Making the two families in the play members of the Mafia brings nothing to it and its "merry war" between anti-romantics
Beatrice and Benedick, apart from some double-barreled shotguns and switchblades toted by the thuglike cohorts of Don Pedro.
The subtle tennis game that makes marvellous Shakespeare (think of
Beatrice and Benedick In Much Ado About Nothing) is simply not there.
Shakespeare's famous battle of the sexes was updated to a regional TV newsroom with
Beatrice and Benedick as presenters who couldn't stand the sight of each other and Billie Piper as Hero - a sweet but IQ-challenged weathergirl.
The surroundings really shine during the slapstick scenes, the highlight of the play, which set a bickering
Beatrice and Benedick up for love.
Amy Acker (from Buffy The Vampire Slayer spin-off Angel, as well as the Whedonproduced Dollhouse and his 2011 film The Cabin In The Woods) and Alexis Denisof (Buffy and Angel) are both biting and tender as
Beatrice and Benedick, and their playful comedy sparring is at the film's core.
Much Ado's
Beatrice and Benedick fall for each other only after the entire court puts in a helping hand.
Its collision with the comic plot about the love-hate relationship of
Beatrice and Benedick creates a kind of between-comedy-and-tragedy vertigo, hinged on Beatrice's shocking line: "Kill Claudio".
The first play, Much Ado About Nothing, opens on October 30 featuring Tamsin Greig ( who plays Debbie in The Archers and Dr Caroline Todd in Channel 4's Green Wing ( and Joseph Millson as reluctant lovers
Beatrice and Benedick.
The engine that should drive the play--the teasing, touching tension between
Beatrice and Benedick, who are forced ultimately to confront the truth of their own affections when they must stand up for the integrity of Hero's--tends to hum along in low gear.