Mamma Mia! (film)

Mamma Mia!
Promotional poster
Directed by	Phyllida Lloyd
Produced by	Phyllida Lloyd Judy Cramer Benny Andersson Björn Ulvaeus Tom Hanks Rita Wilson
Written by	Catherine Johnson
Starring	Meryl Streep Amanda Seyfried Pierce Brosnan Colin Firth Stellan Skarsgård Dominic Cooper Julie Walters Christine Baranski
Music by	Benny Andersson (score) Benny Andersson Björn Ulvaeus Stig Anderson (songs) Original Music by ABBA
Cinematography	Haris Zambarloukos
Editing by	Lesley Walker
Studio	Playtone
Distributed by	Universal Pictures
Release date(s)	June 30, 2008 (2008-06-30) (United Kingdom) July 18, 2008 (2008-07-18) (United States)
Running time	110 minutes
Country	United States United Kingdom
Language	English
Budget	$52 million
Gross revenue	$609,841,637[1]

Mamma Mia!, promoted as Mamma Mia! The Movie, is a 2008 musical/romantic comedy film adapted from the 1999 West End musical of the same name, based on the songs of successful pop group ABBA, with additional music composed by ABBA member Benny Andersson. Distributed by Universal Pictures in partnership with Tom Hanks' and Rita Wilson's Playtone and Littlestar,^[2] it became the highest-grossing film musical of all time breaking the 30-year-old record of Grease. The title originates from ABBA's 1975 chart-topper "Mamma Mia". Meryl Streep heads the cast, playing the role of single mother Donna Sheridan. Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, and Stellan Skarsgård play the three possible fathers to Donna's daughter, Sophie (Amanda Seyfried).

Plot

On a Greek island called Kalokairi, 20-year-old bride-to-be Sophie Sheridan (Amanda Seyfried) posts three wedding invitations ("I Have a Dream") to three different men. From across the globe, the men set off for the wedding.

Sophie's two bridesmaids arrive and she reveals that she found her mother's diary and learned she has three possible dads: New York-based Irish architect Sam Carmichael (Pierce Brosnan), Swedish adventurer and writer Bill Andersson (Stellan Skarsgård), and British banker Harry Bright (Colin Firth). She invited them without telling her mother, believing that after she spends time with them she will know who her father is ("Honey, Honey").

Villa owner Donna Sheridan (Meryl Streep) is ecstatic to reunite with her former Donna and the Dynamos bandmates, wisecracking author Rosie (Julie Walters) and wealthy multiple divorcée Tanya (Christine Baranski), and reveals her bafflement at her daughter's desire to get married. Donna shows the villa, rumored to be built on the legendary fountain of Aphrodite, and explains her precarious finances to Rosie and Tanya ("Money, Money, Money").

The three men arrive, and Sophie smuggles them to their room and explains that she, not her mother, sent the invitations. She begs them to hide so Donna will have a surprise at the wedding: seeing the old friends of whom she "so often" favorably speaks. They overhear Donna working (humming "Fernando") and swear to Sophie they won't reveal her secret.

Donna spies them and is dumbfounded to find herself facing three former lovers she could never forget ("Mamma Mia"), and is adamant that they leave. She confides in Tanya and Rosie ("Chiquitita") a secret she has kept from everyone — she is uncertain which of the three men is Sophie's father. Tanya and Rosie rally her spirits by getting Donna to dance with the female staff and islanders ("Dancing Queen").

Sophie finds the men aboard Bill's yacht, and they sail around Kalokairi ("Our Last Summer") and tell stories of Donna as a carefree girl. Sophie musters up the courage to speak with her fiancé Sky (Dominic Cooper) about her ploy, but loses her nerve. Sky and Sophie sing to each other ("Lay All Your Love on Me"), but are interrupted when Sky is kidnapped for his bachelor party.

At Sophie's bachelorette party, Donna, Tanya, and Rosie perform as Donna and The Dynamos ("Super Trouper"). Sophie is delighted to see her mother rock out, but becomes nervous when the festivities are interrupted by the arrival of Sam, Bill and Harry. She decides to get each of her three prospective dads alone to talk.

While her girlfriends dance with the men ("Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)"), Sophie learns from Bill that Donna received the money to invest in her villa from his great aunt Sofia. Sophie guesses she must be her namesake and Bill is her father. She asks him to give her away and to keep their secret from Donna until the wedding.

