This article reviews how the hippie movement was presented in the American documentary cinema of the late 1960s. An analysis of the subculture's image is made by comparing three of the most representative movies of this subject area, i.e. Monterey Pop (1968, directed by Donn Alan Pennebaker), Woodstock (1970, directed by Michael Wadleigh) and Gimme Shelter (1970, directed by Albert and David Maysles). The author of this article carries out a contextual analysis as well as comparative research in order to define and characterize typical methods of portraying flower children in documentary cinema at those times. Besides the meaning of the films mentioned above, the text also treats the evolution of the hippie movement itself and its influence on the analysed motion pictures' message.