Directed by Thor Freudenthal
Produced by Nina Jacobson,Bradford Simpson,Ethan Smith,Jeff Kinney (executive)
Written by Jackie Filgo,Jeff Filgo,Jeff Judah,Gabe Sachs,Jeff Kinney (novel)
Genre Comedy | Family
Music by Theodore Shapiro,Julia Michels
Cinematography Jack N. Green
Editing by Wendy Greene Bricmont Studio Color Force
Distributed by 20th Century Fox
Release date(s) March 19, 2010 (2010-03-19) (US) August 27, 2010 (UK)
Running time 94 minutes
Country United States
Language English
TaGLine: I'll be famous one day, but for now I'm stuck in middle school with a bunch of morons.
CasT
* Zachary Gordon as Greg Heffley, the protagonist and narrator. He is bullied by other kids at school and by Rodrick.
He thinks that middle school is the worst idea ever invented.
* Robert Capron as Rowley Jefferson, Greg's friend and the film's deuteragonist. He is not as socially awkward as he
is in the books, but he does cause some embarrassing moments.
* Rachael Harris as Susan Heffley, Greg's mother.
* Steve Zahn as Frank Heffley, Greg's father.
* Devon Bostick as Rodrick Heffley, Greg's older brother.
* Connor and Owen Fielding as Manny Heffley, Greg's little brother.
* Chloë Moretz as Angie Steadman, a seventh grader who tries to guide Greg through his sixth grade year.
* Grayson Russell as Fregley, Greg's weird classmate.
* Laine MacNeil as Patty Farrell, Greg's rival and the secondary antagonist of the film.
* Karan Brar as Chirag Gupta. He is a friend of Greg, and unlike in the books, has a more major role in the film.
* Alex Ferris as Collin Lee, Rowley's temporary best friend.
* Andrew McNee as Coach Malone, the gym teacher.
* Rob LaBelle as Mr. Winsky, the safety patrol teacher.
* Kaye Capron (Robert Capron's real-life mother) as Rowley's mother.
* Jennifer Clement as Mrs. Flint, Greg's teacher.
* Belita Moreno as Mrs. Norton, the music teacher for the Wizard of Oz play.
11-year-old Greg Heffley (Zachary Gordon) is anxious to start middle school, confident he will easily become the school's most popular
kid. However, Greg worries about how his "uncool" best friend, Rowley Jefferson (Robert Capron), will fit in. While Rowley is a good
friend who helps Greg escape his terrorizing older brother, Rodrick (Devon Bostick), Greg worries that Rowley's "dorky" clothes and
personality will embarrass both of them.On their first day, Greg and Rowley meet Angie (Chloë Moretz), a seventh grader who works
for the school's paper. Throughout the school year, Angie gives Greg and Rowley information about the workings of middle school, which
she believes was created to store kids while they make the awkward transition between children to teenagers. Classmate Chirag Gupta
(Karan Brar) tells Greg and Rowley the story behind the moldy slice of swiss cheese laying on the school's basketball court; upon touching
the cheese, a kid named Darren Walsh (Harrison Houde) contracted the Cheese Touch; anyone who touches the cheese becomes an outcast
until they pass on the cheese touch by touching someone else. The Cheese Touch eventually got taken away by a German exchange student named Dieter Muller.
Greg is determined to be voted a "class favorite" and listed in the yearbook, but each of his attempts to do so backfire. His popularity quickly
drops as he loses to Patty Farrell (Laine MacNeil), Greg's arch-enemy, in Scholastic wrestling (taught by Coach Malone (Andrew McNee));
Greg angers teenagers on Halloween night by threatening to call the cops on them after they spray him and Rowley with a fire extinguisher, and
then damages their Ford F150 with a weed whacker; Greg joins the geeky Safety Patrol with Rowley; and breaks Rowley's arm during winter
time. At school, everyone notices Rowley's broken arm and Rowley becomes very popular, much to Greg's dismay. Rowley's popularity increases
when he beats Greg to become the school paper's cartoonist, despite Greg's dismissal of his ideas.Greg and Rowley's friendship falls apart after
Greg allows Rowley to unwittingly take the blame for a mistake Greg made during Safety Patrol. After Greg tells Rowley the truth and tries to tell
it as a joke, Rowley berates him for being a bad friend who cares about nothing but himself. Rowley then leaves him and befriends a kid named
Collin Lee (Alex Ferris). Greg tries to move on by having a sleep over with Fregley (Grayson Russell), the weirdest and 201st most popular (past the bottom)
kid in school, but Fregley's sugar-induced hyperactivity is too much for him to take. He then tries to pursue popularity without Rowley by auditioning
for the school play of The Wizard of Oz, but ruins the performance by starting an apple throwing fight with Patty in the middle of the performance.
At the school mother-son dance, Greg's mother (Rachael Harris) suggests Greg ask Rowley to go out for ice cream with them. However, Rowley
tells Greg that he and Collin already have plans. Later, Greg is excited when Rowley comes up to him in school, but is disappointed when he learns
Rowley only wants a game back. Greg refuses to return the game, causing them to get into a argument. Kids gather around them, wanting them to
fight, but are quickly dispelled when the teenagers Greg and Rowley had angered on Halloween drive up, looking for revenge. The teenagers find
the Cheese and force Rowley to eat it. They are about to force Greg to eat the part Rowley didn't when Coach Malone arrives, leading the teenagers to run away.
The kids return and find the partially eaten Cheese. Patty begins to accuse Rowley, but Greg steps in and takes the blame. He picks up the Cheese
and makes a profound speech about the ridiculousness of the Cheese and other middle school institutions, but it backfires as everyone runs away
from Greg, who now has the Cheese Touch. Greg and Rowley make up, and Angie approaches them to compliment Greg for his bravery. Greg
and Rowley make it into the class favorites list as "cutest friends". The film ends with Greg, Rowley, and Angie laughing after Patty hugged Rowley
and contracted the Cheese Touch and Greg narrating that he still has the summer and next year ahead of him.
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