For Thursday: Whedon’s Much Ado About Nothing (2013)

NOTE: Even though we’ll finish the film on Thursday, we’ll watch the largest part of it in class on Tuesday, so you can easily answer these questions for Thursday’s class. We’ll discuss them a bit after the film as well.

ALSO, if you missed class, come on Thursday and you can see enough of the film to answer the questions below.  

Answer TWO of the following:

Q1: Though this version is utterly faithful to Shakespeare’s text, it makes a number of modern adaptations, some of which are quite unusual. Explain why you think they decided to do ONE or ALL of the following: (a) the modern, Hollywood setting; (b) black and white cinematography; (c) the low-budget, almost documentary feel; (d) all American actors—not a British accent in sight!

Q2: How do the film/actors help sell the comedy of Shakespeare’s play? In other words, what meta-textual elements do they bring out to help us see, understand, or expand the lines? Also, what made you laugh that wasn’t technically in the play? Do you think this is necessary to make the comedy work, or was it just a bonus?

Q3: What scene or moment in the film did you feel resisted translation the most? In other words, how might the modern setting and the non-Shakespearean actors have almost gotten in the way of understanding? Also, how might a more traditional approach make sense of this scene (or maybe, why might reading the play be an advantage)?

Q4: Which actor or actors do you feel most embodied their character, and helped us see them as a real person, and not just a handful of lines? What did they do that will help you ‘see’ this character when you read the play itself? Be as specific as possible