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Out to own on DVD and Blu-ray from 24th November
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Summer 2008 brought one hell of a party to the UK cinemas! You’d have to have lived on another planet not to be affected by one of the infectious tunes of one of the world’s greatest and most successful bands, ABBA. Thanks to the expert team that brought us the stage hit, Mamma Mia!, Mamma Mia! The Movie bursts onto screens in glorious Technicolor and song. It’s guaranteed to bring a grin to the face and toe-tapping in the aisles to say the least.
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The film version is fairly similar in plot to the stage musical: A young bride, played by the stunning Amanda Seyfried, wants to be given away by her father at her impending nuptials on a Greek Isle. The trouble is her father could be one of three suitors that her once wayward mother, Donna, had affairs with. Meryl Streep gayly steps into the role of Donna with great gusto and all the screen diva presence she can muster to deliver an electric performance, opposite the three ‘dads’, hilariously, played by Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth and Stellan Skarsgård. Add Donna’s best buds and lifelong sistas to the mix, the brilliant Julie Walters and Christine Baranski, and you are set for one of the most fun nights out at the cinema this year. Maybe it’s the lure of the summer sun that has got to the heads and hearts of the cast (and audience), but this film oozes fun, frolics and good old-fashioned love, all tied up with ABBA tunes. The cast genuinely seem to have thoroughly enjoyed them themselves making this musical and romantic extravaganza, hitting 10 out of 10 on the camp scale and being totally at ease with taking the mickey out of themselves. Also, add thoughts of being in holiday mode, and you have yourself an undeniable box office winner. Even the great legend and original band member Benny Andersson makes a cameo appearance, as well as being an executive producer, alongside Tom Hanks.
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Priceless moments in the film (of which there are many) that will make you cry with laughter: Pierce Brosnan belting out ‘S.O.S’; Julie Walters and Christine Baranski camping it up with style to ‘Dancing Queen’; Julie Walters going after her man (Stellan Skarsgård) to the verses of ‘Take A Chance On Me’; Colin Firth serenading on a guitar; and the chorus singers’ hilarious appearances at musical moments throughout. So much fun it really does hurt!
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An absolute riot! ABBA — we just can’t resist you!
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By Lisa Keddie
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Synopsis
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Meryl Streep leads an all-star cast in the feature-film adaptation of the beloved musical that has been seen by more than 30 million people in 160 cities and 8 languages around the world. Bringing the timeless lyrics and melodies of iconic super group ABBA to movie audiences, Summer 2008 is the season for Mamma Mia! The Movie
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The three women who created the worldwide smash stage hit — global producer Judy Craymer, writer Catherine Johnson and director Phyllida Lloyd — repeat their roles in bringing this joyful, musical story to the big screen. The Mamma Mia! The Movie is produced by Judy Craymer and Gary Goetzman.
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Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Stellan Skarsgård, Christine Baranski, Julie Walters, Amanda Seyfried and Dominic Cooper join Meryl Streep in this celebration of a mother, a daughter and three possible dads.
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An independent, single mother who owns a small hotel on an idyllic Greek island, Donna (Meryl Streep) is about to let go of Sophie (Amanda Seyfried), the spirited daughter she’s raised alone. For Sophie’s wedding, Donna has invited her two lifelong best girlfriends — practical and no-nonsense Rosie (Julie Walters) and wealthy, multi-divorcee Tanya (Christine Baranski) — from her one-time backing band, Donna and the Dynamos. But Sophie has secretly invited three guests of her own.
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On a quest to find the identity of her father to walk her down the aisle, she brings back three men from Donna’s past to the Mediterranean paradise they visited 20 years earlier. Over 24 chaotic, magical hours, new love will bloom and old romances will be rekindled on this lush island full of possibilities.
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Inspired by the storytelling magic of ABBA’s songs from ‘Dancing Queen’ and ‘S.O.S.’ to ‘Money, Money, Money’ and ‘Take a Chance on Me’, Mamma Mia! The Movie is a celebration of mothers and daughters, old friends and new family found.
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Film Facts
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Official Site: http://www.mamma-mia-themovie.co.uk/
UK Release Date: Out to own on DVD and Blu-ray from 24th November.
Director: Phyllida Lloyd
Writer: Catherine Johnson
Cast: Meryl Streep (’Donna’), Pierce Brosnan (’Sam Carmichael’), Colin Firth (’Harry Bright’), Stellan Skarsgård (’Bill’), Julie Walters (’Rosie’), Dominic Cooper (’Sky’), Amanda Seyfried (’Sophie’), Christine Baranski (’Tanya’)
UK Distributor: Universal Pictures International UK
Certificate: PG (TBC)
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Run-time: 98 mins
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Video on Real.com
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Trailer:
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London Press Conferences Attended By The Stars:
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World Premiere Report 1:
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World Premiere Report 2:
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Insight:
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Did you know…
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- Writer Catherine Johnson read ABBA’s lyrics from A to Z to build the framework of a standalone story and only chose songs that would logically drive her narrative
- More than 17,000 people see the stage musical around the world every night; the show has opened in more than 170 major cities since the first production in London almost a decade ago
- The film was shot in Pinewood Studios in London on the huge 007 stage and on location in Greece, including on the islands of Skiathos and Skopelos (with Kastani Beach where ‘Tanya’ performs ‘Does Your Mother Know’; where ‘Sophie’ and ‘Sky’ are serenaded by the stags in ‘Lay All Your Love on Me’; and where ‘Donna’ and the dads bid ‘Sophie’ and ‘Sky’ goodbye in ‘I Have a Dream’)
- ‘Sophie’ and ‘Sky’s wedding chapel (matched at Pinewood) was located at the top of a 100-metre rock formation that juts out into the sea near a mountainous peninsula (about an hour from Skopelos town). It was crafted on the site of the monastery of Agios Ioannis Prodromos, near the town of Glossa. The original chapel was said to have 105 carved steps leading to the entrance, and the ‘rebuilt’ chapel added flambeaus lighting the pathway up to the entrance
- This was Meryl Streep’s first full-on movie musical, though she has done singing work in Postcards From The Edge
- Meryl Streep admits: “I’m really doing this to embarrass my 20-something-year-old children. The dancing part will mortify them. They’ll have to move to Alaska or someplace. Just the overalls alone are gonna do it for them”
- Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth and Stellan Skarsgård admitted to being initially terrified at the thought of having to sing and dance. Stellan Skarsgård claimed that dancing was, “something I haven’t done sober in 30 years”
- Christine Baranski claims that ABBA songs are much more complicated to sing. They demand a certain style. When she found out that she had the part, she immediately started doing private pilates and jazz classes, and stretching and going on the elliptical and working up a stamina and flexibility. She also took some ballet and jazz classes in London
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