The Diary of a Wimpy Kid franchise boasts itself as the sixth best-selling book series of all time. across 16 books released since 2007. This brand new animated film adapts the first book in the series, which was previously adapted in live-action format, back in 2010. The live-action film starred Zachary Gordon in the titular role of Greg Heffley.
Greg Heffley (Brady Noon), is the author of the famous Diary, and during the course of the film, we see him start middle school alongside his best friend Rowley Jefferson (Ethan William Childress), an extremely unpopular member of the student body who cares very little about the social hierarchy. Greg, however, is adamant to impress, and questions how others perceive him now that he’s in middle school.
Short, and Snappy
Firstly, I was shocked to discover that the film featured a running time just short of an hour, so prior to watching the film I was hesitant to start. Could the first book be condensed and fit into an hour? Sort of! Whilst the short run time is extremely disappointing, the film tries its best to ensure that a sufficient story is told in less than an hour, and I would say that it does so. Portions of the original story are removed and changed in ways to fit the new screenplay, written by Jeff Kinney, author of the books. I think it’s great to see Kinney provide the screenplay this time around, unlike the first three adaptations where Kinney was only an Executive Producer.
As expected with revivals, the basic story and expectations are always the same, and when it comes to Diary of a Wimpy Kid this is no different. Like I previously mentioned, the first book is condensed pretty well to fit its runtime. As mentioned, some storylines from the first book are completely removed, mainly involving most of Greg’s home life, his brother Rodrick barely features throughout and a lot of the subplots including the School Play, and most of Greg’s schoolmates are reduced down to cameos at best.
Wimpy Kid Done Right
Kinney brings the spark back which made the books so charming, and as a result of this – you end up having a really fun time with the film. The story has a good pace to it, one that is well-timed throughout, I never found myself losing interest and enjoyed the story’s progression, due to its familiarity.
It should be made aware that this film is obviously aimed at kids, however, fans of the books and even the previous films will easily get into this film, I for sure found myself giggling away at the jokes, and enjoying it for sure. The performances in the film feel mostly genuine, and do a great job of really selling some of these well-known characters. The transition between the 2D animation used as Greg’s sketches in his diary to the new 3D animation was cool to see, especially because the 2D sketches played a big role in the books.
Brady Noon steps into the animated shoes of Greg Heffley, and Noon is having quite the year. He was one of the standouts amongst the many young performances in Disney+’s The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers, due to his charismatic and enthusiastic approach to the character of Evan Morrow. As Greg, Brady is clearly a strong voice actor, and it would be interesting to see if he does any more voice acting because he clearly has a talent for it, especially from his first outing.
Potential For More?
I grew up reading the books and absolutely loved them, so had great expectations for this brand new adaptation once I heard that Disney would be moving forward with the title in animated form. With news back on Disney+ Day confirming Disney+ would be home to an animated sequel next year, with Rodrick Rules. Should these films become popular, we can hope to expect more animated films from the Wimpy Kid franchise on Disney+
If we are to assume Disney+ are to follow the ‘One Wimpy Kid Film A Year’ rule, then we can assume there is an incredible amount of potential for streaming content on the service. One does wonder why Disney made the decision to close Blue Sky Studios, the option to have another animation studio could have allowed more animated projects for Disney+, and relieving the stress from studios like Disney Television Animation for sure.
What could make these films better too, feature-length films!
‘Diary of a Wimpy Kid’ Review – Final Thoughts
Diary of a Wimpy Kid is a perfect family watch, with Jeff Kinney’s wonderful world and iconic characters brought to life in a bright, energetic and hilarious new adaptation on Disney+. Whilst the short runtime is disappointing, the storytelling makes up for it, and makes Wimpy Kid the enjoyable film it is!
Diary of a Wimpy Kid is now streaming exclusively on Disney+
