Shane Conto
Middle School sucks, doesn’t it? That is such an awkward time for so many people when they grow up. Author Jeff Kinney made a career out of capturing these awkward times with his beloved series, Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Audiences have been treated to a series of live action adaptations of Kinney’s work but now Disney+ is taking things in a different direction. These endearing tales will now be told through quirky and silly looking animation (true to the original drawings).
With this first journey into this new animated world, what story are audiences treated to? To be honest, this 58-minute tale is just a string of vignettes. Is there a grander story? Sort of. Greg, our protagonist through the awkwardness of growing up, has his best friend, Rowley. They have plenty of misadventures together, but they seem to find themselves at a bit of a crossroads. Will their friendship survive? That is the broader story being told but that is quite loose. Every few minutes, the film throws a new roadblock in Greg’s way (weird other kids, bullies, Halloween, his overbearing mother). The film zips by with reckless abandon (a perfect example of “kid pacing”) to the point that no emotion and challenge lasts more than a couple of minutes. This deflates much of the tension in the film.
With so much going on, what does the audience have to latch onto? What keeps them invested? What should be done is the cast of characters. Greg, Rowley, and all his family get time to live out on screen. The big issue is that most of these characters are so unlikeable. First off, Greg is so annoying and selfish that I found it hard to root for him. Rowley even has moments of being self-absorbed. Greg’s mom is just played off as overbearing and controlling. There really isn’t even any love there. His dad is a walking joke with no real connection to anyone. It is hard to feel connected with anyone when you don’t like them. But to give some credit, all the voice cast led by Brady Noon seem to be having a lot of fun.
What makes these books so beloved? These stories are so relatable. We have all had those moments of being made fun of. We have falling outs with friends. We have been nagged and disciplined by our parents. Each of these vignettes in the film will probably spark a memory from your own youth. Even if those experiencing it are not the most relatable, those actual experiences will hit a chord.
Does Disney+ have a winner on their hands? For kids, I am sure they will enjoy the silly looking characters and the zany occurrences. This film is not even an hour long, so it is not that much of an investment of time either. The kids can sit through it and adults can get through it easily as well. This certainly won’t be one of those animated family films that adults cherish but it is easily digestible and inoffensive.
