From JFK to Celine Dion, the 20 best profile documentaries to watch right now... picked by our TV experts
Looking for something new to watch? The Mail's TV experts have sifted through hundreds of programmes to bring you the 20 of the best high-end documentary profiles to watch on demand right now…
Senna (2010 documentary)
Asif Kapadia's Bafta-winning profile of the racing great
Year: 2010
Certificate: 12
'There's only one word that describes Ayrton's style, and that is fast' - John Bisignano (Formula One commentator).
There are many words to describe Ayrton Senna the man, however. The Brazilian whose bitter, very personal rivalry with fellow driver (and one-time McLaren team-mate) Alain Prost revved up the world of Formula One in the late 1980s and early 1990s, was a complex character - a point this knotty documentary is at pains to make. A charismatic man, he cut a controversial figure in a world defined by power, politics, money and maybe just a touch of arrogance, and he was loved and loathed in equal measure - loved by his fellow countrymen, for whom he was an unofficial ambassador; but often loathed by his fellow drivers.
Brit director Asif Kapadia's hugely successful film is at its best as a character study of an articulate, driven and surprisingly introspective and religious man, and makes for a fascinating and often unexpectedly poignant piece of documentary-making that proved to have - perhaps most impressively - a near-universal appeal.
Senna died on May 1, 1994, during a particularly fateful weekend of Grand Prix racing in San Marino. On the first day of qualifying, Brazilian Rubens Barrichello was knocked unconscious and almost died after hitting a kerb at high speed, while on the second day, Austrian driver Roland Ratzenberger was killed in a head-on collision with the barriers after failing to negotiate a bend - the day before Senna's death in similar circumstances. After Senna's fatal crash, an Austrian flag was found in his car - presumably to be unfurled in tribute to Ratzenberger after the race. His death, the last driver fatality in Formula One, had a dramatic impact on motor racing, not least in terms of safety - and that's a fitting tribute to Senna. (106 minutes)
Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes
Unearthed interviews with the star reveal all in this profile
Year: 2024
Certificate: 15
'I was a child actress and then all of a sudden I was playing in a film, at the age of 16 but looking 24, Robert Taylor's wife.' Directed by Oscar nominee Nanette Burstein, this HBO profile blends recently unearthed interviews with Taylor with footage from her life, giving the effect that you see it all very much through her eyes.
The early sexualisation that the quote alludes to - an unhappy phenomenon in which Taylor is in no way alone, even to this day - is one example of the impact Hollywood had on her development, as revealed across a profile that takes her career and marriages in chronological order. It features plenty of lively moments, especially during the filming of Cleopatra, her marriage to Richard Burton and entrance into rehab, but the film is far from a sensationalist piece.
Seeing what her life looked like on the surface and hearing what it felt like from the inside is a powerful combination for understanding and, while there are certainly tragic moments, it ends on a hopeful point: Taylor, finally single after seven marriages, has the time to figure out who she actually is. You should have a much clearer idea of that, too, after watching the film. (100 minutes)
Sven
Documentary charting the life of former England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson
Year: 2024
Certificate: 15
When the shocking news broke in early 2024 that Sven-Goran Eriksson was suffering from terminal cancer with at best a year to live, there was a great outpouring of affection for the former England and Manchester City boss.
This artful, sensitive and instantly captivating film embraces that as it charts Eriksson's career - from undistinguished playing days to a managerial CV crammed with some of the world's greatest club sides as well as no less than four international teams - and his often headline-grabbing private life, filled with stories of womanising and affairs (including a well-publicised fling with TV presenter Ulrika Jonsson).
It's a bittersweet watch, with fond reminiscences from England players including David Beckham and Wayne Rooney and warm insight from his children, intercut with the story of the cancer diagnosis and the quietly witty Eriksson's philosophical attitude towards what lay ahead of him. His death, at the age of 76, was announced just three days after this documentary's release. (107 minutes)
I Am Celine Dion
Documentary about the singer's struggle with illness
Year: 2024
Certificate: 12
This is not your standard music documentary. Yes, it has many clips of the Canadian singer in concert and the studio. Yes, there are home videos that highlight Celine Dion's rise from a family of 14 children in Quebec to stardom around the world, but that's not the film's real subject - it's actually about what happens when a rare neurological disease puts all that success under threat.
The documentary charts the singer's life after she was diagnosed in 2022 with stiff-person syndrome, a condition that causes muscle stiffness and limb spasms. It's an emotional and candid film in which Dion isn't afraid to show herself struggling through physical therapy and in tears as she cancels concerts and contemplates possibly never being able to perform again.
