She’s the Man
Directed by Andy Fickman.
Starring Amanda Byrnes, Channing Tatum, Laura Ramsey, Robert Hoffman, Alex
Breckenridge, Vinnie Jones.
This delightfully entertaining slap-stick romp scoots around sexual politics at a breath-taking pace that defies deconstruction, almost. But for all the gender-bendering fun the bottom line remains, as long as ‘girls is girls and boys is boys all is well’.
When Sebastion sneaks off to London to play music his twin sister, Viola (Byrnes), decides to masquerade his place at Illyria College so that she can play soccer with the boys. Boyfriend X wouldn’t let her do it back home. Enter boyfriend Y, ‘a moondog honey’, her college room share.
This little movie captures well Twelfth Night’s gender deceit and romantic intrigue; “Duke wants Olivia who likes Sebastion who is really Viola whose brother is dating Monique, …” This is a Shakespearian chick flick for young chicks and old chooks; shades of Gidget in pink gingham on a surf board out back with the boys.
The youthfulness of this film is awesome. Adults are blundering fools who have ‘no idea’ and for the good of the movie, are kept at an appropriate distance and on occasion brought in for comic relief.
However the title intrigues. She’s The Man, and yet there is not a man in sight. I lie. There is one real-life man. The infamous Vinnie Jones, as Coach Dinklage. And what’s more it is he who tears up the rules of the game in the pansy’s face (this is Shakespeare, remember) and defiantly declares “there will no gender discrimination here”.
Then there is the antagonist, Monique (Breckenridge). She knows that her ‘butt’ is currency and that being dumped ‘like big- time’, is only a temporary set back. Watch the girls battle it out, ala Tarantino, before Mother Superior breaks through insisting, “that’s not the way that ladies do it”.
I asked the young chick, who I saw squirming delightedly in her seat at the final romantic denouement, if she would give it a 10. “Yes” she replied mistily.
This is Shakespeare at his funkiest,
Sir Toby Belch: Excellent! I smell a device.
Sir Andrew Ague-cheek: I have’t in my nose too.
Go see this film. It’s a hoot.
Lou Crow
