She's The Man

''She’s the Man'' is a 2006 American romantic comedy teen sports film directed by Andy Fickman and starring Amanda Bynes, Channing Tatum, Laura Ramsey, Vinnie Jones, and David Cross. Loosely inspired by William Shakespeare's play '' Twelfth Night,'' the film follows teenager Viola Hastings, who disguises herself as her twin brother to attend his new boarding school, Illyria Prep, and join the boys' soccer team.

''She's the Man'' emerged as a moderate commercial success, grossing $57.2 million worldwide against a production budget of $20–25 million. While critical response was mixed, Bynes's performance received widespread praise, and the film has since developed a cult following.

Plot

Viola Hastings is a teenager who plays for the girls' soccer team at Cornwall Prep and hopes to join the North Carolina Tar Heels. When the team is cut, she and her teammates attempt to join the boys' team but are rejected by the coach. Her boyfriend, Justin, sides with the coach, leading to their breakup.

Meanwhile, Viola's twin brother, Sebastian, is scheduled to transfer to Illyria Prep after being expelled for skipping classes. Instead, he secretly leaves for London with his band. Viola decides to take his place at Illyria and join the boys' soccer team in disguise, intending to prove her ability and challenge the decision to cancel the girls' team. With assistance from her friend Paul, she transforms her appearance and enrolls as Sebastian.

At Illyria, Viola shares a room with Duke Orsino, the soccer team's captain. She fails to impress the coach during tryouts and is placed on second string. Initially considered socially awkward, Viola gains acceptance after Paul stages an appearance with several girls at a pizzeria. Viola is assigned Olivia Lennox as a lab partner, which frustrates Duke, who has feelings for Olivia. Viola offers to help Duke attract Olivia if he agrees to train her in soccer. Her performance improves, and she is promoted to first string.

At a school carnival, Viola and Duke interact at a kissing booth. Duke later expresses to "Sebastian" that he is developing feelings for Viola. Olivia, meanwhile, becomes interested in "Sebastian" and asks Duke out in an attempt to provoke jealousy. Viola misinterprets the situation, believing Duke has lost interest in her, but later encourages Olivia to speak to "Sebastian" directly.

Sebastian returns from London earlier than expected and arrives at Illyria. Olivia confesses her feelings and kisses him, which Duke witnesses, leading to a confrontation between Duke and who he believes is his roommate. Viola oversleeps and misses the first half of an important match, during which Sebastian plays in her place and struggles. At halftime, Viola explains the situation to her brother, and they switch places.

During the second half, Duke refuses to cooperate on the field. Viola responds by revealing her identity to the team and coach. She plays the remainder of the match and scores the decisive goal. After the game, the school learns the full details of the impersonation. Duke later reconciles with Viola. Sebastian and Olivia begin a relationship, and Viola’s parents, who had been unaware of the deception, agree to improved communication. Viola and Duke attend the debutante ball together, and she joins the Illyria boys’ soccer team.

Cast

* Amanda Bynes as Viola Hastings, a talented soccer player underestimated for being a girl, who dresses up as her fraternal twin brother Sebastian to play soccer at Illyria
* Channing Tatum as Duke Orsino, the soccer team captain, who is in love with Olivia and, later, with Viola
* Laura Ramsey as Olivia Lennox, a smart girl who falls in love with "Sebastian" (Viola)
* Vinnie Jones as Coach Dinklage
* Julie Hagerty as Daphne Hastings, the mother of Viola and Sebastian
* David Cross as Principal Horatio Gold
* Jonathan Sadowski as Paul Antonio, Viola's best friend and hair stylist
* Robert Hoffman as Justin Drayton, Viola's ex-boyfriend and Duke's rival
* Robert Torti as Coach Pistonek
* James Snyder as Malcolm Festes, the school nerd and "Sebastian's" (Viola's) rival. He owns a pet tarantula Malvolio.
* Alex Breckenridge as Monique Valentine, Sebastian's superficial girlfriend
* Amanda Crew as Kia, one of Viola's friends
* Jessica Lucas as Yvonne, one of Viola's friends
* James Kirk as Sebastian Hastings, Viola's fraternal twin brother, who is in Europe with his band.
* Emily Perkins as Eunice Bates, the nerdy and eccentric classmate with weird sexual fantasies
* John Pyper-Ferguson as Roger Hastings, the father of Viola and Sebastian
* Brandon Jay McLaren as Toby, one of Duke's best friends, who is attracted to Eunice
* Clifton Murray as Andrew, one of Duke's best friends
* Lynda Boyd as Cheryl, the debutante ball's hostess
* Katie Stuart as Maria, Olivia's friend
* Mark Acheson as Groundskeeper

Production

''She’s the Man'' was directed by Andy Fickman and written by Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith. The film was produced by Lauren Shuler Donner, Tom Rosenberg, and Gary Lucchesi, and is a modern adaptation of William Shakespeare's '' Twelfth Night''.

