Happiness Movies: Diary of a Wimpy Kid - "Zoo-Wee Mama!"

 "I'll be famous one day, but for now I'm stuck in middle school with a bunch of morons."

Greg Heffley

Last Sunday we took our kids to AMC at Discover Mills to watch Diary of a Wimpy Kid. I have to admit that I have been very curious about the content of this film. Diary of a Wimpy kid chronicles the adventures of wisecracking junior high student Greg Heffley over the academic year through his diary and hand-drawn cartoons. Diary of a Wimpy Kid has been the only book my 8 y/o have voluntarily read from start to finish (twice). Actually, this has been the only book he has "literally" beg on his knees for me to buy. Just like my son, kids all over the world just seemed to can’t get enough of the of the book series, written and illustrated by Jeff Kinney. With more than 28 millions copies sold I wasn't surprised when the movie came out.

According to Dr. Lawrence Rosen, “The power of the book is about the wimpy kid, a regular kid with regular problems, just dealing with what life brings him”. For me the way I see it this book is about the ups and downs of middle school and the struggle of a kid to fit in and have recognition by his peers. Many have criticized the language used in the book while others criticized the fact that Greg should not be idolized by kids as a role model since he does not do the right thing at the beginning of the story. However, this is exactly what most kids like about Greg. You see, Greg is not perfect he is just a regular kid learning to navigate through life by trial and error and that ladies and gentleman is what life is all about. Questionable behavior aside, there is no question your kids will love the movie and the book series. If you want to laugh from start to finish then this movie is right for you. I give this movie 4 out of  5 star for family friendliness.