Just One of the Guys (1985)
When Terry Griffith loses her high school's writing competition, she's convinced that it's because she's a girl. So Terry decides to change high schools and pose as a boy to prove her point. Her brother, Buddy, helps her pass as a guy so well that she is soon making friends with the boys at school, including the attractive Rick, who becomes her new best friend. But her gender-swapping makes things difficult when she falls in love with him.
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Too much of everything
It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.
The acting is good, and the firecracker script has some excellent ideas.
By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.
"Just One of the Guys" is a cute, whimsical, and entertaining '80s film about a female high school student that pretends to be a boy for a second shot in a writing competition. It features the stunning Joyce Hyser as Terry Griffith, who makes a pretty convincing boy. I love her character. She's bright, kind, intelligent, and a decent person. The film is hilarious, but by no means profound. The plot is pretty basic - something that's been rehashed time and time again since before Shakespeare. It's a wonderful film to watch though. I would recommend it if for nothing more than to see Joyce Hyser.
Wonderful '80s comedy about a high school senior and aspiring journalist (Joyce Hyser) who, believing sexism is responsible for her not getting the newspaper internship she wanted, changes schools and pretends to be a boy to win the internship and show up the sexist pigs. At the new school, she-posing-as-he falls for a nerd while dealing with a school bully and an oversexed female admirer.An appealing starring vehicle for Joyce Hyser, an actress largely forgotten today save for this movie and for being an ex-girlfriend of Bruce Springsteen. I first saw this as a teenager and there was something very alluring about her. Okay, yeah, the killer body with one of the best topless scenes from any '80s movie is right up there but I mean there's something else. She has a likable screen presence and a believable tomboy quality without ever seeming butch. She's like a sexier Nancy McKeon. Billy Jacoby is lots of fun as Hyser's horny brother. He really steals the movie. Clayton Rohner is the nerdy love interest, although the movie's definition of nerd is different than mine. He's got a nice chemistry with Joyce. Sherilyn Fenn steams things up as the girl who falls for "boy" Joyce. Today a movie like this would be a lot less fun with more focus on heavy-handed messages. This is an under-appreciated politically incorrect gem with an upbeat but cheesy soundtrack and lots of laughs. Plus it has William Zabka as the high school bully. How can a movie with Zabka as a bully possibly be bad?
"Terry Griffith" (Joyse Hyser) is a popular senior in high school who wants very much to be a journalist for a newspaper after she graduates. Unfortunately, when her paper for a local newspaper journalism prize is rejected, and she is slighted because she is essentially too attractive, she decides to secretly enroll in a rival high school and compete for the journalism contest there--as a guy. But what she doesn't count on is the unexpected turmoil her decision creates by leading two totally different lives. Now rather than reveal any more of this movie and risk spoiling it for those who haven't seen it I will just say that this film was simply hilarious. Along with that it doesn't take much to see that both Joyse Hyser and Bill Jayne (as her younger brother "Buddy Griffith") were clearly having a good time playing their parts which made the movie even more enjoyable. Likewise the performance of William Zabka (as the high school bully named "Greg Tolan") and the addition of such attractive actresses like Toni Hudson ("Denise"), Sherilynn Fenn ("Sandy") along with the aforementioned Joyse Hyser certainly didn't hurt either. In short, this is a good example of 80's comedy and I recommend it to all those who might be interested in something of this nature. Above average.
The William Zabka bully trilogy is composed of three of the best 80's movies to come out of the uh 80's. Along with The Karate Kid and Back to School, Just One of the Guys benefits from having Billy Zabka as the bad guy. Terry Griffin (Hyser) writes a paper that she thinks is destined to make her an intern at the local newspaper but is turned down because of her gender. No problem, she just dresses like Ralph Macchio and attends the rival school where she'll submit her paper to. There, she encounters our favorite 80's bully, an over-sexual girl admirer, and falls for her best pal Rick (Rohner) who has no clue he is actually a she. Like I said, Zabka makes bullying look easy and fun but who takes the cake in this movie? Not Joyce Hyser, not Clayton Rohner, nor even Zabka but Billy Jane/Jacoby who plays Terry's little sex-crazed brother Buddy. The whole movie sees him wanting to get laid or thinking about anything and everything sexual. His room is plastered with pictures of naked women and he'll hit on anything with boobs. Sounds a bit much but the way he does it is masterful. He carries this mischievous grin throughout that makes it seem like he's aware of what and why he's doing it. He definitely steals the movie from the rest and he's a joy to watch. Again, another great 80's actor that disappeared with a new generation that left him behind.