An honestly funny film with the charm that Shakespeare would have been proud of (even though the Football is a bit out - from a British point of view)

Rating: 9/10 (3 April 2006)

This is a very good film for what (at first glance) seemed to be a "chic flik". I took a friend to a pre-release screening in the UK and was impressed by the turnout so early on a Sunday. I was also however pleasantly surprised by the film itself and enjoyed the performances from almost all the cast. Vinnie Jones showed a markedly softer side (yes it really is as soft as he gets) and Amanda Bynes was a cute and subtly sexy leading lady, which made her more believable as a sports enthusiast. Rather than having a drop-dead A-list stunner to pull the punters in with, this film gives us a royal flush of laughs and I will definitely pass on the message to my friends.
On the whole it was a very funny and excellently made film which looked like a Hollywood version of the Brit flik "Bend It Like Beckham". It was well produced, and apart from a few flaws in the football side (considered below), it really surpassed my expectations. People were actually laughing out load at the screen (something that rarely happens in a British cinema) and I was actually joining in with them. A great film for all age groups and enough scantily clad bodies for the guys, but mainly for the girls.
My little dampener on this review is that you shouldn't watch this film for the football, as some of the scenes were a bit unrealistic, especially when they had American Football style tackles in one of the practice sessions. Also *spoiler* the fact that Sebastian was benched and then Viola (as Sebastian) managed to come off the bench again seemed to confuse me as this isn't actually possible in a real football game in the UK, although it was glaringly obvious that it was going to happen as it was the only way they could complete the film. *spoiler*