The Review at a Glance: (max score: 5 )
Film:
Extras:
Audio/Video total rating:
( Max score: 100 )
82
Studio and Year: 20th Century Fox - 2010
MPAA Rating: PG
Feature running time: 92 minutes
Genre: Comedy
Disc Format: BD-50
Encoding: AVC (MPEG-4)
Video Aspect: 1.85:1
Resolution: 1080p/24
Audio Format(s): English DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio, Spanish/French Dolby Digital 5.1
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, Portuguese, Cantonese, Mandarin
Starring: Zachary Gordon, Robert Capron, Rachael Harris, Steve Zahn
Directed by: Thor Freudenthal
Music by: Theodore Shapiro
Written by: Jackie Filgo, Jeff Filgo, Gabe Sachs, Jeff Judah based upon the book by Jeff Kinney
Region Code: A
Blu-ray Disc release Date: August 3, 2010
"It’s not a diary, it’s a movie!"
Film Synopsis:
The hysterically funny, best-selling book comes to life in this smash-hit family comedy! Greg Heffley is headed for big things, but first he has to survive the scariest, most humiliating experience of any kid's life - middle school! That won't be easy, considering he's surrounded by hairy-freckled morons, wedgie-loving bullies and a moldy slice of cheese with nuclear cooties!
My Take:
Based on the best-selling illustrated novel by Jeff Kinney, the family comedy Diary of a Wimpy Kid arrives on Blu-ray Disc/DVD Combo Pack and DVD August 3 from Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment. The film chronicles the adventures of wisecracking pre-teen Greg Heffley, who must somehow survive the scariest time of anyone’s life… middle school. Convinced it’s the “dumbest idea ever invented,” Heffley considers junior high school a place rigged with hundreds of social landmines, not the least of which are wedgies, swirlies, bullies, lunchtime banishment of the cafeteria floor and a festering piece of cheese with nuclear cooties that he must overcome to become popular. His diary — or “journal” — chronicles his thoughts, tales of family trials and tribulations, and (would be) schoolyard triumphs.
I generally tend to gravitate to films that have the ability to take me back to my younger years. For adolescents middle school can be a difficult time as it is usually when they begin to develop their personal identity. It can be a fragile period especially for those who struggle for acceptance. My opinion of the film is mixed as there were aspects of it that I liked while there were others that left me wanting. Probably the biggest problem I had was the fact that the film’s would be protagonist, Greg, wasn’t very likeable. I mean it was hard to empathize with him when his motivations were purely driven by narcissistic intentions. Rowley on the other hand serves almost as Greg’s counterpoint and is forthright, funny and quite likeable. I am not so sure how genuinely his character is drawn when compared to real life but then again we aren’t talking about real life. These two serves as the story’s foundation and it does work however the imbedded lesson seems less poignant due to the lack of a connection with Greg for three quarters of the film.
Having said that there is a certain level of charm in the coming of age narrative that includes clever quips/dialogue and some well crafted references to middle school aged awkwardness. Zachary Gordon and Robert Capron have good chemistry with Capron making the most of every scene he is in. Steve Zahn and Rachael Harris are wasted in the roles of Greg’s parents but I got a kick out of Devon Bostick’s portrayal of Greg’s devious and bullying brother Roderick. Diary of a wimpy kid probably doesn’t translate from the book to film as well as hoped however it exudes enough charm, wit and age specific references so that it can be enjoyed by kids and adults alike.
Parental Guide:
The rating is for some rude humor and language.
AUDIO/VIDEO - By The Numbers:
REFERENCE = 92-100 / EXCELLENT = 83-91 / GOOD = 74-82 / AVERAGE = 65-73 / BELOW AVERAGE = under 65
**My audio/video ratings are based upon a comparative made against other high definition media/blu-ray disc.**
(Each rating is worth 4 points with a max of 5 per category)
Audio: 78
Video: 86
(Each rating is worth 4 points with a max of 5 per category)
Diary of a wimpy kid comes to Blu-ray Disc from Fox featuring 1080p AVC encoded video that has an average bitrate of 36 Mbps and lossless DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio sound that has an average bitrate of 4.4 Mbps.
This high definition video presentation looked great and boasted a pleasing palette of colors with eye popping primaries that jumped off of the screen. Fleshtones had a bit of a balmy quality with copper toned complexions that offered little variety. Elevated contrast added pop to colors and dynamic highlights to the sun drenched exterior sequences without completely white washing them. Resolution was excellent as images had crisp definition, revealing subtle delineation, and definitive long range visual acuity. Blacks were strong and depth of field in shadows and low lighting was appreciable. Sharpness fluctuated during a handful of shots but otherwise remained stable. I didn’t notice any compression errors associated with the encoding and thought that this was a solid effort from Fox.
The multi-channel lossless audio won’t test the limits of your surround sound system but it capably delivered the elements present in this soundtrack. Dialogue was tonally rich with excellent room penetration and defining clarity. Dynamics were punchy and bass response was appropriate and provided extension of the main channels that predominantly came in support of the music score. The front channels handled the bulk of the audio and presented a wide two dimensional soundstage with the surrounds supplying ambience detail that added depth. I thought the mix mated well with the source material and sounded just fine.
