When a massive fire kills their parents, three children are delivered to the custody of cousin and stage actor Count Olaf, who is secretly plotting to steal their parents' vast fortune.When a massive fire kills their parents, three children are delivered to the custody of cousin and stage actor Count Olaf, who is secretly plotting to steal their parents' vast fortune.When a massive fire kills their parents, three children are delivered to the custody of cousin and stage actor Count Olaf, who is secretly plotting to steal their parents' vast fortune.
- Won 1 Oscar
- 10 wins & 28 nominations total
- Lemony Snicket
- (voice)
- Bald Man
- (as Luis Guzman)
- Constable
- (as Cedric the Entertainer)
- Grocery Clerk
- (as Robert Clendenin)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaWhen the children first meet Count Olaf and Jim Carrey says, "Wait, let me do that one more time. Give me the line again, quickly, while its fresh in my mind." was not actually in the script. Carrey accidentally forgot his line and staying in character, wanting to try it again, but they kept the cameras rolling and felt it worked the way it happened.
- GoofsWhen Count Olaf asks why the children haven't cooked him roast beef, he is standing on the ground in front of his acting troupe. In the next shot, about a second later, he is shown jumping down from the table (This is due to cutting an extended scene where Olaf gets onto the table and ruins the dinner they have prepared).
- Quotes
Count Olaf: I must say, you are a gloomy looking bunch. Why so glum?
Klaus Baudelaire: ...Our parents just died.
Count Olaf: Ah yes, of course. How very, very awful. Wait! Let me do that one more time. Give me the line again! Quickly, while it's fresh in my mind!
Klaus Baudelaire: [uncertainly] Our parents just died?
Count Olaf: [gasps dramatically]
Sunny: [in baby talk] What a schmuck!
- Crazy creditsThere is a credit for 'baby wrangler.'
- Alternate versionsWhen aired on Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network, lines with profanity such as "Damn it, this was such a good character" have the offending language removed. In this case the line simply becomes "this was such a good character." However, what is odd is the line "No one knows the precise cause of the Baudelaire fire. My colleagues and I have investigated as best we can. But all we've discovered is that the blaze was started from a great distance through the refraction and convergence of light. And within moments, the entire mansion was in flames." is removed entirely, which is odd since it's an important plot point. However the line " And as mysterious as the source of the blaze, other mysteries began to unfold before the children's eyes. Every family has its secrets, doors left unopened. But as Klaus now realized, the smallest discovery would send his mind reeling with questions." is kept intact.
- SoundtracksLoverly Spring
By Thomas Newman and Bill Bernstein
While I can give the end credits a 10 out of 10 I can only give the rest of the film a begrudging 7 out of 10, although it should probably be a 6.5. Certainly this is a fantastically well made movie, that is for the most part very well acted but something is amiss in the tone of the film and so it never really is what it should be.
The story of three children who's parents are killed and who are forced from guardian to guardian by the murderous acts of Count Oloff is pretty bleak. And with a title like "A Series of Unfortunate Events" you really can't expect dancing elves, but the film makers have chosen to add a vein of madcap silliness to the proceedings that works against the rest of the film. It seems as if they were afraid that the material was going to be seen as too dark, which is a shame since its clear from the sequences where they left well enough alone that the film could have stood on its own.
Its a good movie, instead of the great one it wants to be.
Definitely worth seeing.
- dbborroughs
- Jan 13, 2005
- Permalink
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official sites
- Language
- Also known as
- Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
- Filming locations
- Stage 1, Downey Studios - 12214 Lakewood Boulevard, Downey, California, USA(opening scene by the lake; train scene; Damocles Dock; Lake Lachrymose)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $140,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $118,634,549
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $30,061,756
- Dec 19, 2004
- Gross worldwide
- $211,468,235
- Runtime1 hour 48 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1