Much Ado About Dying
While shooting a documentary in India, Simon Chambers is contacted by his uncle David in London with the message, “come back to London, I think I may be dying.” Concerned and being next of kin, Simon puts his film on hold to assist David, a long since retired Shakespearian actor and drama teacher. But, as it turns out, David happens to have a panache for exaggeration and dramatics, and, he’s very much not dying. David is however suffering from some dementia and a strong desire to stay in his own apartment, which is a wreck, this is where Simon’s next documentary takes form. How to assist a real life King Lear in his later years? 
Documenting his uncle’s final years and the struggles that family must work through, navigating healthcare, finances, assisted living, and final choices, all the while maintaining a sense of humor and good nature. Much Ado About Dying endears itself with viewers through the lens of compassion for what might otherwise be considered madness, shedding light on the British Health care system, but more so looking to the pitfalls and struggles that all surround David, who by all means is exactly as eccentric as some of his stage characters, and the varying degrees of cretins that have found their way to his doorstep, for good and for bad. For Director Chambers, maintaining some sense of objectivity and perspective from his subject, the lines are blurred, but, the end result is still sound as the chaos and frenzy whip to a heartfelt conclusion, Much Ado About Dying delivers perhaps David’s best and final performances without truly overstaying its welcome. Running one hour and twenty four minutes, Much Ado About Dying has been making the festival circuits and can now be streamed on Amazon, worth the watch, especially for those who’ve ever had to tend to an aging parent or relative.