When Streep as Donna cuts loose with ABBA's "The Winner Takes It All" standing on a Greek hillside face-to-face with her former lover, Sam (Brosnan), it is the film's defining moment.
Mamma Mia! (2008)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:169
Fresh:90
Rotten:79
Average Rating:5.5/10
Consensus: This jukebox musical is full of fluffy fun but rough singing voices and a campy tone might not make you feel like "You Can Dance" the whole 90 minutes.
Rated: PG [See Full Rating] for some sex-related comments.
Runtime: 1 hr 49 mins
Genre: Musical & Performing Arts
Theatrical Release:04-07-2008
Synopsis: After its run as a West End hit in London, MAMMA MIA became a Broadway smash when it opened in New York back in 2001. With a story framed around the music of the Swedish pop band Abba, crowds loved... After its run as a West End hit in London, MAMMA MIA became a Broadway smash when it opened in New York back in 2001. With a story framed around the music of the Swedish pop band Abba, crowds loved its raucous, dance party vibe. Now it comes to the silver screen, with some truly delightful performances from the likes of Meryl Streep and Pierce Brosnan. It is the story of Sophie (Amanda Seyfried) a young woman living on a picturesque Greek island with her mother, Donna (Streep.) Together, Donna and Sophie run a ramshackle island inn, and they are in the midst of preparing for Sophie's wedding. As the wedding approaches, Sophie becomes troubled by the fact that she has never known her father. She was the result of one of her mother's summer flings, and her mother has never revealed her father's identity. When Sophie stumbles upon her mother's diary, she learns that there are three possible men who could be her dad. Without telling her mother, she invites all three to her wedding. When Harry (Colin Firth), Sam (Brosnan), and Bill (Stellan Skarsgard) all arrive at the same time, Donna is of course shocked and overwhelmed by seeing her old lovers again after such a long time. She turns to her two best friends, Tanya (Christine Baranaki) and Rosie (Julia Walters), for their support, and vows to just get through the wedding and weekend. Meanwhile, Sophie spends time with each man, determined to learn the truth. Major hijinks and confusion ensues, all amidst the utterly romance scenery, and the rather irresistible, swelling love ballads. Streep has a lovely singing voice, and to watch her throw herself into this whimsical role is truly a delight. She looks like she is having a ball, and it is hard not to shimmy along with her. Baranski reliably delivers an over-the-top showstopper, and Brosnan's tender singing voice makes his character all the more touching. The film strives to be a jubilant celebration of mother/daughter relationships and the love between good friends, and no matter how cheesy some may find Abba, it is hard to resist its many charms. [More]
Starring: Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Amanda Seyfried
Starring: Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Amanda Seyfried, Stellan Skarsgard, Julie Walters, Dominic Cooper, Christine Baranski
Director: Phyllida Lloyd
Director: Phyllida Lloyd
Screenwriter: Catherine Johnson
Producer: Judy Craymer, Gary Goetzman
Composer: Benny Andersson, Bjorn Ulvaeus
Studio: Universal Pictures
Reviews for Mamma Mia!
You gotta love Meryl Streep! Is there anything this actress can't do?
Brosnan especially looks physically pained choking out the lyrics, as if he's being subjected to a prostate exam just outside of the camera's eye.
Without Streep front and center, this Mamma Mia! wouldn't be worth taking a chance on.
It's a fluffy happy good time escape from the world, even if Pierce Brosnan is not the second coming of Elvis Presley.
The musical numbers have been competently and energetically choreographed.
Mamma Mia! leaves me sending out an S.O.S., with much of the blame falling to the filmmakers. It's more akin to a music video than a musical, and a sloppy one at that.
While it'd be embellishment to say you'd have the time of your life, any dancing queen or an admirer of seeing Pierce Brosnan croon a tune instead of trigger James Bond destruction can at least have some of the time of your 108 minutes.
This film is made for fans of the show - and fans of ABBA, I suppose. It's a chick flick in many ways - from the romance to the show tunes.
Before plunking down your cash for a ride on the Mamma Mia! express when it pulls into town, just ask yourself one question: Do I really dig ABBA?
If you're invited, you might as well enjoy yourself. Just don't say I didn't warn you. And don't you dare say I hate ABBA.
Streep certainly gives it the old college try and so do Walters and Baranski, who are experienced singer/dancers. Somehow they all end up looking just as flamboyantly amateurish as everybody else.
Mamma Mia! is a feel-good musical experience, pure and simple. The actors display a buoyant commitment to the material and the songs, of course, remain undeniable wonders.
Complete fluff, and proud of it...Once you adjust your senses, however, you're bound to submit to this vacation of a movie.
Mamma Mia! wants to be a dancing queen. Try as she might, the highest rank I'd bestow upon her is duchess. And in a few critically wobbly ways, she can't do much better than lady-in-waiting.
Whatever charms it may have had as a live production have been lost in director Phyllida Lloyd's sloppy big-screen translation.
Cheese -- but what wonderfully salty, sinfully satisfying cheese it is.
None of this would matter much if this movie wasn't anchored by a star turn, and Streep delivers yet another in a career full of them.
Latest News for Mamma Mia!
February 04, 2009:
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January 07, 2009:
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The 35th annual People's Choice Awards were handed out on January 7, 2009. A complete list of film nominees, with winners in bold, follows below. More...
December 28, 2008:
There's a neat free spirit versus family values message here, about a dad being no big deal when you can have three. Not to mention that family is more about who loves you, than whatever does or doesn't dangle between their legs. ![]()
More...
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