Release Date: July 20th
Genre: Comedy, Musical
Length: 1H 54M
MPAA: PG
I have not written a review in a long time, between a mix of being busy with a job that I ended up leaving and not going to many films in the theatre lately, this blog has taken a backseat. My goal is to try to get a slight comeback, and hopefully get a least a review done each week.
Mamma Mia! originally came out in 2008, I remember going to see it in the theatre twice. Once with my parents as they really wanted to see it and once with my Aunt before she passed away. The original film was a lot of fun, but I had some certain issues with the film, but still enjoyed it. The sequel Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, fixed a lot of the issues I had with the original, and the result was a stronger film that had you laughing one minute, tapping your foot another minute and then wiping a tear from you eye the next.
Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again is a Comedy, Musical film that takes 5 years after the events of the original film, Sophie finds her self to be more like her mother than she ever realized.
The film was written and directed by Ol Parker. I am very unfamiliar with Parker’s work, however he did write the screenplay for The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2011) and The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2015), which are two films I have on my excruciatingly long watch list. I was quite impressed with Parker’s work on this film, he was able to add a lot more context to the songs themselves and the times in which there was singing felt like there was more meaning and impact behind then, then just having them strung out wherever there seemed to be downtime in the film or within the story. It just felt more cohesive, and it was just more fun.
The story was written by Richard Curtis, Catherine Johnson and Ol Parker. Richard Curtis’ writing filmography consists of Mr. Bean {TV Series} (1990-1995), Bean: The Movie (1997), Notting Hill (1999), Bridget Jone’s Diary (2001), Love Actually (2003), and About Time (2013). Catherine Johnson’s Writing filmography consists of Mamma Mia! (2008). I thought this movie was well written. They were able to really develop the original concept for the film (and the play) and add too it in just the right ways that it feels different, but builds on the concept of the original (like any good sequel should do).
Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again stars Amanda Seyfried as Sophie, Pierce Brosnan as Sam, Christine Baranski as Tanya, Julie Walters as Rosie, Meryl Streep as Donna, Lily James as Young Donna, Colin Firth as Harry, and Stellan Skarsgard as Bill.
Amanda Seyfried’s filmography consists of Mean Girls (2004), Alpha Dog (2006), Mamma Mia! (2008), In Time (2011), and Ted 2 (2015). I don’t think Amanda Seyfried gets a lot of credit. I think she is a really great actor that I feel is quite underrated. It was nice to see her reprise her role as Sophie, I felt like there was a lot more heart this time around.
Pierce Brosnan’s filmography consists of Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), Goldeneye (1995), Mars Attacks! (1996), Dante’s Peak (1997), Tomorrow Never Dies (1997), The World Is Not Enough (1999), Die Another Day (2002), Mamma Mia! (2008), and The World’s End (2013). Pierce Brosnan is fun in the Mammia Mia! movies, but I think he is a lousy singer (so am I though, thankfully I don’t have to sing this review). I loved him as James Bond, and it was fun to me to see him act in this type of role, as its much different than anything he has done in his career.
Lily James’ filmography consists of Baby Driver (2017) and The Darkest Hour (2017). I think I am one of the select few people who really disliked Baby Driver (2017), I do remember Lily James in it though, she was one of the stand out elements of that film. She was also one of the stand out elements of this film as well. I thought she played her role very well, and she has an amazing voice.
I cut back the actors filmography overview I originally do, because if I were to talk about everyone in this film and their filmographies, we would be here a while. I thought all the acting in this movie was good, it was a fun movie that didn’t involve a lot of brain power, it was nice to just sit back and enjoy the story.
This movie wasn’t perfect, I had some issues with the pacing. But it can be overlooked by the amount of fun and heart this movie has.
Also, I wish that the “big” grandmother cameo and the song that the grandmother sang was kept secret, I think it would have been a lot more fun if it was a secret, but the trailers gave her away.
I give Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again a 4/5.
If you enjoyed the original film, go out and see this one, I guess you probably already have if you’re a fan considering this review is super late. If you didn’t like the original, this film wont change your mind about it. But if you’re looking for a fun time, theres a lot worse things you could waste almost 2 hours on.
until next time!
-Andrew