Mamma Mia: Here we go again (2018)

Director: Ol Parker

Starring: Lily James, Amanda Seyfried, Meryl Streep

Five years after the events of Mamma Mia! (2008), Sophie prepares for the grand reopening of the Hotel Bella Donna as she learns more about her mother’s past.

Yup, and here we go again. They really meant to cram in as many ABBA songs as possible, didn’t they? Although the music is awesome, the singing was absolutely TERRIBLE. Unlike the first film where the music followed the story, here they tried to build a story around the music. The result is way too much music with a very thin plot and incredibly shallow characters. The music felt forced into the film.

The magic from the original is gone. Meryl Streep’s absence was also a huge drawback. I didn’t find Amanda Seyfried strong enough to carry this film. Lily James wasn’t bad as young Donna, but I felt they still could have used Meryl Streep. The humor resorted to slapstick as opposed to the naturally funny humor in the first film. The musical scenes were cliched and unoriginal. The film is essentially two stories rolled into one, but sadly neither are even remotely captivating. In fact, it was more annoying than interesting.

The cinematography was very good with great landscapes, but the obvious blue screen scenes ruined everything, as it made it look like a theater production.  Cher had the potential to save the film with her incredible voice, charm and superb acting – just a pity she was only in the film’s final few minutes. By that time it was way too late for the film to redeem itself. I definitely won’t be watching this again in a hurry, if at all…