Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004)

Count Olaf hogs this movie like it’s his own one-man show, which is exactly what he’d want. Jim Carrey plays him as a pile of impressions fighting over one costume, and the Baudelaire kids keep getting shoved aside so he can try another voice. He’s funny in bursts, especially disguised as an unconvincing Italian snake expert, but the mugging wears you out. The movie also crams several books into 108 minutes, so each new guardian barely unpacks before the plot moves on. Everything else is a gorgeous little nightmare. The sets look like a gothic dollhouse left out in the rain, Emily Browning ties back her hair and turns into a tiny engineer, and Meryl Streep’s Aunt Josephine, terrified of doorknobs and real estate agents, is a comic gem. Jude Law narrates like a man apologizing for bad news. It made $211.5 million worldwide on a reported $140 to $142 million. A 6.6 because the world is wonderful and Olaf won’t share it. $702 says you hesitate before grabbing the next doorknob you see and blame Aunt Josephine.

What works: The production design is gorgeous and gloomy, Emily Browning and Liam Aiken make the Baudelaires easy to root for, and Meryl Streep’s nervous Aunt Josephine is a delight.

What doesn’t: Jim Carrey’s mugging crowds out the kids, and cramming several books into one movie leaves every guardian’s story feeling rushed.

Who it’s for: Kids who like their stories a little spooky and grown-ups who love a dark, handmade-looking storybook world.