Mamma Mia! (2008)

 

Mamma Mia! - 2008

Coming up next we have 2008's hit movie musical "Mamma Mia!", the story of a girl who is trying to find out who her father is by inviting three possibilities to her wedding.  Her mother is in for a surprise as she doesn't know the three could-be dads are invited.  Mamma Mia!

The film's cast includes Meryl Streep, Amanda Seyfried, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Stellan Skarsgaard, Dominic Cooper, Christine Baranski, Julie Walters, and Ashley Lilley.

Sophie is getting married.  She wants her father to be there.  The trouble is: she doesn't know who he is.  More trouble abounds: there are three possibilities.  So, without her mother's knowledge, she mails each of the men an invitation.

The first possibility is Bill, a Swedish adventurer/explorer with many books to his credit.

Also in the running is Sam, an American architect, who has never gotten over his love for Sophie's mother, Donna.

And then there's Harry, a British businessman who has only ever loved one woman: Donna.  So, with their invitations in hand, all three men head to a remote island in Greece (where Donna and Sophie live) to attend the wedding.

Donna is busy with wedding preparations, and she is thrilled to be supported by her best friends, Tanya and Rosie.  In previous years, the trio formed a singing group called Donna and the Dynamos.

Donna runs a little inn on the island, and she is constantly beset by things going wrong.  She dreams of "Money, Money, Money".

And when Donna finds out that her three past boyfriends are on the island, "Mamma Mia!"

Of course, their unexpected arrival makes Donna a bit nervous, as she has some unresolved feelings for a least one of them.

Donna takes time to hang out with her girlfriends, decompress, and just be the "Dancing Queen".

With all of this going on, Sophie spends time with Sky to make sure their wedding plans aren't being derailed.  The two duet with "Lay All Your Love On Me".

The night before the wedding, Donna, Tanya, and Rosie bring back Donna and the Dynamos and present "Super Trouper" to Sophie as a wedding gift.

The day of the wedding dawns.  However, Sophie isn't the bride.  It's Donna.  I'll let you watch the movie to find out which of the three gents she gets married to.

Cast rundown:

   Meryl Streep..................................Donna Sheridan

   Amanda Seyfried............................Sophie Sheridan

   Pierce Brosnan...............................Sam Carmichael

   Colin Firth......................................Harry Bright

   Stellan Skarsgaard..........................Bill Anderson

   Dominic Cooper...............................Sky

   Christine Baranski...........................Tanya

   Julie Walters...................................Rosie Mulligan

   Ashley Lilley....................................Ali

   Juan Pablo Di Pace...........................Petros

And that's it for Mamma Mia!.  There are so many more great songs that were in the film that I didn't include here.  Most of the outdoor scenes were filmed on the Greek islands of Skopelos.  However, Donna's inn was built on a soundstage in London, and most of the film was shot there.  This movie became one of the highest grossing films of 2008, and spawned a sequel, "Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again", in 2018.

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Letters To Juliet (2010)

 

Letters To Juliet - 2010

Coming up next is 2010's "Letters To Juliet", a film that sees a woman return to Italy after a letter she wrote fifty years beforehand is answered.  She sets out on a journey with her grandson and an aspiring journalist to find the man she left behind all those years ago.

The film's cast includes Amanda Seyfried, Vanessa Redgrave, Christopher Egan, Gael Garcia Bernal, Franco Nero, Ashley Lilley, Oliver Platt, and Marcia DeBonis.

In the city of Verona, Italy, engaged couple Sophie and Victor are on a sort of pre-honeymoon.  In reality, Victor is there for business reasons, and Sophie is just sort of tagging along.  Victor goes off by himself a lot, leaving Sophie to explore the city on her own.

One day, Sophie goes to Juliet's house, where she sees women writing notes and sticking them on the wall.  These are all notes asking Juliet's advice on love.

Sophie notices that the letters are collected at the end of the day.  She follows the collector and finds the "Secretaries of Juliet" who reply to each letter.  Sophie makes friends with them and asks to join their ranks.

While collecting the letters one day, Sophie comes across one that has remained hidden for fifty years.  Intrigued, Sophie reads it and decides to take a chance and reply to its sender, who lives in England.

Astoundingly, the letter reaches the woman it was meant for.  Her name is Claire, and she's come to Verona with her grandson Charlie to find a man she fell in love with but left behind in Italy fifty years ago.  His name was Lorenzo Bartolini.

Sophie and Claire make a special connection, and Sophie asks if she can accompany them on their search.  She's an aspiring writer and wants to write about the journey so she can submit it as her first story.  Claire is more than happy to have Sophie join them, but Charlie is a bit incredulous.

And so they set out through the Italian countryside searching for every Lorenzo Bartolini they can find.  The Lorenzos come in a dizzying array: from wealthy country gentlemen to those of more humble origins.  None are the man that Claire is searching for.

To complicate matters, Sophie begins to have feelings for Claire's grandson, Charlie.  Charlie, who was initially very prickly in regards to Sophie, reciprocates them.

Eventually, Claire gets discouraged with the search and calls it off.  While driving down the road, Claire notices the name of their favorite wine and they decide to pull into the vineyard for a goodbye toast.

Little does she know that this vineyard is owned by the very Lorenzo Bartolini whom she is looking for.  Lorenzo and Claire seem to pick up right where they left off.

Sophie heads back home.  Her story is a hit and her editor agrees to publish it.  However, things on a personal level aren't going great.  She decides to break up with her fiancé over the way he puts his business first and also because she still has feelings for Charlie.

She goes back to Italy for Claire and Lorenzo's wedding, and she's also a bit nervous about seeing Charlie again.  The wedding goes off without a hitch, and at the reception, Claire reads to everybody the letter which Sophie wrote in reply to the one she had written to Juliet.

A happy ending is had by all when Sophie and Charlie finally get together with Lorenzo and Claire looking on.

Cast rundown:

   Amanda Seyfried............................Sophie Hall

   Vanessa Redgrave..........................Claire Smith-Wyman

   Christopher Egan............................Charlie Wyman

   Gael Garcia Bernal..........................Victor

   Franco Nero...................................Lorenzo Bartolini

   Ashley Lilley...................................Patricia

   Oliver Platt....................................Bobby

   Marcia DeBonis..............................Lorraine

And that's it for Letters To Juliet.  The "Secretaries of Juliet" are actually real.  They are known as the Juliet Club, and they reply to the letters left for Juliet.  They also organize events in honor of Romeo and Juliet.  Lorenzo and Claire are played by real life husband and wife Franco Nero and Vanessa Redgrave.  The two previously starred together in 1967's "Camelot" as Guinevere and Lancelot.

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