ABBA-solutely Fabulous

Donna and Sam share a moment -- Picture courtesy of Universal

by blogSpotter
This weekend I gave my self an audiovisual treat in the form of Universal Picture's Mamma Mia. The movie is based on the long-running play which itself is a pretext for putting a fun (if not profound) plot around some campy ABBA 70's hits. Where the play was claustrophobic, the movie has the backdrop of beautiful Greek Isles. Several friends beat me to the movie and told me all about it -- across the board, they all loved it.

The plot centers on a bride-to-be, Sophie, who sends wedding invitations to all three of the men her mother Donna (played by Streep) slept with the summer she was conceived. Sophie is hoping to discover which of the men is her father. Drama ensues when all 3 men, as well as various other wedding "party animals" show up for the nuptials. Donna's friends Tanya and Rosie balance out the cast; Tanya is played by the hilarious Christine Baranski -- I've missed her brand of humor since Cybil and Bird Cage.

I won't deconstruct this movie the way I might with something more complex -- this movie is eye and ear candy most of all. But I'll share some observations. The songs are "backed in" to the situations sometimes justified only by a main lyric. "Lay All Your Love on Me" is actually a sad song, sung by a love-obsessed woman. Here, it's a beach party anthem. "Winner Takes it All" is another sad song by a woman whose lost out in a love triangle -- in this movie it's a romantic ballad leading up to a proposal. Sometimes the fit of the lyrics to the situation is so jarring it makes the audience laugh. The audience also laughs at Pierce Brosnan's version of "SOS", but I actually think he carries the notes OK. He's also excellent as Sam, the principal ex-suitor. Meryl Streep is a surprisingly agile dancer and also a good singer -- she's basically the focal point of the show.

Mamma Mia brings back the color and vitality of a 50's musical; probably the last time the audience had this much fun was when Grease came out in 1978. Hairspray from 2007 comes close, but not as much audience involvement. The late-middle aged grandma sitting next to me was singing along to many of the songs. Mamma Mia has strong potential to become a sing-along movie like Sound of Music. I also forgot about the gay angle -- Colin Firth plays Harry, a handsome stockbroker; it turns out that Donna was the last woman he ever loved, that certain summer. At the end of the movie, the cast breaks into a dance that easily could feature the Village People, shirtless.

In sum, Mamma Mia has romantic plotlines for us oldies-but-goodies and music that anyone born in the last 40 years should be able to hum if not sing. The group ABBA has ascended to pop culture icon status through all of this and deservedly so. If you want to spend two hours in a totally escapist, musical Playland, you can do no better than seeing this ABBA-solutely fabulous movie.

© 2008 blogSpotter