Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again!

Quite a few MDs would benefit from a cattle prod now and again. And it's pretty impossible to hear what other singers are doing when your own voice is playing louder than anything else in your head, so he should shut up as well and concentrate on waving his wand.
(Are there any female MDs in the Westend? Never seen one yet.)

More info on the American box office figures for this:

Universal's star-studded sequel Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again sang loudly at the Friday box office, grossing $14.3 million for a projected domestic bow of $39 million.
The female-fueled musical will have no trouble winning the weekend, although Sony's R-rated action pic The Equalizer 2, starring Denzel Washington, is no slouch. Equalizer 2 followed at No. 2 on Friday with $13.6 million for an estimated U.S. opening of $33 million.
Mamma Mia 2 is one of the few 2018 summer event films targeting females, who made up more than 80 percent of Friday's (July 20) audience, according to comScore. The sequel, based on the music of ABBA, is pacing 40 percent ahead of the first Mamma Mia!, which debuted to $27.7 million exactly 10 years ago.



Many of the A-list stars who appeared in the 2008 movie reprise their roles in the sequel (in some fashion, at least), including Meryl Streep, Amanda Seyfried, Julie Walters, Christine Baranski, Dominic Cooper, Colin Firth, Pierce Brosnan and Stellan Skarsgard, while newcomers include Lily James and, in the biggest get, Cher, also appear.
Mamma Mia 2 nabbed an A- CinemaScore, the same grade assigned to Mamma Mia!

Wow this was really wonderful, it was camp, funny and very poignant.

Loved all the new songs along with reprises from these original and I think the two timelines interwove well and worked.

Many tears shed, started for me when the storm hit the island, so good i’m Going again tomorrow!!

Watching the original Mamma Mia on ITV. So much better imo.

We saw this over the weekend at the Barbican which, laydeez and gentlemen, houses neither a popcorn machine nor a hot dog stall. *Pauses to wipe smug grin off face.* Unbelievably, the cinema was barely a quarter occupied.

Some random thoughts - enough has been said of the plot and, to be honest, I already knew more than I would have liked.

Firstly the costumes were to die for. The fabric prints used for the dresses, long palazzo pants and even an old throw on the bed on Bill's boat were absolutely gorgeous and if any oscars are given out for this film costumes should be first on the list.

The first two thirds of the film are really the Lily James show and, honestly, I could have done with less of her. That said, she was well cast and did a good enough job.  Even though I truly loved everyone in it, the younger version boys probably pipped the younger version girls at their roles. In retrospect this is probably because Christine and Dame Julie ARE Mamma Mia and I honestly believe that without them the whole thing wouldn't be the phenomenon it is. So, a hard act to follow for the two young actresses, though don't get me wrong, they were very good.

I don't agree with the dislike of Dominic Cooper on here. He was fine. In this film, unlike the original, the ones who can't sing don't. Lily James and Amanda Seyfried do the bulk of the solo singing. Pierce Brosnan sings about 4 lines before, mercifully, Sophie takes over. Dominic Cooper is the only one who is given a whole number. In the first film the only ones who can actually sing are Christine and Amanda so he doesn't seem so bad. Well, I liked him. So there!

Cher was, indeed, fantastic, though I don't agree that her cameo stole the show. That honour in my book goes to Omid Djalili, who has a Rowan Atkinson 4 Weddings vicar type of recurring role as the customs officer and is absolutely spot-on perfect. If you wait until the credits stop rolling you are in for a mini Omid treat too.

I did have one problem with the whole Cher thing. Whilst everyone else sounded like they were singing into their hairbrush in the garden, when she opened her mouth it felt like we'd been transported to The Royal Albert Hall, such were the different production values. Indeed, we were discussing this during the credits at the end when, lo and behold, 'Music producer for Miss Cher' popped up. However, she was brilliant in the role and I hope she gets a new contract banning those fierce patio heaters if she comes back for number 3 in 10 years' time, when the final 20% of her is likely to be plastic.......

 

This wasn't quite as feel-good as the original. It felt a touch sadder and more poignant. However, it was easily as enjoyable and was well plotted. I loved the bit at the end where everyone doubled up with the younger/older version of themselves. Also, I had to stop myself clapping after a couple of the big numbers, almost forgetting I was in a cinema. However, there was applause throughout the cinema at the end.

If you liked the first one I cannot see how you wouldn't like this. If you haven't seen the first one you wouldn't have a clue what's going on.

Oh, and I walked past a very happy looking Hugh Dennis on the Barbican terrace. 

I have a theory about the singing. On the whole the women sound fabulous and it's the blokes who struggle to carry the tunes. I reckon you could convincingly argue that it's because the film is told from the women's point of view, with the men fitting into the women's narrative and having to follow - awkwardly - their form of storytelling. In both MM and MMHWGA it is the female perspective that is centralized, and the men end up going along with exactly what the women want.

I'm sure someone out there could work this up into a full-on thesis, analysing the Mamma Mia! films from a feminist perspective. But I can't be arsed, so I'll leave it at that.

Best line in the film: 'It's called karma and it's pronounced: Ha!'

Well, yes, but where's the fun in that?

I remember an interview with Dominic Cooper back when Mamma Mia came out. He said that when he met Amanda Seyfried they both did the "No, I really cannot sing!" thing, as had many of the cast. He felt a little relieved as he knew he'd be duetting with her.  He then went on to say that the moment she opened her mouth and this beautiful sound came out he knew he was done for. 

Honestly, the singing in the first film was awful - I remember driving home with the friend I'd seen it with, who insisted on playing the soundtrack she'd already purchased in the car and wondering why on earth anyone would listen to it and not the original versions. It's funny when you're looking at them camping it up, but not when you can't see it.

Siobhan McCarthy is an example of a voice that sounds great live, but somehow loses character in the studio. The show would never have run if she had not delivered those huge songs in the theatre every night, and she was central to its initial success. (But nobody can compete with the original voices as has often been pointed out.)

OH MY G O D
THAT CHRISTENING SCENE


I have never done such an ugly disgusting cry in the cinema before
I can never return to odeon Haymarket for the rest of my life

I went to our cinema's first showing on Friday evening, having booked a good few weeks ago. (MM1 was the first film they showed when the cinema first opened, so it was nice to reminisce.) Overall I enjoyed it, and would see it again if I had a spare afternoon, but wouldn't rush to go again, unlike the first film which I must have seen five or six times at the cinema.

This felt very cheesy, and the songs seemed to be shoehorned in - especially the first flashback scene and When I Kissed the Teacher. As someone has already said, there didn't feel as though much went on, especially in the present day scenes, and the flashback scenes were based on a story we already knew. I also didn't get the point of Donna not really being in it, did Meryl Streep not really want to be in the film? I don't think it really added to the story her not being there.

I loved how the two story lines interlaced, and the young cast having the same mannerisms as their older counterparts. It was also great to hear the new songs, although there were too many songs reused from the first film for my liking. I don't see how this would work on stage, to me it wouldn't be different enough from the original.