20 Documentary Movies You Must See Before You Die

11. Grey Gardens (1975)

Grey Gardens is just about the strangest documentary ever made - or, at least, its eccentric and extraordinary subjects are two of the strangest people ever.

Directed by David and Albert Maysles, the film chronicles the lives of two women named Edith Beale (nicknamed "Big Edie" and "Little Edie), a mother and a daughter who live out an incredibly weird existence in a dilapidated mansion based in New Hampton.

How they got this way provides one of the film's big questions (though the documentary never answers this in a particularly conclusive way). Once incredibly wealthy (they are related to Jackie Kennedy), both Beales are shown to be living in relative squalor with very little money at their disposal; there are cats and cat faeces everywhere and raccoons frequently invade the house. As for their own personal relationship? Sweet, but odd.

There are so many amazing moments in Grey Gardens; offhand comments and small interactions that only serve to make the film's subjects more fascinating. It's the sort of documentary that prompts you to ask: "What the hell is happening here?" In the case of Grey Gardens, it's that reaction that makes the film so unforgettable.