Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (2018)

Director:

Ol Parker

Starring:

Lily James

Amanda Seyfried

Plot:

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.

Review:

I’ve been waiting to rent this for what feels like forever. I would have loved to have seen it in theaters, but oh well. I think all of that excitement ended up working against me. I was hoping for a light hearted, music filled, fun story and that’s only kind of what I got.

Donna, Meryl Streep, is dead and her daughter Sophie, Amanda Seyfried, has built the hotel into what Donna had always planned. The movie was a prequel and sequel, and while I normally hate prequels that part was what I enjoyed the most. Young Donna, Lily James was fun to watch, she was sweet and beautiful and completely optimistic. Her daughter, on the other hand, was in mourning and it was a harsh tonal shift for me. I think I might have enjoyed it more if it was a prequel and that’s a bit crazy to me.

We got to see everyone from the original, but not much has really changed there. In fact none of the side characters seem to have grown in any way since the 70s.

All in all I was a bit disappointed by Mamma Mia Here We Go Again, it lacked a lot of what I loved about the original. I am still kind of hoping for a third, but maybe it can be something much more positive and happy.

3/5