I heard about this version several years ago but never got a chance to see it until recently. It has been raining here steadily for the past three weeks and this film made the day seem inexplicably sunny. Wow! What a wonderful cast and what fabulous direction! At every turn, I found myself understanding a phrase or word that I had hitherto (how articulate, young neophyte!) not understood.Robert Lindsay and Cherie Lunghi are simply wonderful. The chapel scene is simply breath-taking. When Benedick professes his love for Beatrice, I swear my heart skips. And then we are treated to her response - Ms. Lunghi speaks volumes with her delivery of "Ah!". I also think Mr. Lindsay does a great job with his "bird's nest" speech to the Duke.Katharine Levy does a particularly good job with the (usually) boring part of Hero. There was wonderful chemistry between her Hero and Lunghi's Beatrice. It made Beatrice's despair in the chapel scene so much more believable.The entire piece from start to finish is flawless. I loved all the little things happening between characters in the background - a bump here, a nudge there. I find something new each time (and it has been several now) that I watch it.Great job! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

I really enjoyed the Kenneth Branagh version of "Much Ado About Nothing" and I was sorry to miss the recent RSC production, so I thought I would have a look at this one and see another take on one of Shakespeare's more popular comedies.Robert Lindsay certainly has the wit, panache and energy to make a really good Benedick and he's matched by the beautiful and sparkling Cherie Lunghie as Beatrice. Katherine Levy certainly makes the most of Hero, turning in a very strong and forthright portrayal of what is an underwritten and rather weak character. Jon Finch plays Don Pedro as an arrogant lord who enjoys his scheming and gossiping. It is a good portrayal, but I missed the compassion of Denzel Washington in the same role.Micheal Elphick certainly makes a plausible and by-and-large comprehensible Dogberry, though I thought he could have done more with the character's malapropisms to get more humour out of the character.This version uses much more of the original text than the popular movie, so the pace is somewhat slower, and now and again the period setting looks a little bit tacky.That said, lovers of Shakespearean comedy should find little wrong with this.

Watching this 148 minute highly professional BBC production cannot but warm the heart of any Shakespeare appreciator. The beautiful and witty Cherie Lunghi is a properly shrewish yet desirable Beatrice, and she is the greatest boon of this production.This version, due to its length (I always appreciate using the full text), is divided up into two parts, and part one can sometimes become a little dull. BBC's Complete Works of Shakespeare seems to be made so as to honor Shakespeare's language more than the performing of his drama, and I cannot fault them for this, since I, too, ultimately consider the plays more literature than theater. But BBC's chosen actors and actresses are so consummately professional, clear-speaking and well-rehearsed that this becomes far more than mere recital (unlike, for instance, the dull Kevin Kline version of Hamlet). And in terms of animated and emotional acting, part two of this production more than makes up for whatever shortcomings in this department part one may have had. The wedding scene with Claudio's shaming of Hero was played intensely dramatically, and clearly the best sequence of this production.I was also greatly impressed with the immensely well-crafted stage sets.Today, however, this version does come across as slightly old-fashioned, or at least traditional. It cannot measure up to Branagh's movie version, which in this reviewer's opinion is one of the few perfect movies of any kind ever made. Its visuals underscore the beauty of the words, and the formidable chemistry between all the actors is clear as day. Even the text cuts are largely justified, as most of what was cut was not important for the action. A more definitive version can scarcely be made.So the BBC version receives a 9 out of 10 from me. While it seemed textually complete, there were actually a few bits missing. For instance, when Claudio says of Hero, "Can the world buy such a jewel?", for some reason they neglected to include Benedick's reply, "Yea, and a case to put it into!", which is a pretty important line as it, among other things, prefigures Hero's apparent death and thus her placement in a coffin (= casket = case).I have only seen these two Much Ado productions, BBC's and Branagh's (well, and the 2005 Shakespeare Retold version, but that was not anywhere near this league), but I am greatly looking forward to seeing other productions, which I hope I will have the opportunity to.

Robert Lindsay is an excellent Benedick, punchy and precise in word, action and emotion. Cherie Lunghi finds less variation in her Beatrice, but is nonetheless quite good.Jon Finch camps outrageously as Don Pedro, delivering his lines in frank imitation of Sir Laurence Olivier at his giddiest. How did this apparent party turn wind up in here? But it does not distract from the progress of the play.The rest of the cast is fine and the whole affair moves at a reasonable pace. The physical production is beautiful to the eye, inspired by the finest Italian Renaissance painters. Highly recommended.