Sophie's happiness is short-lived as Sam and Harry each tell her they must be her dad and will give her away ("Voulez-Vous"). A shocked Sophie can't tell them the truth and, overwhelmed by the consequences of her actions, faints.

In the morning, Rosie and Tanya reassure Donna they will take care of the men. On Bill's boat, Bill and Harry are about to confide in each other, but are interrupted by Rosie.

Donna confronts Sophie in the courtyard, believing Sophie wants the wedding stopped. Sophie says that all she wants is to avoid her mother's mistakes and storms off. An upset Donna is accosted by Sam, concerned about Sophie getting married so young. Donna confronts him and both realize they still have feelings for each other ("SOS").

Down on the beach, Tanya and young Pepper (Philip Michael) continue their flirtations from the previous night ("Does Your Mother Know").

Sophie comes clean to Sky and asks for his help. He reacts angrily to his fiancée's deception and Sophie turns to her mother for support. As Donna helps her daughter dress for the wedding, their rift is healed and Donna reminisces about Sophie's childhood and how quickly she's grown ("Slipping Through My Fingers"). Sophie asks Donna to give her away. As the bridal party walks to the chapel, Sam intercepts Donna and begs her to talk. She reveals the pain she felt over losing him ("The Winner Takes It All").

During the wedding, Donna tells Sophie that her father is present but he could be any of the three candidates, whom Sophie admits to inviting. Sam reveals that although he left to get married, he didn't go through with it and returned, only to find Donna with another man, so he married his former fiancée (and later divorced her). Harry confesses that Donna was the first (and last) woman he loved. The three men concur that they would be happy to be one-third of a father for Sophie. She tells Sky that they should postpone their wedding and travel the world as they have always wanted. Sam suddenly proposes to Donna ("I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do"). She accepts and they are married.

At the wedding reception, Sam sings to Donna ("When All Is Said and Done"), which prompts Rosie to make a play for Bill ("Take a Chance on Me"). All the couples present proclaim their love ("Mamma Mia" reprise), as their raucous dancing causes the ground to crack and erupt with water from the fountain of Aphrodite. Sophie and Sky bid farewell to Kalokairi and sail away ("I Have a Dream" reprise).

During the principal credits, Donna, Tanya, and Rosie reprise "Dancing Queen", followed by "Waterloo" with the rest of the cast. Finally, Amanda Seyfried sings "Thank You for the Music" over the end credits.

Cast

• Meryl Streep as Donna Sheridan: Sophie's mother, owner of the hotel Villa Donna, and wife of Sam at the end. She is also Rosie and Tanya's friend.^[3]

• Amanda Seyfried as Sophie Sheridan: Donna's daughter and Sky's fiancée.^[4]

• Pierce Brosnan as Sam Carmichael: Sophie's possible father, husband to Donna, and an Irish architect.^[5]

• Julie Walters as Rosie Mulligan: One of Donna's former bandmates in Donna and the Dynamos. an unmarried fun-loving author.

• Christine Baranski as Tanya Wilkinson: Donna's other former bandmate. Divorced three times and rich.

• Colin Firth as Harry Bright: Sophie's possible father and an English banker. Based on "Our Last Summer", which he sings at one point.

• Stellan Skarsgård as Bill Anderson: Sophie's possible father, a Swedish sailor and travel writer.

• Dominic Cooper as Sky: Sophie's fiancé, designing a website for the hotel.

• Enzo Squillino as Gregoris: One of Donna Sheridan's employees.

• Philip Michael as Pepper: Sky's best man who likes Tanya. He is also a bartender.

• Ashley Lilley as Ali: Close friend of Sophie and her bridesmaid.

• Rachel McDowall as Lisa: Close friend of Sophie and her bridesmaid.

• Niall Buggy as Father Alex: Priest who marries Sam and Donna

• Benny Andersson as Piano Player

• Björn Ulvaeus as a Greek god

• Rita Wilson as a Greek goddess

Musical numbers

The following songs are included in the film, of which 17 are on the soundtrack album:

