The tagline for "She's the Man," a new comedy directed by Andy Fickman, reads, in part: "Everybody has a secret... Duke wants Olivia who likes Sebastian who is really Viola whose brother is dating Monique so she hates Olivia who's with Duke to make Sebastian jealous, who is really Viola, who's crushing on Duke who thinks she's a guy..." Sophisticated prose such as this undoubtedly makes you think "By golly, this film is loosely based on William Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night"!
Well, you would be right, you savvy Shakespeare enthusiast, you! But one should keep the word "loosely" in mind when considering the similarities between "Twelfth Night" and "She's the Man." The film, after all, is set in modern day America and focuses on high school student Viola (Amanda Bynes) who, after her school's girls' soccer team is cut, pretends to be her brother, Sebastian, at his new boarding school so she can prove to her chauvinist ex-boyfriend and ex-soccer coach that the on-field and off-, girls are just as good as boys.
Of course, misunderstandings and complications of all kinds abound. Apparently, disguising oneself as the opposite sex is difficult, though ever so amusing in the land of feel-good comedies. Viola's difficulties escalate as she begins to fall for her roommate and teammate Duke, who, as the tagline explains, likes the beautiful Olivia, who has fallen for the sensitive and caring Sebastian (though Sebastian is really Viola; hope you are following).
With the plucky Amanda Bynes, a former staple of Nickelodeon sketch comedy shows, as the film's star, "She's the Man" is sure to lure in the tween-to-teenage crowd. Though she is immensely appealing to a desirable market, Bynes doesn't offer much in the way of acting. Bynes playing a man is just plain uncomfortable to watch.
As Sebastian, Viola looks less like a soccer-playing hunk and more like a round-faced, British, 12-year-old paperboy. But making Viola an even less convincing boy is Bynes' male accent which, in one string of words, varies from street gangster to southern redneck to Scottish policeman, making viewers wonder if the brother she's imitating is confused about his nationality or functionally schizophrenic.
Perhaps this accent confusion is meant to illustrate how difficult it is for Viola to become Sebastian. Instead, it comes off as bad acting and is more irritating than anything else.
Making a surprising but delightful appearance in this film, among a cast of relative newcomers, is David Cross of "Arrested Development," "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" (2004), and a slew of other acclaimed projects. Cross plays Principal Gold, the well meaning but clueless head of Sebastian's new school. Cross's few scenes are among the funniest of the film, as he brings his irreverent, silly humor to each.
The other cast members are not remarkable for much, except their impossibly good looks. Though one's instinct is to immediately hate her because she's so naturally beautiful, Laura Ramsey as Olivia is quite pleasant and likeable.
The first image of a shirtless Duke is enough to make even the most heterosexual male swoon a little, and though his lines are at times delivered like a truck driver from the wrong side of the tracks, he is a decent leading man.
"She's the Man" was written by Ewan Leslie, Karen McCullah and Kirsten Smith; the latter two wrote "10 Things I Hate About You," another modern adaptation of a Shakespeare play. "She's the Man" fits right in with the "10 Things" genre - it is a sort of funny, predictable teen comedy that the 12-year-old UGG-wearing set will surely appreciate, because it meets the requisite slapstick and cute boy quota.
For the general public, this is just another silly film with the ostensible message that "girls don't need boys to succeed." But in truth, the underlying message of "She's the Man" seems to be that without a boyfriend, girls are incomplete and miserable. If at the end Viola and Duke did not get together (surprise!), the message that would have been sent is "you may not always land the hot soccer player, but you are just as whole, just as smart, just as beautiful without him." That's a message that this film - and most films of this genre - consistently and regrettably lack.
