It’s one year until the world premiere of "Mamma Mia! – The Movie“ in the U.S. in mid July 2008. So what can we expect?
ABBAMAILer and Guest Columnist, Erik Menkens from Germany says it's all gonna be bigger than anything we've ever seen... The promotion for the separate productions of Mamma Mia! around the world has been only regional, sometimes national. “Mamma Mia! The Movie“ on the other hand with its A-list cast will be H-U-G-E, more promotion than ever before for something ABBA related - and all this will be happening around the world at the same time or within only a few months. If you're the kind of fan that gets easily ABBA'ed out, for example after another premiere of the musical or after the ABBA Fan Club Day in Roosendaal, next year, 2008, will be a very hard you: For weeks and months you will see commercials, posters and ads for the movie, ABBA will be played on the radio more often than in the last 25 years. And when you think it's all over, it's time for the Oscars (and I hope that the movie is nominated!) And then it's time for the DVD release and you think it's f***ing Groundhog Day *again*! And you want to smash the radio into pieces as it wakes you up with "Dancing Queen" interrupted by some obnoxious morning show radio host announcing a competition where you can win a DVD Limited Edition if you call in and sing an ABBA song live on the radio. Yes, it all sounds a bit scary and way over the top, but we'll have a hell of a time! The rise of "Mamma Mia!“... ...happened nearly unnoticed by myself. I had just joined the ABBAMAIL mailing list in late 1998 when I read about “the ABBA musical“ that was going to be staged in London. As far as I remember no one with a sense of reality – which includes me - thought that it would become such a big success over several years with numerous productions in different languages arto me anyway, so I didn’t even consider travelling to London. I only read about it in eyewitness reports from ABBAMAILers on the list. Since that fateful night of the UK premiere in April 1999, the musical has become a phenomenon and is probably one of the five reasons for ABBA’s unbroken success and popularity nowadays (You’re asking what the four other reasons are? Duuuh!). By the time “Mamma Mia!“ premiered in Hamburg in 2002, two years later in Stuttgart and in Essen this year (which makes three productions running in Germany simultaneously!), I was much more interested in the musical. I recorded as many TV performances of the cast as possible and even joined a Mamma Mia! fan club to get the latest info. I have learned a lot about musicals in general, the musical scene in Germany, its stars and its fans. I let the membership expire after one year though, as the fan club members were focussed on the show, the stars and themselves and not on the music, let alone ABBA. I like the show because of the music and its spirit, but I am not a fan. “Mamma Mia!“ to become a Hollywood blockbuster... …was the news that broke last year in spring, and none other than Tom Hanks (and his company) had bought the rights to bring "Mamma Mia!" to the big screen. And it was all going to happen in the next two years. Earlier than expected! The musical is still playing in several countries and new productions were planned for Russia, China and France. Releasing the movie is a risk as it might cannibalize ticket sales for the musical. On the other hand it will bring even more promotion for the show and might lure people into the cinemas that live too far away from those cities where ithe musical itself is playing and/or never wanted to go because they thought it was crap. The stars of the movie... ...were revealed later last year. I guess I am not the only one who could imagine Madonna taking the role of Donna, maybe accompanied by Cher and Bette Midler, together with Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Justin Timberlake, some guys from the Backstreet Boys or other interchangeable boy groups... The crème de la crème of the pop world who certainly could speak a line or two into the camera without embarrassing themselves between the songs. What a surprise to learn that the cast of the movie will consist of real renowned actors who also - as a bonus - are known to have a good singing voice: Meryl Streep and Pierce Brosnan. But – aren’t they a little to old for the roles? Donna is in her very early 40s like her friends, her daughter Sophie is 20 and still childish enough to invite her three possible dads to her wedding and to freak out when they actually arrive. Meryl is 58, but looks a bit younger admittedly. Can we believe she is 40 in the movie? Will it matter in the movie? I don’t know. Probably not. After all, it’s a musical so the music should play the most important role, and I hope that this will not change for the movie. Especially as us fans will be excited to see how Meryl performs a song like "The Winner Takes It All“. I was a little surprised that they did not cast better known stars for the roles of Sophie, Sky and so on, which means, the young people. Having some real young stars in the movie would attract more young people into the movie theatres. The story... ...might need to be changed to make Meryl and Pierce more credible in their roles – and to make the complete musical more realistic and believable. Let’s be honest, no matter how cleverly the songs were woven into the story, the story itself is