(ID: promotional photo of the cast of “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again”)
Hayley: As recently as mid-2018, I was not on board the Mamma Mia train. My roommate at the time was obsessed with it and wanted me to watch it before the sequel came out. The first time I saw Mamma Mia I was like “meh.”
Then I saw Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again opening weekend in a tiny theater in a tiny town in northern Wisconsin. My roommate and I were on a vacation that was meant to be spent drunk on a boat on a lake, but it rained the whole goddamn time. So we went to see a movie. The entire theater was full of women. Moms and daughters, and a lot of groups of teenage girls. And the movie? A fucking DELIGHT. I could not help smiling throughout each of the musical numbers, wanting to sing and dance. This and CATS are my favorite theater experiences of all time because the vibe in the theater was palpable and fun and ridiculous.
I swiftly jumped on board the Mamma Mia train and I haven’t gotten off. I own both movies now and watch them constantly. There was a day last month where I was really sad and so I just put the first movie on in the background and looked at Airbnbs in Greece.
This movie has always felt like a pressure valve for stressful times, but it has become even more so during quarantine. I like spending time in the Mamma Mia! Cinematic Universe. The world that exists in these movies is absolutely insane, but it’s one that I always want to escape to. And I think that is what they’re meant to be. But I feel like they’ve taken on a life of their own.
Victoria: I have a very visceral memory of the weekend the first Mamma Mia premiered. My dad took me and my brothers to see the premiere of .... The Dark Knight. We were on a long line on one side of the movie theater lobby, and on the other side was a huge line of basically all women for Mamma Mia. I thought this was funny. Now I wish I was in the Mamma Mia line. (Did you know it is the 13th highest grossing movie of all time at the UK box office? It was also the highest grossing film by a female director until Wonder Woman.)
For a long time I thought of it mostly as a joke. “The singing is bad!” society said. “Pierce Brosnan can’t carry a tune.” Iconically, one day my grandma came down from her room, and in a fit of joy told me and my mom, “I just watched the most amazing film! I knew Meryl could act, but did you know she can sing!? And she’s so funny!” It makes me indescribably sad that my grandma died about six months before Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again came out.
I honestly do not remember my turning point with Mamma Mia. I don’t even remember watching it the first time. But its hijinks and soundtrack spoke to me. I accidentally saw Here We Go Again in IMAX, in a completely packed theater, and it was a complete and utter joy (the accident was the IMAX part, not going to see it).
I am interested in the meme-ification of Mamma Mia. It definitely was part of what turned me from a Mamma Mia agnostic into a fan, though I can’t really explain why. Part of it is the ridiculousness of the plot: “One of these men is my dad, and now I’m inviting them to my wedding to figure out which!” Part of it is the absurdity of the sequel: I love telling people Here We Go Again is the Godfather II of Mamma Mia movies, but it is. Part of it is the joy of watching these very serious actors have a blast, even though they can’t sing. Pierce Brosnan’s “When All Is Said Is Done” has often made me cry, even if he’s not hitting all, or most, of the notes.
I reject Rotten Tomatoes and its guiding principles, but it is interesting to me that the first film has a 59 percent positive reviews and the second has 79 percent. The second one is a better movie — the bad singers don’t really sing, and it moves at a quicker pace — but I think it also reflects how much the audience changed in ten years. Humor is different. The horrors of the world seem closer, more visceral. Your pressure valve metaphor is apt; it’s just a little escape.
Hayley: Mamma Mia has always felt like a joke, but now I feel like I am in on the joke. The memes certainly help this feeling, because now there is an online community that is also in on this joke. And I think that is the secret to loving this movie and it’s bizarre and wonderful world.
I am so glad that you brought up The Godfather here. In my opinion, there exist four cinematic examples of a sequel being better than its prequel: The Godfather, Mamma Mia, The Terminator, and Magic Mike. And each of these movies actually have more in common with Mamma Mia from a filmmaking standpoint than you might imagine. It borrows lessons on theme from The Godfather Part II, character development from Terminator II: Judgment Day, and plot from Magic Mike XXL.