Amanda Bynes and Channing Tatum were cast in the lead roles of Viola Hastings and Duke Orsino, respectively. Tatum was cast at the suggestion of Bynes, who advocated for his selection despite initial hesitations from the studio. In a 2018 interview with ''Paper'', Bynes recalled, "I totally fought for Channing o get cast inthat movie because he wasn’t famous yet... He’d just done a Mountain Dew commercial and I was like, ‘This guy’s a star—every girl will love him!’"

To prepare for her role—her first portraying a character of the opposite sex—Bynes worked with director Fickman to observe male behavior at shopping malls. In a 2006 interview, she described the role as challenging and said she initially felt "awkward" performing as a male character. However, she later referred to the experience as cathartic, noting that she was ultimately satisfied with having completed a difficult role. In the same 2018 ''Paper'' interview, Bynes stated that seeing herself in male disguise on screen contributed to a period of depression, saying, "I went into a deep depression for four to six months because I didn’t like how I looked when I was a boy."

Neither Bynes nor Tatum had prior experience with soccer and trained extensively during production, spending hours each day practicing the sport. A bathroom fight scene involving characters played by Bynes, Laura Ramsey and Alexandra Breckenridge featured several stunts performed by the actresses themselves. Director Fickman noted in a behind-the-scenes feature that while stunt performers were present, "when you see the cut of the movie, it’s a lot of our girls pounding each other."

Reception

Box office

''She's the Man'' opened at number four at the North American box office, earning $10.7 million in its opening weekend. Produced on a budget of approximately $20–25 million, the film went on to gross $33.7 million in the United States and Canada and $23.5 million in international markets, for a worldwide total of $57.2 million.

Critical reception

''She's the Man'' received mixed reviews from critics. On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 44% based on 114 reviews, with an average rating of 5.1/10. The website's consensus reads: "Shakespeare's wit gets lost in translation with ''She's the Man'''s broad slapstick, predictable jokes, and unconvincing plotline." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 45 out of 100, based on 28 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews." Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film a grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale.

Amanda Bynes’s performance received widespread praise from several critics. Roger Ebert of the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' commented, "More importantly, we like her," describing Bynes as "sunny and plucky" in an otherwise implausible role. Ruth Stein of the ''San Francisco Chronicle'' noted Bynes’s comedic timing, highlighting a scene in which her character observes and mimics the behavior of male students. Stein wrote that "she's not going to win an Oscar for playing a boy... but Bynes makes a far more convincing one than Barbra Streisand in '' Yentl'' (1983)." '' Refinery29'' praised Bynes’s dual performance, stating she brought “awkward charisma” to the role and delivered “one of her best, most challenging performances.”

Some criticism was directed at the film’s plot and casting. Ebert noted that Channing Tatum, aged 26 at the time of filming, was "a little old to play a high school kid." Neil Smith for ''BBCi'' remarked that “Bynes tackles her part with gusto, while Tatum underplays his to striking effect,” suggesting that while the performances were competent, the pairing was uneven.

Accolades

Home media

''She’s the Man'' was released on DVD on June 27, 2006, in both widescreen and fullscreen editions. For its 15th anniversary, the film was released on Blu-ray for the first time by Paramount Home Entertainment on March 2, 2021.

See also

* '' Hana-Kimi'', a 1996–2004 shōjo manga series
* '' Just One of the Guys'', a 1985 teen comedy with a similar premise
* List of association football films

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:She's The Man
2006 films
2006 romantic comedy films
2000s feminist films
2000s high school films
2000s sports comedy films
2000s teen comedy films
2000s teen romance films
2006 in women's association football
American association football films
American feminist comedy films
American high school films
American romantic comedy films
American sports comedy films
American teen comedy films
American teen romance films
Cross-dressing in American films
DreamWorks Pictures films
2000s English-language films
Women's association football films
Films about masculinity
Films based on Twelfth Night
Films directed by Andy Fickman
Films produced by Lauren Shuler Donner
Films scored by Nathan Wang
Films set in boarding schools
Films set in the United States
Films shot in Vancouver
Lakeshore Entertainment films
Paramount Pictures films
Modern adaptations of works by William Shakespeare
Teen films based on works by William Shakespeare
Teen Choice Award winning films
Teen sports films
2000s American films
English-language romantic comedy films
English-language sports comedy films