Common Sense Media Review
By Joyce Slaton
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Drugs, cursing, mock violence on hilarious spoof series.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 14+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Documentary Now!
What's the Story?
Fans of documentary filmmaking, prepare to be roasted: DOCUMENTARY NOW! is a series starring Saturday Night Live alums Fred Armisen, Bill Hader, and Seth Meyers. Each episode takes on a new documentary, from the tense investigative journalism of political news series Vice to a Grey Gardens takeoff with Hader sporting a pair of sweatpants on his head a la Little Edie Bouvier. Each show is shot in the style of the documentary it's mocking, with Hader, Meyers, and Armisen playing the main characters.
Is It Any Good?
This is a clever crack-up for adults and documentary fans, but it will leave anyone who hasn't seen a ton of docs largely wondering what the joke is, since the humor is pretty deadpan and dry. Anyone who's watched the amped, hipsteresque reportage of Vice is definitely going to chuckle watching Jack Black as the founder of "Dronez" magazine narrating the action from Brooklyn over coffee and Kobe beef while his reporters poke around Mexico looking for a drug kingpin (eventually they find him by just going up to the biggest house and knocking); meanwhile, a voice-over informs us that Juarez, Mexico, is rife with "kidnap. Murder. A broken system. Mexicans." Later, reporters go to the house of a Mexican man; they warn viewers, "The poverty you're about to see may be disturbing to your first-world sensibilities" just before showing us a first-generation PlayStation.
It's all very silly and quite hilarious too, but it's especially so if you've seen what's being parodied. Younger viewers and teens may not get the jokes; parents may want to take the opportunity to show their kids the documentaries being mocked (most of which are very good) before they dive into the parodies.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about why this series is on IFC instead of a different channel. Are documentaries usually independent films? Do independent film fans watch more documentaries or appreciate them more?
How can you tell that this series is a parody? Would you know without being told? How?
Are the jokes funnier if you've seen the documentaries being mocked? Is that always the case when watching parodies?
TV Details
- Premiere date : August 20, 2015
- Cast : Bill Hader , Fred Armisen , Helen Mirren
- Network : IFC
- Genre : Comedy
- TV rating :
- Last updated : December 8, 2025
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