Review: Lemony Snicket's A Series Of Unfortunate Events
This afternoon I had the opportunity to see Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events. On a lark, Tim and Steve and I went to an obscure second-run (third-run?) theater that we eventually located by asking at a hair salon and a gas station (who says men don’t stop for directions?). We were pleasantly surprised at the $3.50 admittance, but quickly understood the reason for the low cost once we saw the relative squalor inside the theater.
“You still owe me the whole eight bucks, though,” I told Tim. He wasn’t impressed.
The movie itself was rather impressive, fully deserving of its Oscar nomination for Art Direction, if not for Original Score. There was a Tim-Burton-esque vibe to it’s artistic style and pacing. And it’s not a run-of-the-mill Jim Carrey movie, either; while he has an important part, the film isn’t just another excuse to see him twist himself around and leer at the camera (though he has his moments).
The three mysteriously orphaned Baudelaire children are taken to live with their ‘distant relative’, the eccentric Count Olaf. And through a series of unfortunate events, they are taken from one home to another, never quite finding the perfect, loving, guardian they are longing for.
I was delighted by the movie’s sense of whimsy and abstract humor, in much the same way as I enjoyed Big Fish and Edward Scissorhands. The Unfortunate Events are indeed unpleasant, but none of them got really unnerving until near the end of the movie … which I won’t spoil for you). Mine had to be coerced, but if you happen to have willing accomplices, stay through the credits for the clever animated sequences and unique music not heard anywhere else in the film.
Update: Once you see the movie, you’ll understand The Most Incredibly Brilliant Blog in the World. Our beloved Count Olaf powers Blogger. Who knew?
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