Being a mother is tough. This basic platitude means next to nothing coming from me, a childless man. My only real frames of reference are anecdotes from baby-rearing friends and childhood stories from my mom. It might mean a little more coming from the women in Little Disasters, a motherhood mystery that often feels like a Lifetime movie by way of ITV. At least, it would if the show didn’t fall back on those same bromides.
A Paramount+ production, Little Disasters makes its debut stateside a few months after premiering in the UK. The series follows Jess (Diane Kruger) who becomes the center of a child services investigation after bringing her daughter into the hospital with a skull fracture. Her answer of what happened is dodgy, and it’s clear to the doctor that something else is going on here. The doctor, Liz (Jo Joyner) is an old friend, making things extra complicated. The two were part of a birthing class that formed the basis of their friend group. Along for the ride are the business-first Charlotte (Shelley Conn) and arty, free-spirit Mel (Emily Taaffe).
The women never really move beyond basic archetypes, which makes it hard to care about what transpires between them. Jess remains the “perfect” mother with a dark side. A role necessary to sustain the mystery, but one that leaves Kruger with little to do. In contrast, Joyner takes the brunt of the acting work. Liz burdens herself with guilt at turning in her friend while also nursing a drinking problem. The husbands are even worse, moving between pathetic (Mel’s musician husband) to potential suspect (Jess’ husband, naturally).
As for that mystery, there isn’t much to it. It turns out child abuse doesn’t make the basis for an entertaining thriller. It doesn’t help that there’s only two actual suspects in this case. Little Disasters tries to offset this by flashing back between our present events and moments in the friend group’s history. While it adds to the tension within the gang, it does very little for the case. The actual culprit, when revealed, is laughable. A twist for the sake of one. That’s before we get into the strange “talking head” scenes that seem to suggest someone is interviewing the group after the events of the series. It’s a stylistic flourish that also has no proper payoff.
Little Disasters is another in a long line of generic mystery/thrillers. The miniseries often settles for bland storytelling and basic characterization at the expense of its cast. Far from a disaster, the series barely qualifies as a mishap. It begs you to watch it while doing something else. You won’t miss much. In fact, you probably won’t remember any of it the moment the credits hit.
Little Disasters is currently streaming on Paramount+.