What I sure know is that they have the crappiest script of the year...

I must say I expected more from Meryl Streep. The other actors lived up to no expectations whatsoever. A fun plot, wonderful music, a terrible movie. The live musical was much more amusing, and the singing, dancing, and acting was actually commendable; I very much encourage anyone who is considering seeing the movie to rethink and save up for tickets to see it performed in the way it was originally intended.… Expand

Complete crap! Bubble gum that went stale a long, long time ago.

All my friends and their girlfriends and wives went and saw Dark Knight. I got dragged into seeing this with my girlfriend a few hours ago as punishment for me taking her to go see Iron Man when it first came out. Suffice to say she didnt want to see Iron Man so guess what I caught a glimpse of what hell and torture is. Basically there were only 20 people in the theater for Mama Mia and out of that 20 I'd say that 99% of them were cat loving frizzy haired old ladies. Oh and seeing Pierce "I used to be James Bond" singing some crappy songs with some old women who are my mom's age was enough to make me cringe. Eh at least one or two of the songs was good so I give it a 1.… Expand

I thought it was awful. Granted I was never an Abba fan and living in NY never saw the show but.... I have heard Meryl Streep sing better and definitely act better. And someone should shoot the casting directors for putting Pierce Brosnan in. The only talent was Sophie. Julie Waters was not used to her best ability. I couldn't figure out what the audience was laughing at. A few amusing moments but basically REFUND!… Expand

There were some great actors in this movie, but everything else was the mot bizarre piece of film work I had ever seen. It certainly seemed like everybody in the movie was having fun, but I wanted to find the nearest match so I could set the T.V. on fire. Weird as hell.

What a blast! This movie was an all out enjoyable, music filled, cake and ice cream party! The theater was packed and we had to sit in the 2nd row. I figured headache in the first 10 minutes, but no. It was easily the most fun movie we have seen in a long time. I think it is telling when the whole (packed) theater is hooting and hollering, clapping and singing during the movie. Gimme a movie where everyone cheers in the end anytime. If you want to go see a movie just for the all out fun, this is the one. There was nothing pretentious or preachy, unlike Wall-E. I went with my 16 year old, 14 year old and 10 year old. My 16 year old even said that it was her ALL TIME favorite movie. We aren't looking for the next Oscar winner, just for a fun time out with friends or family.… Expand

A great movie, uplifting and fun.

Fun, Fun, Fun. I left loving ABBA all over again. However, I do question the casting of Pierce Brosnan??

I haven't seen the musical nor am I an ABBA fan but I watched this movie twice! Once on my own thinking it was a lighthearted comedy - can you imagine a 30 year old single man sitting by himself in a theatre filled with women and families! The second time with a female friend, because Dark Knight was sold out. But my companion was in hysterics and laughed so hard we got the occasional looks from the crowd. I loved the movie both times. It was kitsch but as a filmmaker myself I have to admit the movie was well crafted and well acted. Not many people understand the complexities of making a film and this is a hit all round judging from the crowd as well.… Expand

I enjoyed the fun pace of this movie, but the lip synching was sometimes off. The dance scenes were fabulous, especially the women on the dock - loved that part!

This is the WORST movie musical I've ever seen ... and I remember "Can't Stop The Music"! The writing is so wretched it sounds like it was written by a 12 year old girl and although I like ABBA's music as pop songs they do not work in a book musical. Everything is wrong with this movie but the blame is on Lloyd. Totally misdirected!

Not perfect but who cares, light lots fun.

As one of the few guys in the theater on "date night" with my wife of 27 years, I have to admit I really enjoyed Mama Mia. Perhaps because I grew up with ABBA in the 70's my toes already were in sync with the music. It is a rare fill that can make you laugh (Baranski and Streep sight gags) and cry (mother & daughter tender time painting toenails). If you weren't smiling during the dock dancing numbers, you were asleep!… Expand

Boy, I don't understand how this could be considered good in any way. I never liked ABBA, but don't think that's the issue. Other people in the theater loved it, but neither my husband or I came out liking it.

I am an ABBA fan, also only 17, but that didn't make a difference o fmy age; Mama Mia was an entertaining and so amusing show. The audience couldn't get enough of it, they wanted more. =) It was great!

