She’s the Man appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 1.85:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. This became a good but not great image.
Sharpness appeared acceptably accurate and detailed. A smidgen of softness impacted the occasional wide shot, but most of the flick seemed accurate and well-defined.
Moiré effects and jagged edges presented no concerns, and edge haloes remained absent. A light layer of grain showed up for the movie, but I saw a handful of small specks.
Man went with a natural palette that looked good. The colors seemed appropriately vivid and lively most of the time.
Black levels were fairly deep and rich, and shadows showed nice clarity and smoothness. Expect a more than competent presentation.
Given the teen comedy roots of She’s the Man, I expected little from its DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundfield. Indeed, this was a fairly restricted soundscape that fell in line with films of this genre.
The audio stayed largely focused on the front channels. A few elements like soccer games opened up the surrounds a bit, but there wasn’t a lot of information on display. Music showed good stereo imaging, at least, and the general ambience was fine.
Audio quality was acceptable if less than impressive. Music showed lackluster bass response and could have offered more satisfying depth.
Nonetheless, the track was usually reasonably solid. Speech sounded crisp and distinctive, and effects were clean and clear. Music seemed peppy despite the absence of great low-end. This was an unexceptional mix that earned a “B-“.
How did the Blu-ray compare to the original DVD from 2006? The lossless audio added a bit more range to the proceedings.
As for the visuals, they demonstrated the usual format-related improvements. That meant the BD looked better defined and showed superior colors/smoothness. Expect a nice step up in quality, even with the BD’s minor concerns.
Man repeats most of the DVD’s extras, and we open with two separate audio commentaries. The first presents director Andy Fickman, co-writer/producer Ewan “Jack” Leslie, and actors Amanda Bynes, Channing Tatum, Laura Ramsey, Robert Hoffman and Alex Breckenridge.
It appears that all of them sit together for this running, screen-specific chat. That keeps things consistently lively, albeit a little chaotic at times.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t mean that we learn a ton about the movie. We get some basic notes about the cast and crew, performance issues and various challenges, sets and locations, and general trivia.
The level of depth remains low, as the track doesn’t provide a great overview of the production. Things usually stay light and fluffy, especially since the young actors like to joke around and rag on each other.
There’s also a lot of praise for all involved and the end product. This becomes a listenable track but not a terribly informative one.
For the second commentary, we get Leslie and producer Lauren Shuler Donner. Both sit together for their own running, screen-specific discussion.
They cover production basics, some of which echo material in the prior commentary. We hear about locations and weather problems, cast and crew, costume and set design, making Bynes look like a boy, music, cut and altered scenes, and general notes.
All of this offers a decent overview of the production. It comes with a fair amount of praise and never develops into anything scintillating, though, as the participants maintain a low-key demeanor.
The piece also fades during the movie’s third act. Nonetheless, it serves as a good complement to the other, rowdier track and provides the superior view of the movie’s creation.
Three featurettes follow, and Making the Man goes for 15 minute, nine seconds. It offers comments from Fickman, Donner, Leslie, Bynes, Tatum, Hoffman, Breckenridge, co-writers Kirsten Smith and Karen Lutz, soccer choreographer Dan Metcalfe, and actors Jonathan Sadowski and David Cross.
The show looks at the development of the script and the adaptation of Shakespeare, finding the director and lead actor, rehearsals and improv, shooting in Vancouver and dealing with the soccer, and some sequence specifics.
I figured “Making” would offer the standard promotional puff piece, but it gives us more than that. Yes, it includes some of the usual happy talk and it repeats a few notes from the prior elements. However, it provides new insights and offers good glimpses of the set. This turns it into a surprisingly useful program.
For the seven-minute, 53-second The Troupe, we find notes from Bynes, Tatum, Donner, Hoffman, Fickman, Breckenridge, Sadowski, Ramsey, Cross, and actors James Kirk, Julie Hagerty, and Vinnie Jones.
This looks at the movie’s actors and gives us various notes about them and their experiences on the set. While “Making” avoided the fluffiness, that problem affects “Troupe”. We hear a lot of praise for all involved. A few decent notes emerge, but not enough to overcome the generic feel.
For the final featurette, we get Inspired By Shakespeare’s…, a four-minute, 27-second piece. We hear from Fickman, Smith, Lutz, and Leslie.
They discuss the parts of the film that emulate Twelfth Night and other Shakespearean allusions. This gives us a tight look glimpse of the references.
Nine Deleted Scenes run a total of 11 minutes, 29 seconds. We find “Burger King” (0:21), “In Hallway With Principal” (2:38), “Dunk Tank” (0:57), “Mom Swings the Hammer” (0:36), “Principal’s Office” (1:15), “Locker Room” (0:27), “The Cheerleaders” (1:35), “Soccer Montage” (2:11) and “Debutante Ball” (1:31).
Most of these provide nothing more than unnecessary filler and aren’t missed. A few throw out exposition with the principal and Malcolm. These are more interesting, but they don’t serve any big purpose.
We can watch these with or without commentary from Fickman, Bynes and Leslie. They give us a few notes about the clips and let us know why the scenes failed to make the movie. We get the basics but not much else in this somewhat bland discussion.
At least they finally address the fact that the Illyria cheerleaders dress in an absurdly provocative manner for high school girls. They don’t explain it, but they laugh about it.
A Gag Reel lasts three minutes, 26 seconds. Should you expect anything beyond the usual collection of goofs and giggles? Nope. This is standard stuff.
Along with the film’s trailer. we end with a Music Video for “Let Go” from Dave Lichens. Both song and video seem quite unmemorable, though at least the clip breaks with tradition and fails to include any movie snippets.
In terms of omissions, the Blu-ray drops a photo gallery and a text commentary. The latter becomes an unfortunate loss, as the trivia track included some good material.
Shakespeare gets an ineffective update via She’s the Man. The movie has some charms but not enough to sustain, partially due to a genuinely irritating lead performance from Amanda Bynes. The Blu-ray provides decent picture and audio along with a pretty satisfying roster of extras. Man might entertain the audience it aims for, but I don’t think many others will get much from it.
To rate this film, visit the DVD review of SHE'S THE MAN