Bonus Features:
Final Thoughts:
Based upon the book of the same name Diary of a wimpy makes for an entertaining way to spend an evening of family movie night. Its coming of age story may not translate here as smoothly as in the book but it should strike a few chords with those who have lived through the experience of middle school while offering enough charm and wit to draw those in who haven’t. I am happy to report that it comes to Blu-ray Disc featuring excellent high definition video quality and crystal clear lossless sound. This cheesiest edition release includes Greg’s deleted diary pages, a look inside Rowley’s Diary (slipcase), director/writer audio commentary, Blu-ray exclusive content via BD-Live , a digital copy, and bonus DVD of the film. If you’re a fan this is an easy recommendation otherwise give it a rental on family movie night and enjoy.
Ralph Potts
AVS Forum Blu-ray Reviews
Reference Review System:
JVC DLA-RS20 1080p High Definition Front Projector (Calibrated by Jeff Meier)
Stewart Filmscreen - Studiotek 130 G3 100” 16x9 Screen
Anthem AVM50v THX Ultra 2 Preamp/Video Processor
Sherbourn Technologies - 7/200 Seven Channel Amplifier
Oppo BDP-83 Universal disc/Blu-ray Player (HDMI Audio/Video)
Toshiba HD-XA2 HD DVD Player (HDMI Audio/Video)
Sony Playstation 3 Blu-ray disc Player (HDMI Audio/Video)
Oppo 970HD universal disc DVD Player (480i HDMI)
Philips TSU9400 Pro Series Touch Panel Remote Control
Canton "Ergo" Series speakers
Axiom Audio QS8 Quadpolar speakers
SV Sound PB-13 Ultra (Rosenut finish)
APC AV S15BLK Power Conditioner/Surge Protector
Furman SPR-20i Stable Power Regulator
Wireworld, VizionWare, Audioquest, Better Cables, Best Deal Cables - Audio/Video/Speaker Cabling
Cool Components - CP-CP102 cooling package
The Review at a Glance: (max score: 5 )
Film:
Extras:
Audio/Video total rating:
( Max score: 100 )
82
Studio and Year: 20th Century Fox - 2010
MPAA Rating: PG
Feature running time: 92 minutes
Genre: Comedy
Disc Format: BD-50
Encoding: AVC (MPEG-4)
Video Aspect: 1.85:1
Resolution: 1080p/24
Audio Format(s): English DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio, Spanish/French Dolby Digital 5.1
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, Portuguese, Cantonese, Mandarin
Starring: Zachary Gordon, Robert Capron, Rachael Harris, Steve Zahn
Directed by: Thor Freudenthal
Music by: Theodore Shapiro
Written by: Jackie Filgo, Jeff Filgo, Gabe Sachs, Jeff Judah based upon the book by Jeff Kinney
Region Code: A
Blu-ray Disc release Date: August 3, 2010
"It’s not a diary, it’s a movie!"
Film Synopsis:
The hysterically funny, best-selling book comes to life in this smash-hit family comedy! Greg Heffley is headed for big things, but first he has to survive the scariest, most humiliating experience of any kid's life - middle school! That won't be easy, considering he's surrounded by hairy-freckled morons, wedgie-loving bullies and a moldy slice of cheese with nuclear cooties!
My Take:
Based on the best-selling illustrated novel by Jeff Kinney, the family comedy Diary of a Wimpy Kid arrives on Blu-ray Disc/DVD Combo Pack and DVD August 3 from Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment. The film chronicles the adventures of wisecracking pre-teen Greg Heffley, who must somehow survive the scariest time of anyone’s life… middle school. Convinced it’s the “dumbest idea ever invented,” Heffley considers junior high school a place rigged with hundreds of social landmines, not the least of which are wedgies, swirlies, bullies, lunchtime banishment of the cafeteria floor and a festering piece of cheese with nuclear cooties that he must overcome to become popular. His diary — or “journal” — chronicles his thoughts, tales of family trials and tribulations, and (would be) schoolyard triumphs.
I generally tend to gravitate to films that have the ability to take me back to my younger years. For adolescents middle school can be a difficult time as it is usually when they begin to develop their personal identity. It can be a fragile period especially for those who struggle for acceptance. My opinion of the film is mixed as there were aspects of it that I liked while there were others that left me wanting. Probably the biggest problem I had was the fact that the film’s would be protagonist, Greg, wasn’t very likeable. I mean it was hard to empathize with him when his motivations were purely driven by narcissistic intentions. Rowley on the other hand serves almost as Greg’s counterpoint and is forthright, funny and quite likeable. I am not so sure how genuinely his character is drawn when compared to real life but then again we aren’t talking about real life. These two serves as the story’s foundation and it does work however the imbedded lesson seems less poignant due to the lack of a connection with Greg for three quarters of the film.