The Broadway musical was much better -- very clever & creative story. The "Parent" group was too old -- should have been folks in their 40's not pushing 60 like Streep, Brosnan & crew. Otherwise, pretty fun & entertaining.

I loved everything about this movie, well there is one actor that can not sing. BUT you must see this movie.

Mamma MIa! was great fun, I could have turned right around and bought another ticket immediately. Brosnan has a lovely light tenor, and sings in tune and at tempo, so I've no idea why some folks are complaining about his voice. Want a laugh? Check out Sean Connery singing at the end of Disney's _Darby O'Gill and the Little People_.

I loved this movie so much I had to see it twice (and I'm the type that doesn't have time for movies). At the risk of sounding sexist, I'll say that this is a great movie for women. I doubt know if many men will love it, but every woman should see it with a girlfriend or a daughter, or a mother. It is so joyful, so funny and so TRUE to life in a hysterical cheesy 'Greek" kind of way. It captures the spirit of mothers and friends and love.… Expand

I agree with the user who labeled this as a camp classic. Not critic material maybe but a wonderful antidepressant on film.

It's a movie that FORCES you to be happy.I don't like that.

Although 'Mamma Mia' certainly has more believable characters and can make you tap your feet now and then, only SOME of the voices are passable and the amount of time separating each song is ridiculous.

This movie was a serious dissapointment. The 2 old bats next to Meryl Streep were hidiously horrible.

Great fun. If you like Abba, you'll love this movie. Certainly cheesy, and seeing Pierce Brosnan singing doesn't feel right, but you'll have a real laugh!

Great Movie. Probably the best all year so far. Loved the songs. Meryl Streep was awesome.

Who knew Meryl could sing too? Simply wonderful.

Great chick flick, laughed through the whole thing...actors were great & it was fun to watch them have so much fun.

The most enjoyable 2 hours you'll have at the movies all summer - provided you love Abba songs! Sooo frothy, sooo camp, and soooo much fun!

This is one of those "guys don't get it" kind of movies. Because so many of our movie reviewers are guys, this is a problem. They seem to complain about song and dance numbers. This is a MUSICAL, guys, not Thomas Hardy. Last year, those (mostly) male critics gushed over dark movies about bloody conflicts that nobody wanted to see. Or, you get Momma Mia, a movie that has no blood, no guns and no Iraq. Thank God. If you like movies that are pure escapist froth, this is a good one. Pierce can't sing; who cares.… Expand

Well, as a veteran of 3 live performances of Mamma Mia including one on Broadway....I thought Meryl Streep's and Pierce Brosnan's singing was really pretty awful. And Christine Baransky's performance was sooooo bland and boring. I was disappointed.

I love the broadway musical and the movie didn't let me down. All the gals are great and that's what ABBA was all about. Streep is sensational. Pierce Brosnan can't sing a note but his all-male rough voice presence was indispensible opposite Streep. A bit slow at first compared to Broadway (too many pictures of Greece) but it picks up the pace and the last hour is a feel good riot. We'll buy the DVD no doubt!!!… Expand

Excellent, outstanding 52 is not a true score.

A good movie with great songs. Love ABBA and most of the cast does a great job with their songs. I'd go see it again!

I really enjoy music from ABBA, so I went to see this film. This is one of the most fun movies I've seen in years. Meryl Streep delivers so much energy through the screen, and makes the movie better than it otherwise would be. In the middle there were scenes that can cause anxiety, and it can drag a bit in other scenes. That is until Meryl.

The film is an unexpected delight. Streep is funny, touching and energetic.,she can do anything. What a marvel! She and Brosnan create a believable love yearning to reconnect after twenty years of longing. Skarsgard is rougish & Firth is sweet . Baranski & Walters are buoyant and hilarious. The young couple, Siegfried & Cooper, are beautiful and charming. I went to see Streep and Brosnan, expecting to hate the ABBA songs, and was drawn in to how expertly the lyrics advanced the plot and the joy they spread to the characters and the moviegoers.… Expand

Superb musical entertainment, brilliantly conceived that left everyone dancing in the aisles. Now that is what I call a 10!

