinary mountaineer and guide, who liked to think of himself as a "simple mountaineer", his former friends and the youngest generation of mountaineers come together in this film to celebrate and remember his legacy.
America's Hidden Weapon America's Hidden Weapon 30 Mar 1944
America's Hidden Weapon
Documentary short film demonstrating the way wartime farming measures in 1943 resulted in the greatest American food crop in history. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2012.
Cold 
Cold 08 Dec 2011
Cold
For the past 26 years 16 expeditions have tried and failed to climb one of Pakistan's 8,000 meter peaks in winter. On February 2, 2011, Simone Moro, Denis Urubko and Cory Richards became the first. Cory is now the only American to summit any 8,000 meter peak in winter. The journey nearly killed them. Cory carried a small camera and filmed the ordeal constantly. This is their story, as seen from the raw, honest perspective of Cory's lens.
Annapurna South Face 
Annapurna South Face 01 Jun 1971
Annapurna South Face
This entertaining film documents the first ascent of the very difficult South Face of Annapurna, a huge Himalayan wall that the right team could achieve the seemingly impossible. The ascent of the South Face of Annapurna in 1970 was one of those breakthrough ascents - both technically and psychologically. Chris Bonington assembled the cream of British mountaineering and American Tom Frost for the attempt. The documentary is punctuated by wry observation, understatement and cutting humor from a by-gone age when the game of taking huge risks was matched by a determination not to take it too seriously.
California's Golden Beginning 
California's Golden Beginning 01 Jan 1948
California's Golden Beginning
A description and enactment of the discovery of gold by James Marshall, and the role played by John Sutter. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive.
World Without Sun 
World Without Sun 30 Sep 1964
World Without Sun
Fascinating underwater documentary filmed with hand-held cameras by frogmen and mostly filmed in deep-water seas from within a special designed batiscaff, by the Cousteau family of sea explorers. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2010.
The Secret Life of Brian 
The Secret Life of Brian 01 Jan 2007
The Secret Life of Brian
A documentary about the making of the controversial Life of Brian and the surrounding accusations of blasphemy.
Why Man Creates 
Why Man Creates 24 Sep 1968
Why Man Creates
A 1968 animation/documentary that criticises the industrial system. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive.
The Battle of San Pietro 
The Battle of San Pietro 03 May 1945
The Battle of San Pietro
This documentary movie is about the battle of San Pietro, a small village in Italy. Over 1,100 US soldiers were killed while trying to take this location, that blocked the way for the Allied forces from the Germans. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2005.
Portrait of Jason 
Portrait of Jason 29 Sep 1967
Portrait of Jason
Interview with Jason Holliday aka Aaron Payne. House-boy, would-be cabaret performer, and self-proclaimed hustler giving one man's gin-soaked, pill-popped view of what it was like to be black and gay in 1960s United States. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in partnership with Milestone Films in 2013.
Heartbreakers Beach Party 
Heartbreakers Beach Party 17 Oct 2024
Heartbreakers Beach Party
Documentary that captures Tom Petty and the band in 1982-1983 as they finish, promote, and tour around the “Long After Dark” album (their final with legendary producer Jimmy Iovine). It aired only once on MTV in 1983. After the long lost 16mm reels were finally found, a restored version with 19 minutes of extra footage was released in 2024.
Something Has Happened 
Something Has Happened 27 Mar 1987
Something Has Happened
As the AIDS epidemic was spreading in 1987, the Swedish government commissioned Roy Andersson to make an educational film about the disease. In these twenty or so monotone scenes, Andersson criticizes the medical community for its dehumanizing and racist tendencies when researching HIV and AIDS.
Meru 
Meru 25 Jan 2015
Meru
Meru is the electrifying story of three elite American climbers—Conrad Anker, Jimmy Chin, and Renan Ozturk—bent on achieving the impossible.
Werner Herzog Eats His Shoe 
Werner Herzog Eats His Shoe 19 Nov 1980
Werner Herzog Eats His Shoe
Directors Werner Herzog and Errol Morris make a bet which results in Herzog living up to his promise that he would eat his shoe if Errol Morris ever completed the film Gates of Heaven.
War Story 
War Story 27 Sep 1989
War Story
This claymation short film uses a real interview for dialogue. Bill Perry relates stories about his youth, his tilted house, and adventures during WWII in Bristol, England during the blitz. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive.
The Titan: Story of Michelangelo 
The Titan: Story of Michelangelo 01 Jun 1938
The Titan: Story of Michelangelo
The life and works of the great artist Michelangelo Buonarroti are shown against the historical background of his time. It begins with his earliest artworks, and follows his life and career as he achieves lasting fame. The documentary includes detailed looks at some of the artist's most renowned creations. In 1950 the film was re-edited and new footage shot by Robert J. Flaherty. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2005.
The Unconquered 
The Unconquered 15 Jun 1954
The Unconquered
Narrated by actress Katharine Cornell and filmed in black and white, it spends the first 24 minutes introducing viewers, through newsreels, interviews, and old photographs, to the story of the deaf and blind disabled-rights pioneer. News footage shows her international appearances and visits with heads of state, including President Eisenhower allowing her to feel his face. The second half takes a day-in-the-(exceptional)-life approach to Keller's existence circa 1955. Made just 13 years before her death, Keller's famed tutor-translator-friend Anne Sullivan had already died, leaving her live-in replacement, Polly Thomson, to share the film's focus. From the time Keller takes her morning walk along the 1,000-foot handrail around her yard through her workday to her nightly reading of her Braille Bible, her serene acceptance of her life will amaze and inspire. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2006.
Robert Frost: A Lover's Quarrel with the World 
Robert Frost: A Lover's Quarrel with the World 01 Jan 1963
Robert Frost: A Lover's Quarrel with the World
The acclaimed poet is examined in this film completed just prior to his death at age 88, with his speaking engagements at Amherst and Sarah Lawrence Colleges intercut with studies of his work, as well as with scenes of his life in rural Vermont and personal reminiscences about his career. He is also seen receiving an award from President Kennedy and touring an aircraft carrier. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in partnership with UCLA Film & Television Archive in 2006.
Who Are the DeBolts? And Where Did They Get Nineteen Kids? 
Who Are the DeBolts? And Where Did They Get Nineteen Kids? 01 Dec 1977
Who Are the DeBolts? And Where Did They Get Nineteen Kids?
Who Are the DeBolts? And Where Did They Get Nineteen Kids? is a 1977 documentary film about Dorothy and Bob DeBolt, an American couple who adopted 14 children [12 at the start of filming], some of whom are severely disabled war orphans -- in addition to raising Dorothy's five biological children and Bob's biological daughter. The film won an Academy Award for Best Documentary in 1978. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2007.