1. Much Ado About Nothing (2013)
This film adaptation contains a combination of Joss Whedon and Shakespeare Joss Whedon. And Shakespeare. Much Ado About Nothing is my favourite Shakespeare comedy, by far. Its hilariously funny, deeply touching and contains a female character that I vowed to be from the age of thirteen. It tells the tale of Beatrice and Benedick, two rather thorny individuals who are secretly in love but damned if theyre going to admit it. Much Ado About Nothing shows how they get together, while also showing how their respective cousin and best friend get together, and showing just how filthy Shakespeare can be, and showing why you really shouldnt trust your brother who just betrayed you. I know that Ive listed a lot of people who get Shakespeare on this list, but thats because they do and its glorious. Joss Whedon is the last one in the line, yet another person who understands the writings of the bard perfectly. He gets the humour, he gets the underlying darkness, he even gets the filthy jokes and the sheer amount of dirty humour that Shakespeare crams into every line. It seems like a match made in heaven, and I would love to see him direct as many other Shakespeare plays as possible. Because Whedon doesnt only get Shakespeare, he also adores Shakespeare without fear. A lot of adaptations suffer from the cardinal sin of being overawed by the words, but not this one. It sticks to the base text, but also isnt afraid to be original and experiment. It takes the setting to the modern day, a daring update that works wonderfully. It also dares to be in black and white, creating a sultry gangster-movie sort of feel that suits Much Ado About Nothing more perfectly than I wouldve imagined. It was daring and original and I loved it, most of all because it showed what could be done with a little bit of imagination. And an absolutely fantastic cast. As all of you probably know, this is a cast entirely populated by Whedons old favourites. Amy Acker is great as Beatrice, having wonderful comic timing in most of her scenes. Clark Gregg is the perfect Leonato, the first actor that Ive ever allowed to make me care about the role. Nathan Fillion is hilarious as the hapless Dogberry, a man who couldnt be stupider if he tried. And Alexis Denisof as Benedick is a work of true brilliance, an amazing performance that actually challenges for my top Benedick ever. Much Ado About Nothing is one of Shakespeares greatest plays, and this film is my favourite adaptation of it. It contains everything that makes up an absolutely beautiful adaptation the great directing, the brilliant acting and the sheer spark of magic that makes it a pleasure to watch. Its all of those things that make Joss Whedons version of Much Ado About Nothing my favourite adaptation of Shakespeare overall and, really, it had some very serious challengers along the way.