Thoroughly enjoying. Superb cast and of course the music.

Loved the movie, it was fun and an escapist two hours. Noticed that people were laughing, clapping and singing along. One of those times that I have to say the critics are way too full of themselves. Also I suspect that that the movie is victim to harsh reviews because it is essentially "Chick flix" material. Amazing how the worst super hero crap gets good reviews but something classed as Chick gets consistently panned.… Expand

Great movie, but you gotta be an ABBA fan. So not everyone is a trained musician...that just made it more endearing. LOVED Julie Walters. The whole experience just made me feel happy, and who can't use a little lift now and then?

Just so-so. Not as good as Chicago or Rent. The story has an ackward flow, and the music and dance seemed to add little. Maybe 2 good music numbers , the others felt like filler to me. Meryl Streep is fearless and I give her credit for another fine job.

Best movie in a long time real fun first time in years the audience clapped after the show.

If you want to come out feeling better than when you went in, go see this!!! Truly uplifting!!!

I thought Meryl Streep's singing was great and I was pleasantly suprised. Pierce Brosnan, however, was a little difficilt to listen to. At least he tried. I had never seen the stage show, but the movie was great fun!

It's fun and gay. What can I say? I love it. Colin Firth at 47 turning 48 soon was absolutely adorable. It's Meryl. It's Greece. It's Abba!

Oh come on people, its just pure fun, don't take it so serious! Meryl is great as always and though the songs don't always shift comfortably to the scenes, thats part of the fun! LONG LIVE ABBA!

If you like ABBA's music, you'll like the movie.

Fun, fun, fun! Can't get Dancing Queen out of my head. Based on the ratings posted here guess you either love it or hate it.

I have seen it three times in the theatre, the last twice were sing-long. What a blast -- it makes you want to sing and dance!

Fabulous film, with a real sense of joy and happiness. Seen it 3 times and can't wait to go again. As for Pierce Brosnan, well he can sing to me ANY day. He is brilliant, mature, charming, eminently handsome and just right for the part. They didn't need a professional singer, just someone who was believable. Cheer up you poor sad people who hated it. Go get a life! What a change to see a film that is not depressing, full of gratuitous sex, violence, nudity and swearing. Lets have more films like this.… Expand

Turned it off half way. The acting is bad; the singing is horrible (really a slam against ABBA); and the choreography is infantile. The setting in Greece is beautiful. A ridiculous attempt at entertainment.

Put me in a fantastic mood, loved the songs, the enthusiasm and the random dancing and singing extras.

I thought this musical was such a delight. Both my husband and I came away feeling so happy and delighted with the acting, music and scenery. Wow

My gosh this was the most fun I've had at a movie in a long time. I went with my 3 daughters and have plans to go again with my best friend. I wanted to get up and dance with them. I would say that 80% of the audience sang every song with the actors. It was like being a part of it, almost interactive. 98% of the audience of course was women but the majority of them were over 40. My daughters loved it. I loved it and will see it again and again and definately purchase it when it comes out on DVD. This falls right up there with Steele Magnolias in my book.… Expand

It was a funny, entertaining, masterpiece!

An exuberant blast of song and spirit. Entire cast clearly enjoying themselves -- their enthusiasm is infectious.

Loved the dance sequences. Hated the obvious lip synching.

