Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
Paramount Pictures | Release Date: December 17, 2004 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
62
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 37 Critic Reviews
Positive:
24
Mixed:
12
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
60
The Hollywood ReporterKirk Honeycutt
Devolves into a repetitive comedy that squanders a hugely talented cast. Read full review
60
The New York TimesManohla Dargis
Mr. Silberling has made a movie that's far rougher in texture and tone than Mr. Handler's books, but while he doesn't have the author's sense of whimsy (or irony) he manages to construct a pleasantly watchable entertainment in all the spaces in the story not laid siege to by Mr. Carrey. Read full review
60
Los Angeles TimesCarina Chocano
What the movie lacks, alarmingly, is a shriveled black heart, or a big, red tell-tale one pulsing beneath the floorboards -- anything, really, that might infuse it with the sense of true dread that keeps kids coming back for second, third and 11th helpings of the willies. Read full review
60
Chicago ReaderHank Sartin
Episodic but entertaining fantasy. Read full review
60
SalonStephanie Zacharek
As it ticks by, laboriously, it leaves you feeling that you should be enjoying it more than you are. Read full review
58
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
Isn't nearly as cheerily unpleasant as it ought to be. Read full review
58
Seattle Post-IntelligencerWilliam Arnold
I walked out of it feeling much the same way I did after "The Cat in the Hat" and "The Polar Express" -- jarred by its excess, undernourished by its lack of heart and bored by its lack of originality. Read full review
58
Portland OregonianM. E. Russell
Ends up being one of those heartbreaking movies that gets off to a promising start but never quite creaks to life, despite everyone's obvious best efforts. Read full review
50
L.A. WeeklyElla Taylor
Silberling and writer Robert Gordon have made the fatal error of trying to jolly up the novels, which are often funny but never, ever cute. Read full review
50
Baltimore SunMichael Sragow
In Robert Gordon's script, Handler's hilariously literate bouts of psychological torture develop no consistent tone, voice or momentum. Read full review
50
SlateDavid Edelstein
Underwhelming. Read full review
40
Wall Street JournalJoe Morgenstern
Jim Carrey is the prime offender here. He's such an unseemly showoff that the movie keeps stopping in its tracks.
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