Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days
August 3, 2012
Fox
Comedy
DVD
B-

Diary of a Wimpy Kid regulars include:

1. Dalila Bela as Taylor Pringle
2. Devon Bostick as Rodrick Heffley
3. Karan Brar as Chirag Gupta
4. Robert Capron as Rowley Jefferson
5. Christopher Thorgard De-Schuster as Chris the Bass Player
6. Connor and Owen Fielding as Manny Heffley
7. Zachary Gordon as Greg Heffley
8. Rachael Harris as Susan Heffley
9. Bryce Hodgson as Ben Segal
10. Alf Humphreys as Mr. Jefferson (this time actually with lines!)
11. Terence Kelly as Grandpa Heffley
12. Jeff Kinney as Mr. Hills
13. Peyton List as Holly Hills
14. Laine MacNeil as Patty Farrell
15. Andrew McNee as Coach Malone
16. Melissa Roxburgh as Heather Hills (formerly Rachel in DWK2)
17. Grayson Russell as Fregley
18. John Shaw as Mr. Draybick

As the subtitle suggests, this is set in the summer, which means we get much less of school, and classmates and teachers, than in the previous films.  I don't know if it's this, or that Zachary Gordon has hit puberty (like Harry and Ron in Chamber of Secrets, his voice seems to have dropped several octaves), but I generally didn't find this entry as entertaining as the first two.  And yet I am giving another B-, because it contains what is easily the funniest sequence in the series:  Rodrick's cover version of Justin Bieber's "Baby."  (Yes, each of my 2012 movies has a song or a band called Baby as the highlight.)  Bostick remains the best thing about these movies, and he has the moves like Jagger as well as a very expressive face.  Even the moment between Rowley and the bestie of the girl that Rodrick has spectacularly failed to impress is good.  If only the rest of the movie were on that level.  Still, it's nice that Zahn has more to do, with the central relationship this time being between Greg and his dad.  It's not a bad place to leave the characters onscreen, although of course in the books Greg and company continue to not age.

Dawn Chubai was a newscaster in the second movie as well.  Nicole Fraissinet, who was a Megastore Girl in Josie and the Pussycats, plays Receptionist Julie here.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules
March 25, 2011
Fox
Comedy, Children's
DVD
B-

DWK regulars are (* means new to the series but will be back for #3):

1. Dalila Bela as Taylor Pringle*
2. Owen Best as Bryce Anderson
3. Devon Bostick as Rodrick Heffley
4. Karan Brar as Chirag Gupta
5. Christopher DeSchuster as Chris the Bass Player*
6. Connor and Owen Fielding as Manny Heffley
7. Zachary Gordon as Greg Heffley
8. Rachael Harris as Susan Heffley
9. Bryce Hodgson as Ben Segal
10. Ava Hughes as Marley
11. Alf Humphreys as Rowley's Dad, Mr. Jefferson
12. Terence Kelly as Grandpa Heffley*
13. Peyton List as Holly Hills
14. Laine MacNeil as Patty Farrell
15. Andrew McNee as Coach Malone
16. Belita Moreno as Mrs. Norton
17. Samantha Page as Shell(e)y
18. Melissa Roxburgh as Rachel (although she'd be Heather Hills in the next one)*
19. Grayson Russell as Fregley
20. John Shaw as Mr. Draybick*
21. Jake D. Smith as Archie Kelly

Also, author Jeff Kinney makes his first appearance as Holly's Dad, Mr. Hills.  Jeff Judah and Gabe Sachs again collaborated on the script, but the director is new: David Bowers, who did Flushed Away. I would say that this movie is a shade better than the first, not quite a B since it's not quite as funny and it does feel a little unbalanced, focusing much more on Greg's home life than on his school life.  That said, everyone, especially the kids, seem to have settled into their characters more, so that much less time is spent on set-up.  Just as DWK1 gave us Greg's friendship with Rowley, #2 tracks the shaky brotherhood of Greg and, as you may've guessed from the subtitle, Rodrick, allowing the whole Heffley family to shine.  There are funny moments (like Susan's "mom dance") but also more heart and realism than in the first movie.  A B- and a half I guess.