Like The Godfather Part II, Here We Go Again uses time jumps to tell a multi-generational family story about what legacy, success, and family really mean. When we can see how a young Donna (Lily James) came to Kalokairi and the relationships she had with young Harry (Hugh Skinner), young Bill (Josh Dylan), and young Sam (Jeremy Irvine), it only deepens our love and understanding of this world. And despite the fact that Arnold Schwarzenegger is the titular character in the Terminator franchise, Judgment Day is ultimately Sarah Connor’s story, full stop. “Who is my dad?” might be the impetus for the first Mamma Mia, but gaining more insight into who Donna Sheridan was and how her life unfolded is what keeps people coming back for more. Magic Mike XXL learned from the mistakes of its predecessor and gave us less plot and more gratuitous and ridiculous scenes. (The end of that scene literally gives us a character throwing out pieces from their old stripping act and saying that they need to get new and better material!!) Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, like you said, amplifies all of the positives from the first movie and downplays the weaker spots.
I certainly prefer Here We Go Again, mostly because it contains the “Why Did It Have To Be Me?” scene and the first movie does NOT! My mom and I have spent two separate nights in quarantine getting drunk on rum and doing a double-header of both movies until like two o’clock in the morning. Not to be depressing but it’s probably some of the only genuinely fun times I have had in the last six months.
Victoria: Somewhat controversially, I enjoyed the first Godfather more than the sequel. I actually think this is possibly the fault of Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again. After years of telling people it is the Godfather II of Mamma Mia movies, I assumed the second Godfather would split just as much time between the past and present as the second Mamma Mia does. It does not! There are like .... four? flashback scenes. I have watched the Godfather movies once, and it was during quarantine, so maybe I need a rewatch, but I think my opinion about which is better will not change.
Your comparison to the other three great sequels, though, remains apt. I especially agree about Magic Mike: the first movie is somehow about how stripping is bad? And the second is about how it’s actually super fun!! Michael Strahan is a stripper! Incredible.
“Why Did It Have To Be Me?” is also one of my favorite sequel scenes. In the original movie, you of course root for Donna (Meryl Streep) and Sam (Pierce Brosnan) to get together, but when you see the young dads, the clear winner is Bill.
But you’re right — Mamma Mia is joy during a time of joylessness. It doesn’t have to make sense (it doesn’t — in the second movie they have iPhones even though it should be like…2005); it’s just pure vibes.
Hayley: I respect your Godfather opinions. I think honestly that both films are so good it’s like splitting hairs to figure out which one is better. Something that I have come to appreciate more about the first Mamma Mia movie is how it openly talks about women getting their emotional and sexual needs met — especially women who are over 40! Part of why this franchise is such a joy to behold is because I don’t see a lot of films that just center on women’s lives in such an upbeat and affirming way.
Victoria: Yes, I totally agree about centering women! My mom is a bit of a Mamma Mia agnostic, if not an out and out hater, and I made her watch the sequel with promises it was better. Right at the end, before the baptism, I was like “OK you don’t believe me, but you’re going to cry right now.” I was correct, and we both cried. These movies aren’t just about women getting what they want, but they also center a relationship between a mother and a daughter in a beautiful way. The end of the second one perfectly shows how that connection is eternal.
Stuff Victoria Recommends
This article about The Strand bookstore in New York, and how its owner is … evil
The Cut’s podcast, especially this episode about sexting.
This article interviewing six workers who quit their jobs this year.
This very easy butternut squash alfredo sauce.
What Hayley Likes Right Now
The Yoga is Dead podcast, particularly the episode “White Women Killed Yoga”
This soothing candle, aptly named “Chill Pill”
This incredible book of short stories, which I am re-reading for a book club and is even better the second time around
Don’t forget Gold-Plated Girls comes out twice a week, on Tuesdays and Fridays! Don’t miss Victoria’s Tuesday essay, about how everything is Beauty & the Beast (yes, including Twilight).