A review by JAMES SOUTHALL

Based on the slightly macabre children's books, Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events actually combines the first three of them into one movie (which is what Steven Spielberg wanted to do with Harry Potter, but it didn't go down too well with JK Rowling).  Director Brad Siberling assembled a decent cast, led by Jim Carrey and also featuring Timothy Spall, Billy Connelly and Meryl Streep (!) - and a decent composer, in Thomas Newman.  A while ago it seemed that a kids' movie like this one would be the last place you might find Newman, but Finding Nemo changed all that with a wonderful score.

If anything, Lemony Snicket is like a darker, more toned-down version of Newman's Nemo music.  Given the target audience of the film, it is really surprisingly dark stuff.  Of course there's some fun along the way, but a track like "An Unpleasant Incident Involving a Train" could come out of some sort of horror thriller.  That's only the seventh track (of 29) but already there have been various other great moments, such as a positively delightful music box theme in "The Baudelaire Orphans" and a delicate, touching piano theme in "Resiliance", along with some great action music in "Resilience".  The opening piece, "The Bad Beginning", warps from a cheerful little song into a typical Newman theme with repeated measures, the usual array of odd instruments etc.

"Puttanesca" is a typically shimmering example of Newman's unique string sound (it seems he has inherited his father's knack for having one of those!) and a lovely reminder of just why he is as revered as he is.  While the overall tone of the score is a dark one, it is not without its lighter moments.  Two wonderful examples are the brief but very funny faux-baroque "The Marvelous Marriage" and the hilarious, vaguely Sherman Brothers-like cheerful song "Loverly Spring".  The second half of the album contains numerous wonderful moments and is stronger than the first.  "Cold as Ike" is a typical bit of Newman dramatic scoring which could easily come from American Beauty, with the usual array of plucked instruments; and "Hurricane Herman" - with its over-the-top melodrama - sounds a bit like, well, Herrmann!  "Attack of the Hook-Handed Man" is like the most dramatic moments of the composer's sublime Angels in America score.  The biggest highlight of all is probably the finale "The Letter that Never Came", which is a truly beautiful piece of music.

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Tracks

1. The Bad Beginning (3:20)
2. Chez Olaf (3:12)
3. The Baudelaire Orphans (2:32)
4. In Loco Parentis (1:27)
5. Resilience (2:30)
6. The Reptile Room (1:35)
7. An Unpleasant Incident Involving a Train (4:51)
8. Curdled Cave (2:04)
9. Puttanesca (2:41)
10. Curious Feeling of Falling (1:45)
11. Regarding the Incredibly  Deadly Viper (2:33)
12. The Marvelous Marriage (:52)
13. Lachrymose Ferry (:38)
14. Concerning Aunt Josephine (2:08)
15. VFD (1:11)
16. The Wide Window (1:11)
17. Cold as Ike (2:45)
18. Hurricane Herman (2:18)
19. Snaky MEssage (2:31)
20. The Regrettable Episode of the Leeches (2:45)
21. Interlude with Sailboat (1:04)
22. Verisimilitude (2:16)
23. Loverly Spring (1:50)
24. A Woeful Wedding (3:21)
25. Attack of the Hook-Handed Man (2:22)
26. Taken by Surpreeze (2:02)
27. One Last Look (1:41)
28. The Letter that Never Came (4:13)
29. Drive Away (5:04)