Cheap, green, and easy: Watch funny eco-documentaries online -- free!

So you didn't see that well-reviewed green film in the theaters because you didn't want to fork over $12 for a ticket -- and didn't rent it either because you decided to spend the $4 on snacks and watch TV instead. Well, thanks to Hulu still being free and Netflix's "Play on computer" options, you can watch the great green documentaries you missed RIGHT NOW -- without spending a cent (assuming you're a Netflix member)!

I know, I know -- A lot of eco-docus can be depressing. That's why I've picked out the 3 funniest, most entertaining ones for you! These are films that'll make you laugh while learning -- and maybe even get you motivated to take some eco-action after watching the movie too. So block out an evening this week for a funny green triple-header:

The Yes Men on Hulu. Watch the original film by The Yes Men, socially-progressive pranksters that impersonate high level business executives and government officials -- and usually get away with it! -- to make serious yet hilarious points. Click through for everything from business suits with inflatable phalluses to a scheme for feeding poop to the hungry!

No, this isn't the Yes Men film you've been hearing a lot about lately. That's The Yes Men Fix the World and is still in theaters -- which means you can't see it free on Hulu yet. But watching this free original will make you want to save your money to see this new film, which Emily Gertz reviews glowingly on Change.org:

At a "Catastrophic Loss" conference, the pair introduce the SurvivaBall, "an advanced new technology will keep corporate managers safe even when climate change makes life as we know it impossible." It's an orb-shaped inflatable suit that will allow those who can afford it it to survive the severe floods, searing heat, water shortages and other nuisances climate change is likely to cause.

Far from finding the idea outrageous, conventioneers eagerly hand over their business cards and chat about the SurvivaBall's profit-making potential.

King Corn on Netflix. This boys-meet-corn documentary begins cornily -- when two best friends "decide to move to Iowa to grow an acre of corn – after finding out (through laboratory hair analysis) that their bodies were made primarily out of….corn," as Sustainable Table describes it. From that funny beginning, King Corn goes on to show just how much corn Americans are eating -- and how that corniness is affecting our agriculture, our tax dollars, our health, and our environment.

The two friends perform a lot of funny antics -- including making and tasting their own corn syrup! Writes Kelli Best-Oliver in her review of King Corn at Green Options: "I was entertained and informed, and not just because I’m a born-and-raised Iowa Girl. The vast majority of Americans have no idea how their food is produced, and King Corn gives a general glimpse into what Old MacDonald’s farm has become."

Super Size Me on Hulu. An oldie but a goodie, Super Size Me follows Morgan Spurlock on his self-enforced McDonald's-food-only diet -- a diet that makes him pack on the pounds, develop a sugar addiction of sorts, and get pretty depressed to boot.

The film ties in nicely with King Corn -- which shows exactly why super sized fast food meals are so cheap and ubiquitous! Writes Marcy Dermansky in her review of the film at About.com:

"Super Size Me" is a terrific film that takes the seemingly not-so-sexy subjects of health, nutrition, and corporate greed and turns them into informative entertainment. Crisply edited, Spurlock's steady stream of meals at McDonalds are cut with interviews with his vegan chef girlfriend, his concerned nutritionists and doctors, fast food consumers, and corporate lobbyists.

Already watched all 3 films? Hulu and Netflix do have a few other free films you can watch instantly, but I must warn you that they're not going to be as funny. Still, all are informative!

The Future of Food is "an in-depth investigation into the disturbing truth behind engineered foods that have quietly filled U.S. grocery store shelves for the past decade." On Hulu.

A Crude Awakening: The Oil Crash examines "the world's dependency on oil and the impending chaos that's sure to follow when the resource is dry." On Netflix.

Blue Gold "posits that we're moving closer to a world in which water -- a seemingly plentiful natural resource -- could actually incite war." On Netflix.
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BlogHer Contributing Editor Siel also blogs at greenLAgirl.com.