Joe Barber Reviews “Mama Mia!”
Certain things are irresistible-a baby’s laugh, a sunny day and, it seems, the music of ABBA. How else can one explain the continuing worldwide popularity of the Scandinavian pop group’s hook laden dance tunes and mournful ballads?
Since 1990, millions of theatergoers around the world have whooped, hooted and danced in the aisles to nearly two dozen of the long disbanded quartet’s songs while watching the musical Mama Mia! Now the show has been adapted for the screen and, well, what you see-and hear-is what you get.
The show’s tissue thin plot is intact, with Meryl Streep starring as Donna, a free spirited former lead singer of an all girl singing trio. She’s been living on a small Greek island for fifteen years, managing a crumbling resort hotel and raising her daughter Sophie as a single parent.
Two days before Sophie’s wedding, guests start arriving on the island, including Donna’s former band mates, Rosie (Julie Walters) and Tanya (Christine Baranski.) Also arriving for the happy day are three unexpected guests. Without telling her mother, Sophie has invited three of her mom’s old flames-one of whom is almost certainly her father, whom she’s never met.
The plot then becomes a whirl of regrets, revelations and renewed ties, all to the music of a band that seems to two speeds; Dance and weep.
I have to admit, with the exception of a song or two, I am not a fan of ABBA’s tunes or Mama Mia! s lame, B-movie plot. However, there’s something so undeniably charming about the movie’s unrepentant goofiness that it makes me smile.
Once again, Meryl Streep proves she can do wonders with any role she’s asked to take. She invests Donna with believable emotions and a fine singing voice. Watching what she does with the treacly power ballad “The Winner Takes It All” solidifies her as the film’s biggest asset.
Newcomer Amanda Seyfried makes a solid debut as Sophie, investing her with endearing spunk. Walters and Baranski are old pros that enliven their scenes quite effectively.
As the three possible dads, Collin Furth and Stellan Skarsgard are engaging actors and solid singers. Pierce Brosnan would have been better served if he’d spent some of those leftover Bond dollars on singing lessons-or anonymous vocal fill-in.
If you go to Mama Mia! with a song in your heart, you’re likely to leave with an ABBA tune stuck in your head. If you don’t go in expecting, say, Oklahoma! or Dreamgirls, you’re likely to head for the exit with a smile on your face as well.
The film is rated PG-13 for mid sexual content.
Rating: Two Stars ** .
