Diary of a Wimpy Kid Christmas: Cabin Fever Parent Guide

Greg Heffley (Wesley Kimmel) is trying to be extra good this holiday season. He’s asked Santa for the new Mega Station 9000 gaming system and nothing is going to stop him from getting it, not even the watchful eyes of Elfrendo, an elf doll that purportedly reports back to Santa on the goings on in the Heffley house. But while Greg and his best friend Rowley (Spencer Howell) make a snowman, the boys accidentally cause a bit of property damage with a large snowball, enough to make them concerned about their naughty/nice standings. On top of that worry, a storm sets in that threatens to snow the Heffley’s in from now until Christmas.

An animated Christmas special needs to have a few things: some relatable childhood troubles, a sweet Christmas message, and a story that can manage to be engaging for about an hour or so. Diary of a Wimpy Kid Christmas: Cabin Fever has all of those components wrapped up in a popular franchise. In other words, it does exactly what it needs to do. This is less a movie and more a TV holiday special, so no one expects it to be groundbreaking cinema, which is perfectly fine. For what it’s meant to be, it’s pretty good. My son and I both laughed a few times, I got a little emotional at the ending, and the whole thing felt appropriately festive.

A big bonus is that this production has next to no negative content to speak of. I’m honestly scratching my head at why Disney has it listed as PG, when it should easily have been rated G. Very young viewers may not enjoy it, mainly because the subject matter is relatable to older children; not because of any content concerns. That said, I think most families will be satisfied by this sweet, festive tale with a great message about the importance of family and the spirit of giving.