Reviews by Matt

By this time the majority of you who read this blog (I really hate calling it that) know my stance on musicals. Yes I have made light of the fact that as a guy, musicals are off limits, yes I make jokes about “man cards” being taken away just because I saw a musical. The truth of the matter is I like musicals. I find them entertaining and they do the same job they did back in the 20s and 30s. They are an escape from everyday life. I say all this so that you know I am not using the fact that I am a guy as an excuse.

“Mamma Mia!,” based on the hit Broadway play that used the music of pop super group ABBA, is about a young girl, Sophie (Amanda Seyfried), who is about to get married. Her mother, Donna (Meryl Streep), has raised her by herself all while running a hotel on an island in Greece. The one thing Sophie wants more than anything is to meet her father. She finds her mothers diary and narrows it down to three men; Bill (Stellan Skarsgård,) Harry (Colin Firth,) and Sam (Peirce Brosnan).

Unbeknownst to her mother, she invites all three to her wedding in hopes of having her real father walk her down the aisle. It becomes more complicated when she meets them and still has no idea who it is.

I have some issues with this movie and we will get to that in just a moment. First though, the good stuff.

The two standouts of the movie are Seyfried and Streep. They both deliver good performances and can sing with enough talent to get through the movie with ease. They both have the majority of the singing to do and nail it each and every time.

Being I am more a drama guy than a musical one, I loved the relationship between mother and daughter. They are very close, but each is keeping a secret from the other. Sophie does not tell her mother she invited her “fathers” and Donna does not want her daughter to know that her “fathers” are at the hotel. The way they both tiptoed around the issue and worked to keep the three men hidden from the other was interesting. Sophie loves her mother very much and wants to stay near her, but she also wants her own life. Donna knows she will have to let go eventually, but does not want to.

Now for the bad. Pierce Brosnan cannot sing to save his life. It was so bad I wonder how much he had to bribe the director to be in the movie. It is fine if he is in the chorus, but he has two solos/ duets.

ABBA was one of the most popular pop groups ever and it is reflected in their music. It is all pop. The problem is I hate pop music. Some songs were catchy enough that I may still be humming them silently to myself, but most just annoyed the hell out of me.

I will openly admit to liking musicals but I have to draw the line somewhere. While certain performances were good, most were not. Some songs I liked, but most I did not. It did not blow me away and to be honest, I could have waited until a car ride to Columbus to see it on DVD. Long and short of it is, “Mamma Mia” is just not my type of musical.

6 out of 10
Rated PG-13 for some sex-related comments
1 hr 48 mins