thinner than the aluminium layer on a CD and in some parts is not very logical. It didn’t hurt the success of the musical though, so it might not hurt the success of the movie either. A musical on the stage in front of your eyes creates a different atmosphere than watching a movie on a screen in a cinema though, and the people have different expectations. Okay, I agree, the script has to be improved to avoid a big flop. Tom Hanks, Meryl and Pierce hopefully recognize a hit when they see a script. First rumours started to appear about the opening scene of the movie. Supposedly it will start with images of Istanbul (yes, that’s Turkey, not Greece) to the tunes of "Summer Night City“ and then we will get to see Meryl emerging from the Mediterranean waters like Halle Berry in the James Bond movie "Die Another Day“. It could be hilarious or embarrassing, depending on the intention of the author. Next scene: Sophie kicks Sky out of her bed, as it brings bad luck if the groom sees the bride before the wedding. As it only brings bad luck on the actual day of the wedding, either the story was changed or these rumours are incorrect. In the musical, the first half of the story takes place on the day before the wedding. Changes are necessary and are expected, but I doubt that scenes like the arrival of Donna’s friends and the three possible dads, and above all the bachelorette party were cut or moved to the next day, the day of the wedding. That does not make sense. We will see. And we will hear. The music... ...is the real star of the musical. We all agree on that, don’t we? It was reported that "Knowing Me Knowing You“, "I Have A Dream“, "Thank You For The Music“ and "Under Attack“ were cut. It seems that "When All Is Said And Done“ is introduced as a new track. Based on the content and the context of the story, it could actually replace "Knowing Me Knowing You“ (sung by Pierce, if that part of the story remains unchanged), but the reason is not clear. It’s a great song, one of my favourites, as is “Knowing Me Knowing You”, so I am undecided here. "I Have A Dream“ and "Thank You For The Music“ are my least favourite songs among the well-known tracks, but they actually fit into the story as we know it. So I was surprised to hear these signature songs were dropped. And I was shocked to hear that "Under Attack“ will not be in the movie. When I first saw the musical, I loved the nightmare scene that is so perfectly underlined by "Under Attack“, and when I heard about the movie, I was sure that this scene would be great on the big screen. It’s the only scene where some cool special effects could be used in the movie. Now is there any other ABBA song that could be used for a nightmarish scene? Oh yes, there is: "The Visitors“! Wouldn’t it be great to have this masterpiece (even if re-recorded by the cast) in the movie? It could fit with only a little twisting and tweaking of the story line. I guess the story can be tailored around every ABBA song. I assume there will be a very romantic or even steamy love scene. There has to be, it’s a Hollywood movie! But not necessarily between Meryl and Pierce ... Which song would fit best? "Kisses Of Fire“, which was planned to be included in the musical anyway long before its premiere? I would love to hear that as a duet! The songs have already been recorded in Stockholm with Benny, so hopefully soon we get to hear some more details. And hopefully the songs sound better than on the awful London cast recording. Will there be a new song? …we are wondering. Do Björn and Benny have the ambition to win an Oscar for the best original song? The Academy Awards rules state that it has to be a song especially written for the movie. So songs that we already know parts of, for example "Just Like That“, would not be eligible for an Oscar. Björn and Benny haven’t written an ABBA-esque song in years, only songs that were mostly recorded by Benny Andersons Orkester. Can our two heroes still write a pop song in an ABBA style? I am sure everybody involved in this project would like to put a sticker on the movie poster and DVD saying "Nominated for X Oscars for Best Music/ Best Original Song etc.“, more preferably "Winner of X Oscars incl. for Best Original Song“. It’s good for the business – and for their egos. A single release from the soundtrack album… …is a definite must! They could go with the obvious choice and release Meryl’s “The Winner Takes It All” as a single to promote the movie and the soundtrack. Hmm. Or – depending on the weight Pierce’ role has in the movie - they could release a duet. Either the aforementioned “Kisses Of Fire”, which would be a very bold choice as it isn’t a well-known ABBA song (but nevertheless a great song). Or they release “S.O.S.”, which is the only duet with Donna and Sam in the musical (ignoring “I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do”). It’s a great song, well known but not as over-exposed and uber played as “The Winner Takes It All” and “Dancing Queen”, and would definitely work. I could even imagine a video clip for MTV and other music channels: Meryl and Pierce on the beach of their Greek island, singing their lungs out into the stunning sunset, writing “S.O.S.” with sea shells into the sand. How simple and inexpensive, yet camp and cult that could be! Okay, let’s agree on this: Meryl and Pierce do “S.O.S.”, the two quite unknown actors playing Sophie and Sky do the