I just thought I would make a thread recommending Sir David Attenborough's new documentary, First life. I just got round to watching both parts (I've really busy lately and I'm going right back into it tomorrow). It is an incredibly good documentary, well worth watching. The documentary is about early life on Earth. So if you're interested, catch it while it's still on iPlayer. Links below...

Episode 1: Arrival (link)

Episode 2: Conquest (link)

Wikipedia article (link)

I also thought it might also be a good idea to share other documentary suggestions with members. So if you have any other suggestions, please share them with the rest of the forum.

David Attenborough: Planet Earth or Life. Programs like this are the only reason I have found to warrant a HDTV.

I've been watching quite a few on Netflix, lately.  A few of the ones that stood out are:

Maxed Out:  A look into the world of credit, creditors, and how the system is set up to keep you in debt

Wal Mart:  The High Cost of Low Prices :  Shows some of Wal-Mart's shady business practices and the effect the franchise has on small businesses

Forgiving Dr. Mengele:  The story of an elderly Jewish womant who survived Auschwitz and the infamous Dr. Mengele (this man experimented on living humans!  Even going as far as sewing twins together or injecting things into their eyes to try to change their eye color.)  The female focus of the documentary is trying to make peace with her horrific past by finding forgiveness for this man.

Bigger, Stronger, Faster:  Are steroids as bad as we think?  Well yes.....and no.  Interesting and funny story about three brothers who use steroids and the effect on their family and their lives.

Waco:  The Rules of Engagement:  The story of what took place when the ATF tried to take on cult leader, David Koresh, in Waco Texas.  The end result was the death of several men, women, and children.  Watching the videos they made before they died (they seemed like nice people) was chilling.  The biggest ATF fuck-up I can remember.

Auschwitz:  Inside the Nazi State:  Multi-Part documentary about the most infamous Nazi death camp (I had just read Maus and I was obssessed with WW2/the Holocaust for a while).

All of these were very good but, I guess any documentary is if you are interested in the subject.  Others I liked are pretty well known (Supersize Me, Tyson, Sicko).   Anyhoo, there's my contribution to the thread.

The other reason i find is some of the space documentaries, like the stephen hawking ones or universe, look abosolutely stunning in HD.

 Grizzly Man and American Movie are probably the two funniest movies I've ever seen, and I'd recommend them to anyone. After you've watched those, go to YouTube and search for "Chris-chan". Timothy Treadwell and Mark Borchardt have nothing on him.

Not available in my area.

Thanks fro those. I might look them up.

One I watched recently was The Soviet Story

It talks about how Stalin pretty much helped the Nazis build the war machine they have (and then got betrayed by Hitler)

Also, for those who talk about Hitler and the 6,000,000 jews he killed in the war, this docummentary talks about how Stalin killed 7,000,000 Ucranians in 1 year (!) of famine.

I saw that one, it's pretty good, gives you an idea what walmart does to communities as well as the nation.

My list:

Beer Wars-about how the big three beer companies dominate the industry with utter shit.

Cosmos-about the universe in general

Michael Moore hates America Capitalism a love story (I think it's only worth watching both of these together so you can get two different outlooks)

The Atheism tapes-interviews with various atheists and one theist about their beliefs

Blue Gold-About how the world is dangerously short on water and the harm it's bringing to the planet

Waiting for Armageddon-zionism

Revolution OS-windows vs linux/the history of linux

Who killed the electric car?

The power of myth

How to draw a bunny-biography of Ray Johnson a collage artist

The 11th hour-Environmental film

Wonders of the Solar System.

It's less fantastical than other space documenteries, yet does an awesome job of making it interesting. 

Ones I would recommend, Sorta alphabetical

Blue Gold (2009) - Described by another poster above. 

Countdown to Zero (2010) - One sided but very compelling case for nuclear disarmament. Regardless of your political ideology this is worth watching.

Cove, The (2009) - Eye-opening documentary about Dolphins and this one particular town in Japan. I don't want to spoil anything, but this is a must watch if you like investigative journalism. 

Crude (2009) - Good overview on massive ecological damage caused by Texaco/Chevron in Ecuador. This documentary covers a heated class action suit waged against Chevron by the citizens of Ecuador. People are getting sick and dying because of Texaco operations while Chevron doesn't want to take responsibility for their actions. Well balanced coverage of the issue.

End of the Line, The (2009) -About overfishing, resource depletion and fisheries sustainability. An important issue that needs more exposure. 

Power of Nightmares, The (2004) - 3 Part BBC Documentary about the use of fear in politics. The first part of this documentary is a must watch as it shows the links between the early neo-conservative movement in the US and the growth of Islamic fundamentalism. Available for free on Google Video.

Sharkwater (2006) - About the poaching of sharks, mostly for Chinese people who are increasingly demanding Sharkfin. As more and more Chinese people gain wealth, they can afford and demand luxuries such as Sharkfin soup, where its consumption was once restricted to a very small percentage of the population. This documentary covers the devastating effects on shark populations worldwide as well as the highly lucrative sharkfin trade.

Planet Earth and Life are also great.