Dawn Chubai would return as a newscaster in DWK3.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid

Diary of a Wimpy Kid
March 10, 2010
Fox etc.
Comedy
DVD
B-

The Diary of a Wimpy Kid regulars are:

1. Owen Best as Bryce Anderson
2. Devon Bostick as Rodrick Heffley
3. Karan Brar as Chirag Gupta
4. Robert Capron as Rowley Jefferson
5. Connor and Owen Fielding as Manny Heffley
6. Zachary Gordon as Greg Heffley
7. Rachael Harris as Susan Heffley
8. Ava Hughes as Marley
9. Alf Humphreys as Mr. Jefferson (Rowley's dad)
10. Laine MacNeil as Patty Farrell
11. Andrew McNee as Coach Malone
12. Belita Moreno as Mrs. Norton
13. Samantha Page as Shelley
14. Grayson Russell as Fregley
15. Jake D. Smith as Archie Kelly

Also, Steve Zahn, who was the brother in Object of My Affection, plays Greg's dad.  The movie is surprisingly well-cast, considering it's based on a book with exaggerated characters who look and act like cartoons.  As the book is very episodic, there are some changes in terms of plot and characterization, with self-absorbed Greg learning a few life lessons here, although not changing entirely.  Which is just as well, since there would be two more movie sequels, and the book series is still running.  (Book 10 is due out this Fall.)

Watching this again, I realized that a lot of my favorite moments came in the later movies.  I do have to single out Bostick as giving my favorite performance.  He looks nothing like Rodrick in the book but he puts a lot more into the mean-big-brother role than expected, even in a simple line like, "And then they planted trees!"  Also, as a Gen-Xer I enjoyed the little moments of '80s-ness, like the Awesome to Be Me classroom movie.  DWK itself is designed to not look like it's from a particular time period and, as in Juno, there are no cell phones.

Jeff Judah and Gabe Sachs would also co-write the second movie in the series.  Brandon Barton was on the Dancing Elk Track Team in Juno and is the '80s Jock Boy here.

The Object of My Affection

The Object of My Affection
April 17, 1998
Fox
Romance, Comedy, Drama
VHS
B+

Based on a book, this is smarter and more complex than the average rom-com.  Yes, it has a happy ending (for just about everyone), but the journey there is different than you might expect, particularly in a mainstream film (even of the late '90s).

It's tempting to say that straight guys got Chasing Amy, and straight girls got this movie.  That is, in the former an apparent lesbian falls in love with and has sex with a man (only to have their romance threatened by his inability to deal with her bisexual past), while this film has a straight (and pregnant) woman get lots of ballroom dancing, talk, laughs, and cuddling, as well as a potential "mate" to raise her baby with that she gets along with much better than the baby's father.  Their romance is broken by the realization that he will never be sexually and romantically involved with her, although they love each other dearly.

The thing is, George is arguably bi as well, since he does seem aroused when he and Nina make out.  He may well be more oriented towards men, but it's not as if he doesn't have feelings for women, or at least Nina.  The issue is complicated by the undeniable chemistry between 29-year-old Jennifer Aniston  and Paul Rudd (a couple months younger).  The two would pair up again, as a married couple, many years later in the disappointing Wanderlust, but they remain a believable "couple" in this movie.

The script and direction never quite resolve this, but ambiguity is OK.  As for that happy ending, George is (six years later in the epilogue) a sort of uncle figure to Nina's daughter, and George and Nina are still good (maybe best) friends.  He's with the younger man he left Nina for, while she's with the sympathetic black cop she met after what has to be the mildest mugging in film history.  (The one in Clueless is more of a nail-biter to watch!)  True, the young man's sort of lover Rodney seems to be romantically alone, but he's still part of this "family."  (The daughter's father is happy, too, and not really villainized in the movie, which is refreshing.)  Rodney is well played by Nigel Hawthorne, who brings out the poignancy of what it's like when the Object of Your Affection cannot return that affection as you'd like.

Other notable supporting cast members are 38-year-old Allison Janney as Nina's stepsister Constance, the first of at least three does-amazing-stuff-with-this-role characters that Janney plays in my film collection  Her dry delivery is a treasure!  She's paired with Alan Alda, at 62 (and 20 years after Same Time, Next Year) too old for the role (especially since he's playing the father of Nina's six-year-old niece), but still fun in his name-dropping.  And there's a fairly early role for 30-year-old Steve Zahn as George's repeatedly engaged brother Frank.

Todd Stockman was an Audience Member in In & Out and plays a dad here.  Alba Albanese was a New Yorker in As Good as It Gets and is Woman in Central Park here.  School Child George Gearhart King III would be RV Son in Two Weeks Notice, while Iraida Polanco is Carmelita here and would be Rosario there.