Much Ado About Nothing (Film)

I have to admit that I was rather surprised when I first heard about this film, especially considering Joss Whedon’s recent track-record of films (The Avengers, Cabin In The Woods) a Shakespeare adaptation seems like a substantial departure. I have grown very fond of Joss Whedon’s work in recent years (I’ve never seen ‘Firefly’ so I can’t claim to be an elitist) and so the idea of him directing a Shakespeare play into a film sparked my interest. I am a big fan of Shakespeare’s plays, but I can be sceptical when they are adapted to film, as they don’t always translate well.

This film was shot in just twelve days at Joss Whedon’s home, and the cast is largely comprised of Whedon’s friends and collaborators. Being familiar with only a handful of Joss Whedon’s films, I often found myself trying to figure out where I had seen certain actors before, which occasionally took my focus away from the film.

I think that the film makes several wise decisions early on, with regards to the narrative; establishing a playfulness in the relationship between Leonato and his daughter Hero; also the insecurity of Claudio’s character is brought to the audience’s attention through his facial expression when Don Pedro makes his proposition to woo Hero on Claudio’s behalf. Both of these aspects are very useful later on within the story. Another thing the film gets right early on is that Beatrice wins her first verbal exchange with Benedick (Kenneth Branagh – who also played Benedick in his version – interpreted this exchange differently). 

There are some changes which don’t necessarily work quite as well as they might have done. The decision to have Conrade be female, and be romantically involved with Don John, provides an interesting take on their character relationship, but it ultimately doesn’t lead to anything. Additionally, the decision for Borachio to have unrequited feelings for Hero provides the character with more motivation, but lacks any sort of pay-off.

The performances within the film are very good, in particular Clark Gregg as Leonato, and Fran Kranz as Claudio. There are strong performances from the two leads as well, although from time to time their scenes together slow the pacing down a bit too much. The scenes in which they overhear their companions talking about how one loves the other, are carried out very nicely, and it is not just Benedick who is made to look foolish as he dances around in the background to avoid being seen (I chuckled during the scene with Benedick, but I laughed out loud during Beatrice’s)! Credit also has to go to Nathan Fillion for making Dogberry a genuinely funny character (Michael Keaton’s spectacularly unfunny portrayal of the character in the 1993 version can now be forgotten).

Despite a couple of minor issues, the film works as an adaptation, and is very enjoyable. The songs from Shakespeare’s original text are still present, and actually work surprisingly well (it takes skill to integrate the expression “Hey nonny, nonny” into a contemporary setting, and for it to not be jarring). If Joss Whedon were to direct another Shakespeare play in a similar fashion to this one, I would certainly go and see it.