I often wonder how I fell into the role of ForReel’s resident documentary-documentarian. My tenure began with a review of a film (kind of) that will appear later on in this list, then came the Hot Docs fest, then more documentaries at the Toronto International Film Festival, and the Vancouver International Film Festival. In the interim of festivals I reviewed, for some reason, even more documentaries. This comes as a surprise to me, because I wouldn’t describe myself as a viewer that’s particularly drawn to documentaries.

I imagine I owe a lot of credit to my partner Blair, who is a documentary fanatic. The thirty plus documentaries I watched last year would seem paltry to the uncounted number Blair watched. In a sense, it’s Blair who should be tapped to make this list. But alas, their influence on me will have to do. So, thank you Blair for pushing me to be more inquisitive in my filmgoing and more educated in my consumption. It is because of you that - for my third year running and first time here at ForReel - I can release a comprehensive list of my favorite documentaries of the year. Now, without further ado or dedication, my five favorite documentaries of 2022.

5. jeen-yuhs: A Kanye Trilogy

A lot has changed since I first wrote about the three-part Kanye West documentary back in March, 2022. In the last nine months, the controversial music mogul went from billionaire with a number one album to full on Hitler-loving Nazi. Of course, Mr. West is no stranger to controversy, even this particular brand of racially/religiously charged controversy, but 2022 was a turning point for his image and influence. That’s what makes Chike Ozah and Coodie Simmons’ four and a half hour documentary about the rise of Ye so special.

Ozah and Simmons captured Kanye West at the very beginning of his career, when he was creating beats for cash, playing his tapes for music execs, and betting on himself when no one else would. The film is a touching tribute to the man he was before the fame - and the friendship he fostered with the documentarians. It’ll be interesting to see how jeen-yuhs ages (it already has), but I doubt it’ll ever lose the nostalgic power of a college dropout with a dream.

4. All the Beauty and the Bloodshed

Nan Goldin, a different kind of tortured artist than Kanye West, is the central figure of Laura Poitras’ riveting and emotionally devastating All the Beauty and the Bloodshed. The Oscar-frontrunner follows Goldin’s childhood trauma, adulthood in the art world, and recent fight against the Sackler family - the pharmaceutical patriarchs principally responsible for the opioid crisis in the United States. Mixing Goldin’s distinctive artistry and conventional documentary filmmaking, Poitras crafts a unique, yet accessible exploration of art and activism. Not to undersell it, but at its heart, it’s a truly beautiful film. If it’s still playing in your local theater, I couldn’t recommend it more.

3. Moonage Daydream

One of my favorite documentaries of the year and one of my favorite theater experiences of the year all balled up into one: Moonage Daydream is a trip. Brett Morgan’s unabashed dedication to David Bowie and the wondrous, hallucinogenic aura that surrounds his legacy is one of the best music documentaries in years. Through archival footage, concert videos, and film clips, Morgan is able to personify the magnificence of Bowie and the indelible mark he left on his worshippers. Moonage Daydream is nothing less than a religious experience for the Bowie-fanatic, as is well documented in my review from TIFF, but even for non-Bowie fans, there’s so much to admire in this documentary. How one captures the effervescent and ever-changing spirit of a rockstar gone too soon is beyond me, but Brett Morgan undoubtedly did it. And it’s miraculous.

2. Jackass Forever

Many will quarrel with the addition of Jackass Forever on a year-end list of documentaries. They will say it is not a documentary. They will say it is not deserving. They will all be wrong.

It is brilliant. It is mesmerizing. It is terrifying. It is hysterical. It is - somehow, over twenty years on - the best Jackass film. I don’t have much more to say honestly. Johnny Knoxville and Co. - may you live forever.

Honorable Mentions

To reiterate, the number of documentaries I watched in 2022 is astounding, but that doesn’t mean I’ve seen them all or that this is any sort of exhaustive list of the best the year had to offer. There are plenty of well-reviewed documentaries I haven’t had the chance yet to watch (i.e. Good Night Oppy, A House Made of Splinters). There are, moreover, many documentaries I enjoyed that aren’t making my year-end list. This spot is for just a few of them. The first honorable mention belongs to the only YouTube documentary to ever make me cry, Disney Channel’s Theme: A History Mystery. You can watch it for free right now! It’s fantastic. I’ll shout out a couple of other Oscar contenders that I enjoyed to varying degrees: Navalny and Fire of Love. Then, of course, there’s my obligatory favorite basketball documentary of the year: The Grizzlie Truth. Nothing like basketball and home (Vancouver!) combined into one hilarious and heartfelt doc. As stated, there are plenty of other great documentaries from 2022 that I loved, but those are just a few extra.

1. The Territory

Of the hundreds of films I watched last year, The Territory ranks among the very best, regardless of genre. Alex Pritz’s documentation of the war between the Indigenous Uru-eu-wau-wau people and non-Native Brazilians over the heart of the Amazon rainforest must be seen to be believed. A combination of guerilla filmmaking and conventional political documentary, The Territory tells the story of this hidden war from both sides, though not impartially. By surrendering his lens (both literally and metaphorically) to the Amazonian tribe, Pritz infuses his film with a grounded sentimentality, thus the real-life stakes are never lost on the audience.

What raises The Territory above the crop of other recent documentaries isn’t in its ability to teach or thrill, but rather in its commitment to be a vehicle for change - rather than a spectator to it. The Territory is a catalyst for change, not a case of cinéma vérité. For some, that may be a turn off. But for me, it’s what makes the film special. Many documentaries are gut-wrenching, or important, or amazing. Those are high compliments, to be sure. But few reach for something higher. Few are life-saving. The Territory is.

BEST OF 2022 | Todd's Top Five Documentaries