(Photo by Disney+ / Courtesy Everett Collection)
100 Best Nature Documentaries of All Time
Get an inside look at the outside world with our guide of the 100 best nature documentaries of all time. Spread across land and sea, from the highest mountain peaks and above down to the forest floor and below, these tales of our planet achieve more than just the most spellbinding natural images ever seen. They encourage us to travel beyond our usual boundaries. They call us into action as guardians of the environment. And they boost and restore our humanity, exploring our place among all of life’s tapestry on Earth.
These 100 documentaries are ranked by Tomatometer score, with Certified Fresh films first. These especially acclaimed films include what most people picture when they think nature documentaries: animals doing animal things out in the wild. Among the highest-rated include Winged Migration and March of the Penguins (which gave flight to our documentary craze in the 2000s), the Disneynature series (Bears, Chimpanzee, Oceans), and revealing IMAX presentations (Under the Sea, Born to Be Wild).
But animal docs don’t always need to trade in their frequent flyer miles. Many take place right beyond our doorstep, like The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill and All That Breathes (discover the inspiring work behind a bird hospital), and even feature our close pals, cats (Kedi) and dogs (Stray).
Humans and our relationship with nature are frequent doc topics. Touching the Void and Free Solo feature people challenging nature to get them up to their peak physical limits, while Fire of Love and Grizzly Man are all about getting up close and personal, maybe more than nature’s comfortable with.
Revelations about our impact on the environment remain a constant. They include the horrors of animal exploitation (Blackfish, The Cove, Food, Inc.), disappearing biodiversity (Honeyland), climate change (An Inconvenient Truth), and destruction (GasLand).
See what the natural world has to offer from the comfort of your spider-free home with the 100 best nature documentaries of al time. —Alex Vo
#1
Critics Consensus: Honeyland uses life in a remote village to offer an eye-opening perspective on experiences that should resonate even for audiences halfway around the world.
Synopsis: A woman utilizes ancient beekeeping traditions to cultivate honey in the mountains of North Macedonia. When a neighboring family tries
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#2
Critics Consensus: A poetic tribute to tenacity, All That Breathes uses two brothers' tireless efforts to make a broader point about finding triumph within tragedy.
Synopsis: In one of the world's most populated cities, cows, rats, monkeys, frogs, and hogs jostle cheek-by-jowl with people. Here, two
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#3
Critics Consensus: Andy Goldsworthy and his art are beautifully captured in this engaging documentary.
Synopsis: Andy Goldsworthy's art is supposed to fall apart. He creates large-scale outdoor sculptures and artworks out of natural materials like
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#4
Critics Consensus: Whether as a story of one couple's quixotic quest or simply a stunning collection of nature footage, Fire of Love burns bright.
Synopsis: Fire of Love tells the story of two French lovers, Katia and Maurice Krafft, who died in a volcanic explosion
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#5
Critics Consensus: Free Solo depicts athletic feats that many viewers will find beyond reason - and grounds the attempts in passions that are all but universal.
Synopsis: Alex Honnold completes the first free solo climb of famed El Capitan's 3,000-foot vertical rock face at Yosemite National Park.
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#6
Critics Consensus: Blackfish is an aggressive, impassioned documentary that will change the way you look at performance killer whales.
Synopsis: The story of Tilikum, a captive killer whale that has taken the lives of several people, underscores problems within the
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#7
Critics Consensus: Kedi is a cat fancier's dream, but this thoughtful, beautifully filmed look at Istanbul's street feline population offers absorbing viewing for filmgoers of any purr-suasion.
Synopsis: Hundreds of thousands of cats have roamed the metropolis of Istanbul freely for thousands of years, wandering in and out
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#8
Critics Consensus: Jane honors its subject's legacy with an absorbing, beautifully filmed, and overall enlightening look at her decades of invaluable work.
Synopsis: Jane Goodall, a young and untrained woman, challenges the male dominated scientific consensus of her time with her chimpanzee research
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#9
Critics Consensus: The human story of Born To Be Wild is captivating and the accompanying nature footage is utterly cute and charming.
Synopsis: Morgan Freeman narrates this documentary about two dedicated animal preservationists. Daphne Sheldrick has created an elephant sanctuary in Kenya, while
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#10
Critics Consensus: Much like the cosmic debris it investigates, Fireball: Visitors from Darker Worlds is made up of heavy stuff -- but it lights up the screen thanks to Werner Herzog's infectious awe.
Synopsis: A journey across the planet and universe explores how meteorites, shooting stars and deep impacts have awoken wonder about other
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#11
Critics Consensus: GasLand patiently and powerfully outlines alarming problems with modern fuel extraction -- and the horrific public health risks that go along with them.
