The best Morgan Freeman’s documentary movies

Morgan Freeman

Morgan Freeman

01/06/1937 (86 años)
Morgan Porterfield Freeman, Jr. is an American actor, film director, and narrator. He is noted for his reserved demeanor and authoritative speaking voice. Freeman has received Academy Award nominations for his performances in Street Smart, Driving Miss Daisy, The Shawshank Redemption and Invictus and won in 2005 for Million Dollar Baby. He has also won a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award. Morgan Freeman was born in Memphis, Tennessee, the son of Mayme Edna (née Revere) and Morgan Porterfield Freeman, Sr., a barber who died in 1961 from liver cirrhosis. Freeman was sent as an infant to his paternal grandmother in Charleston, Mississippi. He has three older siblings. Freeman's family moved frequently during his childhood, living in Greenwood, Mississippi; Gary, Indiana; and finally Chicago, Illinois. Freeman made his acting debut at age 9, playing the lead role in a school play. He then attended Broad Street High School, currently Threadgill Elementary School, in Mississippi. At age 12, he won a statewide drama competition, and while still at Broad Street High School, he performed in a radio show based in Nashville, Tennessee. In 1955, he graduated from Broad Street High School, but turned down a partial drama scholarship from Jackson State University, opting instead to work as a mechanic in the United States Air Force. Freeman moved to Los Angeles in the early 1960s and worked as a transcript clerk at Los Angeles Community College. During this period, he also lived in New York City, working as a dancer at the 1964 World's Fair, and in San Francisco, where he was a member of the Opera Ring music group. Freeman acted in a touring company version of The Royal Hunt of the Sun, and also appeared as an extra in the 1965 film The Pawnbroker. He made his off-Broadway debut in 1967, opposite Viveca Lindfors in The Nigger Lovers (about the civil rights era "Freedom Riders"), before debuting on Broadway in 1968's all-black version of Hello, Dolly!, which also starred Pearl Bailey and Cab Calloway. Freeman was married to Jeanette Adair Bradshaw from October 22, 1967, until 1979. He married Myrna Colley-Lee on June 16, 1984. The couple separated in December 2007. Freeman's attorney and business partner, Bill Luckett, announced in August 2008 that Freeman and his wife are in the process of divorce. He has two sons from previous relationships. He adopted his first wife's daughter and the couple also had a fourth child. Freeman lives in Charleston, Mississippi, and New York City. He has a private pilot's license, which he earned at age 65, and co-owns and operates Madidi, a fine dining restaurant, and Ground Zero, a blues club, both located in Clarksdale, Mississippi. He officially opened his second Ground Zero in Memphis, Tennessee on April 24, 2008. Freeman has publicly criticized the celebration of Black History Month and does not participate in any related events, saying, "I don't want a black history month. Black history is American history." He says the only way to end racism is to stop talking about it, and he notes that there is no "white history month". Freeman once said on an interview with 60 Minutes' Mike Wallace: "I am going to stop calling you a white man and I'm going to ask you to stop calling me a black man.
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Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy

Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy
8.6/10
  • Genre: Documentary
  • Release: 04/05/2010
  • Character: (archival footage)
For decades, Freddy Krueger has slashed his way through the dreams of countless youngsters, scaring up over half a billion dollars at the box office across eight terrifying, spectacular films.

March of the Penguins

March of the Penguins
7.5/10
Every year, thousands of Antarctica's emperor penguins make an astonishing journey to breed their young. They walk, marching day and night in single file 70 miles into the darkest, driest and coldest continent on Earth. Morgan Freeman narrates this amazing, true-life tale touched with humour and alive with thrills. Breathtaking photography captures the transcendent beauty and staggering drama of devoted parent penguins who, in the fierce polar winter, take turns guarding their egg and trekking to the ocean in search of food. Predators hunt them, storms lash them. But the safety of their adorable chicks makes it all worthwhile. So follow the leader ... to adventure!!

