Review: ‘Mamma Mia!’

Executive Producers Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson bring the Broadway smash hit Mamma Mia,to the big screen! Mamma Mia is a story told around the songs of 70’s super-group ABBA! Phyllidia Lloyd ,in her directorial debut, has assembled a cast that sacrifices vocal talent for A-list star power.

Amanda Seyfried (Big Love) plays Sophie, a 20 yr. old girl who is about to walk down the aisle with the love of her life, Sky (Dominic Cooper). Sophie lives with her mom, Donna (Meryl Streep)a retired 70’s girl group singer that operates a run-down hotel on a small Greek Island. Sophie wants to have the perfect wedding and plans to have her father walk her down the aisle. After perusing Donna’s diary the search is narrowed to three choices (I did say she was in a band): Bill (Stellan Skarsgard), Sam (Pierce Brosnan) and Harry (Colin Firth). So Sophie decides to surprise her Mom and finally discover who her dad is by inviting all three of them to her wedding! Mamma Mia is filled with fun, music and some hy-jinx all done to the sounds of hits like Dancing Queen, Super Trouper, Waterloo, Honey-Honey and Mamma Mia. Some of the funniest moments come with the chorus singers finding their way into each scene to back up the lead vocalists. There are also cameos by the surviving members of  ABBA, Benny Anderson and Bjorn Ulvaeus, in two of the medleys. Kinda of like a Swedish version of wheres waldo..only wheres ABBA. Mamma Mia does end up with a wedding in the Greek Islands but it wont be the two people you think tying the knot.

Once again, I   left my guy card at home,  Ã‚  TagalongToni and I checked out Mamma Mia. It was like watching two hours of Abba music videos tied together with some witty dialog and picturesque Greek scenery. Amanda Seyfried, Dominic Cooper, and ..Meryl Streep turn in a fine vocal performance (Streep struggled through her first couple of numbers) while Pierce Brosnan finds every vocal “pothole” in each song he attempts to sing. There are some fine supporting work from Julie Waters and Christine Baranski as Donna’s backup singers Rosie and Tanya. This is a fun show…not as good as the Broadway play..but it is a quarter of the cost and in today’s economy you get what you pay for and people will be sold on Mamma Mia the movie!

(3.5 stars out of 5)