Dear Dumb Diary (film)
| Dear Dumb Diary | |
|---|---|
_poster.jpg) Film poster | |
| Written by | Jim Benton Kristin Hanggi |
| Directed by | Kristin Hanggi |
| Starring | Emily Alyn Lind Mary-Charles Jones David Mazouz Sterling Griffith James Waterston Lea DeLaria Maddie Corman Laura Bell Bundy Jeffrey Hanson Tom Markus |
| Music by | Steven Argila |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| Production | |
| Producers | Jim Bechtold Sean Gesell Don Schain Brian Wells |
| Editor | Dan Schalk |
| Production companies | Zucker Productions Walden Media Triple D Productions |
| Original release | |
| Release |
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Dear Dumb Diary is a Hallmark Channel television film based on the book series of the same name by Jim Benton.[1] It stars Emily Alyn Lind as Jamie Kelly, a seventh-grader who documents her experiences at Mackerel Middle School in her diary, as well as Mary-Charles Jones as her best friend Isabella and Sterling Griffith as popular girl Angeline, first airing on the Hallmark Channel in September 6, 2013,[2] the film received mixed reviews.[3]
Synopsis
Jamie Kelly is a student at Mackerel Middle School. Her closest relationships include her best friend Isabella Vinchella, her 'nemesis' Angeline and her love interest Hudson Rivers. Upon finding out that budget cuts are taking away the art class, she inadvertently signs up for the Jump-A-Thon, which Angeline is also participating in. Jamie and Isabella go door-to-door asking for donations, with Isabella also getting donations for a donation group she refers to as the "Juvenile Optometry Federation" Meanwhile, her Aunt Carol applies for a job as a secretary after Jamie accidentally injures an older secretary in Assistant Principal Devon's office.
Aunt Carol starts dating and Jamie tries to figure out who this mysterious date is. Meanwhile, Angeline appears to be hanging around Jamie a bit more, which Jamie assumes is something evil or manipulative going on. Jamie attempts to steal Angeline's permanent record, trying to find things to use against Angeline. Just days prior to the Jump-A-Thon, Jamie finds out that Isabella lied about the "Juvenile Optometry Federation" and was just using the money to buy herself some contact lenses, which turn out to be faulty. At the Jump-A-Thon, Jamie learns that Angeline, despite all the sponsors she has received for the Jump-A-Thon, cannot do jump-rope. Against her own preferences, she decides to help Angeline and gets Isabella to help Angeline too.
Her family has a gathering at her house in which several of the teachers are invited. At this party, she learns that the mystery boyfriend of Aunt Carol is none other than Assistant Principal Devon, whom she soon learns is Angeline's "Uncle Dan" when he announces that he & Aunt Carol are engaged. This disturbs Jamie upon learning that she may end up being Angeline's cousin. Isabella then reveals that she started up a charity called the "Juvenile Optometry Federation" Jamie tells Angeline that she had taken her permanent record, but has returned it, Angeline in turn telling Jamie that she's still taking Hudson to the wedding.[4]
Cast
- Emily Alyn Lind as Jamie Kelly
- Katy Jensen as Adult Jamie
- Mary-Charles Jones as Isabella
- Sterling Griffith as Angeline
- David Mazouz as Hudson Rivers
- Carson Oliver as Mike Pinsetti
- James Waterston as Assistant Principal Devon
- Laura Bell Bundy as Aunt Carol
- Jacque Gray as Miss Anderson
- Lea DeLaria as Ms. Bruntford
- Maddie Corman as Mrs. Kelly
- Jeffrey Hanson as Mr. Kelly
- Tom Markus as Mr Vandoy
- Duane Stephens as Coach Dover
Production
The movie was first announced on Jim Benton's website.[5] The movie utilizes plot-lines and aspects from various instalments in the Dear Dumb Diary. The main storylines of the Jump-A-Thon and Aunt Carol's mystery date originate from Never Do Anything, Ever and Can Adults Become Human, respectively. The side story of Jamie stealing Angeline's permanent record is borrowed from Let's Pretend This Never Happened, while the "zone-shampooing" gag originates from a storyline in Am I The Princess Or The Frog. Three of the original songs, "Dear Future Jamie," "My Awesomeness is Awesome," and "Meatloaf Mystery," were written by Dan Mackenzie.[6] Other songs were written by Steven Argila and Seth Freeman.[7]
Music
The songs include:
- Dear Dumb Diary-performed by Emily Alyn Lind
- Same Girl-performed by Emily Alyn Lind
- Just A Number-performed by Emily Alyn Lind
- My Awesomeness Is Awesome-performed by Emily Alyn Lind
- May The Dumb Be With You-performed by Emily Alyn Lind
- Dear Future Jamie-performed by Emily Alyn Lind
- Meatloaf Mystery-performed by Lea DeLaria
- Perfect People Of The World-performed by Emily Alyn Lind
- Paparazzi-performed by Emily Alyn Lind
- Love Is Everything-performed by Lea Andreone
The soundtrack includes "Score Suite for Dear Dumb Diary" performed by Steven Argila, the film's composer, and "Dear Dumb Diary (Karaoke Mix)" by Emily Alyn Lind.[8]
Reception
The movie has mixed reviews, with an audience rating of 57% on Rotten Tomatoes,[9] whilst IMDb has gotten a rating of 5.8 out of 10 for the film based on rankings of the film.[10] Common Sense Media has given the film 4/5 however, stating "Books-inspired movie has great social messages for kids".[11] Pretty Famous has ranked the movie 49%[12]
References
- ^ "Dear Dumb Diary". www.jimbenton.com. Retrieved 2016-01-30.
- ^ "Breaking News - "Dear Dumb Diary," a Hallmark Channel Original Movie Starring Emily Alyn Lind and Mary-Charles Jones, Begins Production in Salt Lake City | TheFutonCritic.com". www.thefutoncritic.com. Retrieved 2016-01-30.
- ^ Hanggi, Kristin (July 9, 2013), Dear Dumb Diary, retrieved January 30, 2016
- ^ "Dear Dumb Diary (2013) Movie Script | SS". Springfield! Springfield!. Retrieved January 30, 2016.
- ^ "Dear Dumb Diary". jimbenton.com. Retrieved 2016-02-08.
- ^ Dear Dumb Diary Original Soundtrackwww.allmusic.com
- ^ Hanggi, Kristin (September 9, 2013), Dear Dumb Diary, retrieved February 8, 2016
- ^ "Dear Dumb Diary Soundtrack (2013)". www.soundtrack.net. Retrieved February 9, 2016.
- ^ "Dear Dumb Diary". www.rottentomatoes.com. Retrieved 2016-02-08.
- ^ Hanggi, Kristin (2013-09-06), Dear Dumb Diary, retrieved 2016-02-08
- ^ "Dear Dumb Diary - Movie Review". www.commonsensemedia.org. Retrieved 2016-02-08.
- ^ "Dear Dumb Diary -". movies.prettyfamous.com. Retrieved February 8, 2016.[permanent dead link]