My Mamma Mia! Movie Review- Page 2

[broadwayjim42]

Posted: 7/21/08 at 7:48am

I saw it last night and it was a real mixed bag.

Some of the complaints I've heard are valid...it's rather sloppily made, Phyllida is way too fond of her close-ups and you think they might have put some effort into making the cinematography even kind of match from scene to scene. I was actually not terribly fond of Meryl until the quieter moments toward the end..I thought she was pushing too hard. My partner thought she was too old for the part and made what I think is a valid point ("Devil Wears Prada" excepted) that light comedy is not her forte.

That said, she was phenomenal during "Slipping Through My Fingers" and "The Winner Takes It All." Those gave me chills.

As for the rest, I was grinning like the village idiot during "Chiquitita" and "Dancing Queen" and found "When All is Said and Done" suprisingly moving.

[NY_Broadway2]

Posted: 7/21/08 at 8:45am

I loved this movie! I was a little worried about how it would look on screen since the stage show is so campy but it actually worked. And I'm going to have to completely agree...Brosnan's singing was the worst thing in the entire movie. I actually looked at my friend and said, "Are they serious?". It was utterly terrible.

[mmFan]

Posted: 7/21/08 at 12:24pm

I'm a huge fan of Mamma Mia (as you can tell from my profile name and photo). Saw the movie last night, and although nothing beats seeing it live in the theatre, I really enjoyed the movie. Thought Streep was great in the role, and her Winner Takes it All was fantastic, although I wished she would have belted the last note. I'm a fan of Pierce Brosnon but had to hold back my laughing as he cannot sing. Having said that though, I'm glad they let him sing as oppose to dubbing over his voice. Liked the minor changes they did the the movie and really enjoyed the show. Going again on the weekend.

[BWNUT]

Posted: 7/21/08 at 2:21pm

"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."

OUCH!

[BobbyBubby]

Posted: 7/21/08 at 3:47pm

Ouch, but true.

And the filming of S.O.S. was stunning despite Mr. Tone Deaf.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 7/21/08 at 3:51pm

I disagree that comedy isn't Streep's forte. She was hilarious in her understated performance as Miranda Pressley in THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA (a different kind of comedy, of course), but she was equally funny in DEATH BECOMES HER and SHE-DEVIL. She also had some incredibly funny moments in POSTCARDS FROM THE EDGE.

[BobbyBubby]

Posted: 7/21/08 at 7:41pm

I'm with Ray. Streep's performance in Death Becomes Her alone should prove she's a comic genius. Plus, she's quite funny as a person. You'd expect her, by her dramatic body of work, to be a serious type person, and she's quite hilarious, especially when talking about her fame and talent. I'd also have you look at She Devil, she's a hoot! Her comedy is a textured comedy, where she stays true to character and let's the comedy stem from the action/character.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 7/21/08 at 8:46pm

I guess I missed the memo but I adore Pierce's singing in the film. His rawness added to the whole feel of the film. "S.O.S." is actually my favorite ABBA song and its version on the Madrid Cast Recording is my favorite of the cast recordings (titled "No Lo Ves"), so if anything... I was worried about everyone ripping Pierce's singing apart. After seeing the scene, I simply adored it. ADORED IT.

So much so that its always the first track I listen to on the film soundtrack and others I know who have seen the film also love his raw vocals in the song. They don't read these Broadway Message Boards (or any of the other message boards on MAMMA MIA!), so they were clueless to audience's reactions to his singing.

Regardless... "S.O.S." is my favorite number in the film.

[The Bearded Lady]

Posted: 7/21/08 at 8:53pm

thanks for a great review!

[broadwayjim42]

Posted: 7/21/08 at 9:00pm

My partner made a point of mentioning "She Devil" as an example of when he absolutely hated her....all I remember of it was that it was supposed to make Roseanne a movie star and Streep got most of the attention. Also, the BBC miniseries with Julie Wallace was SOOOOOO much better.

I love interviews with Meryl...she is very funny and self-deprecating, but this is perhaps the first movie where I thought she was straining to fit the mood of the movie. I applaud her trying to go all loosey-goosey but too much of the comedic end of her performance felt forced...at least to me,

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 7/21/08 at 9:11pm

Watch it again. I promise you, it becomes another film the more you see it.

I admit to finding the film utterly amateurish the first time I saw it. It becomes a gem on 2nd viewing and on and on.

This film is definitely going to have an enormous life on DVD and once it hits the cable TV circuit.

[BobbyBubby]

Posted: 7/22/08 at 2:53am

Oh I'm sure Lifetime and Bravo are having a bitchy cat fight over the rights as we speak.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 7/22/08 at 3:05am

The film is distributed by Universal Pictures, which owns NBC and Bravo, so it'll have its World Television Premiere on NBC and rerun on Bravo. After it ends its run on cable it'll be on Universal-HD.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 7/22/08 at 3:23am

Streep gave an incredibly convincing performance in SHE-DEVIL. I just saw it recently, but she looks like she is having so much fun playing this diva that you can't help but love her. I do think the movie belongs to her, although Ed Begley Jr. is quite funny too.
Bobby is 100% right, she is actually hilarious off-screen. Her speeches tend to be a riot... her Emmy speech after winning for ANGELS IN AMERICA is one of my all-time favorite speeches, and of course she always manages to make me laugh in all her interviews, especially when she is making fun of herself.
I don't think this is her best performance by any means, but to say she is not a great comedienne would be ignoring a significant chunk of her long career.

[jewishboy]

Posted: 7/22/08 at 3:52am

I love Streep's Emmy speech (I can sing this too).

I agree with Brody, LOVED Brosnan's raw voice and "S.O.S.," along with "Dancing Queen," was my favorite number in the movie.
Updated On: 7/22/08 at 03:52 AM

[BobbyBubby]

Posted: 7/22/08 at 4:03am

I can't wait for her Sister A in Doubt. She'll infuse it with the right amounts of comedy and drama.

[jewishboy]

Posted: 7/22/08 at 4:07am

Ray, what did you think of Brosnan's performance?
Updated On: 7/22/08 at 04:07 AM

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 7/22/08 at 4:25am

Jewishboy, I find myself liking Brosnan more the more I think about his performance. I still think he wasn't as appealing as the rest of the men, Firth and Sagarski (sp?) were so funny, but Brosnan's "S.O.S" was campy enough and touching enough to evoke the right feelings. I thought his scenes with Seyfried were better than his scenes with Streep, but his moment in the church with Streep is a lot of fun and he does have great chemistry with her as well as he does with the two other possible dads. I don't think they should have added a song for him to sing though...
I believe the women and Firth give my favorite performances though. Thinking about "Does Your Mother Know?" and "Chiquitita" still cracks me up, and Meryl's "The Winner Takes It All" has been playing non-stop on my iPod today, the vocals are great but seeing her actually inject the emotions into it was priceless.

[jewishboy]

Posted: 7/22/08 at 4:33am

Yeah, her vocals alone don't cut it for me with songs like "Slipping Through My Fingers" and "The Winner Takes It All." BUT, when you add her "film acting" with them, it's just perfect.