A Series of Unfortunate Events

Jim Carrey (The Mask) plays the disturbing and mysterious Count Olaf in acclaimed children’s author Lemony Snickets’ A Series of unfortunate Events. Jude Law (I Heart Huckabees) plays the reluctant Snickets, narrating from behind a shadowy typewriter. The advantage of medium is fully and wonderfully exploited, making reference to the fact that it is a movie, and the mediu really carries the story. There are 4 distinct stories and so it still has very book series like progression

Count Olaf adopts the newly orphaned Budeau Orphans, who are extremely gifted and wonderful children, and He immediately dominates them, beats them, and all around proves that he is a jerk. They try to speak to authorities, but no one listens to kids (A Somewhat Matilda like lesson)

They fly from relative to relative, being haunted by Olaf at every step. Stars Billy Connelly and Merril Streep add some flavor to the mix, and the MacGyver like predicaments the children work their way out of  are quite ingenious, and extremely well filed. The dark, gloomy cinematography is brilliant, and gives the stories an eerie feel which drives the audience with a sense of hope unfulfilled. 2. But not the Jim Carrey you expect.