History Film / ShesTheMan

* PolarOppositeTwins: As stated concerning Sebastian and Viola in a yearbook that Malcolm studies as part of his... opposition research at one point.

-->'''Viola:''' Aw...you're so full of--!
-->'''Coach:''' (blows his whistle) Back to practice!
* SuppressedMammaries: An in-universe version with Viola, [[JustifiedTrope justified]] since Paul is careful to teach her this finer point of how to disguise herself as a guy.

* AmbiguouslyGay / AmbiguouslyBi: On the one hand, Viola's friend Paul is, well, a hairdresser with AlwaysCamp tastes and considerable talent for teaching her how to look and act like a sharp-dressed hunky guy. (The kind he'd like to date, perhaps?) On the other hand, he rarely appears in public without a couple of beautiful and intelligent gals as his arm candy, and they seem to be more than just ''[[TheBeard friends]]'' with him. CampStraight, or maybe bisexual? Your call.

* FundraiserCarnival: Olivia's mom sets up a kissing booth at one. Olivia's friend warns her about a [[DirtyOldMan lecherous old man who keeps coming back]], much to her disgust.
* GenderBender: Confusion all around when no-one can seem to tell that Viola is Sebastian...

* HookedUpAfterwards: See PairTheSpares below. Andrew and Paul are also shown seated at a table together during these couples' debut (although Paul's arm candy gals are there with him too).

* MythologyGag: Numerous references to lines from the original play come up, either slightly altered ("You're weaving a really tangled web here") or direct ("Some have greatness thrust upon them"). And although Malvolio's character in the original play is replaced by a guy named Malcolm, Malcolm's pet tarantula is named Malvolio.

* RuleOfCool: Viola was not a student at Sebastian's school. Their team should have had to forfeit when the truth was revealed. On the other hand, if Viola's school had tried to invoke that rule, Sebastian's could have pointed out that refusing to even let the girls try out violated Title IX.

** Also, Feste the Fool is not present in this adaptation.

* GroinAttack: When Viola gets hit by the soccer ball. Could also be a SugarWiki/{{Funny Moment|s}}.

* AmbiguouslyGay: On the one hand, Viola's friend Paul is, well, a hairdresser with AlwaysCamp tastes and considerable talent for teaching her how to look and act like a sharp-dressed hunky guy. (The kind he'd like to date, perhaps?) On the other hand, he rarely appears in public without a couple of beautiful and intelligent gals as his arm candy, and they seem to be more than just ''[[TheBeard friends]]'' with him. CampStraight, or maybe bisexual? Your call.

* LoveTriangle: Justin/Viola/Duke.

%%* TrueLoveAutoCorrect: Olivia falls for "Sebastian", not realizing he's really Viola (who is not interested in her that way) in disguise. Upon meeting the real Sebastian, Viola's twin brother, she falls for him instead.

* TwinSwitch: Viola takes her twin brother's place at Illyria.

{{Tomboy}} Viola Hastings (Bynes) is intensely into soccer, so much that when her school, Cornwall, cancels the girl's soccer team and refuses to let her play on the boy's soccer team she hatches a [[SweetPollyOliver plan to show them and her]] Jerkass [[SweetPollyOliver ex-boyfriend that a girl can play just as well as a boy.]] Viola has a twin brother, Sebastian (James Kirk -- [[NamesTheSame no, not]] [[Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries that one]]), who has decided to run off to London for two weeks to play with his rock band just before he is due to start at Cornwall's rival school, Illyria. The twins decide to help each other and solve the other's problem at the same time.

** Also, Feste the Fool is not present in this adaption.

* {{Sarashi}}: Viola binds her chest with bandages. At one point, they get caught in a cabinet drawer during a talk with the principal. She tries to pass it off as just leaning there while she struggles to get the bandage free.

* BillyElliotPlot: The basic plot revolves around the fact Viola isn't taken seriously as a female footballer, so she pretends to be her brother, Sebastian.

* BillyElliotPlot: The basic plot revolves around the fact Viola isn't taken seriously as a female footballer.

-->[[HollywoodToneDeaf "I see you through my window, as I'm standing on a tree outsideeee."]]

* TheBigDamnedKiss: Toby and Eunice share one on the soccer field after their live confession.

{{Tomboy}} Viola (Bynes) is intensely into soccer, so much that when her school, Cornwall, cancels the girl's soccer team and refuses to let her play on the boy's soccer team she hatches a [[SweetPollyOliver plan to show them and her Jerkass ex-boyfriend that a girl can play just as well as a boy.]] Viola has a twin brother, Sebastian (James Kirk, [[NamesTheSame no, not]] [[Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries that one]]), and this brother has decided to run off to London for two weeks to play with his rock band just before he is to start at Cornwall's rival school, Illyria. The twins decide to help each other and solve the other's problem at the same time.

** Identity fraud, especially today, is a serious crime, one that they put you away for. This rule seems to be the only reason why the authorities do not get involved.

* GroinAttack: When Viola gets hit by the soccer ball. Could also be a CrowningMomentOfFunny.

** Identity fraud is a serious crime, one that they put you away for. This rule seems to be the only reason why the authorities do not get involved.

