[This is a re-post of my review from the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival.  Much Ado about Nothing opens today in limited release.]

With a few exceptions, William Shakespeare‘s trips to the big screen have been sumptuous affairs. The plays favor an expansive vision by the director, so we get films like Julie Taymor‘s Titus and Kenneth Branagh‘s Hamlet. But one of the many beautiful things about Shakespeare is how flexible it is in terms of setting. You can set it on a modern battlefield (Ralph Fiennes‘ Coriolanus), in a high school (Tim Blake Nelson‘s Othello adaptation, O), or in the case of Joss Whedon‘s Much Ado about Nothing, in an upper-class home. Whedon’s Much Ado is a bold challenge for the director not because his adaptation lacks fancy costumes or production design, but because he removes two of his greatest assets: his dialogue and a budget. Of course, nothing Whedon (or anyone else) could write would surpass the Bard, but it’s an entertaining exercise seeing the director speak only in a visual language, and then having his budget limit what visuals he has available. With no money and another author’s work, Whedon finds his film’s strength in the superb cast, clever staging, and an expert understanding of dialogue.

While The Avengers 2 is still very much in the pre-production stage and we haven’t heard much movement recently on the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. TV series, everyone will have their Joss Whedon fix very soon.  The UK trailer for his new movie, an adaptation of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing, was just released, showing a bit more of the film than the first trailer.  Much Ado tells the story of two stubborn individuals, Beatrice and Benedick, and their haphazard journey to finding love with each other that involves a ridiculous amount of deception and wit.  This one gives glimpses into the interwoven drama with jabs of comedy Whedon is more known for, and I for one am very excited to see him take on an updated but understated version of this classic.  I like that he’s kept the original text, but is playing with the tone and creating a new feel for it.

The cast includes many of Whedon’s mainstays, such as Amy Adams, Alexis Denisof, Clark Gregg, Sean Maher, Nathan Fillion, Fran Kranz, Tom Lenk, Reed Diamond, and Ashley Johnson.  I love seeing Whedon bring back his beloved roster of actors, and I have no doubt that the combination of the cast he’s chosen and his distinctive style of filmmaking and directing will provide something fun and entertaining.  The film is set for a June 7th release.  Hit the jump for the trailer.

Joss Whedon brought his version of Shakespeare’s classic comedy Much Ado about Nothing to WonderCon in a special presentation.  Much of the cast of the impromptu production joined Whedon on stage in order to screen the recently-released trailer and two exclusive clips from the film.  The panel also shared behind-the-scenes anecdotes about how Whedon recruited them for the film, the experience of contemporizing Shakespeare and just how many of them were drunk during filming (off-screen…of course).

Much Ado about Nothing stars Amy Acker, Alexis Denisof, Fran Kranz, Jillian Morgese, Clark Gregg, Tom Lenk, Ashley Johnson, Reed Diamond, Riki Lindhome, Sean Maher and Nathan Fillion and opens in limited release on June 7th.  Hit the jump for our panel recap.

The trailer for Joss Whedon‘s Much Ado about Nothing has been released.  For those unfamiliar with William Shakespeare‘s play, it follows the trick to bring the bickering Beatrice (Amy Acker) and Benedict (Alexis Denisof) together, and the deception to tear apart the enamored Claudio (Fran Kranz) and Hero (Jillian Morgese) apart.  I caught the film at TIFF, and I was charmed by Whedon’s low-budget exercise in trying to tell a comedy without using his own snappy dialogue.  This trailer makes the film look a little more intense, but it’s understandable when trying to sell Shakespeare to a modern audience.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer.  The film also stars Clark Gregg, Tom Lenk, Ashley Johnson, Reed Diamond, Riki Lindhome, Sean Maher, and Nathan Fillion.  Much Ado about Nothing opens in limited release on June 7th.

Around this time last year, we found out that Joss Whedon (The Avengers) had completed an entire movie in secret; that movie was a contemporary adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing.  The film recently screened at the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival (you can read Matt’s review of it here) and scored a big prize when it was reported that Lionsgate had acquired the film, along with sister company, Roadside Attractions.  The micro-budget film was completed in just twelve days in Santa Monica and features such Whedonesque regulars as Amy Acker (The Cabin in the Woods), Nathan Fillion (Firefly) and, now, Clark Gregg (The Avengers).  Hit the jump for more on the acquisition and to see what Whedon himself had to say about it.

