reynoldsjan This original movie is the best. The remake with Shirley McClaine was frustrating at the end. These Three has a happy ending, where the little liar is finally found out. Cast is amazing; story very well told. Kept my attention to the very end! I would watch this again!

pajjote2001 My favorites are actually Cary Grant, Ingrid Bergman, Katharine Hepburn and Gary Cooper. So having These Three as a favorite movie may not make sense since none of these stars are in this film. BUT - the film is great - simply put. Joel Macrea, Miriam Hopkins and Merle Oberon were superb actors. And that Bonita Granville - the villainous child - is incomparable.I've watched this movie many times and each time is an experience. Highly recommended. The plot may be outdated, nevertheless ,if you are able to go past that realizing this was afterall done in the 1930's, you will fall for the film like I have.I am a big, big old movies buff - the black and whites...This film is one of the reasons why I'm partial to those bygone years.

MartinHafer In Lillian Hellman's original play, THE CHILDREN'S HOUR, the scandal involved lesbianism--certainly NOT a topic they were allowed to address in Hollywood in the strengthened Production Code era. Starting around 1935, Hollywood bowed to pressure to clean up the movies and feature more wholesome images. While today some see this as a totally negative thing, you must understand that nudity, violence, crudeness and very adult topics were frequently used in films and there was no rating system. So, kids might go to the theaters and see rather graphic nude swimming scenes (TARZAN AND HIS MATE and BIRD OF PARADISE are good examples) or Frank McHugh giving someone "the finger" (PARATROOPER). As a result, SOME sort of system needed to be created, though I will admit some of the resulting products from Hollywood were a bit bland. In regard to THE CHILDREN'S HOUR, there was no way the studios would be allowed to discuss homosexuality during this era, so they changed the allegations to promiscuity between a man and a woman. This did NOT appreciably alter the play nor its impact and reportedly Miss Hellman was happy with the film despite this minor change--minor in that it resulted in only minor alterations to the script and kept the overall message intact.The resulting film, THESE THREE, was produced by David O. Selznick, directed by William Wyler and starred Miriam Hopkins, Merle Oberon and Joel McCrea. With this terrific combination of talents and the Hellman script, it certainly isn't much of a surprise that the film was excellent throughout--and one of the better pictures of the 1930s. About the only negative at all about the play was the performance of young Bonita Granville. While generally very good (earning her an Oscar nomination), it was at times also a tad over-the-top--and she acted so histrionic that you wonder what sane person would believe all of her lies!!! If this had been toned down just a bit (making her a little more subtle), the film would have earned a 10. As it is, it's still a terrific film with an original and wonderful script.

glmoritz I have seen "The Children's Hour" with Shirley MacLaine, Audrey Hepburn and James Garner a couple of times, and I realize that it is truer to the original play and had a definite shock value in 1961. But "These Three" is far more engaging. Miriam Hopkins (generally not one of my favorites), Merle Oberon and McCrae are far more appealing and the performances of Bonita Granville and Marcia Mae Jones are among the best child performances I've ever seen. Granville, who was also good as Bette Davis' thoughtless niece in "Now, Voyager" a few years later, makes a better young villainess than Patricia McCormack in "The Bad Seed."