Review of Much Ado About Nothing (2013) by Tom S — 16 Oct 2013

Judd: Being the cultured one of our fair duo, I went to see Joss Whedon's production of Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing. Shot in 12 days on a digital camera in Whedon's own home, Much Ado is about two lovers Benedick and Beatrice, Claudio and Hero. Benedick and Beatrice are in a love-hate relationship while Claudio and Hero are absolutely gaga about each other - that is until the villain, Don John, tricks Claudio into thinking Hero is a Whore-o.

I was not familiar with the story, but being a fan of small indie films and being a total advocate of contemporary Shakespeare I was truly looking forward to the movie. Starring Whedon pal's Amy Acker, Alexis Denisof, Nathan Fillion, Clark Gregg, Fran Kraz, Jillian Morgese plus others like Ashley Johnson and Riki Lindhome, it was grossly apparent which actors has the chops to pull off Shakespearian prose and those who did not; Riki Lindhome being the worst of the lot. I also went in not knowing the plot or the fact that the script is a romantic comedy. In fact, being written in 1599, I would venture to say that with Much Ado, The Bard invented the horrible clichés of romcoms. The bad guy was only a plot device to cause conflict, who then was written out of the story after he stirred the shit. Though he was clearly the bad guy, no one questioned his scandalous story about the bride. The whole thing could have been avoided if the groom would have talked to the bride before the wedding, instead of accusing her at the altar. And of course, the buffoons save the day. The only thing it was missing was a pillow fight and Diane Keaton as the overbearing mother. Had the language been contemporary and the budget a more than $12, Tom would have loved this movie.

The direction was very sitcomish with some scenes overtaken by cheesy slapstick. This may have been appropriate for the commoners in the front row at The Globe, but it came across as broad and hackey. Beautiful, wealthy sophisticates, speaking complex English, can think of better places to hide than under the kitchen table. It should also be noted that the movie was recorded in black and white. It wasn't until I researched it later that I found out this was for budgetary reasons more than anything.

Would I recommend Much Ado About Nothing? Only to those who've been assigned to read the text for a class. I believe that plays ought to be seen and heard, not read, particularly Shakespeare. The problem is that the tropes featured in Much Ado have been done to death over the past 415 years, and Shakespeare should have been put to death for creating them. I appreciate Whedon's Roger Corman approach to filmmaking and he has my full respect for being mostly successful. Unfortunately, the last thing we need in this world is another shitty romantic comedy.

Judd: **.