3 Men and a Baby

With Three Men and a Baby, Nimoy proved himself to be an adept handler of mainstream 80s comedy, updating the far more farcical (and chauvinist) French original Trois Hommes et un Couffin into something more Hollywoodised and slick. But within the slickness, he let his three leads, Tom Selleck, Steve Guttenberg and Ted Danson shine through with their own individual charm.

Luckily, there's enough of the domestic comedy to make the movie work despite its crasser instincts. One of the big surprises in the movie is Selleck's wonderful performance as the bachelor architect. After playing action heroes on TV and in the movies, he now reveals himself to be a light comedian in the Cary Grant tradition - a big, handsome guy with tenderness and vulnerability

3 Men and a Baby is about as slight a feature comedy as is made - while at the same time it's hard to resist Tom Selleck, Ted Danson and Steve Guttenberg shamelessly going goo-goo over caring for an infant baby girl all swaddled in pink.

An amiable crowd-pleaser, nothing more, nothing less. [27 Nov 1987]

Three elements rescue Three Men and a Baby from its inherent shallowness: its casting, pacing and its infant. Nimoy capitalizes on parental instincts without being cloying or cute, so after viewing Three Men and a Baby's tender moments, it's practically impossible to dismiss the movie as mere fluff. [27 Nov 1987, p.7]

The best performance in Three Men and a Baby is given by the baby, played by twins Lisa and Michelle Blair. They are wonderful. The movie is not. [25 Nov 1987, p.D8]

Director Leonard Nimoy does not use his ears for comedy -- nor his eyes, even. His three leads recite their lines as though they wanted to take their jumbo-sized salaries and run -- which, given this movie, maybe isn't such a dumb idea.

“Three Men and a Baby” is super cute. I remember watching it a lot as a kid, but I just watched it in 2021 for the first time since then. The cast has great chemistry. The tone is spot on what it should be. It is one of those movies that just feels right to watch. I know my description doesn't really match up with the rating I am giving it. I think that is because I consider this movie a comedy, and I didn't really laugh a lot while watching it. I don't think anyone should regret watching "Three Men and a Baby", but it just won't change your life, either. I give it a C, if you've already seen the best, but you insist on watching a movie, try this one out.

A funny movie for its time, today it is merely a film that is bloated with subplot and eighties music montages. Nevertheless, it is a mildly enjoyable movie.