During the "Mamma Mia" number, Greek peasants crawl over the side of a building wall like extras in a Billy Idol video. And indeed, Donna(Meryl Streep) has been dancing with herself ever since Sam(Pierce Brosnan) broke her heart twenty years ago on the same Greek island she lives with her daughter Sophie(Amanda Seyfried). Now, on the cusp of her daughter's white wedding, he's back, along with two other partners from her post-Sam sex bender in "Mamma Mia", the ABBA musical that couldn't find a place for "Knowing Me, Knowing You" and "Fernando". The thin storyline is just an excuse to kill the time in between songs anyway, so the omission of these two standards from the Swedish supergroup's canon seems somewhat arbitrary...and cruel(I love "Knowing Me, Knowing You", especially the "ah-haa" just before the girls launch into "there is nothing we can do"). No need to despair though, there's still "Dancing Queen", the emotional locus of "Mamma Mia", as "Fernando" was for the ABBA-centric(and superior) "Muriel's Wedding". Sung from the perspective of a middle-aged woman, "you can dance/you can jive/havin' the time of your life", Streep's winning rendition transforms this insanely catchy piece of bubble gum into an anthem for lost youth. It's like watching Stevie Nicks perform "Landslide". And then there's Pierce Brosnan's duet with Streep on "SOS", in which James Bond has the audience searching their memory banks for another example of an equally laughable singing performance(think Rob Lowe's serenading of Snow White on an Academy Award telecast from yesteryear). Since Seyfried has the strongest voice in a cast of mostly non-singers, it's a shame that she wasn't assigned to a meaty song like "Take a Chance of Me". Julie Walters' menopausal take on the formerly infectious song about love's first blush left me feeling depressed. And why does the Geico caveman("Jazz hands. Anything with jazz hands.") get better direction from his choreographer than any of the performers from a film that originated on the Broadway stage?… Expand

The play was great but I honestly hated the movie. Pierce cannot sing, (in fact i heard many audience members laughing at his singing). The acting was really just okay. The worst movie I have seen in a theater in years. Two enthusiastic thumbs down.

It's become a bit of a cliche these days to underestimate the impact of a good set of vocal chords. but I think that we can safely assume that Mr. P. Brosnan is not going to cry himself to sleep at night if we point out that his lungs give off about as much power as my powerpuff girls nightlight. I mean really people, we need to get over our idolization of 'A' list actors, and actually cast some true to life broadway talent in these roles that involve singing, lest we all leave the theaters futily trying to stem the bleeding coming from our ears. Other than that the movie was somewhat entertaining.… Expand

I loved it!! It was fun, entertaining, touching and a wonderful way to spend the afternoon with my daughter!

Delightful. I wanted to stay in the theatre and sit through the next showing.

Loved the upbeat music and Meryl Streep stole the show but the supporting cast also did a wonderful job. The scenery made you want to be there. When the movie ended people clapped and there was dancing in the aisles.

Funny feel good moviet hat will have legs. the pros haVE Panned the movie but viewers seem to luv it a suprise audience is girls younger girls. if u have been to europe will probably like movie.

If you love Abba's music, this movie is for you! I loved it so much that my daughter had to hold me back from dancing in the seats!

Deliciously entertaining 2 hours! Laugh out loud funny and who can forget ABBA's great music! 10/10!

Bad singing, even worse acting. Totally unbelieveable characters. Meryl Streep to old to play an aging hippie with a 20 year old daughter. Only good thing about the movie was the beautiful setting.

Fizzy, exuberant, exhilarating. Beautiful characters, WONDERFUL music. I was singing the rest of the day.

I took it at face value - a musical put into moving images. I decided I would not judge it but just enjoy it by pretending I was at the theatre - well, I went into the cinema depressed and came out beaming and happy. Even my husband warmed up to it after stating that it was a chick flick at first, we both laughed a lot. Julie Walters was fantastic and Meryl Streep lit up the screen, making me cry when she sang 'Slipping' (Because I live a whole continent away from my mum) and I thought it was her masterpiece performance when she sang 'The winner takes it all'. The film made a refreshing change from the usual evil produced by Hollywood, and should award an oscar to Meryl Streep for her ability to make an audience laugh and cry over Dark Knight which is only curious to see how Heath Ledger portrayed the Joker in Dark Knight - a film which can only depress and give you nothing. Not only is it easier to act out the part of evil than it is to act emotions of the heart - It's also easier to reward the portrayal of evil - than to reward those who portray good and real emotions. What's right isn't always popular and what's popular isn't always right. We have become a very desensitized people by becoming hungry for more action and filth over good clean fun - that makes you smile.… Expand

Silly, corny, touching, charming, not a great epic movie, but it was exactly what I needed. I thoroughly enjoyed the actors, the music and the story. I didn't have to think too hard, just had to sit and be entertained which I was!!

Blatantly syrupy and predictable. So much so that it was great fun. You'll hum Abba tunes for a week or two after.

Come on you negative critics! You obviously never enjoyed just plain FUN without analyzing it. I give a 10 to the pros for doing it They have guts. It was a delightful mix of music and mischief.

