Blu-ray Review: Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days

With movies like Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days it’s easy to fall into the never-ending and tired argument of books vs. movies, and why sometimes the translation doesn’t work, and what gets lost in the process. It would be even more tempting since this addition to the series is the most tepid and uninspired, unlike the Jeff Kinney books upon which it is based,  Dog Days and The Last Straw. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days is decidedly unpretentious and light-hearted, so giving it a treatment deeper than it deserves would be a mistake.

Greg (Zachary Gordon) is now headed for teenagehood, and all he wants, almost intuitively, is to cling to what little remains of his childhood, which for him would mean playing video games all summer. But his stick-in-the-mud father (Steve Zahn) thinks that Wilderness Explorers, romping in the sun, conventional sports, fake Civil War battles and dictatorial bans of video games and TV are what a real summer is all about. His mother (Rachael Harris) is not much help either since she tries to lure Greg into the snooze fest of a book club where they can discuss literature with friends. Oh, what fun.

So Greg has to get creative, and invents a fake job to be with his angelic pal Rowley (Robert Capron) and his love interest Holly (Peyton List) at a posh country club, where they get to swim in the nearly vacant pool and drink smoothies in the sunshine. Of course the idyll is spoilt when big brother Rodrick (Devon Bostick) finds out about the lies, blackmailing and stalking poor Greg until he lands him a gig at Holly’s big sister’s Sweet 16 party where Rodrick performs a punk-rock version of Justin Bieber’s ‘Baby’ with his band Loded Diaper. Very funny.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days is directed by David Bowers (who also directed the second film), but this time something is missing. The movie lacks charm and life, getting slightly dull at times (for a grown up, mind you). Kids, however, will be enchanted to find a kindred spirit in a character like Greg, who is pre-teen humiliation comedy impersonated.

Kids, and adults who remember what it was like to be kids, will smile at the memory of horrific public shower rooms and the excitement of getting that magic phone number, the perpetual fight over virtual reality and the great outdoors with the most boring parents in the world, the shame of being stuck naked in the pool, and the boredom of spending a weekend with an angelic family that sings songs in the car and shows plenty of affection via ‘why I love you’ games. But as a universal entertainment for all ages Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days misses the mark in the age of great pictures like ParaNorman that work both for kids and adults, and it’s a shame because the ingredients are there, but Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days plays far too safe to be fun.

Blu-ray

The Blu-ray combo for Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days includes two discs: the one with the movie and the extras, and  a second with the DVD and digital copy of the film. The extras include commentary with Director David Bowers, deleted scenes with optional commentary, an animated short called Class Clown, a gag reel, the obligatory theatrical trailer and a couple of other passable features like the ‘FX Movie Channel Presents Wimpy Empire’, which will only attract diehard fans of the franchise.

The audio is presented in English: 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital, French 5.1 Dolby Digital, which provide a pleasant experience. There are optional subtitles in English, French and Spanish. The video at Theatrical Aspect Ratio of widescreen 2.35:1 is also as good as it gets for a home viewing.

Verdict: Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days is fun for kids. Parents can get their much needed sleep here.