This documentary was very well done. I wept through most of it, struck by how nearly impossible it was to tell one sister from the other when they were not speaking. I'm so glad that Anais' friends discovered Samantha on Youtube and brought them together. I'm glad their growing up families where both very supportive of their reuniting and most of all, extremely glad that they both agreed to go back to S. Korea, the land of their birth. I'm happy for them that they met their foster mothers who were warm and welcoming. But as a reunited mother of a child I lost to adoption (in the US) I can't but feel horribly sad not only for the twins but for their mother who, over the past 25 years still wasn't able to break free of the horrid restraints on mothers who lose there children to adoption in Korea, and agree to meet her two wonderful daughters. I have been to Korea and realize that their social mores are very similar to what ours in the US were in the middle of the last century in the U.S., but I can't but hope that their mother will someone gather the strength it takes, after losing two of her precious babies to adoption, to agree to meet them now. If there was anything I could say to her from one mother to another, it is that meeting your lost 'babies' will set your free from the horrible bondage of loss that parting with them has locked you in. And having them and their love in your life now, will help you through whatever nightmare S. Korean society still uses to hold you down, away from your lost 'babies'. All that said, I feel Holt Agency has committed huge crimes against the parent and perhaps unplanned children of Korea by making it possible to export more children from their home country than any other nation in the world. They owe it to each and ever adoptee and their natural parents to do everything in their power to make thing right, work to bridge the gap that adoption separation and loss has caused and help families reunite and achieve some form of healing and continuity in the lives they have left to live. I wish both Anias and Samantha all the best that life has to offer as they go forward from here, hopefully, that will include meeting their 1st mother and other family members to make their loss come full-circle and given then some sense of feeling complete again beyond what their reunion to date has done
12 Reviews
Twins-surprise
kosmasp25 September 2019
So even "famous" people can have secrets or rather a past they themselves haven't figured out yet ... in case this is news for you. And I don't mean to be disparaging with my famous comment. I just think that some people may not know one of the two women in question, even if she has been in Hollywood movies.
But this is not about stardom or celebrity status, this is about family. A missing piece in someones life. Even if they didn't know. And the adventures those two individuals take upon them. Always in company of others, but still in sync with each other. Funny, engaging and sentimental to a point ... and life affirming!
But this is not about stardom or celebrity status, this is about family. A missing piece in someones life. Even if they didn't know. And the adventures those two individuals take upon them. Always in company of others, but still in sync with each other. Funny, engaging and sentimental to a point ... and life affirming!
This is how people really are
petrelet10 August 2016
Warning: Spoilers
Okay, I am going to give away the whole movie in the next paragraph, so be warned!
You were warned, so here goes: one adopted twin discovers the other adopted twin on the internet, and nothing bad happens in the whole movie. Everybody in the whole movie is sweet and nice and really happy. The American family and the French family are both cool with everything and everyone is overjoyed to have acquired additional family members. Some of the scenes are composed entirely of Sam and Anais just laughing.
At one point I said to myself, "OMG, they're 45 minutes in and they've set this all up and now something awful is going to happen, either one of the sisters or some family member will have a terrible emotional reaction, or someone will get hurt." That's what would happen in a scripted drama. But since this is real life with Sam having had the vision to just record everything, what happened is what often happens in real life, which was that nothing bad happened. Instead they went to an adoptees' conference in Korea and everyone was nice there too, including the President of Korea who appears in a video and including the women who were the twins' pre-adoption foster mothers 25 years ago. Sam and Anais are disappointed that their birth mother didn't want to contact them, but they deal with it just fine.
Basically there is less dramatic conflict in this movie than in any scripted drama that has ever been made. But how could one complain about this? Sometimes we need to be reminded that basically most people are good and loving people most of the time if circumstances and resources permit. This movie is sort of like a promotional video for the possibilities of humanity. You could argue perhaps, with justice, that we should spend more of our time watching documentaries about war and destitution which will motivate us to deal with the pressing problems of the world, but I don't think it would be legitimate to declare that the Bordier-Futterman intercontinental family can't make a movie about their actual lives, or that nobody else should ever watch it, or that their experiences aren't deep and meaningful.
You were warned, so here goes: one adopted twin discovers the other adopted twin on the internet, and nothing bad happens in the whole movie. Everybody in the whole movie is sweet and nice and really happy. The American family and the French family are both cool with everything and everyone is overjoyed to have acquired additional family members. Some of the scenes are composed entirely of Sam and Anais just laughing.
At one point I said to myself, "OMG, they're 45 minutes in and they've set this all up and now something awful is going to happen, either one of the sisters or some family member will have a terrible emotional reaction, or someone will get hurt." That's what would happen in a scripted drama. But since this is real life with Sam having had the vision to just record everything, what happened is what often happens in real life, which was that nothing bad happened. Instead they went to an adoptees' conference in Korea and everyone was nice there too, including the President of Korea who appears in a video and including the women who were the twins' pre-adoption foster mothers 25 years ago. Sam and Anais are disappointed that their birth mother didn't want to contact them, but they deal with it just fine.
