THOMAS NEWMAN -LEMONY SNICKET'S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS

Sometimes you hear music that has the ability to stop you in your tracks. Music that can make you feel more than you're willing to admit. The first time I saw "Lemony Snicket's A Series Of Unfortunate Events", I found myself moved beyond all belief. I later realized is had as much to do with the grandiose music score as it did the actual writing and acting. The music to this film emotes as intensely as the scenery or the actors themselves. At moments, the music can move you to tears.

I've never paid much attention to composers of musical scores. Lately, I've found myself paying more and more attention to some of these incredible musicians and authors. Especially this guy. I'm inspired to find and hear more music from him.

In case you haven't seen the film, let me just say... There's a feeling prevalent through it of losing your breath. What happens to these children is a tragedy no one really addresses. It's a sad event that is quickly overlooked as they are shuffled from one place to the next, while adults plot to use them for their own purposes. The terrifying nature of their experience is felt only in the music of Thomas Newman who uses tiny sounds to depict the broken hearts and fragile minds of these orphaned children. Sure there's booming adventure, great big excitement and humor rolling non-stop through the scenes and scoring, but the defining moments arrive in the softer, more toned sounds of tracks like 'The Baudelaire Orphans', 'Resilience', 'VFD', 'One Last Look' and 'The Letter That Never Came'. These tracks in combination with the scenes they accompany have the ability to cause tears. Certain ones can cause it without the accompanying scene. This is where the tragedy of the film really comes to life. They convey pain, loss and the longing for home more fully than anything I've ever heard before. 'The Letter That Never Came' blurs my vision even as I type and listen to this beautiful melody. It's truly heartbreaking and hopeful at the same time. It brings resolution to what could be called the Baudelaire Orphans reoccurring theme.

There's creepy music too. 'Chez Olaf' is a fine example of this. There's the booming sounds of 'The Reptile Room' and 'The Wide Window'. The originality of the character themes are also wonderfully expressive. My favorite is probably 'Concerning Aunt Josephine'. Absolutely breathtaking music wonderfully off center, unique and inspired. This brilliant composer has won my heart with his masterpiece scoring.

I'm listening now to the final piece of this incredible soundtrack. It's probably one of the most popular pieces of music I've heard in a long time. It's popped up in other films and NPR uses it all the time between pieces. 'Drive Away (End Titles)' alone is worth the purchase of this worthy addition to any CD collection. Check it out. My final words: HEART RENDERING.

THOMAS NEWMAN - LEMONY SNICKET'S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS
01. The Bad Beginning
02. Chez Olaf
03. The Baudelaire Orphans
04. In Loco Parentis
05. Resilience
06. The Reptile Room
07. An Unpleasant Incident
08. Curdled Cave
09. Puttanesca
10. Curious Feeling Of Falling
11. Regarding The Incredibly Deadly Viper
12. The Marvelous Marriage
13. Lachrymose Ferry
14. Concerning Aunt Josephine
15. VFD
16. The Wide Window
17. Cold As Ike
18. Hurricane Herman
19. Snaky Message
20. The Regrettable Episode Of The Leeches
21. Interlude With Sailboat
22. Verisimilitude
23. Loverly Spring
24. A Woeful Wedding
25. Attack Of The Hook-Handed Man
26. Taken By Surpreeze
27. One Last Look
28. The Letter That Never Came
29. Drive Away (End Title)