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Throwback Thursday: ‘She’s the Man’ is one of Bynes’ best

PHOTO PROVIDED Amanda Bynes, at far right, stars as Viola Davis — who masquerades as her twin brother Sebastian to join a rival boys’ soccer team, after the girls’ team is cut at her own school.

I never played soccer as a kid or teen and I certainly know next to nothing about the sport in general. But something I do like? Soccer based media. (Go back a week or two and take a look at my “Yellowjackets” review if you don’t believe me.)

This is a terrible segway into my Throwback for this week — 2006’s “She’s the Man.”

The movie stars one of the early 2000s “it” girls, Amanda Bynes, as Viola Hastings and is based on Shakespere’s Twelfth Nights.

Viola and her teammates are ready for another great season at Cornwall Prep when they learn their team is cut.

When they attempt to join the boys’ team, the coach laughs and the boys’ team — including Viola’s boyfriend — tell her girls could never compete with the guys.

Viola’s only win from that interaction is breaking up with her trash boyfriend (girlpower!).

It isn’t until she goes home and finds her twin brother Sebastian (James Kirk) sneaking off to England two weeks before he starts school at Illyria Prep.

Sebastian tells her the beauty of their parents’ divorce is he can just say he’s staying at their dad’s house while he’s away. He asks her to call Illyria and tell them he’s sick.

Instead… Viola decides to masquerade as her brother in an effort to prove she can compete with the boys.

In classic 2000s comedy fashion, shenanigans ensue throughout this entire scheme. Viola manages to convince her hairdresser friend Paul (Jonathan Sadowski) to turn her from a fashionable teen girl into a classic teen boy. All while teaching her how to act like one of the boys.

Throughout the movie Viola runs into issues with her plan. From having to sneak showers in the middle of the night; dodging a crush by popular girl Olivia (Laura Ramsey); avoiding her OWN crush on her roommate Duke (Channing Tatum); and the suspicion of Illyria’s principal, Sebastian’s ex-girlfriend and a slew of others.

There’s just something about a light hearted movie with a somewhat important message that I love.

Sure, there’s a lot of comedy (Bynes rarely starred in anything else) and light hearted moments. But it’s pretty cool to watch Viola do whatever she can to prove she’s up to the same level as her male counterparts. And the movie doesn’t just have her jumping onto Illyria’s field like she’s already leagues ahead of them.

She works her way up to their level and exceeds many of them after time. One could imagine that’s possible, when you begin to swap your training and practices around to meet whatever levels they’re at.

“She’s the Man” is one of a few movies I always gravitate to when it’s available on a streaming platform. (Another being, “John Tucker Must Die” which I also reviewed once!) There’s just something about a movie that isn’t so incredibly deep with its meaning, but isn’t entirely shallow, that’s enjoyable to me.

Sometimes I don’t want to think super hard about the movie or TV show I’m watching — I just want to enjoy the ride and have some laughs (and maybe cringe) along the way.

And, it’s no surprise that I’d enjoy a Bynes film. I mean, I grew up watching “The Amanda Show” on Nickelodeon and still find myself gravitating towards another one of her films at the time “What a Girl Wants.” I’m happy she’s been able to break away from her child stardom and chosen to live a life out of the spotlight, but I’m glad to have the movies and TV I do have from her. Because she really was a major star at the time.

“She’s the Man” is a testament to how great of an actress she is, and how fantastic her comedic timing always was. Tatum and the rest of the cast also did a great job (but I’m biased in saying I liked her more.

“She’s the Man” is rated PG-13 and may be watched on Hulu, YouTube, Google Play, Apple TV, Vudu and Amazon Prime Video.

So, if you want an easy to watch popcorn flick for your weekend movie night, consider giving “She’s the Man” a chance.

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Laura Jameson is Managing Editor of The Express.

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