1. "I Have a Dream" - Sophie
2. "Honey, Honey" - Sophie, Ali, and Lisa
3. "Money, Money, Money" - Donna, Tanya, Rosie, and Greek Chorus
4. "Mamma Mia" - Donna, Sophie, Ali, Lisa, and Greek Chorus
5. "Chiquitita" - Rosie, Tanya, and Donna
6. "Dancing Queen" - Tanya, Rosie, Donna, Greek Chorus, and Company
7. "Our Last Summer" - Harry, Bill, Sam, Sophie, and Donna
8. "Lay All Your Love on Me" - Sky, Sophie, Sky's Bachelor party friends.
9. "Super Trouper" - Donna, Tanya, and Rosie
10. "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)" - Sophie, Donna, Tanya, Rosie, Ali, Lisa and Greek Chorus
11. "The Name of the Game" - Sophie (deleted scene)
12. "Voulez-Vous " - Donna, Sam, Tanya, Rosie, Harry, Bill, Sky, Ali, Lisa, and Pepper
13. "SOS" - Sam, Donna, and Greek Chorus
14. "Does Your Mother Know" - Tanya, Pepper, Guys, and Girls
15. "Slipping Through My Fingers" - Donna and Sophie
16. "The Winner Takes It All" - Donna
17. "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do" - Sam, Donna, and Company
18. "When All Is Said and Done" - Sam, Donna, and Company
19. "Take a Chance on Me" - Rosie, Bill, Tanya, Pepper, and Harry
20. "Mamma Mia!" (Reprise) - Company
21. "I Have a Dream" (Reprise) - Sophie
22. "Dancing Queen" (Reprise) - Donna, Rosie, and Tanya
23. "Waterloo" - Donna, Rosie, Tanya, Sam, Bill, Harry, Sky, and Sophie
24. "Thank You for the Music" - Sophie

Production

Most of the filming was done on the small Greek island of Skopelos (during August/September 2007),^[6] and the seaside hamlet of Damouchari in the Pelion area of Greece. On Skopelos, Kastani beach on the south west coast was the film's main location site.^[6] The producers built a beach bar and jetty along the beach, but removed them both when they left.^[6]

The part of the film where Pierce Brosnan's character, Sam, leaves his New York office to go to the Greek Island was actually filmed at the iconic Lloyds Building on Lime Street in the City of London. He dashes down the escalators and through the porte-cochere, where yellow cabs and actors representing New York mounted police were used for authenticity.^[7]

The "Fernando" Bill Anderson's beautiful yacht (actually a ketch) in the movie was the Tai-Mo-Shan built in 1934 by H. S. Rouse at the Hong Kong and Whampoa dockyards.^[8][9]

Actress Meryl Streep had taken opera singing lessons as a child, and as an adult, she had previously sung in several movies, including Postcards from the Edge, Silkwood, Death Becomes Her, and A Prairie Home Companion.^[10]

Release

ABBA appeared together with the film's cast in 2008.

Anni-Frid Lyngstad and Agnetha Fältskog joined Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson at the Swedish premiere of the film, held at the Rival Theatre in Mariatorget, Stockholm, owned by Andersson, on July 4, 2008. It was the first time all four members of ABBA had been photographed together since 1986.^[11]

Reception

Mamma Mia! received mixed reviews from critics. Rotten Tomatoes reported that 53% of critics gave the film positive reviews based upon a sample of 168 reviews, with an average rating of 5.5/10.^[12] The Times gave it four stars out of five,^[13] as did Channel 4 which said it had "all the swing and sparkle of sequined bell-bottoms."^[14] BBC Radio 5 Live's film critic Mark Kermode delivered an all-singing, all-dancing review, describing the experience as 'the closest you get to see A-List actors doing drunken karaoke'.^[15] The Guardian was more negative, giving it one star, stating that the film gave the reviewer a "need to vomit"^[16], while Bob Chipman of Escape to the Movies said it was "so base, so shallow and so hinged on meaningless spectacle, it's amazing it wasn't made for men".^[17] The Daily Telegraph stated that it was enjoyable but poorly put together ("Finding the film a total shambles was sort of a shame, but I have a sneaking suspicion I'll go to see it again anyway."),^[18] whereas Empire said it was "cute, clean, camp fun, full of sunshine and toe tappers."^[19]

The casting of actors not noted for their singing abilities led to some mixed reviews. Variety stated that "some stars, especially the bouncy and rejuvenated Streep, seem better suited for musical comedy than others, including Brosnan and Skarsgård."^[20] Brosnan, especially, was savaged by many critics: his singing was compared to "a water buffalo" (New York Magazine),^[21] "a donkey braying" (The Philadelphia Inquirer)^[22] and "a wounded raccoon" (The Miami Herald),^[23] and Matt Brunson of Creative Loafing Charlotte said he "looks physically pained choking out the lyrics, as if he's being subjected to a prostate exam just outside of the camera's eye."^[24]