Basically there is less dramatic conflict in this movie than in any scripted drama that has ever been made. But how could one complain about this? Sometimes we need to be reminded that basically most people are good and loving people most of the time if circumstances and resources permit. This movie is sort of like a promotional video for the possibilities of humanity. You could argue perhaps, with justice, that we should spend more of our time watching documentaries about war and destitution which will motivate us to deal with the pressing problems of the world, but I don't think it would be legitimate to declare that the Bordier-Futterman intercontinental family can't make a movie about their actual lives, or that nobody else should ever watch it, or that their experiences aren't deep and meaningful.
Cannot praise it enough
Pogostemon3 October 2015
This documentary was possibly the most emotionally involving film I've seen in years. As the protagonist becomes immersed in the totally surreal experience of discovering and meeting her doppelgänger on another continent, the viewer can completely empathize with every twinge of emotion, euphoria, stupefaction, and deep, deep feeling. It also provides some good insights into the Korean international adoption phenomenon and the large number of adoptees hoping to meet their birth mothers. By turns hilarious and heartrending, it really gives you the whole roller-coaster experience. Bring a hanky and be prepared to fall in love.
The skill and immediacy of the story-telling are phenomenal--well-conceived and beautifully executed. The music and animation are effectively and judiciously used, and the editing was genius.
Of course it is an amazing story, so that helps. It left me wanting to stay involved in the story, caring so much about these endearing, creative, hilarious, true-hearted people. Brava! (pop)
The skill and immediacy of the story-telling are phenomenal--well-conceived and beautifully executed. The music and animation are effectively and judiciously used, and the editing was genius.
Of course it is an amazing story, so that helps. It left me wanting to stay involved in the story, caring so much about these endearing, creative, hilarious, true-hearted people. Brava! (pop)
Heart, soul and tears :-)
Ameliex20 March 2016
I just finished watching this movie, just now :-) WOW this movie indeed touched me. I cried a lot, i laughed, i got upset and i got curious all while watching this movie. You get all emotions when watching this documentary about this two lovely sisters who found each other. The story was interesting and we viewers got to follow these two sisters on their life journey. A very emotional movies, when i saw the girls crying, i cried too :-) I wish they would create a 2nd edition of this story, so we could follow them in their next chapter in life. Whatever genre of film/documentary you are interested in, this applies to everyone i feel. We all can relate someone when it comes to LOVE/Family :-) I recommend everyone to watch this documentary.
Heartwarming and precious
edkwong3178 December 2015
Warning: Spoilers
When I first heard about this movie, I had saw their initial kickstarter campaign and was about to donate but saw it had already been fulfilled and then some. As I anxiously awaited for the film to come out, the story did not disappoint at all. The music, the animations and the overall cinematography is extremely well-done. Their story is pretty amazing when you think about it. Anais's friend stumbled upon the initial youtube video which lead to him sharing it and all of their friends trying to reach Sam. If Sam had ignored any of it, she never would have met her sister. The only other possible way would be if either Anais or Sam got big in their professions and made it to the international level.
love this
lynchmichael25 August 2017
if i could give it 10000000000000 i would, i have seen this 4 times cried 4 times , 2 beautiful women met via a YouTube video, its the single best true story i have ever seen, if you watch this you will never ever forget it, it will change you for the better , just wh3en you think you got this life figured out this comes along and knocks you on your butt
The year 2013 was eventful for these twins who grew up strangers.
TxMike14 November 2015
Warning: Spoilers
Most of my interests have always been the science of the world we live in and one in particular is the phenomenon of identical twins. Children who are of the same DNA but who grew up as two separate people. No two people in the world are as similar as identical twins.
We also were given the gift of having identical twins in our extended family so this documentary was even more interesting to me.
In summary just let me say this is a totally absorbing film and watching it alternately brought warm feelings and tears to my eyes. The sisters are great, they appreciate the lives they have been given, their parents and friends appreciate them.
All this would not have been possible for them had it not been for the internet, especially Youtube and Facebook. In 2013, when the sisters were about 26, one friend noticed an image that looked just like his friend but knew it wasn't his friend. This got into motion messages, friend requests, online chats, Skype visits, and finally a remarkable face-to-face visit in London.
Originally put up for adoption in Korea, Anais Bordier, one of the twins, grew up in France while the other, Samantha (Sam) Futerman, grew up in New Jersey. Anais moved to London to pursue her fashion design interests while Sam moved to Los Angeles to pursue acting. In fact, with funding help through Kickstarter, Sam acted as writer, producer, and director for this documentary.
We also were given the gift of having identical twins in our extended family so this documentary was even more interesting to me.
In summary just let me say this is a totally absorbing film and watching it alternately brought warm feelings and tears to my eyes. The sisters are great, they appreciate the lives they have been given, their parents and friends appreciate them.
All this would not have been possible for them had it not been for the internet, especially Youtube and Facebook. In 2013, when the sisters were about 26, one friend noticed an image that looked just like his friend but knew it wasn't his friend. This got into motion messages, friend requests, online chats, Skype visits, and finally a remarkable face-to-face visit in London.
