LEMONY SNICKETS-SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS (DVD) (WS) DVD

Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
The best-selling series of subversive children's books from author Lemony Snicket (aka Daniel Handler) come to the screen in this Black comedy for the whole family (and how often do you get to see one of those?). The Baudelaire siblings -- gadget freak Violet (Emily Browning), bookworm Klaus (Liam Aiken), and baby Sunny (Kara Hoffman and Shelby Hoffman) -- were living a fairy-tale existence with their parents until they died in a fire that destroyed the family home. With few close relatives and a large fortune the children won't inherit until they reach adulthood, the Baudelaire children are left in the care of the peculiar Count Olaf (Jim Carrey), an out-of-work actor who would love nothing more than to get his hands on the kids' money. It doesn't take long for the children to figure out that Count Olaf is up to no good, and they try to steer clear of his various murderous schemes with the help of wildly paranoid Aunt Josephine (Meryl Streep) and snake-fancying Uncle Monty (Billy Connolly). Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events also features Catherine O'Hara, Timothy Spall, Cedric the Entertainer, and Luis Guzman; Jude Law narrates in the guise of author Snicket. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Cast Jim Carrey as Count Olaf Liam Aiken as Klaus Baudelaire Emily Browning as Violet Baudelaire Kara Hoffman as Sunny Baudelaire Shelby Hoffman as Sunny Baudelaire Jude Law as Lemony Snicket Timothy Spall as Mr. Poe Catherine O'Hara as Justice Strauss Billy Connolly as Uncle Monty Meryl Streep as Aunt Josephine Luis Guzman as Bald Man Jamie Harris as Hook-Handed Man Craig Ferguson as Person of Indeterminate Jennifer Coolidge as White Faced Woman No. 1 Jane Adams as White Faced Woman No. 2 Cedric the Entertainer as Constable

Crew Tony Fanning - Art Director Martin Whist - Art Director William Hawkins - Art Director John Dexter - Supervising Art Director Linda Hill - Associate Producer Michele Panelli-Venetis - Associate Producer Avy Kaufman - Casting Elizabeth Greenberg - Casting Scott Aversano - Co-producer Minor Childers - Co-producer Colleen Atwood - Costume Designer Michele Panelli-Venetis - First Assistant Director Brad Silberling - Director Michael Kahn - Editor Albie Hecht - Executive Producer Barry Sonnenfeld - Executive Producer Scott Rudin - Executive Producer Julia Pistor - Executive Producer Thomas Newman - Composer (Music Score) Valli O'Reilly - Makeup Bill Corso - Makeup Kevin Yagher - Makeup Special Effects Rick Heinrichs - Production Designer Emmanuel Lubezki - Cinematographer Robert Yeoman - Cinematographer Walter Parkes - Producer Jim Van Wyck - Producer Laurie MacDonald - Producer Richard King - Sound/Sound Designer Pud Cusack - Sound/Sound Designer Michael Lantieri - Special Effects Supervisor Robert Gordon - Screenwriter Stefen Fangmeier - Visual Effects Supervisor Dylan Tichenor - Additional Editing Anna Behlmer - Re-Recording Mixer Andy Nelson - Re-Recording Mixer Richard King - Supervising Sound Editor Cheryl Carasik - Set Decorator Lemony Snicket - Book Author

Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
When it's the story that makes a book special, it can often be adapted successfully into a film, as one narrative medium morphs smoothly into another. But when a book's most valuable aspect is its prose style, filmmakers should be warned that they will be hard-pressed to recreate the virtues of their source material. That's the problem with Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events, a cinematic version of the first three books in an entire cash-cow line by Daniel Handler, aka "Lemony Snicket." The snide lamentations and morose asides of the author's ironic style make the Snicket books a hoot, but these are not visual qualities and not easily translatable. That leaves director Brad Silberling and screenwriter Robert Gordon able to render only the physical features of the books' Gothic settings. The result is a sort of Tim Burton-lite that looks superb but is too scary for tots, but not quite funny enough for their parents. Despite heavy lifting on the part of a terrific cast that includes Jim Carrey and Meryl Streep, Jude Law as narrator, and a breakout performance by Australian actress Emily Browning as Violet, the tone ends up too affected and dark without the ameliorating effects of Handler's omniscient, mordant voice. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
 

Bill Corso: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Makeup (winner) Cheryl Carasik: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Art Direction (nominated) Colleen Atwood: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Costume Design (nominated) Emily Browning: Broadcast Film Critics Association, Best Young Actress (nominated) Liam Aiken: Broadcast Film Critics Association, Best Young Actor (nominated) Rick Heinrichs: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Art Direction (nominated) Thomas Newman: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Score (nominated) Valli O'Reilly: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Makeup (winner)

Broadcast Film Critics Association, Best Live Action Family Film (nominated)

General Specifications: Language Options: English, French, Spanish Subtitle Options: English Sound Processing: DD5.1: Dolby Digital w/ sub-woofer channel Additional Features: cc Director Brad Silberling commentary Brad Silberling and the real Lemony Snicket commentary Bad Beginnings: Building a Bad Actor, Making the Baudelaire Children Miserable, Interactive Olaf Orphaned scenes: dismal deletions, obnoxious outtakes Widescreen version enhanced for 16:9 TVs Dolby Digital: English 5.1 Surround, French 5.1 Surround, Spanish 5.1 Surround English subtitles DVD Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1: Theatre Wide-Screen MPAA Rating: PG DVD Discs Included: 1 DVD Sides: 1 DVD DVD Region Code: 1 Content Length: 107 min Part of Series: Paramount Widescreen Collection   DVD Chapters: Side #1 -- 1. The Bad Beginning 2. Your New Guardian 3. Chores 4. Custody Granted 5. The Reptile Room 6. Stephano Arrives 7. The Incredibly Deadly Viper 8. Aunt Josephine 9. Captain Sham 10. Hurricane Herman 11. Lachrymose Leeches 12. The Marvelous Marriage 13. Let the Wedding Begin 14. No One Listens to Children 15. The Letter That Never Came 16. End Titles