''The Third Walker'' is a 1978 Canadian drama film directed by Teri McLuhan. The film explores the effect on two families in

Cape Breton Island Cape Breton Island (french: link=no, île du Cap-Breton, formerly '; gd, Ceap Breatainn or '; mic, Unamaꞌki) is an island on the Atlantic coast of North America and part of the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. The island accounts for 18. ...

of having had their infant sons mistakenly switched at birth by the hospital."Film Reviews: T.C. McLuhan's The Third Walker". ''

Cinema Canada ''Cinema Canada'' (1972–1989) is a defunct Canadian film magazine, which served as the trade journal of record for the Canadian film and television sector. The magazine had its origins in the Canadian Society of Cinematographers (CSC), which beg ...

'', June 1978. pp. 38-39. It was financed by

Melvin Simon Productions Melvin Simon Productions was a short-lived film production company of the 1970s and 1980s. It was founded by real estate magnate Melvin Simon. History Simon got into filmmaking in 1976 when he was having a social game of golf with producer Harry Sa ...

.FILM CLIPS: Mr. Simon Goes to Hollywood SCHREGER, CHARLES. Los Angeles Times (2 Apr 1979: f9.

Plot

Kate Maclean (

Colleen Dewhurst Colleen Rose Dewhurst (3 June 1924 – 22 August 1991) was a Canadian-American actress mostly known for theatre roles. She was a renowned interpreter of the works of Eugene O'Neill on the stage, and her career also encompassed film, early drama ...

) and Munro Maclean (

William Shatner William Shatner (born March 22, 1931) is a Canadian actor. In a career spanning seven decades, he is best known for his portrayal of James T. Kirk in the ''Star Trek'' franchise, from his 1965 debut as the captain of the starship USS Enterpri ...

) have two twin boys, Andrew (Andrew Rankin) and James (Darren DiFonzo). One day at school, Andrew has a new classmate named Étienne Blanchard (Simon Rankin), who looks virtually identical to Andrew and has the same birthday; after medical tests confirm that Étienne and James were switched at the hospital, however, Étienne's mother Marie (

Monique Mercure Marie Lise Monique Émond (14 November 193016 May 2020), better known as Monique Mercure (), was a Canadian stage and screen actress. She was one of the country's great actors of the classical and modern repertory. In 1977, Mercure won a Cann ...

) leaves town rather than complying with the court order to surrender custody of Étienne to the Macleans in exchange for James. This development fractures the Maclean family, as Kate's unrelenting obsession with regaining custody of Étienne destroys her relationships with both Munro and James. Years later following Munro's death, the now adult Andrew (

David Meyer David Meyer (born 24 July 1947) is an English actor. He is the twin of Anthony Meyer who has often appeared alongside him in film. He is best known for his role as a knife-throwing circus performer and assassin in the 1983 James Bond film ''Octo ...

) and Étienne (Anthony Meyer) reunite at his funeral for the first time since the incident; while Andrew has maintained a brotherly bond with James ( Frank Moore) despite their mother's attitude, it too is now tested by Andrew's desire to build a closer relationship with his real twin.

Awards

The film garnered three

Canadian Film Award The Canadian Film Awards were the leading Canadian cinema awards from 1949 until 1978. These honours were conducted annually, except in 1974 when a number of Quebec directors withdrew their participation and prompted a cancellation. In the 1970s ...

nominations at the

29th Canadian Film Awards The 29th Canadian Film Awards were held on September 21, 1978 to honour achievements in Canadian film. They were the last Canadian Film Awards ceremony to be held before the program was taken over by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television, ...

Best Actor Best Actor is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organizations, festivals, and people's awards to leading actors in a film, television series, television film or play. The term most often refers to th ...

(Moore), Best Supporting Actress (Mercure), and Best Musical Score (

Paul Hoffert Paul Matthew Hoffert, LLD, CM (born 22 September 1943 in Brooklyn, New York) is a recording artist, performer, media music composer, author, academic, and corporate executive. He studied mathematics and physics at the University of Toronto. H ...

)."Four films nominated for Etrogs". ''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...

'', August 24, 1978.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Third Walker, The 1978 films Canadian drama films English-language Canadian films Films shot in Nova Scotia Films set in Nova Scotia Films about twin brothers 1978 drama films 1970s English-language films 1970s Canadian films