10 Movies & Shows Like Tabloid (2010)

Description: Through its innovative use of reenactments and investigative journalism, this film not only tells a crime story but actively participates in the justice system, ultimately helping overturn a wrongful conviction.

Fact: The film's evidence led to Randall Dale Adams' release from death row. Director Errol Morris invented the interrotron camera device specifically for this project.

Description: Through home videos and conflicting testimonies, this film examines how memory and perspective shape our understanding of truth, particularly within a family torn apart by scandal. It demonstrates how documentary can reveal uncomfortable complexities rather than simple answers.

Fact: The Friedman family's extensive home video archive provided unprecedented access to their private moments. The case inspired changes in how child abuse allegations are investigated in New York.

Description: This documentary unravels an astonishing case of identity theft through interviews and dramatic reenactments, highlighting how easily people can be deceived by compelling narratives and their own desires to believe.

Fact: The real Nicholas Barclay remains missing to this day. Frédéric Bourdin, the imposter, has assumed at least 500 false identities across Europe.

Description: This film meticulously reconstructs a tragic mystery while revealing how family members and investigators struggle with unanswered questions and conflicting evidence about a woman's final hours.

Fact: The crash killed eight people, including four children. Despite extensive investigation, Diane Schuler's exact state of mind remains unknown.

Description: This film explores the phenomenon of a woman who fabricated her entire identity as a 9/11 survivor, examining why people create false traumatic narratives and how communities respond to such deception.

Fact: Tania Head's story was so convincing she became president of the World Trade Center Survivors' Network. She had never worked in the towers or been in New York on 9/

Description: This documentary explores the blurred lines between reality and fiction, as former Indonesian death squad leaders reenact their crimes in various cinematic genres. It shares a fascination with the performative nature of truth and the unsettling ways people construct narratives about their own lives.

Fact: The film's subjects initially believed they were participating in a celebratory documentary about their past actions. Director Joshua Oppenheimer worked anonymously for years due to safety concerns in Indonesia.

Description: This examination of a notorious miscarriage of justice reveals how media narratives and public hysteria can override facts, with lasting consequences for the wrongfully accused.

Fact: The five men eventually received a $41 million settlement from New York City. Their convictions were vacated after the real attacker confessed and DNA evidence confirmed his story.

Description: What begins as a lighthearted investigation into competitive endurance tickling evolves into a disturbing examination of power, manipulation, and online harassment. The film mirrors the descent from curiosity into darker psychological territory.

Fact: The filmmakers faced legal threats and harassment during production. The mysterious subject at the center of the documentary was eventually revealed to be a wealthy media mogul.

Description: Through the shocking case of Dee Dee and Gypsy Rose Blanchard, this documentary examines the extremes of manipulation within family relationships and the blurred line between victim and perpetrator.

Fact: Gypsy Rose had most of her teeth removed and used a wheelchair unnecessarily due to her mother's fabricated illnesses. The case inspired multiple scripted adaptations.

Description: A personal investigation into a famous crime case challenges established narratives and reveals how collective memory can distort facts over time, even in high-profile incidents.

Fact: Kitty Genovese's brother spent years investigating the circumstances of her murder. The case led to psychological studies of the 'bystander effect,' though some details were later disputed.