Top Documentaries

Reality TV has nothing on these true-life tales

How to Survive A Plague

This harrowing and inspiring doc follows the highly organized activists that demanded medical and social progress for AIDS sufferers during the height of the epidemic in the ’80s and ’90s — a lesson in complacency, compassion and the power of a dedicated group of people.

The Art of Rap

Whether you know everything or nothing about hip-hop culture and the history of rap, Ice-T’s exploration into one of America’s most successful folk traditions — with the likes of Dr. Dre, Run DMC and Eminem — is eye-opening and, often times, hilarious.

Diana Vreeland: The Eye Has to Travel

I don’t think a documentary has ever made me laugh this much. This fashion retrospective makes the Anna Wintour-centric The September Issue feel dull and prudish. Diana Vreeland is a plucky, sartorially minded tour de force, playing the roll of innovator, muse and industry leader.

The House I Live In

Did you know there are more black Americans in prison today then there were slaves at the height of pre- Emancipation America? This drug documentary is full of shocking realizations like that, making the War on Drugs seem like the most ineffective, misguided and brutal war that the U.S. has ever fought.

Searching for Sugar Man

Sugar Man has the kind of premise that no longer seems possible in our über-connected information age. If you haven’t seen this music detective story, I won’t ruin it for you, but I will say that is spans the globe seeking a silver-tongued troubadour that gives Dylan a run for his money.

Top 10 Movies of 2012 – Molly Templeton’s Top 10

Top 10 Movies of 2012 – Rick Levin’s Top 10

Top Documentaries

The Misunderstood and Overlooked