Disclaimer: Contains spoilers!
Plot Summary: A boy starts middle school and begins a year of embarrassments and coping with social awkwardness.
Review: Ah, the wonderful awkwardness of the early teen years. Although not the most realistic depiction of middle school (we called it junior high) it is an entertaining enough take on the setting. The main character, Greg, is a dork who believes he is cool or at least has the potential to be a cool kid. Throughout the film we constantly see Greg try to fit in or stand out, if you will, and each time meeting utter failure. Essentially, the comedy aspect of this film is derived from each of these setups. While this is a kind of tired format for a family movie, it does bring some interesting moments to the table. At the same time we see the ups and downs of Greg's friendship with his best friend, Rowley. The story is entertaining enough even though you know things will, of course, work themselves out by the end. Although I understand they were trying to stay true to the book, I just felt like there were not enough funny moments, and Greg is an annoying main character. I think the fact that Greg is so unlikable is what hurts this franchise as a whole because he seems so selfish and often mean that you don't really want things to work out for him. If they were trying to go for a kid who feels like an "average boy" they failed in balancing likability with the occasional screw up. In fact, it would have probably felt more humorous if the perspective of the film was from Rowley. This film has some decent acting, some modest comedy, but, at the end of the day, it's mostly forgettable. Unless you're a fan of the franchise, this is just a slightly above average family film which is an easy pass. I personally felt the sequels were better and made you feel a little better about cheering for Greg to succeed especially in the part two.
Notable Moment: Somewhat early on when we are introduced to each of the weird kids that go to this school.
Final Rating: 6/10
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