On Death Row

Between the wave of true-crime and celebrity docs, On Death Row in Australia on BINGE and Foxtel Now, and in the US on Amazon Prime Video and fuboTV is the one worth your evening. 2 seasons in, and the quality has not slipped. A 7/10 rating says what the writing already makes obvious: this one works. The storytelling serves the subject rather than the other way around. There is no real reason to keep putting it off — it is right there on BINGE.

On Death Row arrived without much fanfare and built its audience the hard way — through word of mouth. The access On Death Row gets is remarkable — and the storytelling does full justice to it. A two part series on an inside look at a maximum security prison in Texas featuring interviews with death row inmates. Werner Herzog gives the storytelling a level of trust that shows. The series ran for 2 seasons (2012–2013), building a story that gave its audience time to invest properly. What elevates On Death Row above most documentary work is a refusal to settle for the easy version of the story. It knows exactly what it is, and does not try to be anything else.

Documentary fans who value serious storytelling will find On Death Row essential viewing. It has built its own audience without needing a direct comparison. The complete run is available and best experienced without too much prior knowledge of where it goes. The access the production gets is remarkable, and the storytelling does full justice to it. Worth watching in order, from the beginning.

On Death Row wrapped up in 2013, created by and starring Werner Herzog — and 2 seasons are available to watch from start to finish. Find exactly where it's streaming below, and TV Butler Pro makes it effortless to track your progress as you go. Just search the name, and Butler finds it instantly, tells you which service has it, and remembers exactly where you left off.