The streaming age has led to an abundance of documentaries that can be watched at home, which is both fortunate and unfortunate for the genre. Documentaries are more popular and well-funded than ever, but they are also more commercialized and homogenized, often stretched into multi-part series when a single feature film would be the best way to tell a particular story.

The best Prime Video documentaries avoid these problems with a clear vision from a talented filmmaker and an inherently compelling subject matter. Prime Video is awash with hastily produced, low-quality documentaries, and it can be difficult to determine which ones are worth watching, but these five documentaries represent the best that the genre has to offer, telling true stories with care, passion, and artistry.

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Renowned German filmmaker Werner Herzog has found new mainstream success with his documentary on the death of environmentalist Timothy Treadwell. Herzog's gritty existentialist perspective provides an appropriate framing in telling the story of Treadwell, a misguided activist who believed he could befriend and protect grizzly bears in Alaska's Katmai National Park. Herzog's observations about the inherent cruelty of nature contrast with Treadwell's casual behavior around dangerous animals.

Herzog accesses a vast amount of footage taken by Treadwell himself, showcasing his lack of fear of bears. That brazen and tragic disregard for safety ultimately led to the death of Treadwell and his girlfriend in a bear attack. Herzog offers his condolences to Treadwell's loved ones while examining the arrogance of man and the terrifying mysteries of the natural world in this film.

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It is hard to believe that acrobat Philippe Petit actually pulled off the 1974 feat depicted in James Marsh's Academy Award-winning film, even with on-screen documentation. Marsh approaches the film as a thriller, using the outlandishness of Petit's feat to his advantage. In interviews, Marsh compares "Man on Wire" to a heist movie, building suspense as Petit secretly plans and assembles a team to pull off the daring stunt of walking a tightrope between the twin towers of the World Trade Center.

Petit is a charismatic figure, and his interviews alone would make for a fascinating film, but Marsh creates a layered portrait of the single-minded Petit and his friends. The film explains the logistics of Petit's project and then marvels at its wonders.

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Before making the Academy Award-winning climbing documentary Free Solo, Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi directed another film about a daring mountain expedition. The title "Meru" refers to the Meru Peak in the Himalayas, specifically the treacherous, razor-thin route known as the "Shark Fin" that Chin and two climbing companions were determined to summit.

Having one of the climbers as the film's co-director provides a practical perspective and demonstrates that Chin and Vasarhelyi have a unique understanding of the sometimes self-destructive mindset of climbers who practice this type of extreme sport. The film is breathtaking in its visual beauty, as well as in the tense moments of near disaster as the three subjects take on seemingly impossible tasks.

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Iris, the last film completed by legendary documentary filmmaker Albert Maysles before his death, is about another legendary fashion icon, Iris Apfel. Although Maysles was in his 80s and Apfel in her 90s when this film was made, it is a testament to two artists who were still very much alive at any age. Dedicating her life to a career in fashion and design, Apfel has maintained her unique and bold sense of style and has served as an inspiration to younger models and designers for decades.

Like Iris herself, this film is an inspiration to all who worry about aging; just spend 90 minutes with Iris and immerse yourself in her vivacious wisdom, self-assurance, and bold looks.

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Before the flood of true crime documentaries desensitizes audiences to the devastating real-life crime stories, director Kurt Kuenne's harrowing portrait of the murder of his longtime friend Andrew Bagby is a gripping film. Dear Zachary is structured, as its title suggests, as a letter to Bugbee's posthumously born son, whose custody battle is the film's primary focus.

It is difficult enough to learn that Bugbee was murdered at the hands of his former lover, but that is only the beginning of the horrific events that unfold in Kuhn's film. Emotions become more intense as the full extent of what happened to Bugbee and Zachary is revealed.

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