‘Diary of a Wimpy Kid’ Review: Growing Pains

The Wimpy-verse is expanding again thanks to the dutiful animated feature “Diary of a Wimpy Kid.” The characters created by Jeff Kinney in his best-selling books here enter middle school, a potential minefield of embarrassments and threats to friendship.

These uncool degenerates are prone to reckless driving and, oddly, listening to Judas Priest’s 1980 hit “Breaking the Law.” Greg’s teen sib is a pill, too, especially next to his sage mom, antsy dad and supercute moppet kid-brother.

But its vacuum-packed, impersonal animation does bear one benefit: no live child actors onscreen who can age out of their roles.

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