hot’n’steamy “Kisses Of Fire” with an appropriate video clip. If that would be played on the music channels, it will attract millions of young girls and their boyfriends into the movie theatres. The promotional circus will break loose… …in June 2008, at least in the U.S., the biggest markets for movies will follow until the movie reaches Australia in early December (provided the scheduled release dates don’t change). As it will be a major release in that year, gazillions of Dollars, Pounds, Euros and Yens will be spent on all kinds of promotion. Think the level of Star Wars, Spiderman, Superman and so on. I am not a movie freak so I never really pay attention to how many commercials for big movies are shown on TV, how often the stars of a movie appear on TV or in what shows and what other cross-promotion with airlines, soft drink producers, fast food chains, rental car companies takes place. I am sure though, “Mamma Mia! The Movie“ will be massive and omnipresent, as it appeals to such a broad audience. We will not be able to escape. Commercials, reports, interviews, appearances of the cast on TV and so on. And maybe there will be a behind-the-scenes special on TV for the premiere. Usually I don’t watch these in order not to spoil the fun, but this time I would make an exception. It will be hard to keeping track of what is on TV about the movie, so make sure all your colleagues and friends know you’re an ABBA fan and that there is a movie coming! Meryl and Björn will do most of the promotion. Depending on Pierce’ part in the movie, they will drag him along through an endless string of TV shows and interviews for half a year. The inevitable press junkets are part of the contracts for major movies thesedays. Whenever the casts of the stage musical were on TV, it was mostly Donna & The Dynamos, hardly ever (at least in Germany) Donna and Sam. The interesting question: Will Meryl and Pierce sing live on TV? Every TV show host would urge Meryl and Pierce to prove they can sing without studio trickery. Do they want to do that? Are they able to do that? Is it their ambition to be acknowledged as actors and singers? Personally, I can't wait for all this to start. It will be sooo exciting! Being there and watching ABBA history happen! And the award goes to: Meryl Streep! She has heard those word two times already at the Oscars and numerous times at other award shows. She got them for her acting of course, she is one of the best actresses in the world. Now how ambitious is she? Is it her aim to be awarded a gold or platinum disc for sales of the movie soundtrack? Would she like to sing a new Björn & Benny song during the Academy Awards show in 2009 and win the Oscar for the best original song for Björn and Benny? Did she make sure all this is covered in her contract? And when you think it’s over… …there will be an encore once the DVD is released. More promotion, commercials, competitions. That will be a very expensive time for must-have-all collectors. Some bigger markets like Germany will probably have dubbed versions of the movie that will be released on DVD along with the original sound. Maybe there will also be different soundtracks of the movie besides the English original. And with a little luck there will be a Limited Edition DVD with behind-the-scenes material from the film shooting and the recording of the soundtrack, outtakes, trailers, interviews, commentaries by Benny and Björn, maybe more. Is there anything purely ABBA in for us? You bet there will be! Universal will most certainly release another compilation with all the tracks that are in the movie, after "GOLD“, "MORE GOLD“, "The Definitive Collection“, "Number Ones“ and other national releases and budget compilations. Universal will not miss a chance to make money with the compilation and the original albums as well as the movie soundtrack. No matter if they write a new song or not (or dust off an old song claiming it to be new), Björn and Benny will definitely be pushed to allow some unknown or partly known track to be used in the movie and put on the new ABBA compilation to make it more special than any of the previous compilations. I am sure they are always harassed to do that, but this time they might give in. For all the ABBA purists and “Mamma Mia!” haters around here: When the ABBA mania reaches its peak, TV stations all over the world finally might dig out some gems from their archives and show them along with the already known ABBA specials and documentaries. If they don’t do it then, they won’t ever. And the mother of all questions: Will Agnetha, Björn, Benny and Frida be in the movie? Well, why not? They did it for “The Last Video” in 2004, so why not do the obvious? A little cameo. Make them sit somewhere in the background of Donna’s tavern - digitally reunited or pathetically separate. Literally everybody will move heaven and hell to make this happen! Hear my words: It will be bigger than anything ABBA related before. Be prepared! Wherever the German premiere will be, I will be there to watch who is walking down the red carpet besides Björn, Meryl and Pierce (I am sure they will be there) - before I walk in to take my seat myself and take an unforgettable trip to some Greek island. IMDB.com has information about the the movie and the stars: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0795421/
Erik Menkens
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