* PaperThinDisguise: It's fairly obvious, when Sebastian and Viola are on screen together, that no-one could possibly confuse them for the same person. It's [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] and [[JustifiedTrope justified]] in the beginning: ;o one at the school had ''seen'' Sebastian before. After he finally arrives, it gets a lot less plausible to the point that the writers have to weasel a couple of {{Contrived Coincidence}}s (Olivia keeping her eyes closed and Sebastian putting on some "war paint" right before the game) to make it work. In fact, the director commentary says that they had to cut a scene where a couple of people see Sebastian up-close before the game because it completely shattered the WillingSuspensionOfDisbelief.

* PaperThinDisguise: It's fairly obvious, when Sebastian and Viola are on screen together, that no-one could possibly confuse them for the same person. It's [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] and [[JustifiedTrope justified]] in the beginning. No one at the school had ''seen'' Sebastian before. After he finally arrives, it gets a lot less plausible to the point that the writers have to weasel a couple of {{Contrived Coincidence}}s (Olivia keeping her eyes closed and Sebastian putting on some "war paint" right before the game) to make it work. In fact, the director commentary says that they had to cut a scene where a couple of people see Sebastian up-close before the game because it completely shattered the WillingSuspensionOfDisbelief.

* ArtisticLicenseSports: In the final game. Viola's penalty is saved by the opposition's goalkeeper, and she stays where she is. When the ball is headed back in, she's standing in an offside position, meaning her otherwise brilliant winning goal would not have counted.

* BrickJoke: "Do you like cheese? My favorite's Gouda."

* RuleOfFunny: Even if we're generous and say that it would have hurt her half as much as it would a guy, neither gender is capable of no-selling a soccer ball to the groin to the point that they have to ''fake'' being in pain.

* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: Malcolm's tarantula disappears from the movie after the scene where it scares Duke and Viola.

* ArtisticLicenseSports: In the final game. Viola's penalty is saved by the opposition's goalkeeper, and she stays where she is. When the ball is headed back in, she is standing in an offside position, meaning her otherwise brilliant winning goal would not have counted.

* TrueLoveAutoCorrect: Olivia falls for "Sebastian", not realizing he's really Viola (who is not interested in her that way) in disguise. Upon meeting the real Sebastian, Viola's twin brother, she falls for him instead.

{{Tomboy}} Viola (Bynes) is intensely into soccer, so much that when her school, Cornwall, cancels the girl's soccer team and refuses to let her play on the boy's soccer team she hatches a [[SweetPollyOliver plan to show them and her Jerkass ex-boyfriend that a girl can play just as well as a boy.]] Viola has a twin brother, Sebastian (James Kirk, [[NamesTheSame no, not]] [[Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries that one]]), and this brother has decided to run off to London for two weeks to play with his rock band just before he is to start at Corwall's rival school, Illyria. The twins decide to help each other and solve the other's problem at the same time.

With the help of her [[TheDandy sharp-dressing hairdresser pal Paul]], Viola becomes Sebastian!Viola, enters Illyria, and [[IncrediblyLamePun voilà!]]. It's not a perfect disguise, but no one at the new school has met Sebastian (so they don't know the difference), and their parents are clueless because they're divorced and Illyria is a boarding school. Viola and Sebastian simply tell each that they are staying with the other, Her roommate is Duke (Tatum), the eventual LoveInterest, but Sebastian!Viola has problems at first because of Sebastian's permanent record (he's a troublemaker) and because Viola is still a girl under her disguise. With a bit of help from her hairdresser friend, Sebastian!Viola is accepted into Duke's group of friends but is still second string for the boys soccer team.

* AllLoveIsUnrequited: Viola loves Duke, who loves Olivia, who loves Sebastian, who is actually Viola. Eventually they get it all sorted out happily.

* ChewingTheScenery: Amanda Bynes bites into the scenery and doesn't let it go when she's playing Sebastian. (In a behind-the-scenes interview, she states that her peformance as Sebastian is based on Creator/JackBlack.)

* CoversAlwaysLie: {{Tomboy}} Viola doesn't like dresses and high heel shoes, and in the movie she exclusively wears pants/shorts and sneakers even when she's dressed as herself and not Sebastian!Viola. The only few times she wears a dress is because her mother forces her to. Yet on the cover she's wearing a very short skirt and high heels.
* EmbarrassingRingtone: Olivia has Music/{{Aqua}}'s ''Barbie Girl'' for her ringtone. This causes some problems when she's impersonating her brother Sebastian and she forgets to change it.

** During his meeting with Viola he lampshades that he'll probably ending up running into her at inopportune times.

* HilarityEnsues: Everything gets messed up just in time for the climax at the soccer game. It's Creator/WilliamShakespeare.

* MistakenForObjectOfAffection: One night Olivia decides go through with and surprise "Sebastian" with a kiss. [[spoiler: She unknowingly kisses the real Sebastian, who has no idea who this infatuated girl is; not that he's complaining...]]

* NoPeriodsPeriod: The tampax moment. One of the most hilarious parts of the movie.

* PolarOppositeTwins: As stated concerning Sebastian and Viola in a yearbook that Malcom studies as part of his... opposition research at one point.