Originally put up for adoption in Korea, Anais Bordier, one of the twins, grew up in France while the other, Samantha (Sam) Futerman, grew up in New Jersey. Anais moved to London to pursue her fashion design interests while Sam moved to Los Angeles to pursue acting. In fact, with funding help through Kickstarter, Sam acted as writer, producer, and director for this documentary.
I have Two Questions
bradystan25 January 2016
This film just aired on the Fusion Channel. I loved it. First question: When this adventure first began, did it suddenly occur to Samantha this story potentially could be a great documentary, AND, if so, how did she quickly connect up with a film production company and producers to quickly capture everything. She did mention that she had graduated from college and later was wearing a Boston University t-shirt. BU is a great film school--did she make a connection there?
Second question: Did either girl speak Korean? When the first foster mother came into the room, I could of sworn that Samantha was translating to her sister. I could be wrong because the only technical criticism I have is the sound capturing was very poor. It was as if they only had a single mike overhead on a boom which picked up a lot of sound bouncing off walls and ceiling along with trying to capture different voice levels at the same time. It didn't work AND there is no CC to turn on to help.
Second question: Did either girl speak Korean? When the first foster mother came into the room, I could of sworn that Samantha was translating to her sister. I could be wrong because the only technical criticism I have is the sound capturing was very poor. It was as if they only had a single mike overhead on a boom which picked up a lot of sound bouncing off walls and ceiling along with trying to capture different voice levels at the same time. It didn't work AND there is no CC to turn on to help.
This felt more like a home movie than a documentary...and it was okay but overly long.
planktonrules24 February 2020
I realize that "Twinsters" has a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, so people apparently love this film. Oddly, however, I didn't. It's an okay film, but one I felt bored with after a while.
The story is about two girls, Samantha and Anaïs. One lives in the USA and the other in France and London. One day, one of them sees the other on social media and they were shocked...as they looked identical. Now considering they both turned out to be born on the same day and in the same city in South Korea, they both realized that they might have a twin they never knew existed. Soon the pair arrange to take a DNA test as well as see each other in London...where Anaïs is going to college.
The style of this film in so many ways seems less like a conventional documentary and more like a bunch of home videos strung together--maybe because it was so personal and seemed made more for the ladies than an audience. This, combined with how much the two ladies giggled throughout the film, made the film very interesting at first but after a while I felt a bit bored. I know this might sound like I am a grouch. But I just felt like it might have worked better for me as a tighter and shorter film...perhaps television show length instead of a full-length movie.
By the way, this film really could have used captions. Part of it is because of me....I don't hear all that well any more. But much of it is because of the accents. I can understand French pretty well if there are captions...but understanding all of what Anaïs and her family was saying (even when in English) was a tad difficult.
The story is about two girls, Samantha and Anaïs. One lives in the USA and the other in France and London. One day, one of them sees the other on social media and they were shocked...as they looked identical. Now considering they both turned out to be born on the same day and in the same city in South Korea, they both realized that they might have a twin they never knew existed. Soon the pair arrange to take a DNA test as well as see each other in London...where Anaïs is going to college.
The style of this film in so many ways seems less like a conventional documentary and more like a bunch of home videos strung together--maybe because it was so personal and seemed made more for the ladies than an audience. This, combined with how much the two ladies giggled throughout the film, made the film very interesting at first but after a while I felt a bit bored. I know this might sound like I am a grouch. But I just felt like it might have worked better for me as a tighter and shorter film...perhaps television show length instead of a full-length movie.
By the way, this film really could have used captions. Part of it is because of me....I don't hear all that well any more. But much of it is because of the accents. I can understand French pretty well if there are captions...but understanding all of what Anaïs and her family was saying (even when in English) was a tad difficult.
Very slow, very dull
joanna-andrews4 March 2019
This is the story of separated-at-birth twin sisters discovering and meeting each other. Stretched out over an entire feature length documentary. That's it. It could be done in fifteen minutes, but instead we are forced to sit through interminable footage of messages of them saying "pop" to each other, and lots and lots of giggling (although, full disclosure, I switched it off fifteen minutes before the end because I couldn't summon up the interest to continue; so it's possible there was some rewarding content in the final quarter of an hour. No regrets). It doesn't even have anything new or interesting to say about the nature of twinship in general, let alone in examining this particular set of twins. Do yourself a favour and watch the far more in depth, character-filled, and documentary-worthy Three Identical Strangers instead
Disappointing
jelepjokk7 March 2016
Warning: Spoilers
This movie was very disappointing. Almost no suspense and development at all, and everything is revealed at the start. We know all the time how it will go.
Have seen similar documentaries before, which has much of the same, but is better. The film repeats scenes already shown earlier in the film to the irksome. I had hoped that their biological mother had come into the film, but soon realized that it would never happen, since the film just swirl around and around in the same place. Lingering at ... nothing.
Guess its interesting enough as a private video for immediate family, but not for the general public.
Have seen similar documentaries before, which has much of the same, but is better. The film repeats scenes already shown earlier in the film to the irksome. I had hoped that their biological mother had come into the film, but soon realized that it would never happen, since the film just swirl around and around in the same place. Lingering at ... nothing.
Guess its interesting enough as a private video for immediate family, but not for the general public.
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