Documentaries are my favorite film genre and they seem to be everywhere these days, much to my delight. With streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Hulu, there are more documentaries on demand than we could possibly watch. Here are a few worth checking out:

Athlete A tells the story of Maggie Nichols, an American gymnast who was left off the Olympic team after she complained about abuse by team doctor Larry Nassar to USA Gymnastics, who determined who went to the Olympics. Nassar is the man who abused young gymnasts for years under the guise of “treatment.” Thanks to the story being reported by investigative reporters at The Indianapolis Star, many more gymnasts, past and present, came forward to give their testimonies and Nassar was brought to trial and will be in jail for the rest of his sorry life. The story, while harrowing, is a testament to the power of the press and the reporters who kept unearthing and publishing secrets that were meant to be hidden by those in power. It also honors the many brave women and girls who refused to be victims and became survivors of the physical and emotional abuse they suffered in their quest to be elite gymnasts. Athlete A is currently playing on Netflix.

Sour Grapes is a 2016 Netflix documentary that is an especially fascinating look into the world of high-end oenophiles (wine connoisseurs). Indonesian oenophile Rudy Kurniawan perpetrated a multi-million-dollar fraud by rebottling and relabeling wine in his California home and having it auctioned off to the world's richest wine collectors, Bill Koch (who got stuck with 400 bottles of fakes) among them. Among the most interesting bits in the movie are the oenophiles who insist that the wine Kurniawan served to them was just as exceptional as he claimed. In fact, he would mix different wines together to try to replicate the flavors of the wines he claimed they were and because he was such a successful con man, his clients believed him. The FBI investigated and Kurniawan was tried and given a ten-year sentence. He gets out this November and will be deported back to Indonesia.

Finally, Netflix just came out with The Speed Cubers, a documentary that is truly heartwarming. At just 40 minutes long, it won't claim much of your time, but it will melt your heart. It centers on the world of those gifted young people who can solve Rubik's Cube in under seven seconds. Yes, they exist and they even have world championships. Who knew? Specifically, this film focuses on the lovely friendship that develops between world-class cubers Feliks Zemdegs and Max Park. Feliks is an Australian who began watching all his world records being bested by Max, an American. Max, who has autism, idolizes Feliks and Feliks becomes a real friend to Max after they meet at competitions. There are amazing scenes of the lightning-fast “solves” with play-by-play commentary, if you can believe one can comment on an event that lasts less than 10 seconds. The loveliest scenes are those between Feliks and Max who, despite being rivals, are true friends.