A fun, silly movie that never pretends to be anything but a fun, silly movie, She’s The Man is pretty much the ultimate in tweenage fluff flicks, pre-packaged with cute girl (Amanda Bynes), cute guy (Channing Tatum) and a lot of cheerfully cheesy heart. Daring to take its inspiration from the Bard himself, the movie is based on Shakespeare’s cross-dressing rom-com of errors Twelfth Night (yes, he did it before everyone else!).
In this modern, high-school version, Viola (Bynes) decides to dress up as her twin brother Sebastian (James Kirk) for a couple of weeks so she can try out for the guys’ soccer team… all so she can beat the crap out of her chauvinistic ex-boyfriend Justin (Robert Hoffman). Once installed in her temporary new school, however, Viola finds herself falling for sensitive jock-with-a-poetic-streak Duke (Tatum), whose priority, unfortunately, is pining after school beauty Olivia (Laura Ramsey)… who, in turn, only has eyes for the new boy i.e., Viola’s alter ego Sebastian. Throw into the mix Sebastian’s jealous and constantly jilted girlfriend Monique (Alex Breckenridge), boisterous soccer coach Mr Dinklage (Vinnie Jones) and whackjob Principal Gold (Arrested Development‘s David Cross), and you’ve got a recipe for miscommunications and hijinks galore.
That’s pretty much what this movie is all about, really – it chugs along at a merry little clip, tossing out plot twists for its overwhelmingly blonde, chirpy, ridiculously young cast to negotiate as they fall in and out of love with each other in varyingly amusing, occasionally disastrous ways. There are many, many ways in which this could turn out badly, in a thoroughly excruciating, this-is-so-unfunny-it-makes-me-want-to-eat-my-own-hair way. (I’d compare it to a Hilary Duff movie, except that would be unfair as I’ve never been able to bring myself to actually watch one.) Honestly, the plot is thin when it isn’t twisting itself in knots, the execution pedestrian and any ambition for a great filmic legacy is totally non-existent.
And yet, with its tongue planted mostly in its cheek, STM is a breeze to watch. It trips by at an admirable speed and with a lightness of touch that prevents it from becoming cloying. Viola is a tart, smart main character, which makes much of the more implausible hijinks bearable, while minor characters like super-dodgy, decidely strange Principal Gold lighten up proceedings considerably. The requisite video montages set to upbeat teen pop zip by too, as Viola turns herself into a boy with bad sideburns and a fake-deep voice, tries to sneak a shower, or learn some mad football skills from Duke.
In sum, it’s all sunny, inoffensive stuff… which is buoyed considerably by a handful of good performances. Bynes, in particular, holds the myriad threads of the movie together – she’s not all that believable as a boy, but she’s certainly far more credible than any other working actress in her age group would be. Most importantly, she throws herself into the role with gusto, be it wriggling her way through a carnival in which she has to play two people at once, or when she’s suffering a traditional boys’ school ragging. When she pimps up as Sebastian, especially in a memorable scene when she’s establishing her ‘stud’ cred with the guys in her new school by orchestrating encounters with her former ‘flames’, Bynes keeps Viola ditzy, likeable and real. The other great performance comes from Cross, who invariably steals the scene every time his character unleashes another random crack about being bald or fitting in.
All this is well and good, of course. If this is what you want in a movie, you’re unlikely to be disappointed, and you’d be willing to overlook the foundation of gaping holes in character and credibility on which this movie builds itself. Why Viola can skip school to attend her brother’s, and how people can consistently mix them up when they aren’t the same height, much less look anything alike, is just one thing you’ll have to get over (or ignore) in watching STM. But that’s not even the worst part – this is where you’re expected to suspend your disbelief, so if you can’t do that, sucks to be you. No, the far greater sin comes in the poor character development that abounds. Save for the spunky Viola, most of the main characters are mere lifeless cyphers – a crime particularly evident in the case of Duke, who’s a bland wash-out as Viola’s love interest. Hell, her ex, chauvinist bastard Justin, is more memorable than Duke, the jock with the heart of a soppy, sensitive poet. (Ewwww.)
But that’s not what you’re looking for, is it? If you’ve read this far, and haven’t yet been dissuaded to watch the movie, you probably won’t be – and honestly, for what it is, STM is an entertaining, cheerfully upbeat teen movie that plays far better than you’d ever expect it to. Check your brain at every door you’ve got, and enjoy the unadulterated fluff. You know you want to… 😉
shawneofthedead 