Love and Death Episode 3 Review: The HBO Max miniseries is a true-crime story starring Elizabeth Olsen as Candy Montgomery, Jesse Plemons as Allan Gore, Lily Rabe as Betty Gore, Krysten Ritter as Sherry Cleckler, Elizabeth Marvel as Jackie Ponder, Patrick Fugit as Pat Montgomery and others. The series has been created and written for TV by David E Kelley, and directed by Lesli Linka Glatter. In addition to the two crew members, Nicole Kidman and Per Saari are also few of the executive producers of the show.
Love and Death Episode 3 Review Contains Spoilers
Premiering on April 27, 2023, Love and Death Episode 3 is titled ‘Stepping Stone’ and has a runtime of 58 minutes. Based on Texas Monthly articles and the book Evidence of Love by Jim Atkinson and John Bloom, this series maps out the real life story of a Texan housewife, who was ultimately accused of brutally murdering her friend in the ’80s. With Nicole Kidman as one of the executive producers of the show, it’s quite likely that the thematic thrust of the series will take you back to her own former show Big Little Lies.
Love and Death Episode 3 Review: Discussion
A discussion with the new Pastor revealed how the people of this Texan community particularly value their families, children, marriage and God. The same issue is constantly reiterated in each episode we’ve watched till now; however, this overtly vocalises it. And it becomes a tactical choice to do so, especially since Olsen’s Candy also decides to reform herself.
As mentioned in one of the previous episode’s reviews, Candy’s relationship with Allan was never to flesh out into something profound. She makes it all clearer by revealing what she truly feels for him this time – nothing. Interestingly enough, the episode not only plunges deep into the themes of infidelity but also raises intense spiritual questions about one’s existence, as highlighted in the conversation between Candy and her husband, Pat. However, it completely eludes this community and its practitioners that people can reach out for freedom.
The Texan city cages them all in, and the one time a certain person reaches out or overreaches to climb out of this supposed paradisiacal and harmonious congregation, she’s threatened by an axe. The juxtaposition of her character and Betty is unintentionally present throughout the episodes and plays an interesting take on it all.
Betty’s depression, insecurities and mental health are laid out right from the beginning. There are no grey areas when dealing with their case because everyone around her, in addition to her own actions, continues to remind us that she’s dealing with these ailments, as they’ve been visibly dragging her down. On the other hand, while we’re made aware of Candy’s need to reach out for freedom from her stifling situation, the dark side of her psyche is never overtly showcased. This is why in episode 2, we start feeling for Betty, yet we never envision her to have initiated the brutal attack.
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However, it all starts shifting in this episode. As soon as Candy drops by Betty’s place for a quick chat, the foreboding atmosphere and the way Lily Rabe patiently reels Olsen’s character in, we already know what’s about to happen. With her finally walking in with the axe as Candy waits for her to drop the bomb she knows about the affair, we’re compelled to prepare for what’s coming in the remaining episodes. But, it also registers two different spouses’ responses to this arrangement of the past.
Where Pat endlessly blames himself for not being enough for Candy, Betty takes the other route, which will ultimately end on the wrong foot for her, as we all know already. One of the major issues of the show is its pacing. When you’re getting used to some actions, a new time stamp hinting at the time gone by dropped in and left me in a daze.
Love and Death Episode 3: Final Thoughts
However, the show’s best aspect is how unreadable Olsen’s character continues to be. Her sinister energy is often noticed, but her portrayal of the character quickly retracts to her motherly conscience, further greying out our perception of her. One of the initial moments of Episode 3 brings out the terrifying reflection of herself when her daughter divulges how Betty’s daughter, so her friend, proclaimed Candy to worry a lot about what others have to say about her. Her reaction at that time and the one unleashed by her upon rejection from Allan mirror each other.
Throughout the episode, Olsen continued to stun me to the point that it still puzzles me whether her character is interested in stitching back her marriage with Pat. While on the one hand, it seems like she’s faking all her reactions to everyone, on the other, her grounded emotional catharsis upon reading Pat’s letter tells you otherwise, making it hard for us to pick a side. Jesse Plemons also does a great job at envisioning the frustrating traits of his character, and it all helps add to the responses recorded in turn from both Betty and Candy’s sides.
New episodes of Love and Death will stream every Thursday till May 25, 2023.
Also read: Our Previous Reviews of Love and Death