hamoo
really, emma is such a great actress; and this movie was full of talent. and all of them showed that they were all beyond that Hollywood bromide that they are forced in to participate. i could watch this movie again. and again. just to figure out what don john's motive was to sabotage hero's wedding. somehow i missed that.
Sophie Molloy
I think this was an enjoyable film that you should watch if you enjoy Shakespeare and his work. The director included a range of quotes from the play and the characters showed their personalities and emotion which really added to the drama. It had me hooked from beginning to end and having already read Much Ado About Nothing it was very interesting to see how much a difference it was when see the words shown through actors. My favourite parts were when the characters were having conversation using Shakespearean language but with the knowledge of English and the characters facial expressions you could still understand and be memorized by it. I am happy with film and the only negative thing I have to say about it is the tendency for the characters to go over the top with there expressions especially when Claudio was looking trying to give the look of sadness and heartbreak because it came across more like he was having indigestion. Apart from this the actors were great and excelled their roles perfectly.
quasardrake
A very entertaining version of the play. Marvelous performances all around. Reminds you of just WHY Denzel Washington deserves both the love of audiences and fans, and an Academy Award. Kenneth Branagh is an actor one either likes or dislikes, and I happen to like him. He is well matched here with Emma Thompson. Both are excellent in the principle roles of Benedick(the Bard's spelling) and Beatrice. The supporting cast is outstanding. I particularly like the marvelous Brian Blessed as Hero's uncle Antonio. Keanu Reeves is surprisingly good as the villainous Don Jon; it is possibly one of his very best screen performances. Robert Sean Leonard is good but not quite up to the others as Claudio, and Kate Beckinsale is somewhat better as the slandered maiden named Hero. Michael Keaton is hilarious as the constable whose language is so filled with circumlocutions that no one can understand him.This Branagh Shakespearean production is considerably more edited for length than "Hamlet" or "Henry V", with a run time of just under two hours, which is just about right for most movie audiences. The trimming is judiciously done and the play hangs together very well, with the main plot points largely intact. His direction is crisp and the staging is very good. The language is not too difficult to follow, despite the fact that it was not modernized. I found this film vastly entertaining and particularly enjoyed Denzel Washington in it. Locations are beautiful and costumes attractive. I found almost nothing to complain about by the end, despite doubting whether Keanu Reeves would hold up in his role. He is fine. Overall this is a wonderful film, a good introduction to the Bard for younger audiences(though they may wish to review the plot beforehand), and a most pleasant choice for someone looking for a romantic comedy for a date night. I found it just delightful.
GusF
After Laurence Olivier's versions of "Henry V", "Hamlet" and "Richard III" and Kenneth Branagh's version of "Henry V", this is the fifth Shakespearean film that I've watched this year. While I was previously familiar with the three plays on which those films were based, that wasn't the case with "Much Ado About Nothing" so I don't know what cuts, if any, Branagh made to the text. The play is enormous fun, extraordinarily witty and occasionally laugh out funny. However, it also features darker moments and a fascinating exploration of the nature of honour, particularly as regards Hero being publicly and, more importantly, unjustly shamed due to the machinations of Don John. As with "Henry V", Kenneth Branagh excels as both an actor and a director. He is brilliant as Benedick, playing the role with an irresistible level of enthusiasm and charm. He directs the film with great style and flair and it looks absolutely beautiful as he used the gorgeous scenery of Sicily and Tuscany to its full potential. Branagh's then wife Emma Thompson is very bit his equal as Beatrice and their "merry war" is the best part of the film. The most important thing in a comedy based largely on wit and verbal jousting is the delivery of the lines. Branagh and Thompson deliver them as naturally as if they just entered their heads that very second. Overall, the film has a very strong supporting cast such as Richard Briers, BRIAN BLESSED, Robert Sean Leonard, Kate Beckinsale (who is wonderfully natural as Hero) and Denzel Washington (who I wouldn't have imagined as being much of a Shakespearean actor but he does very, very well as Don Pedro). It also features strong performances from actors in smaller roles such as Emma Thompson's mother Phyllida Law, Imelda Staunton, Richard Clifford and Jimmy Yuill. However, Branagh's usually superlative eye for casting let him down badly in the case of Keanu Reeves and Michael Keaton. As with Branagh and Thompson, Reeves' performance is effortlessly funny but, in his case, it wasn't meant to be. He delivers most of his lines in a monotone and just shouts the rest and not in a good, Shakespearean way. It was a bit embarrassing really. To be honest, I have never liked Reeves in any film that didn't have the words "Bill & Ted" in the title. Keaton is certainly better than Reeves, which admittedly isn't hard, but he was still way, way too over the top as Dogberry. His performance seemed to belong in a different film. I also don't see why either he or Branagh thought that it was a good idea for him to play the role in a bad Irish accent, which this Irishman found very irritating. I didn't smile once when Dogberry was on the screen - which I found hard to watch - while I laughed or at least grinned throughout the rest of the comedy scenes. However, it is quite funny to note that, since Christian Bale appeared in "Henry V", both of Branagh's first two Shakespearean films featured Batman!Overall, this is a brilliant film which, like "Henry V", demonstrates Branagh's mastery of Shakespeare but, because of Reeves and Keaton's poor performances, I can't quite give it full marks.9.5/10