Throughout it all she comes across as authentic and resilient, with a robust sense of humour about herself and a passion for life, performance and clothes. Shoes, in particular, come up often. Dion really loves them and isn't fussy about size - if she likes what she sees, she will cram her feet in any which way she can (she wears the shoes, they don't wear her, is how she puts it). The singer also has a healthy attitude towards her many, many staff, reflecting that 'If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.'
All that, together with her endearing and very clear need to make her fans understand why she can't perform for them how she could is what holds this occasionally meandering film together, leaving you with a strong image of an admirable and unique showbiz character. (102 minutes)
Martha
Documentary charting the up-and-down life of US style icon Martha Stewart
Year: 2024
Certificate: 15
The US queen of catering, cookbooks and TV shows who championed a certain cosy style of domestic bliss, Martha Stewart was one of the biggest names in the American media at the start of the 21st century. But then everything went wrong, as allegations of insider stock trading saw her serving five months in federal prison.
Oscar-nominated filmmaker RJ Cutler's bright and probing documentary marries hours of one-to-one chats with Stewart herself with archive footage and access to her friends and colleagues to paint a picture of the fierce and powerful woman behind the glossy media image. This fascinating and revealing film charts not only her rise to fame and fall from grace, but also her successful post-prison battle to regain control of her businesses and return to the top of the media pile.
And, in an era of celebrity documentary profiles that can be all too fawning toward their subjects, it's to Cutler's credit that Stewart reportedly disapproves of the final product. (113 minutes)
Hatton
The rise, fall and rise again of boxer Ricky Hatton
Year: 2023
Certificate: 15
'They always say to me how would you like to be remembered? It's hard to answer that really. I was a world champion four times over, but I consider myself a failure.' On the surface, the story of boxer Ricky Hatton's rise from a Manchester council estate to become one of the undisputed greatest fighters in the history of the ring is a classic sporting fairytale, but things are rarely that simple.
Through in-depth interviews with Hatton and the family and friends who helped and sometimes hindered his rise, this moody and introspective documentary also tells the tale of the depression that plagued the boxer, his drug problems and his financial disputes with the people closest to him. Like the film's subject, it packs a real punch. (90 minutes)
OJ: Made In America
Oscar-winning documentary about the life of OJ Simpson and America itself
Year: 2016
Certificate: 18
At 467 minutes, this Oscar-winning documentary is no small undertaking. It is, however, an immensely satisfying and unexpectedly addictive experience that digs deep into the personality of OJ Simpson, the people around him, the trial and even the US itself, using Simpson's life to explore issues of race and celebrity in the 20th century.
There's an uncommon rigour to what's on screen here so, if you're someone for whom the word 'documentary' has become sullied by some less than high-quality examples from recent years, this is the series to restore your faith in the form. It's just that good, and has taken on an added dimension since Simpson's death. (Five episodes)
STILL: A Michael J Fox Movie
The life, times and illness of the Hollywood star
Year: 2023
Certificate: 15
One of the most famous actors of the 1980s, Michael J Fox was a big and small-screen legend before he even turned 30. He was also by that age diagnosed with Parkinson's disease and facing a life with a debilitating, progressive and incurable disease that increasingly left his body twitching and his face often immobile.
Don't expect self pity from this documentary film, though. Chockful of archive clips, behind-the-scenes footage and dramatic re-enactments, this is a rollercoaster ride through the life of a man who refused to lie down and let his disease define him. It's funny, romantic and exciting. Like all the best Michael J Fox films. (95 minutes)
Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields
The behind-the-scenes story of her rise from child star to movie star
Year: 2023
Certificate: 18
Controversy and Brooke Shields have never been far apart. Her sexualised appearances as a child star in movies including Pretty Baby and The Blue Lagoon created an image of a young girl being exploited by a worryingly disturbed 1970s movie industry.
Now, this deeply personal documentary allows her to tell her own story, discussing her complicated relationship with her mother Teri, who managed her career; her troubled marriage to tennis star Andre Agassi; and her own views on the roles that began her career. It's frank and intimate stuff, with Shields describing how she emerged as a strong, empowered and confident adult despite rather than because of her early years. (Two episodes)
McEnroe
Personal and insightful documentary about tennis great John McEnroe
Year: 2022
Certificate: 15
One of sport's most ferocious competitors, John McEnroe smashed his way through the tennis world in the 70s and 80s, but he found that success held as many faults as it did aces. This up-close documentary sees the tennis great discuss everything from his on-court tantrums to his rivalry with Bjorn Borg, but it's the intimate moments where he reflects on personal topics such as his relationship with his father and his connection with his own kids that truly reveal a new side to the man.