Synopsis: When Josh Fox receives a $100,000 offer from a natural gas company interested in exploring in his land in Pennsylvania's
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#12
Critics Consensus: Equal parts hilarious, poignant, and heartbreaking, Project Nim not only tells a compelling story masterfully, but also raises the flag on the darker side of human nature.
Synopsis: In the 1970s, professor Herb Terrace and his team raise a baby chimp as a human child, as part of
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#14
Critics Consensus: Pick of the Litter has all the fluffy adorableness audiences expect from a puppy documentary, along with a story that's as edifying as it is heartwarming.
Synopsis: Following five spirited puppies from the moment they're born through their quest to become guide dogs for the blind.
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#15
Critics Consensus: Hauntingly filmed and brimming with Herzog's infectious enthusiasm, Cave of Forgotten Dreams is a fascinating triumph.
Synopsis: In this documentary, filmmaker Werner Herzog and a small crew are given a rare chance to film inside France's Chauvet
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#16
Critics Consensus: Chasing Ice captures the urgency of climate change while prevailing as entertainment, thanks the awe-inspiring scenery and James Balog's charisma.
Synopsis: James Balog and his team on the Extreme Ice Survey assemble a multiyear chronicle of the planet's rapidly melting glaciers.
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#17
Critics Consensus: Stray takes a patient, meditative look at the lives of Istanbul's stray dog population -- and uncovers truths of the human condition in the process.
Synopsis: STRAY explores what it means to live as a being without status or security, following three strays as they embark
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#18
Critics Consensus: Though decidedly one-sided, The Cove is an impeccably crafted, suspenseful expose of the covert slaughter of dolphins in Japan.
Synopsis: In Taiji, Japan, local fishermen hide a gruesome secret: the capture and slaughter of dolphins. Activist Ric O'Barry, who trained
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#19
Critics Consensus: A marvel to watch.
Synopsis: This documentary presents an epic portrait of winter bird migration. Filmed on all seven continents over four years, the footage
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#20
Critics Consensus: An eye-opening expose of the modern food industry, Food, Inc. is both fascinating and terrifying, and essential viewing for any health-conscious citizen.
Synopsis: Documentary filmmaker Robert Kenner examines how mammoth corporations have taken over all aspects of the food chain in the United
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#21
Critics Consensus: Interesting and appealing as both a study of man and nature.
Synopsis: A homeless musician's life is transformed after he discovers a flock of wild South American parrots living in San Francisco.
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#25
Critics Consensus: Encounters at the End of the World offers a poignant study of the human psyche amid haunting landscapes.
Synopsis: Acclaimed filmmaker Werner Herzog travels to Antarctica, where he finds a desolate, beautiful landscape, largely untouched by human hands, and
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#26
Critics Consensus: Delightful and strangely moving.
Synopsis: In Mongolia's Gobi desert, a camel belonging to a group of nomadic shepherds gives birth to a white calf. It's
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#28
Critics Consensus: This candid, powerful and informative documentary illuminates some of the myths surrounding its dual subjects: global warming and Al Gore.
Synopsis: Filmmaker Davis Guggenheim follows Al Gore on the lecture circuit, as the former presidential candidate campaigns to raise public awareness
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#29
Critics Consensus: Effectively stirring and bolstered by thrilling visuals, The Eagle Huntress uses its heartwarming message to fill up a feature that might have made for an even more powerful short film.
Synopsis: Aishol-pan, a 13-year-old girl, trains to become the first female in 12 generations of her Kazakh family to become an
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#31
Critics Consensus: A heartwarming look at the way a meaningful bond can transcend just about any barrier, this documentary will leave you asking your friends to come and see My Octopus Teacher with you.
Synopsis: A diver swims with an octopus that lives in a kelp forest off the coast of South Africa.
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#32
Critics Consensus: Whatever opinion you come to have of the obsessive Treadwell, Herzog has once again found a fascinating subject.
Synopsis: Pieced together from Timothy Treadwell's actual video footage, Werner Herzog's remarkable documentary examines the calling that drove Treadwell to live
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#34
Critics Consensus: Although it raises some uncomfortable ethical quandaries, Wildcat is an affecting testament to the healing power of interspecies bonds.
Synopsis: Wildcat follows the emotional and inspiring story of a young veteran (Harry Turner) on his journey into the Amazon. Once
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#35
Critics Consensus: Into the Inferno finds director Werner Herzog observing some of the most beautiful -- and terrifying -- wonders of the natural world with his signature blend of curiosity and insight.
Synopsis: Werner Herzog and volcanologist Clive Oppenheimer travel the globe and visit volcanoes in Indonesia, Ethiopia and even North Korea in
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#36
Critics Consensus: Uplifting, educational, and entertaining, The Biggest Little Farm is an environmental advocacy documentary with a satisfying side dish of hope for the future.
