Review of Much Ado About Nothing (2013) by Eric F — 11 Aug 2014

Shot in 12 days, pictured in black-and-white, and filmed entirely at Joss Whedon's home during his time-off from filming "The Avengers", this modern take on what is possibly William Shakespeare's dullest work brings a bright, simple touch to it's eternally over-done source material, and makes it shine like new.

I've always said that everything Whedon touches turns to gold, but this film proves once and for all that he is the king Midas of live-action storytelling (that's a compliment, I promise). "Much Ado About Nothing" is one of my least favorites of Shakespeare's many works, but here we see these otherwise boring characters coming to life in a brand new (and thoroughly hilarious) fashion.

There are many great films that benefit heavily from being shot in (or mostly in) black-and-white ("Sin City", "Psycho", and "The Artist", just to name a few), so it's not really all that surprising that this particular color scheme could help breathe life into "Much Ado", but what is most surprising is just how perfectly it fits. By shooting the film in such a simple color palette, Whedon's leaving everything up to the acting and the dialogue: normally this would be a risk regardless of how good your script and your cast are, but this is Shakespeare we're talking about -- the dialogue is so good by nature that it almost acts itself out.

As I said though, it's not just the dialogue, but also the acting has to be quite good -- and it is. Amy Acker and Alexis Denisof (both of whom are part of Whedon's usual "posse") are especially good in this one, and Clark Gregg (who has also worked with Whedon before) makes an electrifying Leonato.

The idea for this film sprung out of a tradition that Joss Whedon has had with many of his actors and friends for many, many years: getting together at his home (or other places) one night a week for private renditions and readings of various Shakespeare plays. The evolution of this concept into a full-blown movie is clearly something that sat within Whedon's imagination for a long time before finally coming to fruition.

The daringness of Joss Whedon's "Much Ado About Nothing" is in the bare simplicity of the visuals as they allow the genius writing to take full control and mesh effortlessly with truly absorbing performances, backed by a quiet musical score and natural lighting and sound designs. To all those who are fans of Shakespeare, fans of Whedon, fans of this play in particular, or just plain fans, Whedon's retelling of this classic is sure to impress -- or in the very least is sure to delight. I can promise to all that have been let down, time and time again by overbearing, gaudy visuals and directorial mediocrity in past Shakespeare adaptations, Whedon's version of "Much Ado" is a masterpiece of minimalism and it has the charm and elegance that a classic story of this grandeur deserves.