She’s the Man: A Shake up of Shakespeare
This film gives Shakespeare a shake up and a refresh with its twist on Twelfth Night. Yep, it’s She’s the Man.
• Comedy • Rom-com (Romantic comedy) • Romance • Teenage • Sports •
Twelfth Night is a fast-paced romantic comedy with several interwoven plots of romance, mistaken identities and practical jokes. Separated from her twin brother Sebastian in a shipwreck, Viola disguises herself as a boy, calls herself Cesario, and becomes a servant to the Duke Orsino. He sends her to woo the Countess Olivia on his behalf, but the Countess falls in love with Cesario. Meanwhile Olivia’s uncle, Sir Toby Belch, gets drunk with his friend Sir Andrew Aguecheek and they play a trick on Malvolio, Olivia’s steward. Eventually Sebastian turns up and causes even more confusion, chaos and comedy.
It also describes the plotline as:
- Viola disguises herself as a boy to become Orsino’s servant.
- Olivia falls in love with Cesario and she in turn falls for Orsino.
- Maria plays a trick on Malvolio, Olivia’s strict steward.
- Sir Andrew is jealous of Cesario and challenges him to a duel.
- Olivia and Sebastian get married and Orsino is jealous.
- Sebastian appears and all becomes clear at last.
If you’ve seen She’s the Man, you’ll realise how the plot cleverly mirrors Shakespeare’s original play, even to some of the smallest details. However, there are some changes to make it fit the story as at a teenage school.
Where can I watch She’s the Man?
Netflix is a god place to see it, or try watching it on Youtube with this link.
(Psst! For some inspiration on books to read, check out ones that I’ve read, with my post: Books I’ve Been Reading: Reading List Update )
I hope this has helped you see Shakespeare in a new light, and maybe even watch some of his plays. You might not be the biggest fan, but maybe you can appreciate the English teachers and their general obsession with his works a bit more now!
Before you go…
On the Featured Image
I took this picture recently while on a trip to Liverpool in UK. The place we visited had a very dark academian feel, as Liverpool isn’t renowned for its architecture for no reason. The museums, art galleries, fountains and the park we passed/went to were perfect for pictures.
This tower is actually edited to make it look brighter. See the before and after here on Pinterest.
