Even as August’s newest movies and TV show titles trickle in on HBO Max, for documentary enthusiasts, one new series that’s been building some excitement has finally arrived, and I can confirm after watching the first episode that it’s been well worth the wait.
Monsters of God is a stranger-than-fiction docuseries from the filmmaker behind two of the streaming world’s wildest animal-obsession sagas ever, and it’s my top pick this weekend. Rounding out the list, however, are a pair of completely different choices—a portrait of a Beatle legend by a directing legend, and a breathtaking plunge into the beautiful blues of the world’s oceans—sure to make for a weekend of variety.
3
George Harrison: Living in the Material World
Scorsese’s intimate portrait of the quiet Beatle
Martin Scorsese’s beautiful and fascinating 2011 tribute to George Harrison is one of my favorite music biographies ever. Not just because it highlights the extraordinary life and journey of my favorite Beatle (there, I said it), but because of the care with which Scorsese, no stranger to sweeping music docs (The Last Waltz, No Direction Home), takes in representing the gentle, nuanced nature of his subject.
Quiz
8 Questions · Test Your Knowledge
The best music documentaries and biopics
Trivia challenge
From Woodstock to Walk the Line — how well do you know the films behind the
music legends?
BiopicsDocumentariesMusic IconsFilm FactsBehind the Scenes
Begin
The 2015 documentary Amy, about Amy Winehouse, was directed by which filmmaker?
AMorgan NevilleBAsif KapadiaCNick BroomfieldDAlex Gibney
Correct! Asif Kapadia directed Amy, crafting the film almost entirely
from archival footage and audio interviews. The documentary won the Academy Award for Best Documentary
Feature in 2016.
Not quite. Amy was directed by Asif Kapadia, who is also known for his
documentaries Senna and Diego Maradona. The film won the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature in 2016.
Continue
In Walk the Line, which actor portrayed Johnny Cash and won a Golden Globe for the
role?
ARussell CroweBEd HarrisCJoaquin PhoenixDJosh Brolin
Correct! Joaquin Phoenix played Johnny Cash in the 2005 biopic and won
the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy. Notably, Phoenix and co-star Reese Witherspoon
performed all of their own vocals in the film.
Not quite. Joaquin Phoenix portrayed Johnny Cash in Walk the Line. He
even performed all his own singing, which impressed June Carter Cash’s real-life family enormously.
Continue
In the 2004 film Ray, Jamie Foxx portrayed Ray Charles. Which major award did Foxx
win for this performance?
ABAFTA Award for Best ActorBAcademy Award for Best ActorCScreen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding CastDGolden Globe for Best Actor in a Drama
Correct! Jamie Foxx won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his
portrayal of Ray Charles. Remarkably, Foxx was also nominated for Best Supporting Actor that same year
for Collateral, making him one of very few actors nominated twice in the same ceremony.
Not quite. Jamie Foxx took home the Academy Award for Best Actor for
Ray. His performance was widely praised for its physical and emotional depth, particularly his depiction
of Charles’s blindness and struggles with addiction.
Continue
Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck was released in 2015 and directed by Brett Morgen. What
made it particularly unique among Cobain documentaries?
AIt was the first documentary to feature interviews with surviving Nirvana membersBIt was the first documentary officially authorized by the Cobain estateCIt was shot entirely using Super 8 home footage from Cobain himselfDIt focused exclusively on Nirvana’s In Utero recording sessions
Correct! Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck was the first documentary to be
officially authorized by the Cobain estate, giving director Brett Morgen unprecedented access to
personal diaries, home recordings, and family footage. This made it a uniquely intimate portrait of
Cobain’s life.
Not quite. The defining feature of Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck was that
it was the first documentary officially authorized by the Cobain estate. This gave filmmaker Brett
Morgen extraordinary access to private materials, including journals, artwork, and home videos.
Continue
Taylor Swift’s documentary Miss Americana, released on Netflix in 2020, covers a
pivotal period in her life. Which major personal decision is a central theme of the film?
AHer move from country music to popBHer decision to speak out publicly on political issuesCHer choice to leave her longtime record labelDHer recovery from a serious vocal cord injury
Correct! Miss Americana documents Taylor Swift’s decision to break her
long public silence on politics, particularly her endorsement of Democratic candidates during the 2018
Tennessee midterm elections. The film explores the personal and professional risks she felt came with
that choice.
Not quite. A central theme of Miss Americana is Taylor Swift’s decision
to speak publicly about politics for the first time, including endorsing candidates in the 2018
midterms. The film reveals how she wrestled with breaking from her carefully maintained public
neutrality.
Continue
Summer of Soul (2021), directed by Questlove, focuses on a legendary 1969 music
festival. What is the festival’s official name?
AThe Newport Jazz FestivalBThe Harlem Cultural FestivalCThe Wattstax Music FestivalDThe Atlanta Pop Festival
Correct! Summer of Soul centers on the Harlem Cultural Festival of 1969,
a series of free concerts held in Marcus Garvey Park. The footage had been locked away in a vault for
over 50 years before Questlove brought it to the world, earning the film an Academy Award for Best
Documentary Feature.
