Three Identical Strangers

Three Identical Strangers tells the undeniably fascinating story of three man who discovered, in their late teens, that they were actually born triplets, with the movie detailing the siblings’ instant celebrity afterwards and the surprising (and much darker) direction their tale eventually takes. Filmmaker Tim Wardle does an exceptional job of immediately drawing the viewer into the proceedings, as Three Identical Strangers boasts an irresistibly fast-paced and engaging opening stretch that’s heightened by the brothers’ enthusiasm and palpable charm – with the fun-loving atmosphere persisting right up until Wardle begins dropping one unexpected bombshell after another. There is, in particular, a seriously surprising twist around halfway through that changes the picture’s entire tone, and though Wardle handles the shift from lighthearted to grim and sinister quite well, Three Identical Strangers‘ second half is, as a result, somehow not quite as compelling and engaging as all that has preceded it (and this probably has something to do, ultimately, with the decision to take the emphasis off the brothers themselves). The heavy emphasis, in the movie’s third act, on a rather tedious investigation ensures that Three Identical Strangers concludes on a fairly underwhelming note, with the end result a typically erratic documentary that probably would’ve worked better as a segment on 60 Minutes.

**1/2 out of ****