Could be better, but not a total failure either

Rating: 7/10 (16 January 2009)

I have read many reviews that completely despise this film and I think that that is unfair. This film wasn't great, and it had so much potential that was foolishly squandered, but it was quite nice all the same.
I have heard several people refer to it as a 'girly' piece, and I, for the most part, agree. There seems to be two main characters and their respective story lines: a mother worrying about her daughters wedding and about the three guests, all of whom might be the father (it's a bit hard to explain), and the daughter trying to find out about her father. The mother has two friends (rather well played) who help her out in these situations while engaging in casual fun of their own while staying on the mother's island.
The acting was a mix of great and disappointing. Meryl Streep, contrary to popular opinion, can sing quite well, and her performance of 'The winner takes it all' was quite emotional and apt, albeit slightly mistranslated. The daughter (played by the rather charming Amanda Seyfried) sang quite well and gave across at times the energy of an already active young woman right before her wedding, and her desperation as things go wrong when she is trying to find out who her father is. The singing was actually one of the better parts in the movie, but I think that Pierce Brosnan, while being a fairly good actor, needs singing lessons.
Brosnan's singing was the largest flop in this movie. Apart from that, many would say that the plot is cheesy, the ending lame, and that the entire plot is simply an excuse to sing. I would agree with that, but the only really misplaced song I saw was 'Money, money, money', which was placed out of nowhere and had nothing to do with the plot. The plot is rather cheesy, and the ending was, if not lame, then lacking, but I believe that the movie doesn't need a magnificent plot or a mind-blowing ending. And the ABBA songs were changed quite a lot, but I had no complaints to the changes that were made (although they left out my personal favorite 'One of us'). Oh well.
All in all, a rather nice movie to watch when you have spare time. This is what got me re-interested in ABBA songs. I give Mamma Mia... 7.1. That's a 7.