I saw Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events on Saturday, with some anxiety as to how they would butcher the books I love oh so much. I was relieved to find that I enjoyed the film. Perhaps it benefited by diminished expectations, and the way I kept psyching myself for the film, reminding me that it wouldn't be as good as the books, and would be different from the books, but could still be enjoyable in its own diminished way. And it was enjoyable. The kids are all well-cast (especially Sunny), Jim Carrey, whatever I may think of him in general, is a great choice for Count Olaf, and the general look of the film is spot-on perfect. Drastic changes are made to the plot of the first three books, most notably in their order, with the wedding coming last, replaced at the beginning with a segment invented for the movie. This could be seen as a cop-out of sorts, as Olaf is not immediately revealed to the adults as the heinous villian he is, so it appears more reasonable that the children's guardians doubt their claims. But I must admit the play makes a good climax, and is more suited to a temporary conclusion to wrap up the first film, without leaving you hanging on Damocles Dock. This ending, also, could be a point of contention, a wee bit saccharine compared to the rest of the film. But again, I don't think it's too bad, given that a blunter ending a la Lord of the Rings would have disappointed audiences and been a bit presumptuous for a franchise perhaps not as well-proven. I thought it was mostly forgivable that they added a lot of information about V.F.D. in the film, which doesn't come up until later books, but I wish the children hadn't been so quick to pick up on every little clue they see (they hardly seem to need to meet the Quagmire Triplets now).

I probably have only two main complaints with the film. First, The Reptile Room gets short shrift, which is a shame, because it is probably the most cinematic of the first three books (though The Wide Window is suited to the screen, as well, and is doubtlessly the best portion of the movie). The whole first half of the film, in fact, feels rushed. And second, Sunny's dialogue was atrocious. The baby (twins) that played Sunny were fantastic, but her unintelligible words are translated via subtitles, which attempt to turn her into some sassy comic relief, the Poochy of the movie, if you will. Rather than thoughtful commentary on their prediciments, or bold condemnation of Olaf's deceitfulness, we get quotes like "She's the mayor of crazytown." Lets hope they tone that down if the rest of the series is filmed.

But overall, I liked the film. The look of the film was great, as was the soundtrack (by a Newman). Stay for the end credits, well worth it. I hope the rest of the books make it to the silver screen.