"Actor: Rachael Harris"

• Diary Of A Wimpy Kid 3 - Dog Days | DVD | (23/10/2017) from £5.30   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Diary of a Wimpy Kid 3: Dog Days, the third instalment in the Wimpy Kid films, is sublimely funny for all ages. That's a tall order, but it's really true. The script, the jokes, the acting, the dialogue are all appropriate for pretty much all ages of children, but manage to be super-appealing to adults too. Zachary Gordon is back as Greg, the wimpy kid who just can't quite square his true desires--to play video games all summer, indoors--with his well-meaning dad's intention that he do something worthwhile, and preferably outside. When Greg starts hanging out at the swanky country club pool to be nearer his crush, Holly (Peyton List), he lets his dad (Steve Zahn) believe he's gotten a job there. The jokes and gags are not highbrow, and yet director David Bowers and the talented cast and well-written script keep things moving along, if you will, swimmingly. What's great about the Wimpy Kid films is that the kids are believable and on-trend, and yet wear age-appropriate clothes and don't drop swear words. It's endearing to see middle-schoolers treated as the almost-teens they are--emphasis on "almost." Diary of a Wimpy Kid 3: Dog Days is truly a comedy that the whole family can enjoy together. --A.T. Hurley

• Diary of a Wimpy Kid 3: Dog Days - Triple Play (Blu-ray + DVD + Digital Copy) | Blu Ray | (26/11/2012) from £9.87   |  Saving you £15.12 (153.19%)   |  RRP £24.99

  During his summer vacation, "Wimpy Kid" Greg Heffley hatches a plan to pretend he has a job at a ritzy country club -- which fails to keep him away from the season's dog days, including embarrassing mishaps at a public pool and on a camping trip.

• Diary Of A Wimpy Kid | DVD | (23/10/2017) from £7.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  The first volume in Jeff Kinney's wildly popular Web and book series hits the screen in this live-action adaptation. The impish Zachary Gordon, who recalls Wonder Years-era Fred Savage, plays Greg Heffley, who enters middle school determined to become class favourite. It won't be easy. His best friend, Rowley (the sweetly funny Robert Capron), is a big, redheaded lug who embarrasses him at every turn. Greg's obnoxious teenage brother, Rodrick (Devon Bostick), advises him to keep his head down, but Greg believes he needs to excel at something to achieve his goal. Smart, but small for his age, he tries wrestling and safety patrolling, but nothing seems to fit. During gym class, he and Rowley meet wise-beyond-her-years newspaper reporter Angie (Chloë Moretz, (500) Days of Summer), who finds popularity overrated. Greg isn't convinced, but the harder he tries, the more boorish he becomes, until even Rowley abandons him. After a humiliating encounter with some high school bullies, though, Greg learns what really matters: self-respect (he also discovers that the dreaded "cheese touch" is just a myth). Berlin-born director Thor Freudenthal (Hotel for Dogs) avoids any dull or sentimental patches, which should please kids and adults alike (an upbeat modern-rock soundtrack doesn't hurt). Rachael Harris and Steve Zahn could use more face time as the terminally un-cool Heffley parents, but Harris's rhythm-impaired moves at the mother-son dance provide one of the best laughs. Kinney fans will also appreciate the way Freudenthal weaves stick-figure drawings from Greg's journal throughout this zippy entertainment. --Kathleen C. Fennessy