Five Binge-Worthy True Crime Documentaries Streaming On Netflix

True crime fans who enjoy real-life murder stories will find a number of binge-worthy documentaries streaming on Netflix right now. Whether you are obsessed with real-life crime stories, or just need something to watch while you wait for Orange is the New Black Season 3 to start streaming on June 12, here’s a round-up of five true crime documentaries that will keep you entertained.

Into The Abyss takes a look at the prison system, and features interviews with convicted murderers, families of the victims, and members of the Texas criminal justice system. According to Rotten Tomatoes, the 2011 documentary “probes the human psyche” to find out why people kill. Filmmaker Werner Herzog describes the film as “a gaze into the abyss of the human soul.”

Aileen: Life and Death of a Serial Killer is the story of Aileen Wuornos, said to be America’s first female serial killer. This is the follow-up to director Nick Broomfield‘s earlier film, Aileen Wuornos: The Selling of a Serial Killer. According to Biography.com, Aileen earned a living as a sex worker, and was executed in 2002 for killing six men. The film includes interviews with Wuornos and footage from her trial.

“It casts light on the way the stories of salacious criminals are sold to the press, the way both the public and court system digest a female murderer, and the chilling lack of remorse that defines serial killers, gender stereotypes aside.”

The Thin Blue Line Through is a documentary by filmmaker Errol Morros, who started working on the film after reading court transcripts from the trial of convicted murderer Randall Dale Adams. The film features interviews and reenactments that make a case for the innocence of Adams, who Morros felt was wrongly convicted of murder of policeman Robert Wood. The murder case was reopened, and Adams was released from prison in 1988.

Tabloid is a 2010 film about Joyce McKinney, who was accused of kidnapping and raping an American Mormon missionary in England. According to Cheat Sheet, McKinney’s “Mormon sex in chains” case was a well-known British tabloid story in the ’70s.

“McKinney became a celebrity of sorts before jumping bail and fleeing the country. Featuring interviews with McKinney and other journalists involved with her story, the film intriguingly points out the sensationalism of crimes via the media and the public eye.”

The Central Park Five is a narrative about five boys who were wrongfully convicted in the 1989 rape of Trisha Meili, a jogger in Central Park. The Huffington Post states that the film shows the impact that the media can have on public perception, and exposes “flaws in the criminal justice system.”

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