Movie Review: Mamma Mia! The Movie (2008) directed by Phyllida Lloyd
Sophie (Amanda Seyfried) has long wondered who her father was. Her mother Donna (Meryl Streep) has always been evasive on the question, having made a life for herself running a tourist villa on the small Greek island they call home. But while Sophie is preparing for her wedding, she runs across her mother’s diary from the year before she was born. There are three men mentioned as Donna’s affairs, all around nine months before Sophie came to be. So our young bride to be invites Bill (Stellan Skarsgard), Sam (Pierce Brosnan) and Harry (Colin Firth) to the wedding, forging her mother’s name. Surely it will be obvious which one is her father!
Also coming to the wedding are Donna’s old singing group members Rosie (Julie Waters) and Tanya (Christine Baranski). As Donna and the Dynamos, they were pretty popular until Donna quit to raise Sophie. Though they have had their own adventures, they’re still best friends and here to support Donna during her daughter’s big day.
Naturally, it is not immediately evident which of Donna’s old flings is Sophie’s father, and their presence creates mixed feelings in Donna. Musical misunderstandings follow!
This movie is what’s called a “jukebox musical”, stringing together hits by a particular musical group and trying to cobble something resembling a plot to justify them. In this case, it’s the music of ABBA. I have a fondness for ABBA’s music, and indeed they were the first group I ever deliberately collected the albums of. Sadly, for some reason most oldies stations put my least favorite songs by them in heavy rotation, while my favorites hardly ever get played. I’m happy to say this musical has a better balance.
Also good: Women over forty with active sexual feelings! Love wins! LGBT+ people exist (just barely)! Pretty Greek scenery!
Less good: It’s fortunate that you don’t watch these kinds of musicals for the plot, because boy is it thin. It’s also one of those movies that would be half as long if people acted sensibly.
I’d kind of like to see a movie from the Greek chorus’ perspective, all of Donna’s native employees in the background.
Overall: A perfectly nice collection of ABBA songs with some pretty pictures to go with them. Recommended for fans of sentimental fluff.
Love this movie! But you’re right, it’s definitely the kind of movie you watch because you enjoy the songs, the actual story is not all that great. It would be so cool to see the movie from the residents of the islands’ perspective, I hadn’t thought of that before!