Mamma Mia! (2008) - thank you for the music, indeed

directed by Phyllinda Lloyd / starring Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Stellan Skarsgård, Amanda Seyfried

Today wasn't my day. I sat in front of a blank page with a blank mind, and after some desperate pondering (that went nowhere) I closed the document, left the computer, picked a DVD from my shelf and put Mamma Mia! on. Because sometimes there are days, when that's all you can do - forget about deadlines and enjoy one and a half hours of pure joy.

In the movie version of a hugely popular stage musical hit, Sophie invites three men to her wedding, wishing to find her real father. She bases her hopes to her mum's, named Donna, old diary entries. Figuring out which one of the three candidates shares her DNA turns out to be quite a ride... So Mamma Mia, here we go again.

It's really quite amazing how all those ABBA songs seem to fit so well in the story, without hardly any changes in the lyrics. Donna is having Money Money Money problems. Donna best friends Rosie and Tanya want Donna to let out her inner Dancing Queen again. The father candidates Sam, Bill and Harry reminisce Our Last Summer, when they all met Donna. Sophie's soon-to-be-husband Sky urges Sophie to Lay All Your Love On Me. Sophie wants to know What's The Name Of The Game. Pierce Brosnan gets a duet and it's only approapriate that the song is called SOS. Donna is afraid that time is Slipping Through My Fingers. And When All I Said And Done we can only Thank You For The Music.

ABBA music is just awesome. For the hundredth time I have to humbly swallow my pride and admit that the damn Swedes did it once again. What ever song they are merciful enough to play on Saturday nights, you can bet I'm on the dance floor within that second and once again happily making a fool out of myself. I just can't resist those tunes.

 Meryl Streep is a wonder woman and I adore her and I want to be her! In Mamma Mia! she is again phenomenal, bubbling with great energy and presence. She might be in her 60s, but damn girl, senility isn't something you have to worry about just yet. And if anything else, her Winner Takes It All performance proves that she can sing the crap out of everyone if she wants to!

The actors all do their own singing, obviously. They might not all be qualified for stage (which gives me a good excuse to mention the stage musical. Which was so much fun. There's nothing like that final Waterloo singalong...), but I appreciate them for sticking their necks out and not taking themselves too seriously. Of course there's Amanda Seyfried (with that gorgeous hair I have to mention every time I talk about her), who sings just beautifully, but then on the other hand there's my dear Mr Firth and most of all Mr Bond, James Bond. Seriously, when Prosnan sings, even he himself looks like he's in pain. Oh well. I'm not the one to judge, really, haha. Of the rest of the cast, I want to mention the jättehärligt Stellan Skarsgård, the super hot Dominic Cooper with that super hot accent and Julie Walters, whom I love even when she's overacting.

The movie is silly, alright. There's a lot of screaming and jumping up and down and running around almost to the extent of being annoying. And yet it's just wonderful. It's an exlploding package of joy, fun, music and dance. The exlamation point is in the title for a reason! Mamma Mia! is a stimulant that never fails you. I've watched the movie on numerous rainy days - both literally and figuratively rainy - and every times it manages to light up the skies, bring a smile to my face and make my feet restless.

There's no guilt in this pleasure.

"I grew up."

"Well then grow back down again!"

Billy Elliot (2000) - you dance, I weep, deal?

directed by Stephen Dauldry / starring Jamie Bell, Julie Walters, Gary Lewis

Oh boy... Billy Elliot is definitely one of my favourite films - not that that's saying a lot, because I keep claiming that about every other movie I mention. But as I watched this yesterday I thought I maybe should promote it to my Ultimate Favourite Movies. (Though if I'm not careful that category begins to suffer from inflation, too.)

Billy Elliot is set in Northern England, in the 1980s, during the Miner's Strike. Billy is an 11-year-old boy, whose family is tense and scattered not only by the strike, but also by a recent loss of one its members, the mother. In these hard time Billy is granted 50 pence each week to go to boxing, like his father and grandfather did. One day he wanders to a ballet class, held in the same gym, and before he knows it, he's in there with the girls doing pliés. The teacher, Mrs. Wilkinson immidiately spots the boys potential and keeps encouraging him to practise, despite the sternly negative opinion of his father.

Billy is an awesome little boy. Since his mother died, he's been forced to grow up fast, and he's a bit lost with everything, angry and confused. In dancing he finds a way of expressing himself, his feelings and frustrations.  Billy is played by Jamie Bell, the lovely, lovely Jamie Bell, to whom I sold my heart when I first saw the film, and still haven't demanded a refund. Once in a while he gives that warm, mischevious smile and oh boy, I feel I want to be eleven too so that I can have a crush on him. I hope Jamie keeps on acting and getting good roles - King Kong and Flags of Our Fathers were good reminders of why he's so capable of steeling people's hearts. (I don't know if he's still dancing, but if he is, I'd pay my rest of the year's Study Grants to see him do that again.)

Julie Walters is also a great actress, I like her a lot and she's perfect as the strict, outspoken Mrs. Wilkinson, who seldom has time or energy to sentimentalities. I like the relationship she forms with Billy, how they yell at each other and act all indifferent, but still they share a mutual respect and honesty. Their first private training session, with the letter ("She must have been a very special persion, your mother." "No. She was just me mum.") and I Love to Boogie, is one of my favourite bits in the films.

Michael, Billy's best friend, is a great supporting character, played by a boy who is so pretty that most girls would be jealous. And that was a compliment! I like how he asks if Billy gets to wear a tutu and Billy's face when Michael says he thinks Billy would look great in one.

Billy Elliot is one of those movies that make me regret I never took up dancing. Not that I'd have the talent, but it would be awesome. Oh well, I guess I have to settle on embarrassing myself on the dance floor on Saturday nights, doing stupid dance moves to Lady Gaga's Bad Romance... Haha. That's not that bad, actually. Anyway. Jamie Bell is a great dancer - he doesn't seem too educated, but a diamond in the rough, just like Billy. It's more about expressing oneself than a flawless technique.

A few (spoiler-free) words about the last scene... It gets me everytime. Meaning goosebumbs and a raising pulse. Maybe a few tears. I'm not sure why. It's just constructed very well, creating the mood of anticipation and finally... awe. I'm talking about that last shot. Brilliant, just brilliant...

As I was outlining this post, this is were it said 'praise'. So here you go... Billy Elliot is a very good film. Funny, touching, captivating, inspiring... I like the simple, down-to-earth way the movie has been shot:

no melodramatic music, no fancy tricks with the editing or the photography... None of that would've fitted in the world of Billy - the rough, plain environment, the harsh Northern England accents - where any kind of snobbiness is out of the question. The only time the film gets dramatic is in the final scene, and duh, that's the Swan Lake, it's supposed to be dramatic. By the way, I want to go see Swan Lake! I would probably be totally bored most of the time, because I'm just not that cultured, but that one piece of music is so very powerful and grand, I bet it'd be an unforgettable experience.

Speaking of which... I have to give a few more words of praise to the Billy Elliot musical I saw in London some years ago (was it last year...? Must have been, yeah. Gee, time runs fast). It was... amazing. I also saw Chicago and Mamma Mia! on stage, and they were great too, but Billy Elliot is the only one I'd wish to see again. I believe it'll keep running for many years to come, so maybe my wish comes true one day. I watched some of the videos on the page I linked above, and the will is now even greater. Gotta believe the goosebumbs. Gosh...

"Miss, you don't fancy me, do you?"

"No, Billy. Funnily enough, I don't. Now piss off."

"Piss off yourself."