Starring Zachary Gordon and Devon Bostick. Rated G.

In this quickly made sequel to last year’s Diary of a Wimpy Kid, the subtitle actually refers to handy tips offered by Greg Heffley’s older brother, Rodrick (Canuck heartthrob Devon Bostick). The most crucial, and the one most closely followed here, is “always lower expectations”.

As in any franchise, of course, some expectations must be met. And so this take on Jeff Kinney’s popular book series again features Rachael Harris and Steve Zahn as the put-upon parents of preteen protagonist Greg, with young Zachary Gordon again pulling amiable duty as the resident wimpster. As a diarist, however, young Greg is no Adrian Mole. There’s nothing witty or special about what he occasionally writes, although English director David Bowers makes good use of his animation background (FernGully: The Last Rainforest) by bringing Kinney’s stick-figure drawings to life whenever the alleged diary is referenced.

Thanks to a limp script from Gabe Sachs and Jeff Judah, who have both worked on the 90210 redo and other shows, the rest is beyond routine. In this Vancouver-shot tale, Greg hangs out with his fat best friend (Robert Capron), has mild wars with a smarty-pants rival, and falls for a new girl in school, played by the impossibly blond Peyton List. The movie is slightly more unpredictable when it takes flights of fancy, mostly involving Rodrick’s awful rock band, Loded Diper—and that name tells you everything you need to know about the film’s basic level of humour.

A number of stand-alone vignettes, such as a good-looking parody of an ’80s horror flick, start out well but go nowhere fast. And the older actors show visible strain in selling the weak material. Guess I was still expecting too much, but, sadly, I’m no longer 11.