Underrated Documentaries That You Must See This Winter 

There’s nothing better than being able to curl up on the sofa with a good documentary during the colder months. And with more streaming services available than ever before, it’s now easier than ever to find the latest documentaries that are trending on the likes of Netflix, Sky or Hulu. Some of the top titles currently include American Murder: The family next door, 13^th, High Score, The Last Dance and of the latest David Attenborough documentary – A life on our planet. While these documentaries seem to be the office (through Teams of course) talk currently, there are also some great documentaries that aren’t trending but are not to be missed. 

So if you’re missing being able to catch the latest blockbuster, pull up a seat and discover some of the great documentaries that have so far gone under the radar. 

Circus of Books

Debuting in 2019, Circus of Books was a documentary that didn’t get a lot of noise, yet it draws on a number of taboo subjects that are incredibly important for us to discuss in today’s society. Circus of Books is set in 1980’s Los Angeles and evolves around a straight couple that owned a prominent gay porn store. The documentary looks at how the gay community and their sexuality was treated during this time, in which the couple kept their day jobs a secret from their religious community and even from their own children.

During this time, there was a particularly troubling AIDS pandemic affecting the country, in which we follow as the couple provide support to the gay community, despite the taboo nature. It brings up a lot of questions about the way we see people with different sexualities and provokes deep thought on how people were traditionally brought up in the 80’s to frown upon such communities. 

Whether you want to understand and educate yourself more on the struggles of homosexual people during this era, or you’re interested in finding out more about LA homosexual culture in the 80’s, this documentary is definitely worth a watch. 

Jesus Camp 

Released in 2006, Jesus Camp is an eye-opening documentary that offers an insight into some of the extreme religious practices that take place at a children’s Christian summer camp in America. The camp, called Kids on Fire, hosts children who take part in a series of programmes that are designed to strengthen and intensify their beliefs. The camp’s founder, Becky Fischer, discusses her mission to indoctrinate youths in the word of God, in which she draws on practices that could be seen as immoral in the eyes of many. 

The cinematic documentary delivers a contemporary message to the world through the eyes of children, in which it highlights another type of extreme behaviour, which is often overlooked in a society that is overloaded with moral battles. Offering further insight into the lives of evangelicals and the effects that these beliefs can have on young minds, Jesus Camp is an important one to watch for any adult alike. 

A Kids Game – The Story of Online Poker

A Kids Game – The story of online poker is an intriguing documentary that follows the daily lives of some of the best young poker players on the planet. We take a look at the young players careers and find out how they got into the world of online poker at such a young age, with some of the players confessing that they were involved in online poker well before the legal age. In addition, we also get to see how the intense life of a world class online poker player affects these people and the impact it has on them, given their young age. 

We find out how these players leveraged their early gaming experiences, in order to develop the necessary skills to become international poker playing stars. The documentary does also cover the negative side of being involved in professional online poker from such a young age, with footage of how one young player loses his entire bankroll in a game. 

If great online casino experience and getting slots free spins are your kind of thing, then we suggest giving this one a watch. 

Shot in the Dark

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This documentary follows three Los Angeles stringers; journalists who listen to the emergency wavelength at night and race to the scenes of accidents and crimes in order to get raw footage, which they can then sell for top dollar to the latest news station. Unlike other documentaries that are structured and planned out on usual emergency type shows, this one is pure action and raw footage as there’s no planning, no permissions and no hidden content.  While they sometimes discuss the moral implications of profiting off the back of other peoples tragedies, the show mainly focuses on the drama, excitement and action as cars burst into flames and cops race after criminals in get away cars. 

The series is available on Netflix, as well as a few other subscription services including Amazon, Google Play and iTunes. 

The Staircase

This docu-series follows the murder case of the wife of novelist Michael Peterson in a chilling case. After making the initial 911 call to report is as an accident where Peterson’s wife was found unconscious at the bottom of the stairs, he later attributed it to a series of bizarre reasons, including an own-attack. The murder was also connected to a series of other similar crimes in which the case takes a series of twists and turns in what becomes a lengthy legal battle until Peterson is charged. But what will the truth entail?

This title can be found on Netflix as in definitely one for those into thriller and crime documentary series. 

So while there are quite a few high profile documentaries available across streaming platforms currently, why not venture into the unknown and check out one of these under the radar documentaries and surprise your colleagues at the latest office gossip session.