Review of Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (2018) by Mrmoviebuff — 16 Sep 2018

'Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again' reminds us many times why the first movie didn't work. Despite the fact that the songs (from ABBA) are better incorporated to the film's story, ironically, the best parts of the film is where the character's don't sing.

We see that Sophie (a plucky Amanda Seyfried) is trying to open up a hotel in honor of her mother's memory. Slight spoiler alert (even though it is very early in the film), but yes, Donna (Meryl Streep) has passed away.

We're never given an explanation as to how she died, just that, she is no longer with our main characters, and that's a way to kick-start the movie's plot. We do get constant flashbacks to Donna's younger days (where she is played by a likeable Lily James), and how she traveled across different islands and met many handsome men who she spends some romantic times with.

The singing done by James, as well as her on-screen male love interests, is done well, and as I said above, the songs are better incorporated to the film's story... but I found myself more invested when they would just sit an talk.

I know that might be a bore for some, but I felt that the characters were really progressing just through dialogue alone. The movie constantly cuts back and forth between past and present, developing Donna's character even more, and how she met her three exes.

Unfortunately, this made me feel that the overall storytelling of the film was very uneven. Time and time again, we're being forced to get emotionally invested in these two different timelines, when they're cutting back and forth to different situations, so there is no time to care.

I found myself getting utterly frustrated with the bland archetype character that Andy Garcia was playing. What's the purpose of his role? Just to be utterly handsome and flirt with Donna's two best friends, that's it.

All in all, this maybe a "feel-good" film, but I found myself feeling the exact opposite. A waste of emotional investment despite some strong work from a talented cast.