DON"T listen to the critics and just GO! Take the whole family. Critics hate it, the way they hated Titanic, My Fat Greek Wedding, and The Sixth Sense. But REAL people who don't get paid to go to the movies will absolutely love this show. I absolutely LOVED it. I could not recommend it enough. There is something for everybody in this film. And for the skeptics, I am a 37-year-old divorced man with a 13-year-old daughter. I took her to see this last weekend, and YES, she loved it too. She wants me to take her again, and for once I won't mind at all. The last time that happened was after Iron Man opened. Go figure!… Expand

Great music, bad plot, bad plot and a bad plot.

An amazing film, full of life and spirit. Ideal for anyone.

One of the best movies we've seen in a while. Great music, top acting , excellent characterizations, good comedy, good dancing. If you want to be entertained, this is where you should go.

Come on, it is ridiculous that people can criticize this film, yes the plot could be better but it was originally and still is a play on broad way. This film is a feel-good you go and see it and you cannot help but smile, even if you hate abba you cant help smiling at the songs, even if they are not sung very well, it still will make you smile. this film was not intended to win best film at the Oscars it was intended to be a fun film, fun to make and fun to watch, and that was what is was. a truly enjoyable film.… Expand

Save yourself 15 bucks. The movie is horribly cheesy, and I wish I would've seen the Dark Knight. Don't make my mistake.

I had to be talked into going by my wife. Absolutely love the music and the story!

The people who don't like this movie remind me of artists who like to tell everyone they don't have a TV. I love ABBA, I loved the movie, I laughed through the whole thing ( and loved Tanya's song). C'mon people, put down War & Peace and lighten up!

This movie is as good as this type of movie gets. it is fun, playful, upbeat, with beautiful scenes of Greece. It is great to see these actors singing and dancing, clearly having fun making the film. this is not a movie about plot, but about singing, dancing and great visuals. Shame on the critics for not rating this movie for what it is, a musical, and therefore rating it so low. I loved it.

What do ABBA's song of the same name, Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run", The Beach Boys' "Don't Worry Baby", Iron Butterfly's "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" and Frank Sinatra's "My Way" have in common? All of the above are famous enough that it would be forgivable to assume that they were all Number One hits, but in fact none of the above records even made Billboard�39;s Top 20 when released! (In fact, B. J. Thomas's now-obscure cover version of "Don't Worry Baby" actually charted higher than the original!) in ABBA's case, "Mamma Mia" became the best known #32 peaker of all time largely because it became the title song of the phenomenally popular stage musical based on the international 1970s and 80s pop group's catalog. (A musical that's set, by the way, on a Greek isle, with the title tune an Italian phrase written and sung by a Swedish act. Go figure.) The movie version (and, by association, the play) are at something of a disadvantage because by nature they lack a major component that makes most of ABBA's work so catchy, distinctive and endearing--those accents on the records are so dadgum cute. But there are plenty of compensations, chiefly Meryl Streep's joyous, uninhibited acting and singing (which should once and for all put to rest the still all-too-common misconception that Streep's performances are all technique and no soul); as the middle-aged mother of the bride whose three former lovers (and her daughter's potential fathers) show up as unexpected wedding guests, Streep bravely and proudly shows her age with no heavy makeup, surgery or Vaseline on the camera, and her rendition of "The Winner Takes It All" (the one ABBA tune that takes itself way too seriously,and is therefore their worst hit) turns it into a showstopper. She gets delightful support from Stellan Skarsgaard, Colin Firth, Julie Walters, Christine Baranski (this generation's Eve Arden) and the green-eyed heartstealer Amanda Seyfried as the bride-to-be. As for Pierce Brosnan, his attempts to belt it out are so endearingly game that let's just say that as singing Bonds go, Sean Connery in Disney's Darby O'Gill and the Little People had far more golden pipes and leave it at that. Even the occasional clunkiness that almost inevitably afflicts nearly all outdoor-set movie musicals that aren't Seven Brides for Seven Brothers or The Sound of Music (e.g. Doctor Doolittle, Man of La Mancha, Paint Your Wagon, etc.) adds to this movie's charm. It's hard not to admire Mamma Mia's nerve in wedging two dozen ABBA songs into the plot, and with less predictability than you'd expect; if you think you know what context "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do" will fit in, you're probably only sort of half right. This is the ONE summer 2008 blockbuster besides Sex and the City that everyone automatically knows in advance whether they'll stand in line for or run far and fast from, but where you stand will depend on your affection for hook-promiscuous 1970s schlock-pop (I love most of that stuff). So here's the litmus test: if you hated Ron Perlman's and Doug Jones's singalong rendition of Barry Manilow's "Can't Smile Without You" in Hellboy II: The Golden Army, then this movie will be for you the equivalent of two hours of being waterboarded, but if you ate it up, then take a chance, take a chance, take a chance-chance-chance on this!… Expand

