Movies Like Xu Bing: Phoenix
If you liked Xu Bing: Phoenix (2013), a documentary movie directed by Daniel Traub, here are 20 movies with a similar feel, based on TMDB's recommendations. Each one links to its cast, trailer and where it's streaming.
- 1
McQueen (2018)
★ 7.4/10Also documentaryAlexander McQueen's rags-to-riches story is a modern-day fairy tale, laced with the gothic. Mirroring the savage beauty, boldness and vivacity of his design, this documentary is an intimate revelation of McQueen's own…
- 2
180° South (2010)
★ 7.2/10Also documentaryThe film follows adventurer Jeff Johnson as he retraces the epic 1968 journey of his heroes Yvon Chouinard and Doug Tompkins to Patagonia.
- 3
Directed by John Ford (1971)
★ 7/10Also documentaryA documentary about the life and films of director John Ford.
- 4
Come See Me in the Good Light (2025)
★ 7.1/10Also documentaryIn an intimate and joyful story of love in the face of loss, celebrated poets Andrea Gibson and Megan Falley find strength—and unexpected hilarity—in what might be their final year together.
- 5
Anna Nicole Smith: You Don't Know Me (2023)
★ 6.1/10Also documentaryFrom the heights of her modeling fame to her tragic death, this documentary reveals Anna Nicole Smith through the eyes of the people closest to her.
- 6
Maternal Instinct (2026)
★ 7.2/10Also documentaryPolice pull over a woman who claims she just gave birth. But the baby — and the blood — aren't hers. Twisted lies unravel in this true-crime documentary.
- 7
Naqoyqatsi (2002)
★ 6.2/10Also documentaryA visual montage portrait of our contemporary world dominated by globalized technology and violence.
- 8
Elstree 1976 (2015)
★ 6.2/10Also documentaryA documentary about ten very different lives connected by having appeared onscreen wearing masks or helmets in Star Wars.
- 9
A Toxic Love Story (2026)
★ 6.4/10Also documentaryA string of threatening emails escalates into a revenge plot involving a newly married US marshal and his ex-girlfriend.
- 10
As I Was Moving Ahead Occasionally I Saw Brief Glimpses of Beauty (2000)
★ 7.8/10Also documentaryA compilation of over 30 years of private home movie footage shot by Lithuanian-American avant-garde director Jonas Mekas, assembled by Mekas "purely by chance", without concern for chronological order.
- 11
Beyond Infinity: Buzz and the Journey to Lightyear (2022)
★ 7/10Also documentaryExplore the evolution of Buzz Lightyear from toy to human in the making of Pixar’s Lightyear. Dive into the origin and cultural impact of everyone’s favorite Space Ranger, the art of designing a new “human Buzz,” and…
- 12
We Live in Public (2009)
★ 6.8/10Also documentaryIn 1999, Internet entrepreneur Josh Harris recruits dozens of young men and women who agree to live in underground apartments for weeks at a time while their every movement is broadcast online. Soon, Harris and his…
- 13
My Mom Jayne (2025)
★ 7.9/10Also documentaryThrough deeply personal interviews with her siblings and an examination of the photographs, letters, and belongings left behind, Mariska assembles a new portrait of her mother Jayne Mansfield, an extraordinary and…
- 14
Burma VJ: Reporting from a Closed Country (2008)
★ 7.3/10Also documentaryGoing beyond the occasional news clip from Burma, the acclaimed filmmaker, Anders Østergaard, brings us close to the video journalists who deliver the footage. Though risking torture and life in jail, courageous young…
- 15
Capital in the Twenty-First Century (2019)
★ 6.5/10Also documentaryFilm adaptation of French economist Thomas Piketty's ground-breaking global bestseller of the same name: an eye-opening journey through wealth and power.
- 16
To Kill a Tiger (2023)
★ 7.6/10Also documentaryRanjit, a farmer in India, takes on the fight of his life when he demands justice for his 13-year-old daughter, the victim of a brutal gang rape. His decision to support his daughter is virtually unheard of, and his…
- 17
Above Majestic (2018)
★ 7.4/10Also documentaryA look at the origins, history and conspiracies behind the "Majestic 12", a clandestine group of military and corporate figureheads charged with reverse-engineering extraterrestrial technology.
- 18
I Am Heath Ledger (2017)
★ 7.4/10Also documentaryThe life and career of an actor, artist, and icon. His own journey through his own camera.
- 19
Avatar: The Deep Dive - A Special Edition of 20/20 (2022)
★ 7.2/10Also documentaryAn inside look at one of the most anticipated movie sequels ever with James Cameron and cast.
- 20
Voyeur (2017)
★ 5.9/10Also documentaryLegendary journalist Gay Talese unmasks a motel owner who spied on his guests for decades. But his bombshell story soon becomes a scandal of its own.