With Harry Potter making so much money at the box office it was only a matter of time before studios decided to start looking for properties that held a certain similarity to Harry Potter. It is no surprise then that they found the best-selling series of books for children named Lemony Snicket's: A Series Of Unfortunate Events. The interesting aspect of the Lemony Snicket series, both in film and novel form, is that it is the anti-Harry Potter. Whether the author actually set out with that intent is debatable, but the film represents everything that is the opposite of Harry Potter. As the title suggests happiness does not reside in the movie. The gimmick of the film is that the Baudelaire orphans suffer and will continue to suffer unfortunate events as they race across a Gothic landscape that resembles an odd vision by Tim Burton. The film may sound morose and unenjoyable, but it surprisingly turns out to be a fun, engaging, and stunning looking film.
The film's story follows the fates of the three unfortunate Baudelaire orphans and their adventure as dictated by an unnamed narrator (Jude Law). Each of the three orphans have a very distinct personality. There is Violet (Emily Browning) who is a master of inventing anything out of whatever is lying around. Then there is Claus (Liam Aiken) who has a photographic memory and has read just about everything. Then there is the baby Sunny who is a strong biter. One of the best gags of the film has Sunny speaking in unintelligible babbles and then giving helpful subtitles to what she's saying.
Tragedy strikes early for the children when their parents are killed in a mysterious fire. They are then sent by the family's banker to go live with a relative named Count Olaf (Jim Carrey). Of course, the only reason why Olaf really wants them is to kill them and take the family fortune.
After a near-death experience where Olaf tries to flatten them with a car the film takes on a sort of chase quality as the children go to new guardians, supposedly close relative of the family, while being chased by Olaf who is wearing many different disguises. All the while the children must also figure out why their parents seemed to belong to a mysterious organization. If there is only one thing that could be complimented upon in this film that would easily be the amazing production design. The film is a triumph of visuals. It becomes quite clear early in the film that the movie seems to live in a sort of alternate reality. There are elements to this world in which are common to today such as modern day sodas and stereos, but the period design seems to suggests a much earlier time. On top of that the architecture and look of the world seem to be something strained through a much more Gothic version of a Tim Burton world. It is really a stunning universe to behold. Every time the orphans run to a new location there is always something fascinating to look at in every frame. This alone makes the movie at least decent.
Thankfully, the movie has a lot more going for it than that quality. Simply, put this is such a fun movie. It is exciting and constantly engaging. If there was one major problem with the script though it would be the slightly repetitive nature. The entire film seems to consist of the orphans showing up to a new guardian and that guardian being murdered by Olaf. Towards the end of the film this circular structure makes the film slightly flat, but that doesn't mean the film overall isn't a blast.
Another big help to the film is Jim Carrey as Count Olaf. Carrey is once again in manic mode, but this is one of the few films in which he has a direct excuse and uses it well. Count Olaf is a struggling actor or Drama Queen. Carrey get a lot of comedic mileage of Olaf going completely over-the-top. Still, one wishes that Carrey did reign it back just a bit to make the character more menacing. After all, this is a man who murders a number of different people throughout the film and tries to kill the kids numerous times. Yet, it's hard to find him completely menacing. Still, Carrey does a fine job.
Credit also has to be given to the three kids who play the orphans. If there is a sequel one can only hope that these actors come back. All three of them work extremely well together, especially Emily Browning as Violet.
Sadly, this isn't a perfect film. For one thing, the movie never really explains the secret society the parents belong to. Although, this is only an adaptation of the first three books. One has to wonder if they are answered in the other novels. In the end, this is a blast of a movie. It's fun, stunning to look at, and contains great performances. Now just bring on the sequel.