Great fun! The critics really missed the mark on this one - it's gonna be a camp classic.

So bad that is leaves painful after-effect. From top to bottom, a very unpleasant experience.

Amazing!! Mamma Mia is the first genuinely funny and most lavishing musical I've seen yet. Mamma Mia stars Amanda Seyfried as Sophie a girl on the verge of getting married in two days, there's just one catch. She wants her father to give her away except she doesn't know who her father is, know it's a musical mystery to which of the three men she invited to the villa is her father, could it be Sam Carmichael the architect, Bill the free spirit, or Harry the quiet business man. Which one could it be? That's an answer for you to find out in this amazingly beautiful musical that boast some of the best ABBA song around and some other great music too. Mamma Mai is a treat for the whole family, it's one of those movies you can enjoy watching again and again.I very highly recommended this great film.… Expand

Perhaps my opinion is tainted because I've seen the Broadway version multiple times, but there was little to this movie that kept me interested. I found myself watching it just to see how badly it compared to the stage version. If it weren't for the fact that the movie stays fairly true to the Broadway script, this rating would be even lower.

A very fun and entertaining movie, the cast is terrific and Meryl Streep is marvelous as always. Great music, fine cinematography. Very well written.

I've always been a big fan of musicals, and I have to say that this was one of the worst musicals I have ever seen. Go back and look at the dancing, and most of the singing, and I think you'll see how laughable this is next to films like "Moulin Rouge" or "Singing in The Rain." The story was fair, but not worth the $20 bucks.

Come on critics. Relax. What wonderful fun and what a way to return to memories of times past. Is this Oscar? No but we will watch it over and over to enjoy and laugh and sing.

Thought the stage play was great, think the film is terrible. IMO the type of play did not translate well. If you want to see a funny, entertaining and great feel good musical on the screen, take a turn to Hairspray.

Great fun. Take it for what it meant to be.

This movie was very entertaining and that is what I want movies to be. It was great to leave the theater feeling good and not depressed.

An enjoyable movie that isn't life changing by any stretch of the imagination. The cast is fun, even though very few of them are cut out for musical theater. It isn't the best movie I've seen all summer, but it isn't the worst either.

Total brainless fun time! You leave the theater upbeat! Lip sync??? But they lip synced to their own voices. All musicals are lip synced because of sound recoring issues.

You have to like ABBA. You have to accept that the source material has its flaws. You have to accept the fact that the film has actors who can sing (save for Mr. Brosnan) as opposed to singers who may be able to act. The film embraces the flaws and does not run away from them. This movie is a great deal of fun and, surprisingly, a lot more dramatic than I remember the stage musical. Walters is a hoot. If you day is dreary and gray, this one will certainly brighten it up.… Expand

Streep is the difference. Is anything beyond the talents of this brilliant actress?

Fantastic fun, so involving and colourful. I loved the fact that the voices (except for the bride) are not perfect (her voice is exquisite). 007 tries so hard to sing well and it really suits the way this movie identifies so well the comedy and awkwardness of being middle aged. I never really liked ABBA but this is a blast.

Mamma Mia! is definitely a summertime fun movie. It wasn't a great story, the camera flailed about wildly, the singing was okay in spots and had Meryl not joined this cast, this would have been a really terrible experience. But thankfully she was on screen, she was great, and she held the rest of it together. But, like I said, above all it is a campy, silly, fun summertime movie. Leave it to ABBA to let us all forget our troubles and have a good time.… Expand