Ending the Knight

Ending the Knight
8.5/10
  • Genre: Documentary
  • Release: 04/12/2012
  • Character: Self
A comprehensive look into how Director Christopher Nolan and his production team made "The Dark Knight Rises" the epic conclusion to the Dark Knight legend. These cover stunts and action, production/vehicle design, various effects, photography and shooting IMAX, sets and locations, sound design and music, story/character areas, cast and performances, and some general thoughts about the series.

The Earth Day Special

The Earth Day Special
5.8/10
The Earth Day Special is a television special revolving around Earth Day that aired on ABC on April 22, 1990. Sponsored by Time Warner, the two hour special featured an all-star cast addressing concerns about global warming, deforestation, and other environmental ills.

March of the Penguins 2: The Next Step

March of the Penguins 2: The Next Step
6.6/10
  • Genre: Documentary
  • Release: 15/02/2017
  • Character: Narrator (english voice)
A young penguin, driven by his instinct, embarks on his first major trip to an unknown destination.

Cosmic Voyage

Cosmic Voyage
7.6/10
  • Genre: Documentary
  • Release: 09/08/1996
  • Character: Narrator (voice)
The Academy Award® nominee Cosmic Voyage combines live action with state-of-the-art computer-generated imagery to pinpoint where humans fit in our ever-expanding universe. Highlighting this journey is a "cosmic zoom" based on the powers of 10, extending from the Earth to the largest observable structures in the universe, and then back to the subnuclear realm.

The Fire Rises: The Creation and Impact of The Dark Knight Trilogy

The Fire Rises: The Creation and Impact of The Dark Knight Trilogy
8/10
  • Genre: Documentary
  • Release: 24/09/2013
  • Character: Himself (archive footage)
This feature-length documentary delves into the trilogy, opening with the inspiration and vision for the new Batman films and inching its way toward the Rises finale and the culmination of nearly a decade of creative blood, sweat and tears. Candid, thoughtful and extensive, and comprised of revealing behind-the-scenes footage, countless interviews, audition tapes (with Christian Bale and Cillian Murphy doning the cape and cowl), and a narrative grip and momentum all its own, it leaves no stone unturned.

Island of Lemurs: Madagascar

Island of Lemurs: Madagascar
7/10
  • Genre: Documentary
  • Release: 03/04/2014
  • Character: Narrator
The incredible true story of nature’s greatest explorers—lemurs. Through footage captured with IMAX 3D, audiences go on a spectacular journey to the remote and wondrous world of Madagascar. Join trailblazing scientist Patricia Wright on her lifelong mission to help these strange and adorable creatures survive in the modern world.

Magnificent Desolation: Walking on the Moon

Magnificent Desolation: Walking on the Moon
6.9/10
  • Genre: Documentary
  • Release: 01/01/2005
  • Character: Neil Armstrong
Twelve men who belong to one of the world's most exclusive fraternities -- people who've walked on the surface of the moon -- are paid homage in this documentary. Using newsreel footage, rare NASA photographs, and digitally animated re-creations, Magnificent Desolation: Walking on the Moon examines the Apollo missions between 1969 and 1972 which put astronauts on the moon.

Genius. A Night for Ray Charles

Genius. A Night for Ray Charles
6.4/10
A meld of legendary performers and contemporary artists of today who have been influenced by Ray's music perform in this concert extravaganza.

The Words That Built America

The Words That Built America
5.9/10
  • Genre: Documentary
  • Release: 04/07/2017
  • Character: Reader - Declaration of Independence
In recognition of the 4th of July, several celebrities and politicians of differing ideologies join to read the historic documents which laid the foundation for the United States of America.

Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go for It

Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go for It
7.7/10
  • Genre: Documentary
  • Release: 18/06/2021
  • Character: Self
Rita Moreno defied both her humble upbringing and relentless racism to become one of a select group who have won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony Award. Over a seventy year career, she has paved the way for Hispanic-American performers by refusing to be pigeonholed into one-dimensional stereotypes.

