Three Identical Strangers (2018), directed by Tim Wardle, is a gripping documentary that begins as a heartwarming human-interest story and evolves into a chilling exploration of identity, ethics, and manipulation. The film recounts the astonishing true tale of triplets—Robert Shafran, Edward Galland, and David Kellman—who were separated at birth and adopted by three different families, completely unaware of one another’s existence.
![Three Identical Strangers [Official Trailer]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BZGIxNjBjYWUtYzExYS00NGFhLTkwYmQtZTZkNTcxYTY5ZTQ1XkEyXkFqcGdeQXRzdGFzaWVr._V1_.jpg)
In 1980, at age 19, the triplets discover each other by chance. Their reunion sparks media frenzy, as the three men—uncannily alike in looks, mannerisms, and preferences—become instant celebrities. Their joyful bond and mirrored lives are celebrated as a miraculous twist of fate. However, as they dig deeper into their past, the story takes a darker turn.
The documentary uncovers that the boys were deliberately separated as part of a secret psychological study led by psychiatrist Peter Neubauer and the Louise Wise adoption agency. The study aimed to examine the effects of nature versus nurture, placing the brothers into families of differing socioeconomic backgrounds without informing the adoptive parents. Their lives were observed and documented for years under false pretenses.
Wardle constructs the film with emotional interviews, archival footage, and reenactments, skillfully shifting tone from feel-good reunion to psychological thriller. As the men grapple with the emotional toll of their separation and the troubling ethics of the experiment, the documentary raises profound questions about free will, consent, and the responsibilities of science.
The film doesn’t offer neat resolutions but leaves viewers with lingering unease about how institutions can treat people as subjects rather than individuals. The tragic aftermath—including mental health struggles and the suicide of one brother—underscores the real human cost behind the experiment.
Three Identical Strangers is both a powerful personal story and a haunting critique of scientific overreach and lost autonomy.