With a few exceptions, William Shakespeare‘s trips to the big screen have been sumptuous affairs.  The plays favor an expansive vision by the director, so we get films like Julie Taymor‘s Titus and Kenneth Branagh‘s Hamlet.  But one of the many beautiful things about Shakespeare is how flexible it is in terms of setting.  You can set it on a modern battlefield (Ralph Fiennes‘ Coriolanus), in a high school (Tim Blake Nelson‘s Othello adaptation, O), or in the case of Joss Whedon‘s Much Ado about Nothing, in an upper-class home.  Whedon’s Much Ado is a bold challenge for the director not because of fancy costumes or complex staging, but because he removes two of his greatest assets: his dialogue and a budget.  Of course, nothing Whedon (or anyone else) could write would surpass the Bard, but it’s an entertaining exercise seeing the director speak only in a visual language, and then having his budget limit what visuals he has available.  With no money and another author’s work, Whedon finds his film’s strength in the superb cast, clever staging, and an expert understanding of dialogue.

As we come within mere days of the North American premiere of The Avengers, the anticipated marketing A-bomb has officially detonated and is in the process of spewing tiny chunks of promotional material across the globe for all to see. We’ve got special edition cola cans, fancy micro-sites, and even pint-sized LARPing…and, of course, your standard behind-the-scenes TV specials. While this one, from CBS News, is mainly a rehash of stuff we already know/have seen before, it would still be worth watching, if only for the chance to have director/geek god Joss Whedon utterly disarm you with his affable wit, as he discusses his career to date.

But here’s another reason to take a look: it features our first glimpse of Much Ado About Nothing, the self-financed, sub-independent Shakespeare adaptation Whedon shot entirely at his Santa Monica home over a period of 12 days just after The Avengers wrapped. Hit the jump to check it out.

The Cabin in the Woods, from Drew Goddard and Joss Whedon – and opening (quite appropriately) in theaters on Friday, April 13^th – is a great horror film that is just so much fun to watch.  It’s creative, imaginative and hysterically funny, all while turning horror on its head and challenging anything that follows.  So as not to ruin any aspect of the film, I will just include the official synopsis which says: “Five friends go to a remote cabin in the woods.  Bad things happen.”  And, do they ever!

During this recent phone interview with Collider, actor Fran Kranz (Dollhouse), who plays a pot smoking guy named Marty in the film, talked about what a big classic horror fan he is, his unusual auditioning process for the role (that included reading a monologue about his friend having gotten his head chopped off by The Clickety Clack Man), how he thought it was one of the best scripts he’s ever read, that the finished film is pretty much exactly what he originally read, how there could be some amazing bonus features on the DVD because of all the behind-the-scenes footage that was shot, and how he hopes people will love the film as much as he clearly loved getting to be a part of it.  He also talked about he got to be a part of the backyard production of Much Ado About Nothing that Joss Whedon shot at his house, what a fun and relaxed experience it was, and how he’s looking forward to seeing it, along with what it’s like to be a part of the Broadway revival of Death of a Salesman, directed by Mike Nichols and starring Philip Seymour Hoffman and Andrew Garfield, among other notables.  Check out what he had to say after the jump.

Before Joss Whedon’s The Avengers hits theaters this summer, fans can get a look at his written effort in the horror/thriller, Cabin in the Woods. We’ve brought you some previous images as well as screened the entire movie for a select audience along with stars Kristen Connolly and Fran Kranz. Now, we’ve got a few new images for you to check out along with a trailer from Cabin in the Woods. The plot follows five friends who rent a cabin in the woods, but find more than they bargained for. Directed by Drew Goddard, Cabin in the Woods also stars Chris Hemsworth, Richard Jenkins and Bradley Whitford and opens April 13th. Hit the jump to check out the new images, along with the synopsis and trailer.

Director Drew Goddard and co-writer Joss Whedon‘s The Cabin in the Woods is a masterful take down of the supernatural horror genre, and that about all I can say since some people believe the “twist” is half of the film’s appeal.  I would argue that it’s the hook, and since it’s revealed in the first scene of the movie, it’s not much of a spoiler.  Nevertheless, I won’t reveal it here, and if you’re curious about it and how it functions in the film, you can click here to read my review.

