documentaries
Leni Riefenstahl made movies for Hitler. A new documentary digs through her archives
Adolf Hitler commissioned filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl to make propaganda about Nazi Germany. She lived to be 101 years old and denied knowing about the Holocaust.
‘Can’t stop. Won’t stop’: Documentary filmmakers face federal funding shortfall
PBS has been a home for independent documentaries for more than 50 years. But with the closure of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, nonfiction storytellers have to figure out a way forward.
‘There you are’: How Mariska Hargitay sought out the truth behind her bombshell mom
The Law & Order: SVU actor was 3 years old in 1967 when her movie star mom, Jayne Mansfield, died in a car crash. Hargitay's new documentary My Mom Jayne explores her mother's identity, and her own.
I didn’t know I needed the new Billy Joel documentary
NPR critic Linda Holmes has been a Billy Joel fan since the '80s. HBO's new two-part documentary still taught her something new about his life — and provided a chance to consider the role of his music in her own.
HBO’s new Billy Joel documentary is revelatory — even if it pulls some punches
The new two-part documentary, which premieres Friday on HBO, is a good example of the tension between access and objectivity that filmmakers face in making documentaries on celebrities.
Mariska Hargitay walks a fine line in ‘My Mom Jayne’
It's natural to feel some skepticism when a celebrity makes a documentary about their own family. But Law & Order star Mariska Hargitay' tells a story that is both effective and empathetic.
‘Law & Order’ star investigates her own family’s tragic car crash in ‘My Mom Jayne’
Mariska Hargitay has only the vaguest memories of her mother, Jayne Mansfield, the sex-symbol movie star who died in the 1967 crash. Now, Hargitay examines her family history in a new documentary.
‘Pee-wee as Himself’ gives unprecedented access to an eccentric comedy legend
Also on TV this week, a new season of Nine Perfect Strangers premieres on Hulu, and new episodes of Couples Therapy debut on Paramount+ with Showtime.
A new documentary checks out the many ways libraries are a ‘Free For All’
By examining the value of libraries in the distant and recent past, this PBS film makes a compelling case for the importance of the American public library system today.