Having said that there is a certain level of charm in the coming of age narrative that includes clever quips/dialogue and some well crafted references to middle school aged awkwardness. Zachary Gordon and Robert Capron have good chemistry with Capron making the most of every scene he is in. Steve Zahn and Rachael Harris are wasted in the roles of Greg’s parents but I got a kick out of Devon Bostick’s portrayal of Greg’s devious and bullying brother Roderick. Diary of a wimpy kid probably doesn’t translate from the book to film as well as hoped however it exudes enough charm, wit and age specific references so that it can be enjoyed by kids and adults alike.
Parental Guide:
The rating is for some rude humor and language.
AUDIO/VIDEO - By The Numbers:
REFERENCE = 92-100 / EXCELLENT = 83-91 / GOOD = 74-82 / AVERAGE = 65-73 / BELOW AVERAGE = under 65
**My audio/video ratings are based upon a comparative made against other high definition media/blu-ray disc.**
(Each rating is worth 4 points with a max of 5 per category)
Audio: 78
- Dynamics:
- Low frequency extension:
- Surround Sound presentation:
- Clarity/Detail:
- Dialogue Reproduction:
Video: 86
(Each rating is worth 4 points with a max of 5 per category)
- Resolution/Clarity:
- Black level/Shadow detail:
- Color reproduction:
- Fleshtones:
- Compression:
Diary of a wimpy kid comes to Blu-ray Disc from Fox featuring 1080p AVC encoded video that has an average bitrate of 36 Mbps and lossless DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio sound that has an average bitrate of 4.4 Mbps.
This high definition video presentation looked great and boasted a pleasing palette of colors with eye popping primaries that jumped off of the screen. Fleshtones had a bit of a balmy quality with copper toned complexions that offered little variety. Elevated contrast added pop to colors and dynamic highlights to the sun drenched exterior sequences without completely white washing them. Resolution was excellent as images had crisp definition, revealing subtle delineation, and definitive long range visual acuity. Blacks were strong and depth of field in shadows and low lighting was appreciable. Sharpness fluctuated during a handful of shots but otherwise remained stable. I didn’t notice any compression errors associated with the encoding and thought that this was a solid effort from Fox.
The multi-channel lossless audio won’t test the limits of your surround sound system but it capably delivered the elements present in this soundtrack. Dialogue was tonally rich with excellent room penetration and defining clarity. Dynamics were punchy and bass response was appropriate and provided extension of the main channels that predominantly came in support of the music score. The front channels handled the bulk of the audio and presented a wide two dimensional soundstage with the surrounds supplying ambience detail that added depth. I thought the mix mated well with the source material and sounded just fine.
Bonus Features:
- Blu-ray Disc Live enabled features (available via streaming or download):
- (HD) Fregley‘s scavenger hunt
- (HD) And now a word from our author with Jeff Kinney, Zachary Gordon, and Robert Capron
- (HD) Theatrical trailer
- (HD) Deleted Diary Pages - 10 segments
- Feature commentary with director Thor Freudenthal and writer Gabe Sachs
- (HD) Theatrical trailer
- (HD) Sneak peek - Tooth Fairy and Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The lightning thief
- Bonus DVD of Diary of a wimpy kid
- Digital Copy Bonus Disc of Diary of a wimpy kid
Final Thoughts:
Based upon the book of the same name Diary of a wimpy makes for an entertaining way to spend an evening of family movie night. Its coming of age story may not translate here as smoothly as in the book but it should strike a few chords with those who have lived through the experience of middle school while offering enough charm and wit to draw those in who haven’t. I am happy to report that it comes to Blu-ray Disc featuring excellent high definition video quality and crystal clear lossless sound. This cheesiest edition release includes Greg’s deleted diary pages, a look inside Rowley’s Diary (slipcase), director/writer audio commentary, Blu-ray exclusive content via BD-Live , a digital copy, and bonus DVD of the film. If you’re a fan this is an easy recommendation otherwise give it a rental on family movie night and enjoy.
Ralph Potts
AVS Forum Blu-ray Reviews
Reference Review System:
JVC DLA-RS20 1080p High Definition Front Projector (Calibrated by Jeff Meier)
Stewart Filmscreen - Studiotek 130 G3 100” 16x9 Screen
Anthem AVM50v THX Ultra 2 Preamp/Video Processor
Sherbourn Technologies - 7/200 Seven Channel Amplifier
Oppo BDP-83 Universal disc/Blu-ray Player (HDMI Audio/Video)
Toshiba HD-XA2 HD DVD Player (HDMI Audio/Video)
Sony Playstation 3 Blu-ray disc Player (HDMI Audio/Video)
Oppo 970HD universal disc DVD Player (480i HDMI)
Philips TSU9400 Pro Series Touch Panel Remote Control
Canton "Ergo" Series speakers
Axiom Audio QS8 Quadpolar speakers
SV Sound PB-13 Ultra (Rosenut finish)
APC AV S15BLK Power Conditioner/Surge Protector
Furman SPR-20i Stable Power Regulator
Wireworld, VizionWare, Audioquest, Better Cables, Best Deal Cables - Audio/Video/Speaker Cabling
Cool Components - CP-CP102 cooling package