The film starts with the end of school, and Greg (Zachary Gordon) has a very short list of accomplishments planned for the upcoming break. The first is he wants to spend as much time as possible playing videogames; the second, he wants to hang out with his crush, Holly (Peyton List).
There are only a couple of roadblocks in his path. For one, Holly got interrupted before writing down her number in his yearbook, for another, Greg's dad, Frank (Steve Zahn), doesn't like the idea of Greg spending his entire summer in front of the TV. Both issues seem to solve themselves when Greg is invited to the local country club by his friend Rowley (Robert Capron) and discovers that Holly also spends her summer days there.
In the standard Wimpy Kid manner, Greg schemes a way to stay close to Holly and not take on the internship his father has set up for the teenager; Greg claims to have gotten a job at the country club. At first, everything seems to go well. Even when Greg's big brother, Rodrick (Devon Bostick) learns of Greg's secret and blackmails Greg into sneaking him into the club, no one seems to be the wiser.
Of course, like every "clever" plan, it does eventually end and Frank decides to enroll the boys in a local Boy Scout-esque organization with a big camping trip on the horizon. Most of these elements seem to come from the "Dog Days" book, but the film also brings in a military academy from "The Last Straw." This new school seems to be a constant threat to Greg's future if his dad feels he needs the extra discipline in the coming years.
Dog Days comes with a few special features. They include the standard assortment of deleted scenes and gag reels, but there are also a couple of unusual extras. One is an animated short done in the Wimpy Kid style called "Class Clown," and the other is a featurette on the series' author, Jeff Kinney and his family and how the success of the books and movies has changed their lives.
Overall, Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days feels like a good continuation of the past two films. While Gordon seems to be growing up a bit too fast for the films, other actors like Capron and List still seem to fit the age-level of the characters. It will be interesting to see if there will be another film if the kids keep growing the way they are now. As a whole though, Dog Days only really fits in your collection if you already have the other films or are a fan of the books. Otherwise, I would say it's a rental at best.
