Still image from ‘Mamma Mia’ (2008), directed by Phyllida Lloyd, courtesy of Universal Pictures. All Rights Reserved.
When I thought about what story I have had the most experiences with and because of, I immediately knew that I wanted to do Mamma Mia. Although I have probably seen this movie more than any other movie in my life, I truly cannot remember when I first watched it. It came out in 2008 when I was 5 years old. It probably wasn’t long before the film was introduced to me, most likely by my mom and Aunt Katie. When I think about Mamma Mia, I think about girlhood. I remember countless evenings sitting in my aunt’s living room with Chinese takeout, bonded by the storyline and the songs.
My Experience
Though the main character of Mamma Mia, Sophie Sheridan, and I live very different lives, I experienced identification through my viewings of the film. Since revising my original draft, I now realize that I also identify with Donna, Sophie’s mother. When looking through the experience glossary on our website, I was unsure if identification was the right experience to label what I was feeling because of the word “conflict.” I realize now that conflict in a story does not always mean something like an argument, rather it can simply be a challenge or struggle.
My affection for the film has consistently stood the test of time, yet how closely I identify with Sophie has only increased. I see Mamma Mia as really a coming-of-age story. I have related to Sophie most strongly over the past few years of my life, which have involved graduating from high school, traveling internationally on a gap year, and living by myself in an out-of-state college town. I particularly identify with Sophie in the scene where she is getting ready for her wedding, with her mother Donna, set to cast’s cover of the song “Slipping Through My Fingers,” by ABBA. It is such a beautiful, bittersweet, nostalgic moment that signals that neither of their lives will ever truly be the same again, for better or worse.
Watching Sophie’s journey of attempting to find her father, and, inadvertently, finding herself also brought me a sense of courage and self-trust through my identification with her. I admired her embracement of life’s uncertainties and her determination to seek answers. Even though our challenges were different, the way that she embraced the process of trying to find the missing piece to her life made me feel as though I could conquer the world and that it would be okay no matter how life ended up. I realized I felt courage and self-trust from Donna’s adaptability to her situation as well. In the prequel, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, we see deeper into how Donna dropped everything to raise Sophie. They both are resilient women and have an astonishing ability to adapt that I proudly relate to. I also felt empowered by the choice that Sophie and Sky, her fiancé, ultimately made to not get married yet. Instead, they decided to take some time to travel and enjoy their engagement. It made me feel like even if the way I plan things does not work out, there may be better things in store.
Features of the Film
A huge feature of the film that shaped my experiences with it was the soundtrack. It is a musical of ABBA songs, all covered by the cast (though some actors are better singers than others). I know that a lot of people don’t like musicals, but I do and this is my favorite. I listen to songs from the soundtrack regularly and know every word. It seems to me like there is a song from the soundtrack for every mood and feeling. I would love to one day look more into how the ABBA songs were turned into a story and eventually a musical, then a film. Perhaps that is why I find every song so rich in meaning because they all were separate pieces before being strung together into a story. Not only do I love the vocals and instrumentals, but the lyrics mean a lot to me. The lyrics from the song, “Slipping Through My Fingers,” which plays in the wedding preparation scene, mentioned earlier, actually resonate with me more than the actual visuals. Particularly the opening verse,
Schoolbag in hand, she leaves home in the early morning
Waving goodbye with an absent-minded smile
I watch her go with a surge of that well-known sadness
And I have to sit down for a while.
Clip from ‘Mamma Mia’ (2008), directed by Phyllida Lloyd, courtesy of Universal Pictures. All Rights Reserved.
The imagery of the schoolbag makes me think about being a kid again and how the transition into my young adulthood over the past few years must have felt for my mother.
The next verse also sticks with me,
Sleep in our eyes, her and me at the breakfast table
Barely awake, I let precious time go by
Then when she’s gone, there’s that odd melancholy feeling
And a sense of guilt I can’t deny
It emphasizes how we tend to take the mundane moments for granted when they are actually the moments we miss when looking back. Although it seems a bit sad in an isolated context, I think this lends to my experiences of self-trust and courage because Donna is using this moment to look back on a period in her life that she didn’t have much time to savor. She was busy being a single mother and making ends meet. Even though a part of her feels guilty, she ultimately trusted herself to raise such a wonderful daughter that makes that period of life worth missing.
Analyzing Narrative Technologies
This aspect of the assignment is interesting to me because I am used to analyzing narrative technologies in stories assigned to me, but I have never thought about it when it comes to my favorites. The first narrative technology that stood out to me from our list was an empathy generator, which allows the audience to experience remorse with a character. I think that the creators of the story use songs as emotional catalysts, with another poignant moment to the tune of “The Winner Takes It All.” The song is sung by Donna and is a vulnerable expression of regrets of past choices and lost love. Not only does this generate empathy for the viewer, but it is also an apology from Donna to Sam for any harm caused on her end. She recognizes that no one is perfect in a relationship and owns up to her faults.
Works Cited
“ABBA – Slipping Through My Fingers Lyrics | GENIUS Lyrics.” GENIUS, genius.com/Abba-slipping-through-my-fingers-lyrics. Accessed 2 Feb. 2025.
Experiences Glossary – Story & The Brain. https://unewhavendh.org/story-and-the-brain/experiences-glossary/. Accessed 2 Feb. 2025.
“Mamma Mia! (2008) – Slipping Through My Fingers Scene (8/10) | Movieclips” Youtube, uploaded by Movieclips, July 13, 2018, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qe2m1wxb5_w
