While the whole world knows how the gruelling Thai cave drama ended, it doesn’t make a new documentary about the rescue of 12 boys and their soccer coach any less watchable, says “Streaming” columnist NICK OVERALL

NEWS reports don’t do justice to the incredible true story of the Tham Luang Cave Rescue.

It was the tale that captivated the world when 12 boys and their soccer coach became trapped two kilometres deep inside a cave in the heart of Thailand, locked inside the dark cavern by flooding monsoon rains.

While most may know the ultimate outcome of the gruelling rescue efforts that took weeks to carry out, that doesn’t make a watch of Disney Plus’ new documentary “The Rescue” any less warranted.

The film dives deep into the event that brought together more than 10,000 people and dozens of countries through a thrilling mix of real footage and dramatic re-creations.

So seamlessly is this done that it’s enough to make one feel claustrophobic just watching the rescue unfold and a clever use of animation gives the audience a vivid idea of the cave network and just how dangerous an endeavour it was.

While Thai Navy Seals played a big part in the rescue, it was actually a scruffy group of cave-diving hobbyists who spearheaded the operation.

The unlikely heroes take centre stage in the documentary. As one recalls: “I was last to be picked for the cricket team but first to be picked for the cave rescue”.

It’s just one of many peculiar pieces of the story that makes it a surprisingly emotional experience and one at many points hard to believe actually happened. Somehow, there’s even a love story wrapped up in there.

SPEAKING of stranger than fiction, Netflix’s latest hit “Inventing Anna” also draws inspiration from a compelling, real-life story.

The limited series follows a journalist and her investigation into Anna Sorokin, a con-artist who pretended to be a wealthy heiress and who stole hundreds of thousands of dollars from New York’s elite while in her twenties.

Julia Garner plays the fascinating fraudster off the back of her powerhouse performance in the fourth season of Netflix’s crime-hit “Ozark”.

Like in “Ozark”, she’s able to bring a charisma and humanity to her criminal character, which keeps the audience firmly emotionally invested.

After a cracking first episode, the show can become hit and miss, but Garner’s performance makes this series just a little too hard to look away from.

AMAZON Prime Video also has a stunning real-life story doing the rounds at the moment. Now streaming on the platform is “Spencer”, the critically acclaimed film about Princess Diana’s existential crisis as she wished to leave the royal family.

Kristen Stewart, whose acting has often been flamed thanks to the sparkly vampire saga “Twilight”, proves her true talent here to stunning effect. 

The portrayal has seen her showered in award nominations, including for an Oscar, and even gives Elizabeth Debicki, who brilliantly plays the princess in Netflix’s “The Crown”, a run for her money.

NETFLIX viewers may have also eyed “The Tinder Swindler” on the platform, a documentary film about a scam-artist who allegedly used the popular dating app to steal millions of dollars off unsuspecting victims. 

In the doco, multiple women who fell victim to the crimes have teamed up to hunt down the man who would “borrow” their money to protect him from his “enemies”.

It seems to have struck quite the chord, hitting the top 10 most watched programs in more than 92 countries following its release and instilling within people a new terror of the dating app, having been described as the “Jaws of internet dating documentaries”.

Never fear though. Like Roy Scheider sailing in with a scuba tank and a rifle, Tinder blew up this shark by banning him from their app only after the film was released for the world to see. How diligent of them.