This was a less satisfying story than the [first version](https://trakt.tv/movies/these-three-1936) from 1936, despite the fact that this version faced up to the actual accusation (_These Three_ shied away and euphemised it as heterosexual fornication).


• _The Children's Hour_ jumps into the middle of the story, omitting at least 20 minutes of setup from _These Three_, with the result I thought that this film failed adequately to establish Mortar as an irritating leech, liar, and complainer.
• Mary Tilford's misbehaviors were shortened, reducing her motivation for the Big Lie.
• The horror of _The Children's Hour_, its very point, is that when adults believe children's lies (which build upon themselves), terrible things happen to society (a point made in _The Crucible_ as well). But this message is blunted by [spoiler]Martha's confusion about whether she is in fact a lesbian. It's no longer a false accusation if it's true. Children's lies may mislead adults and have bad consequences, but those lies shouldn't confuse adults in their own beliefs, yet this is what happens to Martha about her orientation, Karen about her fiancé, and even Joe about his fiancée.[/spoiler]
• After [spoiler]Martha's suicide and funeral, Karen marches off, leaving Joe standing graveside. By that point, I wanted her to get over her pride and marry him. Instead, she ignores his wise statement that many people go through awful things, and the mature response is to put those experiences behind you, and move on with life.[/spoiler] The result is that Karen is depicted as spiteful toward herself, leaving me unsatisfied.

I will say that these concerns of mine do make this film fertile for discussion!