The year was 2006. Amanda Bynes was in her career sweet spot, after The Amanda Show days and before the DUI-filled, cheek-piercing, Twitter-centric nightmare that was her 2013. Life was good, and She’s the Man, starring Bynes, came out at No. 4 at the North American box office.
Soon after its release, the film became a sleepover staple for anyone growing up in the early 2000s. Like any truly iconic teen rom-com, the film is very loosely based on a famous story: William Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, to be exact. It follows in the footsteps of cult classics such as Clueless, based on Jane Austen’s Emma, and 10 Things I Hate About You, based on Shakespeare’s The Taming of The Shrew.
She’s the Man follows Viola, a temperamental tomboy who loves soccer. Viola is appalled when her high school cuts the girl’s soccer team. When she attempts to join the boy’s team, the misogynistic coach refuses, saying a girl could never compete at the boys’ level. With quirky demeanor and teen angst in high volume, Viola handles this situation the only way she sees fit: by disguising herself as her brother, enrolling at a rival boarding school and making it onto the men’s team. Along the way she falls in love with Channing Tatum, who plays a dreamy soccer-playing lad named Duke, because of course.
Two years after Mean Girls taught us it’s better to be yourself than to struggle to fit an unrealistic standard, She’s the Man took the message a step forward. Viola changes everything about her appearance in order to prove appearance doesn’t matter. She dumps her cocky boyfriend in order to literally play against him. What technically makes the film a romantic comedy is the relationship between Viola and Duke, but the true romance lies in Viola’s faith in herself.
Even if the message doesn’t win you over, watching more than an hour of Bynes dressed in a terribly unconvincing boy disguise is plenty entertaining. There is a comical amount of fiction involved in writing a screenplay where Bynes in boy-garb, looking like a sixth-grader who would fit comfortably on a tricycle, is supposed to be the same age as Tatum, a veritable Adonis in soccer tank tops.
We actually have She’s the Man to thank for giving Tatum one of his first big roles, as later that year, Step Up would overshadow Tatum’s astonishing work in She’s the Man. Who else could have so accurately portrayed an airheaded but well-meaning jock who learns to stick tampons up his nose as a method of controlling nosebleeds? Well, probably a lot of actors, but I’m sure it wouldn’t have been the same.
She’s the Man gave us the cross-dressing, soccer-themed flick we never even knew we needed. Ten years down the road, the film is a glorious snapshot of early 2000s culture, a time when you could not only convince people Bynes made a believable teen boy but also that the fringed miniskirt was an appropriate and reasonable fashion choice. A comedic staple for those stuck in middle school and a guilty pleasure for anyone beyond, I can only assume in 10 more years She’s the Man will only gain more eccentricity and charm.
