Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
After their parents are tragically killed, three young orphans -- Violet (Emily Browning), Klaus (Liam Aiken) and Sunny -- are taken in by the cunning and dastardly Count Olaf (Jim Carrey), who hopes to snatch their inheritance from them. Based on the series of best-selling, darkly funny children's books, director Brad Silberling's film co-stars Meryl Streep, Billy Connolly and Timothy Spall. Jude Law narrates as Lemony Snicket.
Member Reviews
A good time for all! - lambert000
This movie is classic Jim Carrey goodness. It's a good time for all. There is something for everyone. It's captivating and so entertaining. My little ones love this movie and so does mommy. We can even get Daddy to sit down and watch it with us. It has enough grown-up humour to entertain us old people, but is not too scary for the little ones. It has a pretty great cast too!OK...but read the books...not the same! - MoviesRUS
The movie was decent. I enjoyed it, certainly. Technically it was outstanding. Casting was good, sets were outstanding, costumes were very nice.
As an adaptation of the books, however, this was horrendous. It was as if the writer had torn a quarter of the pages from the first three books, a few pages from books 4-9, and pasted them together in a random fashion to try and create a cohesive movie. Now, had I not read the books, I would have enjoyed this movie very much, so I have to give that to them, but as a fan, it was just a slap in the face.
If you've read the books, don't see the movie, it will just enrage you. If you haven't, see the movie. It'll be very enjoyable. If, however, you decide to read the books afterwards, be aware that they are far darker than the movie shows, and the mystery is certainly deeper than some magnifying glass in Count Olaf's house. Do not think of them as kid stuff.Events is episodic but admittedly fun - Baboonvideo
ZIP-WORTHY IF: You are a fan of Jim Carrey at his most comic and dastardly.
REVIEW: While the Harry Potter films have the problem of condensing thick novels into digestible features, Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events faces the opposite problem: the popular children's books by Daniel Handler are featherweight in size and the filmmakers here had to combine three books to make one picture. Unfortunately, this lends the film an unmistakable episodic structure and tired sense of repetition that wobbles the foundation of some admittedly fun performances and wonderfully gothic background details (the influence of Tim Burton's Sleepy Hollow and Edward Scissorhands is obvious).
Events focuses on the Baudelaire children, three siblings who are left in the care of Count Olaf (Jim Carry) when their wealthy parents are killed in a fire. Olaf, however, only accepts custody so that he can get his hands on the kids' money, so he is soon slipping on various disguises in nasty attempts to kill them (the film is too scary for younger kids).
Even if his Olaf is more comic than villain, Carrey is a treat and clearly relishes the opportunity to once again slip into various dastardly disguises. In addition, there is a fun supporting turn from Meryl Streep as an overly phobic aunt and wonderfully pessimistic narration from Jude Law.
Member Reviews
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A good time for all! - lambert000
This movie is classic Jim Carrey goodness. It's a good time for all. There is something for everyone. It's captivating and so entertaining. My little ones love this movie and so does mommy. We can even get Daddy to sit down and watch it with us. It has ...OK...but read the books...not the same! - MoviesRUS
The movie was decent. I enjoyed it, certainly. Technically it was outstanding. Casting was good, sets were outstanding, costumes were very nice.
As an adaptation of the books, however, this was horrendous. It was as if the writer had torn a quarter ...Events is episodic but admittedly fun - Baboonvideo
ZIP-WORTHY IF: You are a fan of Jim Carrey at his most comic and dastardly.
REVIEW: While the Harry Potter films have the problem of condensing thick novels into digestible features, Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events faces the opposite ...