The first clip has gone online and doesn’t reveal “the spoiler”, so I’d say the coast is clear.  It also shows how Fran Kranz is the movie’s scene stealer.  Hit the jump to check out the clip.  The film also stars Chris Hemsworth, Kristen Connolly, Anna Hutchinson, Jesse Williams, Bradley Whitford, and Richard Jenkins.  The Cabin in the Woods opens April 13th.  Boston readers: click here for a chance to attend an advance screening.

One of the most buzzed about films of the year doesn’t open for a few weeks, but we here at Collider are thrilled to be hosting a free screening of The Cabin in the Woods well in advance of the film’s wide release.  In tandem with Lionsgate, we’ll be hosting the advanced screening of the horror film on Monday, March 26th in Boston.  Furthermore, stars Kristen Connolly and Fran Kranz will be onhand to participate in a Q&A following the screening.  Buzz for The Cabin in the Woods has been nuts since it screened at SXSW, with our own Matt Goldberg calling it “one of the sharpest satires of the horror genre ever made.”  Director Drew Goddard and co-writer Joss Whedon have apparently crafted a horror film unlike any other, as they take the genre and turn it on its head.

Hit the jump to find out how you can attend the screening.

The Cabin in the Woods is one of the sharpest satires of the horror genre ever made.  Great satire can only come from intelligent, witty, and devious minds.  Director Drew Goddard and his co-writer Joss Whedon have those minds.  They have dissected not just the “cabin in the woods” sub-genre, but the entire horror genre, and most importantly, our enjoyment of it.  Rather than just point out the tired clichés we all know, Goddard and Whedon use the deconstruction as a starting point rather than a dull summation.   It is an exciting, exhilarating, and bloody means to a thoughtful, rewarding, and bloody end.

The lucky bastards at SXSW in Austin will be treated to Drew Goddard’s much buzzed-about horror film The Cabin in the Woods this evening, and while the rest of us will have to seethe with jealousy from afar, a couple new images from the pic have been released to tide us over. Written by Goddard and Joss Whedon, the film tells the story of five friends who go to a remote cabin in the woods where bad things happen. Though the logline is simple, it’s evident from the trailer that this isn’t exactly the most straightforward of horror films. I’ve been told that the movie is excellent, with enough twists and turns to make your head spin. Goddard and Whedon apparently tackle the horror genre head-on, and I can’t wait to finally be privy to the results. For now, these very creepy images will have to do. Be sure to check back on Collider late tonight or tomorrow to read our own Matt Goldberg’s review of the film from the festival.

Hit the jump to check out the images. The film stars Chris Hemsworth, Kristen Connolly, Anna Hutchinson, Fran Kranz, Jesse Williams, Bradley Whitford, and Richard Jenkins. The Cabin in the Woods opens on April 13th.

A new trailer for the horror film The Cabin in the Woods has gone online. Directed by Drew Goddard and written by Goddard and Joss Whedon, the film takes the horror genre and turns it on its head as five friends go to a remote cabin in the woods where bad things start happening. The logline is simple, but the buzz on this film is incredibly positive. I’ve been told that the movie’s twists and turns are best left as surprises, so I’m pretty in the dark about what exactly happens in this cabin in the woods. Needless to say, I’m incredibly excited to go into the film relatively cold. This trailer is much more along the lines of your typical horror film that the first trailer, but I don’t necessarily think that’s a bad thing. The big sell for movie fans is the involvement of Whedon and Goddard, but this trailer should appeal to the average moviegoer who’s up for two hours of good ol’ fashioned horror fun.

Hit the jump to check out the new trailer. The film stars Chris Hemsworth, Kristen Connolly, Anna Hutchinson, Fran Kranz, Jesse Williams, Bradley Whitford, and Richard Jenkins. The film opens on April 13th, but our own Matt Goldberg will have a review from the film’s premiere at SXSW this Friday.

After being delayed for over two years, The Cabin in the Woods will finally hit theaters this April.  The movie is director Drew Goddard and co-writer Joss Whedon‘s spin on the “Cabin in the Woods” horror sub-genre, and as we saw from the trailer, it’s a spin we didn’t expect when we first heard about the project.  A new image has gone online, and it’s more of the “Cabin” side of the plot as opposed to the other side (which I’ll keep quiet on this time since people whined about spoilers when I mentioned what was in the trailer).

Hit the jump to check out the image.  The film stars Chris Hemsworth, Kristen Connolly, Anna Hutchinson, Fran Kanz, Jesse Williams, Bradley Whitford, and Richard Jenkins.  The Cabin in the Woods opens April 13th, but look for my review on March 9th after the movie premieres at SXSW.