Contributions from his wife Patty Smyth, fellow court legends like Billie Jean King and even rock stars such as Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards round out a grand slam film. (99 minutes)
The Life And Deaths Of Christopher Lee
Peter Serafinowicz provides the voice of the great actor in this unconventional profile
Year: 2024
Certificate: 15
A monochrome puppet of Christopher Lee presents this profile of the great actor, its voice provided by Peter Serafinowicz. It's an unusual and memorable way to front a biographical documentary but then Lee was an unusually memorable fellow, so it feels entirely fitting.
We hear how his family's noble lineage can be traced directly back to Charlemagne but the focus is squarely on him, and his life is fleshed out by those who knew him including his niece, the actress Harriet Walter.
As the title suggests, death is a running theme and the source of some surprising stories, including that Lee witnessed the last public execution by guillotine in France. The story also dips into his intelligence work during the Second World War and Nazi hunting after, and the filmmaker John Landis - who knew Lee well - relates how the actor spoke perfect French, German and Italian, and has some lively suggestions about what he got up to behind enemy lines. And that's all before we get into the acting career... (90 minutes)
BECKHAM
In-depth series about the life of footballer David Beckham
Year: 2023
Certificate: 15
This series from the Oscar-winning documentary maker Fisher Stevens (The Cove) delves well beneath the surface of David Beckham and, in the process, of his relationship with his wife Victoria.
Stevens uses previously unseen personal archive from the past four decades to flesh out the story of David's football career and home life, but it's current footage shot with the Beckhams - both apart and together - that feels the most illuminating. It's often the small things that compel the most, too, such as the moments that dwell on David's cleaning habits and approach to money, and when he's collecting honey from his beehives.
And, if that wasn't enough, Stevens has gathered observations from an array of familiar faces including Eric Cantona, Sir Alex Ferguson, Roy Keane and Mel C - as well as David's mum and dad - who round out the perspective we get from the Beckhams. Neither of them has exactly been short of media coverage over the decades, so it's to Stevens's credit that he's created a profile this compelling, and that feels like it actually has something new to say. (Four episodes)
The Pigeon Tunnel
Brilliant profile built around the final interview with John le Carré
Year: 2023
Certificate: 12
Errol Morris is an Oscar-winning master of documentary making with a knack for offbeat subjects. Despite John le Carré's mainstream success, the author of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and The Night Manager is an unusual character - perfect for a Morris documentary.
'You're looking for somebody who's a bit bad, but at the same time loyal. There's a type. And I fit it perfectly,' comments le Carré on how he slotted into life at MI6 - not something anybody can do - in a profile that also turned out to be the spy novelist's final interview before his death in 2020. 'I'll answer any question you wish me to answer, as truthfully as I can,' le Carré tells Morris, which points you to another great attraction of watching this film - figuring out how much of the truth he actually tells us.
Along with the skill of the filmmaking, the richness of the archive and the fact that there will never be another interview with le Carré, it has all the makings of quality entertainment. (94 minutes)
Kennedy
Sprawling biography of John F Kennedy narrated by Peter Coyote
Year: 2023
The Americans have a special talent for making sprawling biographies about their leaders, and this is very much one of those. Peter Coyote narrates an eight-part profile of John F Kennedy that takes a chronological approach, is packed with archive photographs and footage and features interviews with no fewer than 100 Kennedy family members, historians, politicians and experts of other kinds.
This series feels very much like the work of Ken Burns, particularly in the way it pans slowly across photographs and with the presence of Coyote, who has narrated countless Burns projects - winning an Emmy for one of them - but it actually comes from young composer and filmmaker Ashton Gleckman (We Shall Not Die Now). Regardless of who made it, though, this is the kind of enriching, prestige television that leaves you better off than it found you. (Eight episodes)
Navalny
Oscar-winning documentary about the Russian opposition leader
Year: 2022
Certificate: 12
This Oscar and BAFTA-winning feature-length documentary from the peerless Storyville team is like something straight out of a John le Carre novel. Alexei Navalny, the Russian opposition leader, had been a constant thorn in Vladimir Putin's side, and so suspicions were raised when, in August 2020, he was taken seriously ill.
