Much Ado About Nothing Review

• 29th Sep 2013

Joss Whedon’s charming take on Shakespeare’s classic rom-com Much Ado About Nothing is a noir inspired gem.  Shot during Whedon’s “holiday” after completing The Avengers, it demonstrates the great man’s talent, love of the original text and his workaholism to sublime effect.  The plot of Much Ado is well known, unsurprising given that it’s largely written in prose and is therefore more accessible to the average reader than those plays written chiefly in blank verse, and you can see echoes of the classic Benedict and Beatrice relationship in more or less every love story told since. They hate each other; they verbally spar; they fall in love. Beneath this classic love story is another, of young Hero and Claudio whose path to wedded bliss is derailed in spectacular fashion by the Machiavellian scheming of the duplicitous Don Jon.

Whedon has a reputation for developing his own acting troupe; performers who crop up again and again in his vehicles and with whom he puts on informal Shakespeare readings at his house.  Hollywood legend has it that Whedon, at the urging of his partner; decided that turning one of these readings into a film would be a good way to de-stress after the pressures of helming the juggernaut that was The Avengers. Indeed the cast list is a rogues gallery the very best Whedonites, with Amy Acker and Alexis Denisof staring as the duelling lovers Benedict and Beatrice and fan favourite Nathan Fillion lending comic relief in the form of Dogberry.

By using the same actors again and again, Whedon has built up a level of trust between his cast and crew, which allows them to give unexpectedly raw and powerful performances.  Acker’s turn as Beatrice is made instantly memorable because of the raw emotion on display in her key “if I were a man” speech.  She imbues the performance with such power that she immediately washes away any lingering memories of other Beatrice’s you may have seen on stage and screen. Denisof too is able to go from the ridiculous to the sublime, acting the buffoon in the wonderful calisthenics scene yet still being able to convince as he challenges Claudio to a duel to the death.  Fran Kranz also does well to impart Claudio, one the characters whose behaviour it’s always most difficult for the audience to understand, with a wide eyed stupidity that made this reviewer finally understand why Hero would ever forgive her suitor.

The choice to shoot in black-and-white lends an intimacy and 50s’ glamour to the proceedings.  Although stylistically a noir, it’s missing the long shadows you would usually associate with that type of picture and light is everywhere.  Be it twinkling fairy lights or blazing sunshine. Even protagonist Don Jon, the wonderful Sean Maher, playing against type as a villain for the first (but surely not the last) time, is drenched in light. As arguably the most handsome member of the cast, you can see why Whedon wouldn’t want to hide that in shadow and oddly the decision to light him well has made him more menacing, more threatening.

One cannot help but feel however that the real star of this film is Whedon’s own house. Designed by his partner, it’s architecturally perfect both inside and out to be a movie location. Whether that was part of her design or not, we’ll never know, but if you’ve ever watched the MTV show Cribs, you’ll get a real kick out of nosing around Whedon’s home.  It really is beautiful.

What’s lacking somewhat on the DVD release is special features.  As lovely and informative as Whedon’s commentary is, that’s the only feature on the disc.  It would have been great to have some of the cast with him on the commentary, or to have some other features, perhaps something from the actors about tackling Shakespeare, or a documentary on the music which was written by Whedon and produced by his brother.  Perhaps that’s expecting too much given that this is a small film, insofar as it wasn’t given a huge release in cinemas, but the skill with which it’s been delivered and the reception it’s received both from movie-goers, Whedonites and critics makes you hungry for more.

Suzie King