The original Mamma Mia! was obviously going to be a hit, given the popularity of the stage show. The success was treated in a sneering manner by the press, picking over Pierce Brosnan's questionable vocal abilities and over the garishness of the film. Enjoying the film was treated as a reason to feel shame. You're one of THOSE people. While Meryl Streep won praise for her boisterous and committed performance, many failed to understand what Donna meant as a character to many viewers, especially female viewers who so rarely got to see a middle-aged woman finding love again, singing, dancing, living life on her own terms.
I imagine that love is one of the reasons the sequel got a negative reaction in some quarters. Considering that Meryl Streep doesn't do sequels, it would have been understandable if she had bowed out of another film entirely. It's to her credit, and presumably her love for the project and for Donna that she agreed to return for a few key moments. And I actually think her presence, as well as Donna's, were greatly enhanced by what the sequel did with this dilemma. Amanda Seyfried does a wonderful job in this film, stepping into more of the gap left by Streep's absence (I'd say it's one of her best performances), but the film is still Donna's through and through.
Streep was terrific as Donna, but she is also such a legend that it's impossible to escape the fact that you've been seeing her in many films for many years so you see the actress first, not the character.
While Lily James has also garnered her share of praise in the last few years, she is still new enough in her career to where she can more fully blend with the character. She gives an absolutely wonderful performance - one that would have gotten awards consideration if the usual suspects in the industry did not greet these types of projects with a jeer. Singing, dancing, acting, easy chemistry with her co-stars. As a result, while you may start out the film seeing Donna and her story as flashbacks to pad out a cash grab, as the minutes pass you genuinely start to feel, start to see her loves and friendships and her passion for life in a way that you may not have entirely in the original. And in her singing, she also understands the spirit of ABBA music, as the sequel as a whole does in a way I don't think the original quite did.
ABBA isn't just shouting ballads or throwing disco shapes. Their songs are often pure emotion, and many of them deeply melancholic. It hurts to "take a chance" on love. You may have joy, but also regret. You reflect on the good and bad and wonder what's next. You simply FEEL. And this movie really "gets" that - James' deeply vulnerable, almost a capella performance of "Andante Andante" being probably the best example. While I don't think the movie did enough to really establish Sam being the love of Donna's life, James does her best to express that here - you can see Donna's incredible vulnerability in singing for him, and how awed Sam is by what they share. Her work in the wordless sequence where Donna goes into labor also adds a great deal to the emotional poignancy of the last third of the film.
One of the criticisms of the film is that all the "good" ABBA songs were used up in the original, but really, you could make four of these things and there would still be plenty of tunes to dip into. ABBA made many, many wonderful songs, songs for every mood or moment. If the success of the film helps introduce more people to "Andante," "I've Been Waiting For You," "Angel Eyes," "My Love, My Life," "One of Us," etc. then I'm thrilled.
MLMY is used for the film's emotional high point, where we cut from Lily's Donna christening her baby daughter, with all the hopes and fears of a new life of a mother, to Meryl's Donna, a life complete, watching her daughter continue the cycle with the christening for her very own baby boy. When Sophie sees her mother, and they sing to each other, everything of the last two films reaches emotional catharsis. Your heart breaks, even as you feel love and hope. The essence of ABBA. Streep and Seyfried are superb - the control and the nuance in this number is, frankly, much more than I had expected from these two movies.
Donna closing the church doors, saying goodbye to her family and friends, and to us, could have been a fitting end to the film (and likely the franchise), but they were wise enough to know viewers wanted the "laugh" alongside the "cry" for these characters, and they end the film on a delightful, splashy production number. It's actually genius, and totally unexpected. Characters young and old unite, putting a big grin on your face. Streep's Donna gets the chance for one last blast of a performance, one last moment with Sam. A proper goodbye. If the christening was the ending the film needed, this performance is the ending the film - and viewers - deserved.
I probably would have rated a little lower due to a few issues (I think the film is overlong; the introduction of Donna's mother could have been handled more skillfully than basically just saying, "Look, it's Cher!"; choosing to delete some of the scenes building up the love between young Donna and Sam makes their relationship feel scant even though they were written as being soulmates; the complete lack of material for the wonderful Colin Firth feels like a real missed opportunity), but the spate of 0 and 1 star reviews made me up my review, as I don't feel they are deserved.