It transpired that he had been poisoned with Novichok, a nerve agent implicated in attacks on other opponents of the Russian government, although President Putin denied any involvement. The intense film follows Navalny as he tries to find evidence of the Kremlin's involvement in his attempted murder, and was released in 2022, less than two years before Navalny died in prison. (99 minutes)
Steve! (Martin) A Documentary In Two Pieces
A pair of interlinked documentaries about comedy legend Steve Martin
Year: 2024
Certificate: 15
Arriving around the time his career is enjoying a late-stage high thanks to the success of Only Murders In The Building, this pair of documentary films about stand-up legend, movie star and expert banjo player Steve Martin comes at exactly the right time. Part one deals with Martin's early days as he narrates an honest and emotional look back at his time as a struggling comedian in the mid-1970s.
The second film jumps forward to examine his life in the present day, interviewing him about the films and shows that made him an international star as he goes about his life. Watched singly or as a pair, the two parts are equally fascinating in the picture they present of one of the world's funniest humans. (Two episodes)
Sidney
Biography of Sidney Poitier, the first African-American performer to win the Best Actor Oscar
Year: 2022
Certificate: 12
Few if any actors have had a bigger impact on their industry and the world at large than the late Sidney Poitier, who died in January 2022. The first African-American performer to win the Best Actor Oscar for a lead role, he became a towering figure not just in Hollywood but in the Civil Rights movement too, standing up for equality at a time when America was seemingly teetering on the brink of a race war.
This eye-opening feature-length documentary produced by Oprah Winfrey looks back at Poitier's extraordinary life, with candid contributions from a raft of A-list stars including Morgan Freeman, Denzel Washington, Halle Berry, Robert Redford and Barbra Streisand, as well as Winfrey herself. (111 minutes)
Faye
Prestige HBO profile of the great Hollywood actress Faye Dunaway
Year: 2024
Certificate: 15
'She could be as devastating as any man. And you know what? It was kind of exciting to see that.' A layered and compelling profile of a layered and compelling woman: the Hollywood great Faye Dunaway, whose mantelpiece groans under the weight of an Oscar, an Emmy, three Golden Globes and a BAFTA, a collection of awards that feels like a fairly small representation of her massive talent.
Produced for HBO in the US, this is the kind of profile that only legends in their field receive (see also the excellent Jane Fonda In Five Acts) and it's built around a riveting interview with Dunaway herself, who is clearly a force to be reckoned with, both on and off screen.
It's fitting then, that this is also a pretty candid treatment - there's a clip of Bette Davis saying she would never work with her again ('she's just totally impossible... Miss Dunaway is for Miss Dunaway'), for instance, and Dunaway presents herself in endearingly unvarnished fashion, complaining about the seat she's sitting in for the interview and demanding a 'a glass of water, not a bottle'.
Is that a performance too, though? Wherever you land on that question, this is a great and succinct slice of informative entertainment. (87 minutes)
Alec Guinness: A Class Act
Rounded profile of the great actor
Year: 2024
Certificate: pg
There's a personal, old-school feel to this rounded profile of acting legend Alec Guinness, partly because it's largely narrated using his own words, intercut with testimony from people ranging from his biographer, Piers Paul Read, to his granddaughter Sally and acting contemporaries including Siân Phillips, Simon Callow, Miriam Margolyes and Tom Courtenay. Sally's insights are particularly enlightening when it comes to the kind nature of the man behind the career that saw him known as so many characters.
Wise Guy: David Chase And The Sopranos
HBO's two-part profile about the creator of the hit gangster show
Year: 2024
Certificate: 15
Once you know the mother in The Sopranos was inspired by the mother of its creator, David Chase, the show takes on a very different complexion. That's just one of the details reflected on by Chase in a two-part profile from HBO that is, somewhat playfully, conducted in a mock-up of Tony's therapist's office on the show.
Chase takes us through his career leading up to The Sopranos, how it came to land at HBO, and we get to see the actors' auditions for the different characters. The casting of Tony's mother was a particularly tricky challenge, given how specific a character she was to Chase - being essentially his own mother - but Nancy Marchand really hit the mark, and Chase's relatives told him they recognised her instantly.
We also hear from the cast, including Michael Imperioli (Christopher), Drea de Matteo (Adriana), who initially thought it was a show about opera singers, and Lorraine Bracco, who was brought in to read for Tony's wife, Carmela, before switching to Dr Melfi. Edie Falco remembers being surprised that she was cast as Carmela, and assumed that The Sopranos would be a 'fly-by-night production'. Eighty-six episodes and 21 Emmy awards later... (Two episodes)
