Mamma Mia! (2008)
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Mamma Mia! Movie Review
Mamma Mia! is a 2008 jukebox musical film directed by Phyllida Lloyd and starring Amanda Seyfried, Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan and Colin Firth. It’s an okay, but silly endeavor.
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“Typical, isn’t it?
You wait 20 years for a dad
and then three come along at once“
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This flick is for the masses obviously and a bit too bombastic and blockbuster-oriented, but I still had fun with it despite its many flaws. So it’s a jukebox musical meaning that we get to hear a whole repertoire of a particular artist’s songs, in this instance it’s ABBA. I absolutely adore ABBA and they’re my favorite band actually so hearing all of their best numbers here was a joy for me.
I Have a Dream is particularly effective as a romantic, moving ballad and it’s used so well within the film both times. Mamma Mia is also exceptionally catchy per usual and the most fun scene in the film. Dancing Queen is my favorite ABBA song so I was furious how badly utilized it was here. Chiquitita is a lot of fun and The Winner Takes It All is pretty well used.
These are all great numbers well used within the movie, but the problem is that the singing voices are pretty harsh for the most part. Some are solid, but some such as obviously Pierce Brosnan are pretty bad. I do think that they should have ad-libbed some of these actors.
The film features an ensemble cast of whom Meryl Streep who’s usually rather annoying is probably the most likable one here which surprised me but that’s how it is. And she got the best musical moments too. Christine Baranski is so annoying herself and cloying, Amanda Seyfried is sweet, but forgettable and Pierce Brosnan is solid. Others are all fine, but not too memorable.
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Mamma Mia! is a very silly and campy movie throughout its whole runtime. That’s also its strength and its weakness as it’s thus quite entertaining and charming in a way, but also ridiculous in some scenes and somewhat amateurish in style. The plot is serviceable for this type of flick, but otherwise too soapy. It wears off its welcome due to an over-reliance of weakly sung numbers flooding the picture, but at least most numbers are well utilized. The movie is also beautifully shot and acting fine as a gorgeous, unrealistic modern fairy tale.
Mamma Mia! is a campy flick for better and for worse. It’s quite charming in a way and definitely a lot of fun, but some scenes are overly silly and the singing voices are frequently quite harsh. The movie features lush photography, a stellar ensemble cast and an amazing ABBA soundtrack that it’s worth a watch no matter how bombastic of an affair it felt.
