Review: Mamma Mia!

Despite the super cheesiness of the trailer, I went to see Mamma Mia! a week before it officially opened here. How I suddenly got so excited to see this movie.. I don't know. But let me tell you this now, it's great!

Sophie (the luminous Amanda Seyfried) is getting married and dreams of finding her father. She invites her three potential dads (Pierce Brosnan, Stellan Skarsgard and Colin Firth) to the wedding without informing her mother Donna (Meryl Streep). Singing, dancing, ABBA songs and hilarity ensues.

When I first heard about Mamma Mia! the movie and the cast was announced, I was really looking forward to it. Then I saw the trailer and I got a little scared. It just looked like this big cheese-fest. Since I was still recovering from last year's overly quirky Hairspray that left me with a toothache and in a vomit induced state, I was planning on avoiding this in theaters. But somehow I did end up watching it and I am pretty damn sure this movie will end up on my favorites of 2008 list at the end of the year.

I was hooked from the moment Amanda Seyfried starting singing "I have a dream..." She really impressed me. Sure she was fab as the ditzy blond in Mean Girls, but here she showed a lot of range. It was an endearing and brave performance. How could you not fall in love with her? Her voice was amazing as well. While Meryl Streep seems a bit old play Sophie's mother (if Sophie is 20, she should have given birth to her in her late 30s - so why wouldn't she be allowed to come home. She's an adult; old enough to make her own decisions), she IS Meryl "f*ckin" Streep and she can play whatever the hell she wants to play. And she was excellent and her singing was amazing too! I smell a Golden Globe. Supporting turns by Julie Walters and Christine Baranski as Donna's friends were great too. Both are funny ladies and Baranski especially impressed. Pierce Brosnan seemed a bit bland, but Stellan Skarsgard and Colin Firth seemed to have a good time and did the best they could do with their roles. Now that I think about it, all the male roles were a bit underwritten. Hmmm.. that probably explains why Dominic Cooper barely left an impression.

The writer did a good job including all those ABBA songs into the story. There's only one sequence that I thought was truly awful: the "Money Money Money" dream sequence. Yikes! The movie quickly recovered after that, but seriously, they could have left that part out. Overall, I really liked Mamma Mia! and my fellow audience members as well. If this movie doesn't want to make you sing and dance, you're dead inside. Probably the most enjoyable movie out there this summer. STAY FOR THE CREDITS! A 4/5.

Trailer Park: Mamma Mia!

I don't watch a lot of trailers online, so this feature will mostly feature (hee!) trailers that were attached to movies I've recently seen. Keep in mind that I live in The Netherlands, and that the trailers attached wont necessarily be the same as the ones in your country. In this post I'll review the trailers that were attached to Mamma Mia!

Bride Flight
I have no idea whether or not this movie is in Dutch. I see Dutch actors, but the title is in English. There's no talking in the trailer, but the official site is in Dutch. Either way, I don't like Dutch productions so I'll pass. Waldemar Torenstra is pretty though.
To be viewed: never

Australia
And I thought Bride Flight was an odd choice for a trailer to attach to Mamma Mia! Here was have Baz Luhrmann's latest effort, which reteams him with Nicole Kidman. Hugh Jackman's in it too and that's pretty much all I can recall about this trailer. Okay, the cinematography is pretty breathtaking, but other than that, I really have no interest in this at all.
To be viewed: never

The Children of Huang Shi
Who picked these trailers? Seriously?! Still no comedy trailer? I was starting to wonder if I was sitting in the right theater. This trailer looked familiar and I think I've seen it attached to Sex & the City. For some reason I didn't mention it in that trailer park, so I must've blocked it out or something. I can tell you that Jonathan Rhys Meyers and Radha Mitchell are in it.
To be viewed: never

The Accidental Husband
This looks cute. Uma Thurman plays a talk radio host and advises a listener to break up with her boyfriend. The now ex-boyfriend (played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan) wants revenge and through certain circumstances, he ends up as Uma's husband. Colin Firth's in it too and who doesn't love Colin Firth. *fans self* Hopefully this won't turn out as another generic comedy.
To be viewed: probably on DVD

Trailer Park: Sex & the City

I don't watch a lot of trailers online, so this feature will mostly feature (hee!) trailers that were attached to movies I've recently seen. Keep in mind that I live in The Netherlands, and that the trailers attached wont necessarily be the same as the ones in your country. In this post I'll review the trailers that were attached to Sex & the City.

Mamma Mia!
Good lord, when is this movie getting released? I saw this trailer attached to 27 Dresses! The more I see this trailer, the less I'm looking forward to it. It's just so.. cheesy. And again the BFF mentioned that Meryl Streep is too old to play Amanda Seyfried's mom. I don't think we'll be seeing this.
To be viewed: on DVD (unless the word of mouth will be amazing, then in theater)

WALL-E
AWWWWWWWWWWWW! WALL-E is SO cute! But why is this trailer attached to Sex & the City?! *confused* The movie looks interesting. Different from what Pixar normally brings us. Hmmmm... but CUTE CUTE CUTE!
To be viewed: on DVD or TV

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
William Moseley is looking good. What? He's legal, I can say it! That's the only interest I have in the Narnia movies. Haven't seen the first though and probably will never see this one either. But that William Moseley is an attractive kid.
To be viewed: Never

Trailer Park: 27 Dresses

I don't watch a lot of trailers online, so this feature will mostly feature (hee!) trailers that were attached to movies I've recently seen. Keep in mind that I live in The Netherlands, and that the trailers attached wont necessarily be the same as the ones in your country. In this post I'll review the trailers that were attached to 27 Dresses.

Step Up 2 the Streets
Hey it's that guy who was in She's the Man with original Step Up star Channing Tatum! [...] Yeah, I don't really care about him or the Step Up movies at all. I'm pretty much done with all those dance movies.. they annoy me more than all those spoof movies! I spotted the gorgeous Will Kemp in the trailer which made me smile. Not because he's gorgeous but because he's a dancer in real life so I can appreciate his casting. Will should make more movies.. haven't seen him in anything since Mindhunters and Van Helsing.
To be viewed: you've got to be kidding me right?

Sex & The City
I'm looking forward to the Sex & the City movie. I loved the showed, but at first I didn't think a movie follow-up would be a good idea. It's already been 4 years and the series wrapped up pretty nicely so there wasn't really a need for a movie. BUT, now that it's filmed and all, I am looking forward to seeing all my favorites again. Charlotte! Steve!
To be viewed: opening weekend!

Mamma Mia!
Oh my.. I was looking forward to this but the trailer, IMHO, is pretty horrible. It's so cheesy. Or is that the point?! Amanda Seyfried is an incredibly pretty girl, but doesn't look like herself here. Too tanned? I can't put my finger on it. While watching the trailer, my BFF leaned over and said: "Meryl Streep is way too old to be playing Amanda Seyfried's mother. Maybe grandmother." I couldn't agree with her more. I haven't seen the musical, but the thought of a Meryl Streep/Colin Firth pairing is rather disturbing. And when the cast names are shown, why isn't Stellan Skarsgard mentioned but Dominic Cooper is? Who the hell is Dominic Cooper?! Skarsgard thrumps Cooper!! GAWD! People have no respect these days.
To be viewed: in theaters maybe otherwise on DVD