By: Alison Miller
Just like so many other Netflix users, I am prone to getting overwhelmed just when looking at the options. Netflix has thousands upon thousands of options and even when narrowing it down to documentaries or even the subgenre of environmental documentaries, you are still left with way too many options to pick from. Environmental documentaries have a variety of subjects, with some talking about the food and meat industry and others talking about polar ice caps. While all provide a variety of information, many rely on an audience of advanced knowledge of the environment or are just flat-out boring. While it is statistically impossible to watch every single documentary that Netflix has to offer, I’ve done my best to try and watch a good number of documentaries to help you pick the best of the bunch. Both these films run for under two hours and discuss widely different subjects all under the environment and nature subgenre. I hope you can find at least one entertaining and that you can learn something from each one.
Youth V Gov:
What it is about: Youth V Gov follows the case of Juliana v. The United States, a court case that made national headlines. The case occurred when 21 young people, ages 11-22 sued the United States Government because their constitutional rights of life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness were violated by the U.S. Government. The documentary follows the young plaintiffs as well as the lawyers on the years-long journey of their case making its way up to the Supreme Court. While the ending might not be the one you want, it leaves viewers feeling inspired and aware that they, too, can make a change in the environment.
Why I recommend it: To its core, this documentary is about inspiring young people to make a change in the environment. With the government and fossil fuel companies specifically, it can sometimes feel that we have no voice and cannot fix anything. This documentary inspires young people to make a change and ensures them that they are actively doing so. We are the generation that has to live out the consequences of older generations’ poor environmental choices and it is possible for us to change our futures for the better. It also touches on the United States’ history with fossil fuel and the environment in a general, audience-friendly way, with difficult jargon explained fairly simply, while still diving into some information that the general audience might not know about.
Overall rating: 4.6 stars, 109 minutes
Breaking Boundaries: The Science of Our Planet:
What it is About: Breaking Boundaries: The Science of Our Planet discusses how our planet has changed drastically in the past one hundred years following the industrial revolution and how it is suffering. It explains how we have moved past the Holocene part of our planet and are now approaching a level where life might become unlivable. It goes on to explain how different aspects of the environment are being impacted, from ice caps, the Amazon rainforest, and even bees.
Why I recommend it: While I will say that this documentary is definitely more scientific, it still held my attention, especially as someone who can get quickly bored with fancy science words I’ll never understand. It might have helped that the narrator was British and kept the dialogue entertaining. I also really enjoyed the different animations and videos shown throughout the documentary. I particularly enjoyed the segments in Greenland because while the shots were disheartening to look at, they were still beautifully filmed. Overall, I think it is a very educational documentary and definitely made me want to solve all the problems that I could not solve... because again, science and I are not friends. If you are interested in the scientific information behind global warming and how different aspects of the environment are being impacted by global warming, this documentary is for you.
Overall Rating: 3.8 stars, 73 minutes
Works Cited:
Breaking Boundaries: The Science of Our Planet. Directed by Jonathan Clay, Silverback Films, 4 June 2021. Netflix, 18 January 2023.
Youth V Gov. Directed by Christi Cooper, Barrelmaker Productions, 2020. Netflix,
uploaded by American Film Institute, 13 January 2023.