5 new Netflix documentary movies coming in September – and one lands on Thursday

Now that it's officially autumn, we can all dedicate just as much time to being in front of the telly as we have all summer – just with a little less guilt. Netflix is, of course, there to keep us all entertained as the darker evenings draw closer this September – especially non-fiction fans, who are being treated to a double-digit assortment of docos in the coming weeks. From a documentary about the Apollo 13 rescue mission to the portrayal of one of our time's greatest footballers, there is something for everybody.

Below are the handful going on My (watch) List, one of which hits the service this Thursday...

Apollo 13: Survival (5th September)

You bit your nails through the Tom Hanks, Kevin Bacon and Bill Paxton-starring movie, now endure the real-life footage around the iconic, ill-fated lunar landing mission, which saw three astronauts float the fine line between life and death for four days as NASA’s Ground Control tried everything within its power to bring them and the faulty spacecraft home safely. This new documentary unboxes the archives and features complete audio recordings, interviews with the family and never-before-seen material for what promises to be an edge-of-your-seat retelling.

Ángel Di María: Breaking Down the Wall (12th September)

FIFA World Cup, UEFA Champions League, Copa America, La Liga, Football of the Year – the former Real Madrid star has won it all, and now, a month after hanging up his Argentina national team jersey, the 36-year-old Benfica winger has landed a three-part Netflix documentary about his prestigious career and personal life, “from his humble origins to becoming champion of the world”. Neymar, Mourinho, Scaloni, Messi and more of his Argentinian teammates all feature.

Into the Fire: The Lost Daughter (12th September)

True crime fans, this one's for you. This two-parter, directed by Ryan White and produced by Charlize Theron, documents a mother's determined, decade-long search for the missing daughter she put up for adoption 35 years earlier. "I just went Jerry Springer, baby," says the mother Cathy Terkanian in the trailer for the investigative documentary, which chronicles her tenacious quest with law enforcement and an amateur sleuth to find answers and get to the bottom of the unexplained disappearance. Theron reportedly came up with the idea after reading about the true story online, and based on the premise it is bound to go places you won't forsee.

The U & The U: Part Two (16th September)

One of the first and best-rated episodes of ESPN’s long-running 30 For 30 sports documentary series follows the University of Miami's college football team’s transformation in the 1980s as its coach controversially scoured the state to recruit predominantly black players and revitalise their game and attitude. The ‘Part 2’ sequel, which was released five years later and sticks with the Miami Hurricanes, also hits Netflix on the same day, which if you ask us makes for solid, three-hour, back-to-back midweek viewing.

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