_w200_h/A%20Whale%20of%20a%20Murder%20Front%20Cover%20(1)_02240335.png "A Whale of a Murder: A Venus Bixby Mystery")
Three Reasons I Loved Mama Mia Again!
Why would I do that when sequels historically never succeed or satisfy us like the first? We know the characters, the setting, and in this case, even the music. But there I was getting the very last seat for the first showing, and I was there more than a half-hour before the movie began.
Obviously, people bought their tickets online. Why didn’t I think of that?
Obviously, people bought their tickets online. Why didn’t I think of that?
I got my popcorn and water and settled into the new leather-like seating and propped up the footrest. Nice new digs, but there was no room to put my purse except on the floor, which is a bummer. Note to self: I need to send in a suggestion about that.
Anyway, I sat back and looked to the right and to the left, expecting women (and men) my age, especially since it was early afternoon. Duh, what was I thinking? Summertime, school vacations. Teenagers all around me. For a movie that was first introduced when they were in grade school? Mama Mia, what were they thinking?
Love the Characters, Setting, Music -- Again
That’s what they were thinking. Most of the main characters not only were still there, but they were played by the same great and fun actors.
Okay, spoiler alert, Meryl doesn’t show until she absolutely had to or maybe there’d be a riot. And Cher, well, Cher was new, and not so new. Andy Garcia was yummy. The youngsters in the film were delightful and made me yearn for my summer days at the beach. You, too?
Okay, spoiler alert, Meryl doesn’t show until she absolutely had to or maybe there’d be a riot. And Cher, well, Cher was new, and not so new. Andy Garcia was yummy. The youngsters in the film were delightful and made me yearn for my summer days at the beach. You, too?
What’s not to like about the setting? Okay, it was filmed in Croatia, not Greece, but astoundingly beautiful just the same. Croatia’s been on my bucket list for a while. Guess it needs to move up the ladder.
The music was fun…some familiar tunes and some new to me, but they were foot-tapping all the same. Note to self: download the album. I don’t think it’s called an album anymore, huh? But you know what I mean.
The Biggest Surprise
Audience reaction. Just as when I saw the first movie in 2008, at night, again in a crowded theater with couples clapping and singing, this time the audience mostly of women, young and old, were also hooting and hollering.
Bingo! On my way out of the theater, I asked teens who were grinning ear-to-ear if they enjoyed it. “Oh, yes. We’ve been fans forever.”
Didn’t hurt that the young male actors were as hunky as the seniors they were portraying. Smart move by the producers and directors.
So, bottom line, as the producers wallow in the success of Mama Mia! Here We Go Again and their bottom line, I loved this movie because they got it right on three levels. Character, setting, and music.
But there’s a fourth reason they got it right. They expanded their audience. They knew we older folks would come back a second time for the nostalgia if nothing else. But by expanding their audience to teens and twenty-somethings, they ensured that Mama Mia would live on and on and on again.
Bravo!
P.S. It’s not album! Soundtrack, that’s the word!! Thank you, retirement brain, for clicking in!