The Third Day Episode 4: The Mother Review

For our review of the last episode of The Third Day, click here.

Synopsis: Winter. Helen surprises her two daughters, Tallulah and Ellie, with a trip to Osea Island for Ellie’s birthday. After finding that the cottage she booked is suspiciously no longer available, Helen scours the island for a place to stay, but finds resistance at every turn. (HBO)

After what easily could have been a series finale, The Third Day brings us a dull and seemingly lifeless back half whose only purpose appears to be to connect back to the first half in the most forced and predictable way with the twist at the end of the episode being the cherry on top. From the start, it was so clear what this back half was trying to do that will be easy to simply tune out everything else which is a shame considering what the series had done up to that point. Also, the writing was a huge let down as it squanders all that good will. It didn’t know what it wanted to do thus the performances were also aimless.

Nevertheless, The Mother began with a woman named Helen (Naomie Harris) surprising her two daughters, Tallulah (Charlotte Gairdner-Mihell) and Ellie (Nico Parker) with a trip to Osea for Ellie’s birthday. Right away, it was clear that Helen had some sort of motive in taking them there as despite the mounting evidence of it not being the best idea, she persisted and was adamant about making it work, There was some recent past history between her and her daughters that’s created some distance and it seemed like this was her way to make it up to them. Meanwhile, it wasn’t necessarily the best time to be on the island to begin with as things have happened since we last saw it while we already know that things may not always be as they seem. The cottage Helen booked was somehow no longer available, forcing her to find alternative arrangements.

Suffice it to say that this would not be easy for Helen as she and her daughters’ journey faced plenty of speedbumps and opposition from the Osea inhabitants along the way (one of them may or may not have been racism), including the usual pitfalls of managing younger children. At the end of the day, this is still The Third Day so viewers can still expect that same weirdness that had made the series what it was as Helen, Tallulah, and Ellie stumbled onto more of the same ritualistic nature we’ve encountered before within what appeared to be a new housing development on the island. Meanwhile, all roads lead to the Martins as they found there way there by the end. It was winter so it was cold and they were tired and hungry. Their car appeared to have been stolen as well so they weren’t taking no for an answer. Inevitably, the Martins gave in (Mr. Martin at least) and they again found a way to explain away everything that had happened to them up to that point.

The episode ended with a twist that could be seen from a mile away as Helen and her daughters were in fact that remainder of Sam’s family, unsubtly implying that Ellie’s birthday surprise is a reunion.

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Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.