Abigail Dunagan, Campus Carrier arts and living editor
I am sure many of us can remember going to the library as kids, looking to snag the next book in Jeff Kinney’s “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” series. This colorful, easy to read book series caught the fascination of a generation, making us all laugh and question the sanity of the main character Greg Heffley. With so many iconic jokes like Rodrick’s band “Loded Diper” and “the cheese touch,” these books are remembered by almost everybody. They impacted our generation, and I believe that the movies will go down in history as one the greatest film series of all time.
When you think of a “great” film, you might think of a movie that was monumental for its time period, like “Gone with the Wind” (1939) or “Star Wars” (1977). While these films are certainly great in their own right, the simple comedy of the three “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” movies has had an incredibly powerful impact. Just to clarify, I am referring to the three movies Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2010), Rodrick Rules (2011) and Dog Days (2012). Each of these films follows Greg as he goes through the ups and downs of middle school. He has to deal with girl problems, a tyrannical older brother and parents who simply don’t get it. While it can be argued that Greg is a bit of a sociopath, there is something about these movies that most people can relate to.
I remember being in middle school and thinking my family was weird and looking at my friends’ families thinking that they were so normal. Now that I am older, I recognize that pretty much all families are a little weird in their own right, and they are probably looking at other people thinking that they have it all together. While the Heffley family is certainly chaotic, and often embarrassing to Greg, the main conflict is resolved at the end of each film. All three of the movies wrap up in a nice reminder that middle school is not the end of the world, your parents do love you and your older brother is not actually going to kill you, all while making us laugh along the way.
These movies were more relatable to me when I was young, but I still find myself appreciating the humor and sweet moments in them. As an older sibling myself, the fights between Rodrick and Greg remind me of the petty arguments and battles that my siblings and I would get in to. I remember walking into the first day of 6th grade, hoping that I would be cool enough. I remember trying to do all of my chores and homework so my mom would let me play video games. While I don’t think my life was nearly as dramatic as Greg’s, these films remind me of that monumental period of growth in middle school. Everything seemed like such a big deal back then, but looking back I laugh at how over the top I acted. The “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” movies and books gave us something to relate to and laugh at, and over a decade later they are still serving that purpose for many people, young and old.