Book Into Movie: Diary of a Wimpy Kid

On Saturday, as promised, I took The Girl to see Diary of a Wimpy Kid.  She absolutely loves Jeff Kinney's Diary of a Wimpy Kid series (click here to read our review of Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days), and she was so excited when she found out one of her favorite books would be on the big screen.  The Girl and I were both curious how "a novel in cartoons" would be transformed into a non-animated movie, and I'm happy to say it was done quite well.

Like the book of the same name, Diary of a Wimpy Kid focuses on Greg Heffley as he enters middle school.  He wants to be popular, but despite trying his hardest, he gets beat by a girl in wrestling and is forced to sit on the floor and eat his lunch because no one will let him sit at their table.  His endearing best friend, Rowley, doesn't help matters by dressing like Greg and asking him loudly if he wants to come over after school "to play."  Packed with hilarious moments -- from playing a tree in the school play to a sleepover with the disgusting Fregley -- Greg's antics had us laughing from the very beginning.  But there are some serious moments in the film, when Greg's quest to be in the class favorites section of the yearbook jeopardizes his friendship with Rowley.

I thought the move from book to movie was seamless, as the cartoons in the book are brought to life in animated sequences and Greg is shown writing in the diary.  I haven't read the book and I'm much older than the target audience, but that didn't stop me from really enjoying the movie.  We don't usually go to the movies because it can get pricey, and I was relieved when I walked out of the theater and didn't regret spending money to see it.

I know you're all waiting to hear The Girl's (age 9) thoughts on the movie, especially since she's read the book, so here you go:

Did you like the movie?

Yes.  It was very funny.

Do you think they did a good job turning the book into a movie?  Was the movie much different than the book?

Yes they did a good job.  The movie was just like the book, and they brought the drawings in the book into the movie by showing Greg writing the diary.

A lot of the movie was the same as the book, like the “cheese touch,“ but some of it was different, like when Greg tries out for the Wizard of Oz and is offered the part of Dorothy.

Do you think they did a good job choosing real people to play the parts of characters you knew only as drawings in a book?

Yes.  And I like how they showed each actor with the drawing of the character they play from the book.

Any last thoughts on the movie?

I want you to buy the DVD when it comes out.  I think they should make the rest of the books into movies, too.  I think anyone who loves the book like I do should go see the movie.  They did a good job showing the importance of friendship.  And my favorite part of the movie was when Rowley showed up at Greg’s house on Halloween wearing a blinking light so he can be seen in the dark and Rodrick [Greg's older brother] tells them a scary story about kids being eaten.

Did any of you see the movie yet?  If so, tell us what you thought of it in the comments!

Disclosure: We forked over my hard-earned cash to see the movie.  The Girl received the book Diary of a Wimpy Kid as a gift.  I am an Amazon affiliate, and clicking on the above book cover image and links for the books will take you to my affiliate page.



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