Review of Much Ado About Nothing (2013) by Anna B — 03 Nov 2013

I know I've seen this, and I'm pretty sure I've rated this. Damn you, Flixter. OK, so this movie still didn't answer the question of why almost everyone, including Hero's father, were so quick to believe that Hero totally had sex with some random dude on the say so of a KNOWN criminal.

Yes, I know Claudio supposedly saw everything, and they did paint him as a hot headed, quick tempered young man who jumps to conclusions. And I could even sort of buy Hero's dad in the play trying to save face by jumping on the "wronged patriarch" wagon.

But this movie is set in modern day, and we are not led to believe that Leonato is any kind of asshole. Alex proposed that maybe Hero has pulled something like this before. Or it could be that Leonato is just really misogynistic? I don't know, and the movie doesn't answer.

The point of adapting a play is interpretation, people! This movie barely interprets. Beatrice and Benedick were good, but why can't Beatrice do anything for Hero? In the original play her being a woman and not a soldier sort of made sense, but again -- modern day.

Obviously not everyone has an affinity for guns, fair enough, but her anguish at not being a man just sounds out of place. And I'm still not OK with Claudio and Hero getting married at the end. Yes, in the movie he pays a sort of penance, but why would Hero want to marry him after what he did to her? I don't get it.