While cynical Benedick (Kenneth Branagh) and Beatrice (Emma Thompson) are tricked into realizing they love each other, young Claudio (Robert Sean Leonard) is tricked into believing his bride-to-be, Hero (Kate Beckinsale), is unfaithful.
Much Ado About Nothing is an odd play, at least as it is normally produced. Claudio, assumed to be a good man, tosses aside Hero when her chastity is questioned and Don Pedro supports him. Their behavior is often explained by proclaiming that those were different times and that her supposed lack of purity was thought to be a greater sin then. But that explains nothing. The problem isn’t that Claudio turns from her, or even that he thinks justice demands an unpleasant fate for her. The problem is how Claudio appears to relish his cruelty to her. He doesn’t humiliate her to be just, but to be spiteful. If he is a good man, he might think that a punishment is required, but he wouldn’t act sadistically. Kenneth Branagh’s film version doesn’t solve this contradiction, and it makes the entire Claudio/Hero plot hard to enjoy. (The solution is obvious if you read the play: Claudio and Don Pedro aren’t vicious men, but clownishly stupid—as is Don John—and aren’t responsible for their actions. Just look at Don Padro’s plans, how easily Claudio is fooled when Don Padro woos for him, and how neither of them can keep their minds on a subject. Unfortunately, Branagh takes their behavior seriously instead of as part of the comedy).
While the Claudio/Hero plotline fails, the Benedick/Beatrice one is excellent and that is the more important story. There is chemistry to spare between Branagh’s Benedick and Emma Thompson’s Beatrice. He brings a boyish charm while she appears intelligent and sexy. If all of the film was as good as their scenes together, this would be the best Shakespeare on film. The movie also looks good, with a free, spring feel. There is some miscasting (Denzel Washington is far too upright for the foolish Don Padro and Keanu Reeves plays Washington’s character’s brother (yes, brother—you work it out) with all the skill of a junior high drama student, but the joy of the project wins out.