Just One of the Guys

Directed by Lisa Gottlieb, Just One of the Guys follows high schooler Terri Griffith (Joyce Hyser) as she decides to disguise herself as a boy after she’s denied a coveted newspaper internship position. Filmmaker Gottlieb, working from Dennis Feldman and Jeff Franklin’s screenplay, delivers an exceedingly erratic yet mostly agreeable comedy that benefits from its inherently compelling premise and the affable efforts of its various players, with, in terms of the latter, Hyser’s personable efforts as the engaging protagonist going a long way towards smoothing over the narrative’s various bumps and lulls. (And although Billy Jacoby’s larger-than-life turn as Terri’s obnoxious brother continually tests the viewer’s patience, Clayton Rohner, cast as Terri’s love interest, offers up a charming performance that’s enhanced by his obvious chemistry with Hyser.) The picture’s hit-and-miss atmosphere, which is particularly problematic within the oddly-paced and somewhat low-rent opening stretch, eventually gives way to a midsection and third act that are certainly more entertaining and involving than one might’ve initially anticipated, and Just One of the Guys is, in the end, a decent-enough ’80s comedy that benefits substantially from the consistently winning work of its amiable star.

**1/2 out of ****