“I can do this. I am a dude! I am a hunky dude! I’m a badass hunky dude!”
It seems impossible. It’s borderline unreal, but - according to the cursed calendar hanging on the wall - it has been 15 years since Amanda Bynes pretended to be a boy so that she could play soccer in the hilarious and endearingly sweet She’s the Man. The film, earning more and more fans as the years pile on, seems to have had the last laugh on all the print critics who shit all over it when it was originally released because, of all wonders, the film finally arrives on blu-ray with a long-delayed kiss from Paramount Pictures.
Fans of this comedic gem ought to be pleased with the result, too. Making its solo blu-ray debut, this 15th Anniversary Edition contains a commentary track from actors Amanda Bynes, Channing Tatum, Laura Ramsey, Robert Hoffman and Alexandra Breckenridge, director Andy Fickman and co-writer/producer Ewan “Jack” Leslie. And the celebration doesn't stop there either. Fans get deleted scenes, another commentary, and some cool featurettes concerning the movie.
From beginning to end, She’s the Man - an updated and very teenage-centric riff on William Shakespeare's play Twelfth Night - hits the comedy hard and fast, sticking a landing that still leaves many a smile that refuses to fade - even 15 years later. If you are every asked by anyone just who or what Amanda Bynes is (as she pops up from time to time in conversation due to her woes), simply direct them to this gender bending comedy as one girl, frustrated by her school’s decision to cut the girl’s soccer team, takes matters into her own hands . . . as a boy named “Sebastian”.
Things, as you can imagine, do not go smoothly for the teenager. While soccer is the focus, this comedy builds itself around a love triangle that is, for all involved, based on a gender-bending assumption which leads to a lot of comedic and uncomfortable moments of love, lust, and pants dropping. Yeah, it gets tricky real quick for all the players in She’s the Man as a girl must constantly prove her manliness to a bunch of jocks.
Directed by Andy Fickman (Who's Your Daddy, The Game Plan) and co-starring Vinnie Jones as Coach Dinklage, She’s the Man is what happens when Viola Johnson (Bynes) takes her brother’s place at Illyria, an elite boarding school, in order to play soccer and beat Cornwall's soccer team, proving their coach and her cocky ex-boyfriend wrong. With the help of Paul (Jonathan Sadowski), the all-girl Viola becomes the weird and awkward “Sebastian” who finds herself falling for her roommate, Duke Orsino (Tatum) while trying to remain a macho, macho man . . . who really likes cheese.
Bynes is a total ROCK STAR in her role as Viola and as Sebastian and, as she fought like hell to get the producers to agree to Tatum in his role, deserves all the credit for the chemistry in the film because the two of them together make for a pair that is highly entertaining and easily watchable. Endlessly quoted by my friends and foes, She’s the Man is notoriously underappreciated as the soccer-playing comedic farce it is, but the film works, making it the perfect vehicle for Bynes and, for Fickman, his best film.
Time to drop your pants and ask if your significant other if they like cheese! She’s the Man turns 15!
Home Video Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Available on Blu-ray - Mar 2, 2021
Screen Formats: 1.85:1
Subtitles: English, English SDH, French
Audio: English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1; French: Dolby Digital 5.1
Discs: Blu-ray Disc; single disc; digital HD copy included
Region Encoding: Locked to Region A
Viola Johnson (Amanda Bynes) is in a real jam. Complications threaten her scheme to pose as her twin brother, Sebastian, and take his place at a new boarding school. She falls in love with her handsome roommate, Duke, who loves beautiful Olivia, who has fallen for Sebastian! As if that were not enough, Viola's twin returns from London ahead of schedule but has no idea that his sister has already replaced him on campus.
Video:
The 1080p 1.85:1 presentation is beautiful with clean, crisp visuals that rarely falter. On the visual side, the film's strength is in its fantastical greens, reds, yellows of the campus and the transfer captures it perfectly in hi-def splendor. Colors are bright, well-saturated and consistent throughout, while skin tones are true and accurate. Things really come to life when the action shifts inside to showcase the details in the dorm rooms. Overall, for a film release fifteen years ago, She’s the Man looks great!
Audio:
A strong DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 proves to be a winner as this gender-bending comedy scores multiple points.
Supplements:
Commentary:
- There are two included with this release. See Special Features for the specifics.
Special Features:
It's a non-stop party with this release!
- Commentary by actors Amanda Bynes, Channing Tatum, Laura Ramsey, Robert Hoffman and Alexandra Breckenridge, director Andy Fickman and co-writer/producer Ewan “Jack” Leslie
- Second commentary with Ewan “Jack” Leslie and producer Lauren Shuler Donner
- “Making The Man”
- “The Troupe”
- “Inspired By Shakespeare’s…”
- Nine Deleted Scenes with optional commentary by Amanda Bynes, Andy Fickman and Ewan “Jack” Leslie
- Gag Reel
- Cast Photo Album
- Shakespeare, Soccer and Such Trivia Track
- “Let Go” Music Video by David Lichens
| Movie |  |
|
| Video |  |
|
| Audio |  |
|
| Extras | |
|
|
Overall Blu-ray Experience
|
||
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for some sexual material.
Runtime: 105 mins
Director: Andy Fickman
Writer: Ewan Leslie, Karen McCullah
Cast: Amanda Bynes, Laura Ramsey, Channing Tatum
Genre: Comedy
Tagline: If you wanna chase your dream, sometimes you gotta break the rules.
Memorable Movie Quote: "How come when I wanted to ask Eunice out everyone made fun of me, but then Sebastian likes her and suddenly she's cool? Screw you guys. I hate high school."
Theatrical Distributor: DreamWorks
Official Site: https://www.facebook.com/ShesTheManMovie
Release Date: March 17, 2006
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date: March 2, 2021.
Synopsis: Amanda Bynes proves that girls can do anything guys can do in this hysterical comedy of errors. When Viola (Bynes), disguised as her twin brother, Sebastian (James Kirk), joins the high school boys' soccer team, she ends up helping them win the big game. She also unexpectedly falls for Duke (Channing Tatum), the hot star forward.
