Verily, E'en Shakespeare Wouldst Approveth..."She's The Man"

She's The Man (2006)
Rated PG-13 for language

Starring Amanda Bynes, Channing Tatum,
Directed by Andy Fickman

Written By William Shakespeare.  Sort of.

Return to those thrilling days of yesterday when Amanda Bynes hadn't lost her mind yet...


The Story:

If you've read Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, get ready to see it turned on its ear.  If you haven't, you're about to get the general idea of the play, but with a modern twist.  Viola (Bynes) is a girl soccer player whose school cuts girls soccer!  She wants to join the boys team, but they reject the idea of a female playing with the guys.  So she hatches a plan to take her twin brother Sebastian's (James Kirk) place at a rival school.  She dudes up and ends up rooming with Duke (Tatum).  Naturally, a love triangle ensues because Duke has eyes for Olivia Laura Ramsey) but she won't give him the time of day...she's got eyes only for Sebastian (Bynes!) and Sebastian ... Viola... is totally falling for Duke!

Let the madcappery ensue!

This movie is flat out funny, from start to finish.

Wisely, they take the basic premise of Shakespeare's work, and keep that, but jettison the language with the update to the modern setting.

No offense, but every Shakespeare update that goes modern age, yet keeps the language never works for me.

But, update the work, keep the ideas/plot/characters... it seems to work.

It may just be me, but that's my story, and I'm sticking to it!

Must Look Away From the Tatum!

Yes, I watch this movie, and then I just sit back and sigh.

So much potential from Ms. Bynes, and it seems to go off the rails into a trainwreck of life.

Thankfully, we'll always have the movies.

All of the supporting characters are great character actors who support the story perfectly.  Vinnie Jones is great as the soccer coach who brings Sebastian up to the main team by watching the effort put forth by a former second stringer.

I Could Kill You With Me Bare 'ands...

David Cross is hilarious as Gold, the absent minded headmaster, and really, the movie is just filled with comedic gems from start to finish.

The cast and writers make Shakespeare's comedy of identity swap work wonderfully on so many levels.

The fun revelation of course, is Channing Tatum.  This is before he was Channing Tatum!  It's his first co-starring role, as Step Up was on the horizon when this came out.

But Tatum is hilarious as the jock who Viola pines for, and his sense of comedic timing is exceptional.

Channing Tatum: Tampon Spokesman

The kid's got a future in Hollywood.

:)

Good for a laugh any, and every, time it hits the DVD player.

Final Grade: A

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: I would say this gets played at least once a year in the house, and I do own it.

William Shakespeare's "Pizza My Heart". Sounds Catchy!

Romeo & Juliet by way of ABC Family...


The Story:

Two rival Italian families live in Verona New Jersey.  They both operate successful pizza parlors across from one another.  They are separated by a fence, a weak transformer that powers both places, and unified by an undying hatred of each other that goes back generations.  Add in a rich businessman who wants to franchise a restaurant, and competition takes on unhealthy levels.  If that wasn't bad enough, love steps in and has the two oldest from each family fall madly in love with one another.

What is a family feud supposed to do now?


This is not earth-shaking cinema.

This is made for tv goodness courtesy of ABC Family, who provides me with a month of awesomeness every year around Christmas.  The stories are light, breezy, generally well made, scripted, acted, and put together.  Aside from the dads in each family, I didn't recognize any faces in this film as the stars, but that's okay.  No distractions that way, or stunt casting.

So taking the Bard's well-known Romeo & Juliet story, and naturally, befitting the subject matter, giving it a happy ending.

And I tell you, it works.

Tragedy schmagedy, the world lives for happy endings, and if you're going to update the R&J story, THAT'S what you have to do with it.  Unless you are going for a strict retelling, avoid the tragedy and let the 2 youngsters teach their families a valuable lesson.

Much more satisfying, and a lot less depressing.


Anyway, breezy 90 minutes that's suitable for the whole family to enjoy.

I recommend doing so with pizza!

Final Grade: C+
Would I Add it to the Collection: Nah, it was no Gnomeo & Juliet!  : )

100 Greatest Movies of All Time...That I Own. # 25 ~ 10 Things I Hate About You

Today's movie is a modern-day twist on Shakespeare's "The Taming of the Shrew".  10  Things I Hate About You did the right thing though, and kept the intent of Shakespeare's play, and dialogue as needed, but otherwise updated the language so that it played like "normal teenagers" talking.

More or less.

I've seen other Shakespearean adaptations that try to bring the Bard to "now", but insist on keeping his speeches intact.  While I appreciate what they are trying to do, it normally fails in execution and really can pull you out of the moment.

For those that are not familiar with the play, or the movie... sheesh... how do you summarize this plot without giving away all of the fun?

The new guy in school, Cameron, wants to date the prettiest girl he's ever seen, Bianca.  Except that she cannot date, unless her older sister, Kat, is also dating.  Needless to say, Kat is not interested in dating whatsoever.  So Cameron and his best friend enlist the aid of the rich ne'er-do-well to pay someone else, Patrick Verona, to take Kat out on dates.  He does this, thinking that he will have a shot at dating Bianca, but Cameron is hoping to secretly win her heart.

Eh, close enough, right?

So, let's see, starring as Cameron was Joseph Gordon Levitt, the "It" Guy of the moment.  I remember him from Angels in the Outfield, but this would really be his big silver screen moment.

And no, I didn't watch Third Rock from the Sun, so there's that for the rest of you.

Next up, Julia Stiles as the Shrew, Kat.  For me, this is her finest role, because otherwise, I'm just not that big a fan of hers.

Quite possibly, the biggest star at the time, was David Krumholtz as Michael, the best friend.  He was Bernard the Elf from The Santa Clause, so his was a face I was already familiar with.

My favorite character would have to be the dad, as envisioned by Larry Miller, I laugh at every scene he's in.

Finally, what can I begin to say about Heath Ledger?  File him under the same category as Chris Evans or Ryan Reynolds.  This was the first movie I saw Ledger in, and I was an instant fan.  As Patrick, he is funny, sensitive, angry and a very complex character.  Everyone thinks they know him, but no one is even close.

A Knight's Tale came very close to making this list as well, really on the strong performance that he gave in that role as well.

Sadly, a talent taken too soon from movie fans around the globe.  It would have been a tremendous body of work he could have created over the next 30-50 years...

But, don't dwell on the negative.  Enjoy the fun body of work that Ledger and company created here.  Their big breaks, in a lot of cases.  And one that is a blast to watch and holds up just as well today.

You have to give some credit to Shakespeare I would imagine.

: )