One of the most riveting movies I've ever seen was Man on Wire, which won the 2008 Oscar for best documentary. It turns out that YouTube has the entire movie online (which I watched last night "in the background" as I went through all my charts). It's a marvelous piece, and it reminds me of what was said of Voltaire:
First, and above all else, he is marvelously alive. And mankind, who dreads boredom even more than anxiety, is eternally grateful to those who make life throb to a swifter, stronger beat.