Not quite. The festival featured in Summer of Soul is the Harlem
Cultural Festival, held in 1969. Remarkably, the footage sat unseen in a basement for more than five
decades before Questlove used it to create this celebrated documentary.
Continue
In the biopic Walk the Line, which legendary musician and close friend of Johnny
Cash is portrayed as a major influence on his early career?
AElvis PresleyBJerry Lee LewisCCarl PerkinsDHank Williams
Correct! Elvis Presley appears as a significant presence in Walk the
Line, depicted as a peer and inspiration to the young Johnny Cash during their shared time at Sun
Records. The film portrays Cash’s ambition as partly fueled by seeing Elvis’s explosive early success.
Not quite. Elvis Presley is portrayed as a major influence on Cash in
Walk the Line, with both artists having recorded at Sun Records in Memphis during the same era. The film
depicts their camaraderie as part of Cash’s formative years as a performer.
Continue
Which of these music documentaries won the Academy Award for Best Documentary
Feature?
AKurt Cobain: Montage of HeckBMiss AmericanaCSummer of SoulDBillie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry
Correct! Summer of Soul, directed by Questlove, won the Academy Award
for Best Documentary Feature at the 2022 ceremony. It also won the Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award
at the Sundance Film Festival, making it one of the most acclaimed music documentaries in recent memory.
Not quite. Summer of Soul is the Oscar winner in this group, taking home
the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature in 2022. Directed by Questlove, the film also swept major
awards at Sundance, cementing its place as a landmark music documentary.
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George Harrison: Living in the Material World is a thorough 3-hour and 28-minute account that tells it all, delving into Harrison’s life as a musician, spiritual seeker, philanthropist, and filmmaker. The Emmy-winning special sweeps from his beginnings as a young musician in Liverpool, through the insanity of Beatlemania, his spiritual awakening, his solo career and All Things Must Pass, the Traveling Wilburys, and his love of movies and involvement with the Monty Pythons.
Scorsese weaves together some incredible archival footage of performances, home movies, rare photos and documents, and candid interviews with the likes of Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Eric Clapton, Harrison’s widow Olivia, and son Dhani. Told in two parts, it’s an intimate and essential watch that shines light on the often misunderstood Beatle.
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Blue Planet II
Attenborough’s voice is the soundtrack of any good Sunday
Sometimes you just need gorgeous eye-candy from the natural world (with a thread of environmentalism) to round out your weekend. And if it comes with the silky-smooth British narration of the world’s greatest living (he’s 100 years old!) naturalist, Sir David Attenborough, you might just end the weekend feeling like you’ve actually accomplished something.
Blue Planet II is the gold standard of nature TV and was the UK’s most-watched TV program of 2017. And it still holds up today, as the show’s stunning seven episodes explore the Earth’s oceans and the extraordinary marine life—from surfing dolphins and clever tuskfish that can use tools, to ice-dwelling creatures with natural antifreeze for blood, and sharks, turtles, and much more.
The jaw-dropping cinematography and footage are the result of more than four years, 135 expeditions across 39 countries, and 6,000 hours of underwater diving, much of it capturing never-before-filmed creatures and behaviors. The cherry on top is the series’ music—a hauntingly beautiful score by none other than Hans Zimmer and Radiohead’s reworked version of the King of Limbs track, Bloom.
Blue Planet II
Release Date
2017 – 2017-00-00
Network
BBC One
Directors
Alastair Fothergill
1
Monsters of God
The Tiger King team returns with a look into reptile smuggling
In the first 30 seconds of HBO’s anticipated new documentary series, Monsters of God—a twisting, slithering examination of the vicious underworld of illegal reptile trading—obsessed snake wrangler Al Killian narrowly avoids being fanged three times by his adorable pet king cobra. The stage is set, but if there’s one thing that director Eric Goode—well-known for his other animal underworld phenomenon, Tiger King—is good at, it’s drawing out the freaks and feuds.
The five-part HBO Original, which premiered on August 6 and has new episodes coming weekly, delves into the billion-dollar world of illegal reptile smuggling. But as with Goode’s focus on the deadly feud between Joe Exotic and Carole Baskin, Monsters of God highlights the fierce rivalry between reptile dealers Hank Molt and Tommy Crutchfield and the seedy iguana trafficking case that one used to bury the other, as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service closed in.
But the story doesn’t just end with them; it casts a wide net that involves smugglers, international crime syndicates, and even legitimate zoos. As to be expected, the series is full of colorful interviews with even more colorful characters, including Molt, Crutchfield, and scene-stealing former DEA agent Larry Loveless, with later episodes featuring Malaysian kingpin Anson Wong. New episodes drop Thursdays, ending with a finale on September 3.
Monsters of God
Release Date
2026 – 2026-00-00
Network
HBO
Directors
Eric Goode
Our coverage doesn’t end with docs
Beatles, dolphins, and iguanas, oh my. Documentaries sure are great at picking apart the stories and micro-niches that make life interesting—and you can find the best docs each week here—but if you’re after recommendations for all the latest shows and movies streaming has to offer, How-To Geek covers it all, all the time in our streaming section.
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