Clint Eastwood: Out of the Shadows

Clint Eastwood: Out of the Shadows
7.7/10
  • Genre: Documentary
  • Release: 27/09/2000
  • Character: Narrator (voice)
Hollywood careers are full of make-or-break moments. For Clint Eastwood, one such moment came when studio powers agreed to let him make his directing debut. That story and others comprise this portrait of the famed Hollywood icon. His career is explored via an array of film clips, interviews and more.

Laddie: The Man Behind the Movies

Laddie: The Man Behind the Movies
7.4/10
  • Genre: Documentary
  • Release: 12/11/2017
  • Character: Himself
Profile of the producer and former studio head of 20th Century Fox in the 1970s, Alan Ladd Jr.

B.B. King: The Life of Riley

B.B. King: The Life of Riley
7.4/10
Documentary charting the life of blues guitarist B.B. King, with contributions from fellow musicians.

The Best of The Tony Awards: The Plays

The Best of The Tony Awards: The Plays
  • Genre: Documentary
  • Release: 02/05/2006
  • Character: Jaques (segment "As You Like It")
The Great White Way comes into your living room via this disc of rare performances from some of Broadway's brightest luminaries. Culled from clips from the Tony Awards shows, this unique collection features acting powerhouses James Earl Jones, Annette Bening, Joan Allen, Joe Mantegna, Gary Sinise and Maggie Smith, among others, performing works by such playwrights as August Wilson, David Mamet, Wendy Wasserstein and more.

Boffo! Tinseltown's Bombs and Blockbusters

Boffo! Tinseltown's Bombs and Blockbusters
6.5/10
  • Genre: Documentary
  • Release: 13/06/2006
  • Character: Himself
Hollywoods biggest talents explore what is the recipe for blockbuster, flops, and how absolute happenstance and controlled luck can make movie magic.

Eastwood Directs: The Untold Story

Eastwood Directs: The Untold Story
6.8/10
  • Genre: Documentary
  • Release: 27/04/2013
  • Character: Himself
With a focus on Clint Eastwood's career as a director, this documentary features movie clips, behind-the-scenes footage, interviews with people with whom he has worked, as well as comments from Clint Eastwood himself.

Born to Be Wild

Born to Be Wild
7.5/10
  • Genre: Documentary
  • Release: 08/04/2011
  • Character: Narrator
Born to Be Wild observes various orphaned jungle animals and their day-to-day behavioural interactions with the individuals who rescue them and raise them to adulthood. The film unfurls in two separate geographic spheres. Half of it takes place in the rain forests of Borneo, where celebrated primatologist Dr. Birute Galdikas assists baby orangutans; the other half takes place on the arid savannahs of Kenya, where zoologist Dame Daphne Sheldrick works with baby elephant calves.

The C Word

The C Word
7.5/10
  • Genre: Documentary
  • Release: 28/07/2016
  • Character: (voice)
Cancer: Few words are more feared. But in her sharply researched, deftly humorous message of hope, survivor Meghan O’Hara (Oscar-nominated producer of “Bowling for Columbine, “Fahrenheit 9/11,” and “Sicko”) changes the way we think about this terrifying disease, showing that it’s time to stop being afraid of cancer and time to make cancer afraid of us. Following her diagnosis, O’Hara met neurologist Dr. David Servan-Schreiber, who was diagnosed with brain cancer while doing cancer research. Together they explore daily Western behaviors that are linked to 70% of cancer deaths: smoking, processed foods, stress, contaminants, and lack of exercise. Narrated and executive produced by Morgan Freeman, “The C Word” is an unflinching look at our complacency with cancer culture, the vibrant cast of characters who are changing the game, and the tools we already have to beat the dreaded scourge of our time. -TCFF database

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