The feature-length documentary was released in 2019(Image: Netflix)
A ‘beyond belief’ Netflix film comes with a strong warning from those who have already watched it.
Released back in 2019, the feature-length documentary Tell Me Who I Am has now occupied the streaming platform for years. It tells the story of Alex Lewis, who at the age of 18 was involved in a serious motorcycle crash in which he suffered major head trauma.
When he woke up in hospital, Alex found that his entire memory was missing. The only thing he could recall was the identity of his identical twin brother, Marcus.
In the years that followed, Alex relied on Marcus to repopulate his memories as his sole trusted confidante. Marcus told him about holidays they had been on, informed him he actually had a girlfriend, and even let him know whether or not their mother was a good person.
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Alex lost his entire memory in a motorcycle accident(Image: Netflix)
However, after years of learning who he was again, Alex discovered that Marcus had been hiding a huge secret and even fabricating stories about their childhood. As per Netflix’s synopsis: “Alex trusts his twin, Marcus, to tell him about his past after he loses his memory. But Marcus is hiding a dark family secret.”
Despite its stellar Rotten Tomatoes rating of 87 per cent from audiences and an even higher 97 per cent from critics, many have been quick to warn others of the ‘upsetting’ themes covered in the film.
One described the story as “twisted”, adding it is “one of the more shocking and simultaneously upsetting documentaries,” from the year. Another viewer penned: “Yet another example that truth is stranger – and often more riveting – than fiction, this is an absolutely fascinating documentary that is almost beyond belief.”
Alex relied on his twin brother to rebuild his lost memories(Image: Netflix)
A third remarked: “What I found disturbing about this one is that a seminal moment in their lives was turned into box office TV. I found that distasteful, disturbing and frankly quite perplexing. I found this an uneasy watch beyond the terrible topic matter. There was something off about the whole premise of this being a Netflix show.”
Meanwhile a fourth added: “Quite upsetting material but handled very well by the director who seemed to allow the story be told the way the twins wanted to tell it. It had a cathartic ending and felt like they had overcome a big obstacle blocking their relationship.”
For those gripped by the film who want to learn more Alex and Marcus’ story, the twins published a book which explores their remarkable story in much more detail. Published in 2013, the book titled Tell Me Who I Am, is billed as “a true story of false memory and lost innocence in one of England’s most respectable families.”
