The 2008 jukebox movie musical “Mamma Mia!” takes place on the Greek island Kalokairi, where bride-to-be Sophie Sheridan, played by Amanda Seyfried, invites three men from her mother’s past to her wedding. Sophie hopes she will meet her true father and that he will give her away to her fiancé Sky. The twist is, her mother Donna, played by Meryl Streep, does not know that her past lovers are invited to her daughter’s wedding. The film is based on the hit songs of Swedish pop band ABBA. After having analyzed each song from the first movie, I will be sharing my top five song picks.
In the number five spot we have “Honey, Honey.” This song opens the movie by Sophie secretly going through her mother’s diary with her two friends, Ali and Lisa. In the diary, it covers the thrilling nights and adventures Donna had with each of the three men, Sam Carmichael, Bill Andersson (not his twin brother who has hilarious goat stories) and Harry Bright aka ‘H.B. Headbanger.’ This song is such a fun and exciting way to lead into the plot of the movie where Sophie invites the three men from her mother’s diary to her wedding.
At number four we have “Super Trouper.” Donna and her two best friends, Tanya and Rosie, are a musical trio who call themselves “Donna and the Dynamos.” At Sophie’s bachelorette party, they perform “Super Trouper” in their 70s disco themed costumes. To me, this is an obvious top five placer. Who would not want Donna and the Dynamos to perform at their bachelorette party, singing a classic ABBA song? This song is truly magical, dazzling and a crowd favorite.
Third place is ‘Lay All Your Love On Me.’ In this song, Sky is conveying to Sophie the love he has for her and will carry on after the “greatest day of his life.” This song not only highlights the tension between Sophie and Sky on the beach but also has this playful and fun tone with the background dancing scuba divers. This song isn’t necessary to the plot, but it was a silly scene that was enjoyable to watch.
Any college student going through this tough life change of moving away from home can relate to the song “Slipping Through My Fingers.” This song places second in my ranking. It shows how being young slips away so fast. In this song, Donna is gradually letting go of Sophie as she is getting married and becoming her own person. They both wish they could “freeze the picture.” I can totally relate to this because time is certainly a thief, and growing up can be very frightening. This is such a heartfelt song that touches the soft side of those experiencing change.
“The Winner Takes It All” places at number one not only because Meryl Streep’s voice is amazing in this, but her acting is masterful. You can feel the heartache in Streep’s voice when she conveys to Sam that in her eyes, relationships are a win-all or lose-all situation. This scene is gut wrenching and makes you sympathize for Donna who is fearful of giving Sam a second chance. When it is almost her daughter’s wedding, Sam suddenly wants to step up as a potential father and give Sophie away. This takes a lot of nerve since he left Donna heartbroken and was not the one who took care of Sophie her entire life.
“Mamma Mia!” is my favorite jukebox musical of all time because who wouldn’t want to live on a Greek island and sing and dance to ABBA songs? This musical features ABBA’s best music and is such an amazing comfort movie that explores the meaning of family and the exploration of self.
