Sight & Sound is a British monthly film magazine published by the British Film Institute (BFI). In 2014 it asked critics and filmmakers to vote for their greatest documentaries ever. 103 directors voted and below is the top 30. Critic’s list.
1. Man with a Movie Camera Dziga Vertov, USSR 1929
2. Sans soleil Chris Marker, France 1982
3. The Thin Blue Line Errol Morris, USA 1989
=4. Shoah Claude Lanzmann, France 1985
=4. Night and Fog Alain Resnais, France 1955
=6. Salesman Albert and David Maysles and Charlotte Zwerin, USA 1968
=6. Titicut Follies Frederick Wiseman, USA 1967
=8. Dont Look Back D.A. Pennebaker, USA 1967
=8. Man of Aran Robert Flaherty, UK 1934
=8. Nanook of the North Robert Flaherty, USA 1922
=11. Belovy Viktor Kossakovsky, Russia 1994
=11. Chronicle of a Summer Jean Rouch & Edgar Morin, France 1961
=11. Grey Gardens Albert and David Maysles, Ellen Hovde and Muffie Meyer, USA 1975
=14. Burden of Dreams Les Blank, USA 1982
=14. Darwin’s Nightmare Hubert Sauper, Austria/Germany/Belgium/France/Netherlands 2004
=14. Hoop Dreams Steve James, USA 1994
=14. Le Sang des bêtes Georges Franju, France 1948
=14. Seasons Artavazd Pelechian, USSR/Armenia 1975
=19. The Battle of Chile Patricio Guzméan, Chile/Cuba 1975-78
=19. The Gleaners and I Agnès Varda, France 2000
=19. Grizzly Man Werner Herzog, USA 2005
=19. Koyaanisqatsi Godfrey Reggio, USA 1983
=19. Roger & Me Michael Moore, USA 1989
=19. Sherman’s March Ross McElwee, USA 1985
=19. Triumph of the Will Leni Riefenstahl, Germany 1935
=19. Welfare Frederick Wiseman, USA 1975
=19. When We Were Kings Leon Gast, USA 1996
=28. The Act of Killing Joshua Oppenheimer, Christine Cynn and anonymous, Denmark/Finland/UK/Germany/Netherlands/Norway/Poland/Sweden 2012
=28. Gimme Shelter Albert and David Maysles and Charlotte Zwerin, USA 1970
=28. Harlan County U.S.A. Barbara Kopple, USA 1976
=28. Land without Bread Luis Buñuel, Spain 1933
=28. Leviathan Lucien Castaing-Taylor and Véréna Paravel, France/UK/USA 2012
=28. Little Dieter Needs to Fly Werner Herzog, UK/Germany 1997
=28. The Sorrow and the Pity Marcel Ophüls, Switzerland 1969
=28. West of the Tracks Wang Bing, China 2002