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Mamma Mia!

Mamma Mia!

Date: Oct 01 2008

Themes: Family, Pop Culture

Intro

1. Learn Vocabulary - Learn some new vocabulary before you start the lesson.

2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.

Usually movies get made and the soundtrack gets added afterward. Or, if the movie is a musical, the songs are written as the movie is written. But Mamma Mia! is somewhere in between. It uses preexisting songs by Swedish pop group ABBA, but the movie is written around them and they’re sung by the characters, as well as new songs by ABBA member Benny Andersson that were written specially for the movie.

Mamma Mia! was originally a theater hit in the UK and later the US, but it reached international audiences this summer as a film. It was filmed in Greece and stars Meryl Streep, but got mixed reviews. It seems like the film’s humor is an acquired taste. Beren loved it, but maybe not for the reasons she should have.

Dialog

1. Listen and Read - Listen to the audio and read the dialog at the same time.

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2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Marni

Marni

Beren

Beren

Marni:  My parents just tried to drag me to Mamma Mia!. They wanted to go see a movie with me and they were really excited about it and I declined.

Beren:  You made a terrible, terrible decision.

Marni:  What?

Beren:  Mamma Mia! is probably in at least the top three of movies I’ve seen this year.

Marni:  You’ve gotta be kidding me!

Beren:  I thought I might actually be having a stroke at one point I was laughing so hard.

Marni:  Are you serious?

Beren:  Yes.

Marni:  Because it’s actually funny, or because it’s so bad you can’t believe you’re actually watching it?

Beren:  Well, let me just start off by saying, any movie, play or Broadway movie written based on ABBA songs, you have to stretch the plot. It doesn’t really fit. They take all the best songs, most of the songs off Gold, and base a story around it of this girl who’s getting married and she doesn’t know who her father is so she invites three of her mom’s ex-lovers to this Greek island and hilarity ensues.

Marni:  And it’s really funny. You’re telling me…

Beren:  It’s very campy.

Marni:  Yes.

Beren:  And I don’t know if I was laughing at necessarily the right spots, the most appropriate times. “Money, Money, Money,” that’s one of my favorite ABBA songs, and it goes into this crazy Bollywood-style sequence on a giant yacht. Mind you they were stuck on an island this whole time. The yacht comes out of nowhere…

Marni:  That sounds terrible.

Beren:  It’s like in Meryl Streep’s imagination. It’s like she’s fantasizing about it.

Marni:  OK. So it’s a little surreal, maybe thrown in there.

Beren:  Unintentionally. I don’t think it was meant to be so surreal.

Marni:  I don’t even know how to respond to that. I’m kind of shocked that you liked it, but now intrigued…

Beren:  I’m going back!

 

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Discussion

Marni told her parents she didn’t want to see Mamma Mia! because she didn’t think it looked good, but Beren loved it. It takes her a while to convince Marni that she’s not kidding.

Beren isn’t sure if she was laughing at the movie or with it, but either way, she thought it was hilarious enough to see again!

Can you think of a movie that wasn’t supposed to be funny, but that you laugh at every time?

 

Comments

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mickee85

mickee85

Philippines

I find this movie fun, really, I love it. I like Meryl streep, pierce brosnan and Amanda. I love the honey honey by Amanda and those other two friends of Meryl were so funny lol. They cracked me up!

04:19 PM Aug 16 2010 |

minw

minw

China

i've seen this movie here in uk already,but to be honeat,i couldn't find any fun at all!

this movie ,i have to admit ,is really a happy one with pop music,really beautiful background scenary ,but nothing really  make me laugh !anyway i enjoy the time i was being watching it!

01:37 PM Dec 24 2008 |

miffoo

miffoo

Slovakia

Hi, I know ABBA music it's really good but I think that's this movie is kind boring, it's waste on time !!!!!!!!

REALLY BORING MOVIE!!!!!Cool

09:42 PM Nov 27 2008 |

miffoo

miffoo

Slovakia

I don’t see this movie, but my sister watched this and told that’s very funny….I’ll must see it

09:25 PM Nov 27 2008 |

wusiyu

China

 it seems that I haven't seen the movie before. so I don't know if it is interesting. I will see it ,,and ten i will come back to say my feelings about it .I hope I will enjoy it just as most of you babies. haha !

