I've certainly seen my share of "family films" over the years, and I've decided that it must be really weird to make one. Judging by a lot of them, there often isn't much effort involved. Just make sure that there's plenty of action, bright colors, and a couple of juvenile jokes, and the kids will be entertained. Some attempt to put in some jokes for the adults, but the majority are aimed squarely at kids and have no concern for the rest of the "family". These movies usually have pretty-good opening weekends, but after the kids have dragged their parents to see them, they go away. Because of this, when a "family film" which is actually good comes along, it really stands out. This is the case with Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules.

It's very rare for people to truly learn from their mistakes, especially when big money is involved. Diary of a Wimpy Kid may have been a hit, but I found the movie to be unfocused and uneven, as it made the mistake of making Greg unlikable. A sequel to the movie was fairly inevitable, and there was no reason to expect that it would be an improvement over the first entry. But, somehow, it is.

Again, I've never read any of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid books, so I don't know what they are like, and I can't say if this new movie takes its cues from the book, but I can say that Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules corrects many of the problems found in the first movie. First of all, it never tries to show that middle school is the worst place on Earth. No, life isn't perfect for Greg there, but like many things in life, it has its ups and downs. This not only feels more realistic, it makes the movie much more palatable. We see that Greg isn't the most popular kid in school, but he does have his place and it's clearly not at the bottom.

Actually, the movie doesn't focus very much on Greg's school life, save for the scenes showing him trying to woo Holly Hills. As the title would imply, much of the movie is about Greg's relationship with his brother, Rodrick. Greg is the classic middle kid and we see how, just like school, his situation with Rodrick ebbs and flows. This was a wise decision, as Rodrick's bullying and tormenting of Greg makes us sympathize with him, instead of the exact opposite feeling which was created in the first movie. Likewise, the movie also does itself a favor by having less Rowley. Yes, the "be yourself and everything will be OK" message conveyed by this character is a positive one, but I'm not sure that it's an entirely realistic one and his simple goodness wears thin at times. (Of course, I also found some of Rodrick's behavior to be unrealistic, but it falls more into the realm of "exaggerated".)

The thing that I liked best about Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules was its honesty. While remaining firmly within its PG rating, the movie doesn't pull any punches when it comes to school, questionable parenting, abusive siblings, and rock music. This results in a movie which is much funnier than its predecessor. Rodrick Rules is no laugh riot, but there are some very humorous scenes, especially the finale. Having Steve Zahn and Rachael Harris on board certainly doesn't hurt in this area. It's very interesting to see Zahn go from the quirky roles which he did in the past to playing a father who's often at his wit's end.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules isn't a perfect movie, but it's a vast improvement over the original. I'm guess that a new team behind the camera helped contribute to a movie which is more focused and has a real sense of purpose. The jokes are pretty good, and there are some touching moments as well. Great for tweens and older, this diary is worth snooping for.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules makes me wonder if kids today even know what a conga line is on Blu-ray Disc courtesy of 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment. The film has been letterboxed at 2.35:1 and the Disc contains an AVC 1080p HD transfer which runs at an average of 30 Mbps. The image is sharp and clear, showing only a slight amount of grain and no defects from the source materials. The colors look very good, most notably reds and blues, and the image is never overly dark or bright. The depth of the image is good, as some shots display a quasi-3D effect. Detail is worth noting, as the image is never soft. The Disc carries a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track which runs at 48 kHz and an average of 4.0 Mbps. The track provides clear dialogue and sound effects. During the lunchroom and talent show scenes, we are treated to decent surround sound effects, as we can hear the crowds in the rear speakers. These same scenes, along with some others, offer nicely detailed stereo effects. Subwoofer effects are kept to a minimum, save for some sound effects and the music of Loded Diper.

The Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules Blu-ray Disc contains a few extras. We begin with an AUDIO COMMENTARY from Director David Bowers and Author Jeff Kinney. "My Summer Vacation" (9 minutes) contains seven brief segments in which the characters describe what they did over the summer. (This feels like something which was done on-line.) The Disc contains ten DELETED SCENES which run about 9 minutes. They can be viewed with optional commentary from Bowers. All of these are simply longer versions of scenes from the film, and none bring in anything new. There are a few chuckles here. This is followed by an "Alternate Ending" (90 seconds), which would have come during the credits. This can also be accompanied by commentary from Bowers and I can definitely see why they cut it. We get a 4-minute GAG REEL. The final extra is the THEATRICAL TRAILER for the film.