If you are into musicals or ABBA, then I'd say give the movie a chance. I enjoyed it much more than I thought I would, and it reminded me a lot of the old Hollywood musicals I love and miss. It's the rare sequel that I'd say betters and even enhances the original, and I'm glad I battled my initial reluctance to tune in.
I imagine that love is one of the reasons the sequel got a negative reaction in some quarters. Considering that Meryl Streep doesn't do sequels, it would have been understandable if she had bowed out of another film entirely. It's to her credit, and presumably her love for the project and for Donna that she agreed to return for a few key moments. And I actually think her presence, as well as Donna's, were greatly enhanced by what the sequel did with this dilemma. Amanda Seyfried does a wonderful job in this film, stepping into more of the gap left by Streep's absence (I'd say it's one of her best performances), but the film is still Donna's through and through.
Streep was terrific as Donna, but she is also such a legend that it's impossible to escape the fact that you've been seeing her in many films for many years so you see the actress first, not the character.
While Lily James has also garnered her share of praise in the last few years, she is still new enough in her career to where she can more fully blend with the character. She gives an absolutely wonderful performance - one that would have gotten awards consideration if the usual suspects in the industry did not greet these types of projects with a jeer. Singing, dancing, acting, easy chemistry with her co-stars. As a result, while you may start out the film seeing Donna and her story as flashbacks to pad out a cash grab, as the minutes pass you genuinely start to feel, start to see her loves and friendships and her passion for life in a way that you may not have entirely in the original. And in her singing, she also understands the spirit of ABBA music, as the sequel as a whole does in a way I don't think the original quite did.
ABBA isn't just shouting ballads or throwing disco shapes. Their songs are often pure emotion, and many of them deeply melancholic. It hurts to "take a chance" on love. You may have joy, but also regret. You reflect on the good and bad and wonder what's next. You simply FEEL. And this movie really "gets" that - James' deeply vulnerable, almost a capella performance of "Andante Andante" being probably the best example. While I don't think the movie did enough to really establish Sam being the love of Donna's life, James does her best to express that here - you can see Donna's incredible vulnerability in singing for him, and how awed Sam is by what they share. Her work in the wordless sequence where Donna goes into labor also adds a great deal to the emotional poignancy of the last third of the film.
One of the criticisms of the film is that all the "good" ABBA songs were used up in the original, but really, you could make four of these things and there would still be plenty of tunes to dip into. ABBA made many, many wonderful songs, songs for every mood or moment. If the success of the film helps introduce more people to "Andante," "I've Been Waiting For You," "Angel Eyes," "My Love, My Life," "One of Us," etc. then I'm thrilled.
MLMY is used for the film's emotional high point, where we cut from Lily's Donna christening her baby daughter, with all the hopes and fears of a new life of a mother, to Meryl's Donna, a life complete, watching her daughter continue the cycle with the christening for her very own baby boy. When Sophie sees her mother, and they sing to each other, everything of the last two films reaches emotional catharsis. Your heart breaks, even as you feel love and hope. The essence of ABBA. Streep and Seyfried are superb - the control and the nuance in this number is, frankly, much more than I had expected from these two movies.
Donna closing the church doors, saying goodbye to her family and friends, and to us, could have been a fitting end to the film (and likely the franchise), but they were wise enough to know viewers wanted the "laugh" alongside the "cry" for these characters, and they end the film on a delightful, splashy production number. It's actually genius, and totally unexpected. Characters young and old unite, putting a big grin on your face. Streep's Donna gets the chance for one last blast of a performance, one last moment with Sam. A proper goodbye. If the christening was the ending the film needed, this performance is the ending the film - and viewers - deserved.
I probably would have rated a little lower due to a few issues (I think the film is overlong; the introduction of Donna's mother could have been handled more skillfully than basically just saying, "Look, it's Cher!"; choosing to delete some of the scenes building up the love between young Donna and Sam makes their relationship feel scant even though they were written as being soulmates; the complete lack of material for the wonderful Colin Firth feels like a real missed opportunity), but the spate of 0 and 1 star reviews made me up my review, as I don't feel they are deserved.
If you are into musicals or ABBA, then I'd say give the movie a chance. I enjoyed it much more than I thought I would, and it reminded me a lot of the old Hollywood musicals I love and miss. It's the rare sequel that I'd say betters and even enhances the original, and I'm glad I battled my initial reluctance to tune in.