Box office

As of April 6, 2009, Mamma Mia! has grossed a worldwide total of $602,609,487 and is the fifth highest grossing film of 2008^[1] as well as being the 50th highest grossing film of all time.^[25] As of October 26, 2008, it became the highest-grossing movie musical of all time worldwide.^[25] It is also the most successful British-made film of all time,^[26][27][28] as well as being the highest grossing film of all time at the UK box office, eclipsing the record previously held by Titanic on the December 16, 2008, some 20 weeks after the film's original release, until Avatar broke the record. This is not adjusted for inflation.^[29]

It is the third highest-grossing film of 2008 internationally (i.e., outside North America) with an international total of $458,479,424 and the thirteenth highest gross of 2008 in North America (the US and Canada) with $144,130,063.

In the United Kingdom, Mamma Mia! has grossed £69,166,087 as of January 23, 2009, and is the second highest grossing film of all time at the UK box office.^[30] The film opened at #1 in the U.K, taking £6,594,058 on 496 screens. It managed to hold onto the top spot for 2 weeks, narrowly keeping Pixar's WALL-E from reaching #1 in its second week.

When released on July 3 in Greece, the film grossed $1,602,646 in its opening weekend, ranking #1 at the Greek box office.^[31]

The film made $9,627,000 in its opening day in the United States and Canada, and $27,605,376 in its opening weekend, ranking #2 at the box office, behind The Dark Knight.^[32] At the time, it made Mamma Mia! the record-holder for the highest grossing opening weekend for a movie musical, surpassing Hairspray's box office record in 2007.

Awards and nominations

Sequel

Because of Mamma Mia!'s financial success, Hollywood studio chief David Linde, the co-chairman of Universal Studios told The Daily Mail that it would take a while, but there could be a sequel. He stated that he would be delighted if Judy Craymer, Catherine Johnson, Phyllida Lloyd, Benny Andersson, and Björn Ulvaeus agreed to the project, noting that there are still plenty of ABBA songs to use.^[33]

DVD and Blu-ray Disc release

Mamma Mia! was released in Australia and New Zealand on DVD on November 6, 2008, and was released on Blu-ray on December 3. It was released on both DVD and Blu-ray in the UK and Norway on November 24 and November 26 respectively. It was released in US on December 16.

On November 24, Mamma Mia! became the fastest-selling DVD of all time in the UK, according to Official UK Charts Company figures. It sold 1,669,084 copies on its first day of release, breaking the previous record (held by Titanic) by 560,000 copies. By the end of 2008, The Official UK Charts Company declared it had become the biggest selling DVD ever in the UK, with one in every four households owning a copy (over 5 million copies sold).^[34] The record was previously held by Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl with sales of 4.7 million copies.

On November 26, 2008, Mamma Mia! became the best-selling DVD in Finland, by selling 110,000 copies and is the first DVD to earn a platinum award in that country.

In the United States the DVD made over $30 million on its first day of release.^[35] To date it has sold 6,318,582 units in the US.

By December 31, 2008, Mamma Mia! had become the best-selling DVD of all time in Sweden with 545,000 copies sold.^[36]

The DVD was released as a single-disc edition and a two-disc special edition.

On December 15, 2009, the Mamma Mia! The Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! More Gift Set was released. The set includes the 2-disc special edition with bonus soundtrack and 32-page collective booklet.

There is a 2-disc Ultimate Party Edition available in Hong Kong that includes all the 2-disc features with the 30 Rock episode "Mamma Mia!".

Single-disc features

• Sing-along
• "The Name of the Game" deleted musical number
• Audio commentary with director Phyllida Lloyd

The single-disc DVD released in Sweden on 26 November contains all of the following:

• Sing-along
• "The Name of the Game" deleted musical number
• Deleted scenes
• Outtakes
• The Making of Mamma Mia! featurette
• Anatomy of a Musical Number: "Lay All Your Love on Me"
• Becoming a Singer featurette
• A look inside Mamma Mia! featurette
• "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!" music video
• Björn Ulvaeus cameo
• Audio commentary with director Phyllida Lloyd
• German and English audio
• Subtitles in English, German, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Norwegian and Swedish

Two-disc special edition

The widescreen single-disc includes a bonus disc which includes:

