Saturday, January 29, 2011
MIDDLE SCHOOL
Today's film was the live version of the widely read kid series
This film is all kids. It is funny. There are no farts, no shit, no four letter words. There is only wit and identification for anyone who has started in Middle School and had serve for the first year of a confusing, baffling often hostile new world.
Nothing here is too over the top. Well, some stuff. The cartoons are sometimes blended into the live action but only to illlustrate what is happening to the kid and his view of it. They are, after all, his diary.
What is funny is that the diary is not, in the movie, something anyone likes. But in real life it is a successful series.
In addition to the school stuff, there is a long study of character, taking responsibility for your own actions and being honest with others. Honoring friendship. Being someone who does not lie.
I could go on and on. Everything a kid this age should hear is in this movie. And it is funny and palatable.
The parents, one of whom is a low profile Steve Zahn as a loving dad, are very good. They give the kids room to maneuver through their own dilemmas. The older brother is a classic little brother abuser. The baby is a classic attention stealer. Very good.
The school kids are stereotypes in a way but not in another way. I can't explain. I even spotted an FFA (future faggot of america) although, perhaps, neither the director or the kid have any idea. Gaydar. Identification.
The visuals are through the Wimpy Kid's eyes. Bright colors, exaggerated perspectives. Fast action.
Teachers are not dolts. Some are a bit of a cartoon but that is my experience with some teachers.
There is a through story, the school year, but the action is more episodic. Like cartoon panels. Short bursts. Great for limited attention spans like mine.
I liked this film very much and would be willing to see it again in a heartbeat.
I will give it a 4 out of Netflix5.
Labels: films
