Dear diary: This mostly sucks

It’s a shame that it’s come to this, but family movies without the Pixar name on them are almost invariably mediocre these days. When laid next to those masterpieces, the shallow plots and ho-hum performances render the films almost unnecessary.

But the announcement of a big-screen adaptation of “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” — based on a book by Jeff Kinney that fuses the comic book and young adult fiction genres to tell the story of a youngster entering middle school — intrigued many.

Unfortunately, despite some unique shooting techniques that play up the comic-strip elements of the book and solid performances by the tween cast, the script and pacing make the film wholly unspectacular. There’s nothing here that shows like “Ned’s Declassified” and “iCarly” haven’t done better.

If it’s good clean family fun you’re looking for, though, there’s no better option in this mostly dead pre-summer part of the movie-going year. Your wimpy kid will probably love it.