Stunning doc ‘Three Identical Strangers’ proves some things are too wild to make up

Andy Moser, Features Editor

Listen up everybody who loves a shocking documentary about a story that’s just too wild to be true with sudden dark twists and turns and ultimately leaves you questioning your entire life afterwards! This one’s for you.

Three Identical Strangers, directed by Tim Wardle, documents the time three triplets randomly found each other in their adolescence after being separated at birth. Packed with enough surprises to surpass anyone’s expectations, Wardle grabs you and descends into a seemingly never-ending maze of mystery and long-buried truth.

He strikes a wondrous tone at the beginning with the perfect balance of humor, basking in the shock of the initial discovery before carefully molding it with darkness the story calls for after the layers are peeled back. Interviews with two of the triplets and their families shed light on the array of emotions that coincide with something so life-changing, and commentary from researchers insightfully touches on the complexity of the nature vs. nurture debate.

If there’s a weakness, it’s the occasional slip-up in the editing that makes itself known. It does a little too much to shape the viewer’s interpretation of the situation and one of its characters, as opposed to blending in seamlessly and allowing people to naturally explore their own judgments and feelings. But these moments are extremely rare, and they don’t take anything away from the roller coaster that is Three Identical Strangers.

This documentary is very much a mystery worthy of getting lost in, and leaves you on exactly the right note—one that opens your mind to extraordinary possibilities and makes you question what other discoveries the future may hold.

Sails: 4.5/5


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