Nothing To See Here, Just A Subpar Remake

Rodrick Rules, the animated sequel to the 2008 book, changes crucial elements of the story.

Intro

The book series, Diary Of The Wimpy Kid, was once insanely popular over ten years ago, creating cultural trends/games in the school place, such as the cheese touch. The first film remakes of these books were funny and watchable. However, with the books slowly dying in popularity, it begs the question of why Disney is releasing mediocre, animated remakes far worse than the original films.

Story & Animation

Diary Of A Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules is the second book of the series, first released in 2008 and made into a film in 2011. The book is hilarious and full of thrill, and the live-action remake captures most of that and creates a funny and entertaining experience. However, this animated version of Rodrick Rules changes details and cuts down many essential parts of the story, leaving it very dry and dull compared to the original. The story becomes void of emotion, and while there are still a few funny moments, it just doesn't capture the book correctly. However, the one good thing about the entire film is the animations. The animations are solid for an animated film; however, it doesn't make up for a lackluster plot.

Remake Problem

Remakes are generally frowned upon because they may need help capturing all the elements that made the original great. However, this is a remake of a remake which, as you can imagine, captures even less of the original. To make things worse, they’ve made this remake of a remake animated! This puts the nail in the coffin because while remakes can’t capture all the elements, animated films can’t capture the appropriate emotions. So now we have a film that not only can’t capture crucial element plots but also cannot capture a lick of emotion. We are left with 60 minutes of semi-amusing animated characters doing stupid things.

Closing Critiques

For people who have never watched or read the original films/book, Rodrick Rules may be semi-amusing. However, for avid fans of the first Diary of the Wimpy Kid books/films (such as myself), the film will be pretty painful. You’ll be able to notice every difference from the original and every missed opportunity to be funny. All in all, the best part of the entire film is its short run time, minimizing the audience’s suffering.

Raving Rating: 5.1