06:31 AM Nov 11 2008 |

Oleson

Oleson

Russian Federation

My friend and I watched this film in the cinema) and we were singing the songs from it for two days)) and we were in a very good mood

04:19 PM Nov 09 2008 |

viviandke

viviandke

China

you all make me wanna see this movie ,last week i have tried to download this movie ,but i didn't make it .

since most of you recommended this movie ,and actually it is funny ,i hve set my mind to see it !

come on ! come on!

11:58 AM Oct 06 2008 |

zeus2006

zeus2006Super Member!

Turkey

I like Abba and their musics…

04:19 PM Oct 04 2008 |

zeus2006

zeus2006Super Member!

Turkey

oppssss a chair is 160$ (203YTL), What will I do now, I promised to bring  my wife to  Mamma Mia musical in Istanbul…It is so expencive….Cry Poor me!!!

04:18 PM Oct 04 2008 |

amily_lee

amily_lee

China

wow, at first i couldnt believe it is a newly shot movie cuz' the pictures were not very sharp.

 yea, it's a little hilarious, over hilarious, can be said so, frankly speaking, i almost fell into sleep when watching it, hehe~

 

but i really love the music in this movie

01:31 PM Oct 03 2008 |

amily_lee

amily_lee

China

wow, at first i couldnt believe it is a newly shot movie cuz' the pictures were not very sharp.

 yea, it's a little hilarious, over hilarious, can be said so, frankly speaking, i almost fell into sleep when watching it, hehe~

 

but i really love the music in this movie

01:31 PM Oct 03 2008 |

jabotage

Turkey

omg.! this musical is coming 07 Oct. Istanbul but i can't go 'Cos it's so expensive.. a chair is 203 YTLCry

11:38 AM Oct 02 2008 |

winkwink

winkwink

Thailand

i watched this movie already,

i'so fun and have a lot of good song,it like the sound of music . haha!

10:43 AM Oct 02 2008 |

feresyosira

Turkey

I dont like musical feature movies. And I think this film is one of the most retarded movies ever… It sucks… But even that loco film can be a title of one of our Ebaby lessons and can teach us some practical vocabulary. Thanks for the lesson guys. Peace…

06:37 AM Oct 02 2008 |

vivi bulat

Romania

Hello,

I saw this movie and I liked it. I love ABBA songs and this movie was nice…

10:56 PM Oct 01 2008 |

tinchoss

tinchoss

Argentina

i dont like abba songs… i have to watch the film to evaluate it :) do u like the film?

04:25 PM Oct 01 2008 |

oldflame

United States

I watched the movie a few weeks ago, and it was really funny. Meryl Streep was hilarious and she CAN sing!

04:24 PM Oct 01 2008 |

Tinamaus

Tinamaus

Germany

My mom has also seen this movie and said it was really good. I thought the same as Marni fist, but now after reading  i consider watching Mama Mia.

04:03 PM Oct 01 2008 |

Totto

Totto

Sudan

 Usually, girls laugh at things that are not supposed to be funny.  I do not think I will at things that is not supposed to funny.

 I can not remember watching a boring movie at or with which i laughed.  It is silly in a way to be laughing at or with something terrible and boring.

 

03:05 PM Oct 01 2008 |

gonzelius

gonzelius

Argentina

When the movie debuted in the US, it accumulated pretty bad reviews. I think it is good for what it is, just a vehicle for the catchy songs from ABBA to shine. Plus, Meryl Streep stars the movie. As always, she steals every scene she is in. I especially liked her rendition of "The Winner Takes It All." Casting director did a really good job maybe with the only exception of Colin Firth, a wonderful actor, no doubt, who didn't seem at ease with his part in this movie. A really pleasant surprise is Amanda Seyfried who is young, beautiful, sweet and charming, playing the starry-eyed bride-to-be.

01:20 PM Oct 01 2008 |

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