• Limited time only digital copy
• Deleted scenes
• Outtakes
• The Making of Mamma Mia! featurette
• Anatomy of a Musical Number: "Lay All Your Love on Me"
• Becoming a Singer featurette
• Behind the scenes with Amanda
• On Location in Greece featurette
• A Look Inside Mamma Mia! featurette
• "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!" music video
• Björn Ulvaeus cameo

Blu-ray exclusives

• Universal Pictures' U-Control^[37]
• Behind the Hits (details and trivia of the music while the musical performance plays)
• Picture-in-picture (access to cast and crew interviews and behind the scene while the movie plays)

Comic Relief Satire

The BBC's 2009 Red Nose Day special for Comic Relief featured a 10-minute satire of Mamma Mia. The short starred Jennifer Saunders and her long-time collaborators, Dawn French and Joanna Lumley as Donna, Rosie and Tanya, respectively. Sienna Miller appeared as Sophie. While the opening credits listed Saunders and French's characters as Meryl Streep and Julie Walters, rather than the character names, Lumley's portrayal of Tanya was described in dialogue and the opening credits as "Patsy" whom she played opposite Saunders in Absolutely Fabulous; Christine Baranski's boozing, campy "Maryanne" on Cybill had been often compared to Patsy. The three possible fathers appear only momentarilly in a spoof of their introduction to Sophie: Phillip Glenister is dressed and credited as Pierce Brosnan but references Colin Firth's joking reference to Brosnan by saying "I'm Bond," while Alan Carr is credited as Colin Firth and introduces himself, "I'm Darcy," referencing his parts in both Pride and Prejudice and the two Bridget Jones films, and a swede is credited as "the Swede". A recurring theme is awkward transitions into the songs.^[38]

References

External links

• Official website
• Mamma Mia! at the Internet Movie Database
• Mamma Mia! at Allmovie
• Mamma Mia! at Box Office Mojo
• Mamma Mia! at Rotten Tomatoes
• Mamma Mia! at Metacritic
• Mamma Mia! production notes

ABBA Agnetha Fältskog · Björn Ulvaeus · Benny Andersson · Anni-Frid Lyngstad Studio albums Ring Ring · Waterloo · ABBA · Arrival · The Album · Voulez-Vous · Super Trouper · The Visitors Compilations Greatest Hits · Greatest Hits Vol. 2 · Gracias Por La Música · The Singles: The First Ten Years · ABBA Live · ABBA Gold: Greatest Hits · More ABBA Gold: More ABBA Hits · ABBA Oro: Grandes Éxitos · Thank You for the Music · The Definitive Collection · 18 Hits · The Complete Studio Recordings · Number Ones · The Albums Singles "People Need Love" · "He Is Your Brother" · "Ring Ring" · "Love Isn't Easy (But It Sure Is Hard Enough)" · "Waterloo" · "Honey, Honey" · "Hasta Mañana" · "So Long" · "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do" · "SOS" · "Mamma Mia" · "Fernando" · "Dancing Queen" · "Money, Money, Money" · "Knowing Me, Knowing You" · "The Name of the Game" · "Take a Chance on Me" · "Eagle" · "Summer Night City" · "Chiquitita" · "Does Your Mother Know" · "Voulez-Vous" · "Angeleyes" · "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)" · "I Have a Dream" · "The Winner Takes It All" · "On and On and On" · "Super Trouper" · "Lay All Your Love on Me" · "One of Us" · "When All is Said and Done" · "Head Over Heels" · "The Visitors" · "The Day Before You Came" · "Under Attack" · "Thank You for the Music" Other songs "She's My Kind of Girl" · "En Karusell" · "Another Town, Another Train" · "Nina, Pretty Ballerina" · "Rock'n Roll Band" · "King Kong Song" · "Bang-A-Boomerang" · "Rock Me" · "I've Been Waiting for You" · "My Love, My Life" · "That's Me" · "Arrival" · "As Good as New" · "Happy New Year" · "Our Last Summer" · "Slipping Through My Fingers" · "Like An Angel Passing Through My Room" · "Put On Your White Sombrero" Related articles Discography · Songs · Unreleased songs · Dick Cavett Meets ABBA · Eurovision Song Contest 1974 · Mamma Mia! · Mamma Mia! (film) · ABBA: The Movie · Congratulations · Music of Sweden · Stig Anderson · "Thank ABBA for the Music" · Mamma Mia! The Movie Soundtrack · A*Teens Book:ABBA