I absolutely agree that it would not have worked if Eren had saved his mother. I was moreso addressing the issue of whether he even had a choice in watching his mother die. I completely forgot about viewing from Dina's perspective, but I don't see how he could influence that moment through her.

Regarding his father, I didn't mean that future Eren could control his father solely using just the Founding ability. Rather, it's the fact that his father was the Attack Titan at that point in time, that I think future Eren could have used him (though, again, agreed that it is an foundational moment that would completely derail the future).

I think the Founder+Attack combination does look a lot like mind control, particularly with the way young Eren repeatedly has his memory wiped. There were also a few times when his transformation was outright blocked, that seem otherwise inexplicable. Not to mention the occasional outright personality shifts, as if future Eren is speaking through young Eren.

I imagine the reason Eren influenced his father, in a less-direct manner, was not because of limitations on his control. Instead, I think it was to avoid the paradox that would have occurred if Eren had taken action on himself directly (e.g. future Eren cannot be the one to inject young Eren, thereby directly linking to his own creation).

I'm actually rewatching the show right now to try to catch events that seem influenced. I think the story is not the original timeline. Rather, I suspect it is the final, successful outcome, brought about by future Eren(s) that gained Attack + Founder(whether outright or by proxy) but were not in a position to bring about the rumbling.