DVD review: Joss Whedon's 'Much Ado' a fun modern spin on Shakespeare

By Sean P. Means The Salt Lake Tribune

Published: October 8, 2013 9:28 am
This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Grade • A

DVD • "Man is a giddy thing," declares the lovestruck Benedick (Alexis Denisov) during the course of "Much Ado About Nothing," a movie that's just as giddy a thing.

Director Joss Whedon turns Shakespeare's verbal battle of the sexes into a modern-dress cocktail party (shot in black and white in Whedon's house), with Benedick sparring comically with Beatrice (Amy Acker) in iambic pentameter.

Whedon gets maximum humor from his regulars, notably Nathan Fillion ("Firefly") as a scene-stealing constable who looks like a refugee from an '80s cop show.

Whedon's modern touches and Shakespeare's bottomless wit blend beautifully for a delightfully bubbly film. —

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