Mamma Mia!

I did enjoy this romp in the Greek Islands and was surprised at how well Meryl Streep sang. It's light, full of froth and bubble and perhaps has some aspects of Grease and Bollywood in it. The reason the music works I feel is that they haven't really messed with the arrangements of the songs keeping them generally faithful to the Abba originals. But Pierce Brosnan's vocal efforts were abysmal, almost laughable. Perhaps it was meant to be a send up of the original songs all the way through but he really did manage to mangle the vocals in my opinion. If you have seen the musical on stage you will know what to expect and there are some funny moments in the film and the Greek islands are as always a superb backdrop for the action.

I didn't use to like this movie, but as I got older I started to love the movie more. It's definitely a cheesy movie and far from perfect, but it's a fun watch with catchy songs (duh, it's ABBA). It's not too long nor too short, so it's a perfect movie to watch when you're feeling down or to watch with friends on a movie-night.

The critical and audience reactions to this film seemed to suggest that it was very much a Marmite of a film, with people either loving it or hating it. By the time I thought I should check it out, the "biggest film of the year" had become a sing-a-long classic and I decided to wait for the DVD. Watching it myself I can totally understand why this reaction was forthcoming and it is not really down to the film so much as it is the viewers. See, those that hate it will do so for the same reasons as those that love it. Mamma Mia is a film version of a stage-show but it is not an adaptation in that it has been made into a film so much as it is a stage musical made into a film. What I mean by this clunky sentence is that all the standards of the cheesy musical have been left in – from "big" action, colour and simple dumb cheer.

For me personally this doesn't really appeal and nor did I particularly enjoy the film as it did feel all forced smiles and joys, scenes shoe-horned to fit the lyrics and fake fun in the actors and extras. By the end I had pretty much had as much camp fun as I could really stand and was glad it was done. Now others have taken that to mean that the film is rubbish, but it isn't – it just didn't work for you either. However for what it does Mamma Mia is actually very good because it knows who it is aiming for and what it has to do. Yes this means that it is daft and cheesy but that sort of "big" cheerfulness is what the target audience want – they want to feel elated and lifted even if it isn't real in any form. In that regard the film delivers as it is built on beautiful colours in the sets and costumes and a cast that put their egos to one side and throw themselves into it.

This last part is important because to my disinterested eye all the star actors came off looking daft. Streep is certainly not someone I expected to be doing this and to her credit she throws herself into it, showing a camp overacting side I didn't know she had. Likewise Walters, Baranski, Firth, Brosnan and Skarsgård all do much the same – albeit to varying degrees of success. If you're into it then the "big" performances are all part of the fun but if, like me, you're not, then it will be endlessly embarrassing and it will be hard to shake the feeling that I was watching award-winning actors making themselves look and sound like muppets. Of course that is why they are "good" in the context of what the film is trying to be and yet at the same time "bad" if you are not in the swing of the film.

What we are left with then is a film that we have seen plays really well to those that get it but leaves everyone else wondering why on earth people like Streep and Walters would make such nonsense. I personally disliked it but that does not make it a "bad" film, only a bad one from my point of view. For what it sets out to do though, it is a winning achievement – full of cheerful cheese and lots of colour. In fact, it is such a targeted film that you will already know whether you will love it or hate it long before you press play.

That kind of film who is so easy to define as superficial. Before you see it. Because it is only ... charming. Surprising charming. For musical scenes. For the feel of summer holliday. For impressive cast and beautiful performances. For locations. And, off course, for...ABBA. The best point - the feeling to see an old fashion comedy. And that is the serious motif. For see it. Time by time.

As a musical, pure and simple, 'Mamma Mia' has the briefest and silliest of stories, backed up by a large selection of Abba songs (Super Trouper, SOS, Voulez Vous, Gimme Gimme Gimme, Money Money Money, Dancing Queen, The Winner Takes It All, Lay All Your Love On Me, Our Last Summer, Mamma Mia, etc.).

Meryl Streep has a daughter about to marry, and a cloudy past which has left three possible dads - Sam (Pierce Brosnan), Harry (Colin Firth), and Bill (Stellan Skarsgard). Now you can imagine that when Brosnan was James Bond he never thought he'd be cavorting along to Swedish pop on the big screen - but despite his weak voice, he does OK - the same can be said for Firth, who seems to choose roles with such little discrimination it is no longer a surprise to see him in anything.

Donna (Streep) also has two friends to support her - Julie Walters and Christine Baranski. Walters is as fun as ever, cavorting in her headscarf and singing appallingly; while Baranski is another Samantha from Sex and the City - chasing young barmen and struggling in her high heeled boots. Their scenes together and apart are hilarious - and Streep's singing cannot be faulted.

Is the film any good? It is hard to tell. It is certainly fun, and funny. The direction isn't particularly inspired, nor is the screenplay clever or profound - but then, neither is the music of Abba. Taken purely as bubblegum, feel-good cinema, it does OK, and isn't as bad as you might have expected.