Synopsis: A couple are followed through their successes and failures as they work to develop a sustainable farm on 200 acres
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#37
Critics Consensus: Sweet, beautifully filmed, and admirably short on sugarcoating, Bears continues Disneynature's winning streak.
Synopsis: Filmmakers Alastair Fothergill and Keith Scholey chronicle a year in the lives of an Alaskan brown bear named Sky and
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#39
Critics Consensus: Proving 52 is the loneliest number since the number one, The Loneliest Whale: The Search for 52 is an engaging nature documentary about the leviathan efforts to understand our large aquatic counterparts.
Synopsis: THE LONELIEST WHALE: THE SEARCH FOR 52 is a cinematic quest to find the "52 Hertz Whale," which scientists believe
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#41
Critics Consensus: Patiently constructed and beautifully filmed, Aquarela views man's relationship with water through a sobering -- and awe-inducing -- lens.
Synopsis: From massive waves to melting ice, filmmaker Victor Kossakovsky travels around the world to capture stunning images of the beauty
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#42
Critics Consensus: An amazing array of images from beneath the sea.
Synopsis: Director James Cameron travels with the crew of a Russian research vessel as they plunge into the depths of the
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#43
Critics Consensus: An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power makes a plea for environmental responsibility that adds a persuasive -- albeit arguably less impactful -- coda to its acclaimed predecessor.
Synopsis: Former Vice President Al Gore continues his tireless fight, traveling around the world to train an army of activists and
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#44
Critics Consensus: Oceans adds another visually stunning chapter to the Disney Nature library.
Synopsis: Most of the Earth's surface is covered by water; using the latest technology, filmmakers Jacques Perrin and Jacques Cluzaud set
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#45
Critics Consensus: In addition to its breathtaking underwater photography, Sharkwater has a convincing, impassioned argument of how the plight of sharks affects everyone.
Synopsis: Arguing that sharks are misunderstood as dangerous creatures, biologist Rob Stewart travels to the Galapagos Islands, Costa Rica and other
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#49
Critics Consensus: Beautiful yet gut-wrenching, Sharkwater Extinction offers an eye-opening condemnation of an illegal trade -- and a poignant farewell to a talented filmmaker.
Synopsis: Filmmaker Rob Stewart travels across oceans to expose the illegal and violent underworld of shark finning.
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#53
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: From exotic jungles, high mountains and remote islands, filmmakers Richard Dale, Peter Webber and Fan Lixin capture the awesome beauty
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#55
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: Narrated by David Attenborough, never-before-seen footage shows how our living in lockdown opened the door for nature to bounce back
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#57
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: Scientist Fred Urquhart (Gordon Pinsent) studies migration of the monarch butterfly for 40 years.
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#62
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: Bomman and Bellie, a couple in South India, devote their lives to caring for an orphaned baby elephant named Raghu,
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#63
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: In the Outback, a kangaroo joey named Mala faces famine, frosts and a pack of hungry dingoes as she endeavors
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#69
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: It may appear tiny to the human eye, but there is no denying that the insect kingdom -- as captured
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#70
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: Jacques Perrin and Jacques Cluzaud travel throughout Europe to film brown bears, wild horses, wolves and other animals in their
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#73
Critics Consensus: An environmental advocacy documentary with the suspense of a thriller, Sea of Shadows exposes lawlessness on the high seas -- and promotes efforts to thwart it.
Synopsis: The world's smallest whales near extinction as Mexican cartels and the Chinese mafia destroy their habitat.
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#77
Critics Consensus: Informative, compassionate, and beautifully filmed, The Elephant Queen should satisfy nature documentary lovers of all ages.
Synopsis: A journey of family, courage, and coming home; joining Athena, the majestic matriarch, as she leads her elephant herd across
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#85
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: Activists, scientists, farmers and politicians turn to regenerative agriculture to save the planet's topsoil.
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#91
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: From frigid mountains to the heart of the bamboo forest, filmmaker Lu Chuan follows the adventures of three animal families
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#92
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: After becoming separated from his pod, a young orca adopts residents of Vancouver Island's Nootka Sound as his surrogate family.
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#93
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#97
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: Featuring no conventional narrative, this film presents footage of people, places and things from around the world. From chaotic cities
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#99
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: From Fiji to the Bahamas, Jean-Michel Cousteau and his children explore the ocean to learn about the threats it faces.
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#100
Critics Consensus: Hard-hitting and ambitious to a fault, The Ivory Game serves as a fittingly urgent call to action against a looming threat against vulnerable wildlife and a fragile ecosystem.
Synopsis: Ivory is a prized status symbol for middle-class Chinese, and poachers in pursuit of white gold are slaughtering African elephants
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