CNS Movie Review: She's the Man

She's the Man

By David DiCerto
Catholic News Service

NEW YORK (CNS) -- Shakespeare and soccer make for strange but agreeable bedfellows in "She's the Man" (DreamWorks), a breezy if uneven updating of the Bard's comedy of mistaken identities, "Twelfth Night," set in American suburbia. It's not all that odd a pairing when one considers that, after Shakespeare, perhaps England's latest bequest to the world is soccer star David Beckham's right foot.

Former Nickelodeon darling Amanda Bynes stars as Viola, here not a shipwrecked aristocrat but a soccer-obsessed tomboy whose hopes of an athletic scholarship are dashed when her high school, Cornwall Prep, drops its girls' soccer program.

Behind her divorced mom's (Julie Hagerty) back, Viola hatches a scheme to pose as twin brother Sebastian (James Kirk) -- who has sneaked off to England to perform with his band -- and enroll at his coed boarding school, Illyria Academy (one of many nods, along with the characters' names, to the play).

Viola plans to make the boys' soccer team (coached by ex-British footballer Vinnie Jones) and stick it to Cornwall -- Illyria's league rival -- whose own coach disparaged girls joining the male squad.

When weaving her tangled web, however, she didn't plan on falling for Sebastian's roommate Duke (Channing Tatum), who -- thinking she's a he -- is obviously not interested. Duke only has eyes for Olivia (Laura Ramsey), who, in turn, is smitten with "sensitive" Viola/Sebastian, leading to predictable romantic complications.

Director Andy Fickman cleverly incorporates Shakespeare's plot devices -- mixed-up lovers, triangular attractions and gender-bending deception -- to mostly good effect. The film follows the lead of other movies like "Clueless" and "10 Things I Hate About You" in contemporizing classics -- "Emma" and "The Taming of the Shrew," respectively -- for teen audiences. (The hapless adults are portrayed as mere caricatures, par for the course in this sort of film.)

Though to a far lesser degree than in those two films, the comedy here is occasionally crude; Viola/Sebastian indulges in locker-room banter to maintain her tenuous cover and prove she is one of the "guys." But this is relatively tame compared to most teen movies, not to mention Shakespeare's ribaldry. (When the fog of confusion is finally lifted, it involves dropped pants and a raised shirt but no nudity.)

"To see, or not to see?" That is the question for parents. Although there is a welcome absence of obscenities, sexual encounters, underage drinking and violence -- apart from a catfight scored to "Carmen" -- the film is best suited for older teens and up.

In contrast to "Clueless," which lightheartedly gave a pass to sexual irresponsibility even as it satirized superficiality and callow adolescence, "She's the Man" includes a scene where Duke confides to Viola/Sebastian that he is looking for a relationship built on more than just hormonal gratification.

That being said, as a film "She's the Man" does not, to quote the play, "have greatness thrust upon it." The fluffy script at times labors under forced humor, and plausibility is at a premium, to say the least. Still, the conceit works, for the most part, thanks in large measure to Bynes' effervescence, making for diverting entertainment whether you're into cleats or couplets.

The film contains some sexual humor and innuendo, a bathroom brawl between three girls, brief implied nudity, sports roughness, a few crass expressions, as well as an instance of profanity. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 -- parents strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

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DiCerto is on the staff of the Office for Film & Broadcasting of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

END

Copyright (c) 2006 Catholic News Service/USCCB. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed.
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