MAMMA MIA!

I decided that, this afternoon, I was going to treat myself to a movie. Not since 1997-1998 (those Titanic days) have I gone to a movie by myself, but I missed out last week when the girls went to see Mamma Mia, and I was dying to see it. Since it's not Hubby's kind of movie (no spaceships or explosions, and, horrors, it's a musical!), I'd resigned myself to seeing it alone.

Got to the theatre at about 2:20 for the 2:30 PM showing, and as I was trying to get some night vision and find a seat in the dark, I heard someone call my name. It turned out to be my friend Lynn who was also there by herself, so it turned into an impromptu girls afternoon out!

I hadn't seen the stage production (Lynn had seen a couple), and I knew almost nothing about this movie except that it was a musical featuring the music of ABBA and that Colin Firth was in it. (You may remember my infatuation with the fabulous Mr. Firth. It took a bit of a beating as a result of The Last Legion, but a viewing of Love, Actually quickly set things to rights.)

I've long been a fan of ABBA (since grade five, for certain, but probably even before that), so I knew that there was a lot of potential. But, ladies and gentlemen, this movie blew me away.

Now, it's never going to win an Oscar based on its "high drama", but I was really, really impressed. Meryl Streep can sing! It's official -- as if it were ever in doubt --I want to be Meryl when I grow up. I especially loved "Money, Money, Money" and "Dancing Queen". You can really tell she had fun filming this, and I had so much fun watching it.

I was afraid, at the very beginning, that Amanda Seyfried would get on my nerves before the end of the film, but while her Sophie came dangerously close to being cloying, she didn't step over the line.

The weakest link, as I'm sure most people know by now, was Pierce Brosnan. But in a way, his hesitant singing and "earnest" acting really worked for me. It might have been unintentionally humourous, but I enjoyed watching him. And hey -- it took guts to be so "un-Bond". Kudos to him for that!

My favourite "dad", of course, was Harry. I'm a little worried that Colin Firth might be getting a bit too good at playing the "former rebel trapped in a bank job" roles, but I liked Harry.

My favourite scene (aka "recipe for a swoon")?

Colin Firth, on a boat, with a guitar. I was a little nervous when Harry opened his mouth to sing, but you know what? He sounds exactly the way I thought he would, and I thought it was very sweet.

I can't wait to go back to see this movie again, and I was pleasantly surprised to find myself enjoying the soundtrack even more than I loved the original versions. I usually don't like covers, but they sound fresher, happier, somehow.

Next time I go, though, I'm going to have a helluva time not dancing. Racing to our cars in the torrential rain following the movie, Lynn and I were practically skipping, and I've been chair-dancing ever since.