Our favorite dancing queens are back in action, but who could ever forget the reasons we fell in love with Mamma Mia in the first place?
The long-awaited sequel to 2008’s Mamma Mia finally premiered in theaters this past weekend. But before we throw on our favorite Donna and the Dynamo’s inspired bell bottoms and matching glittery flutter sleeve top, let’s take a look back at the most memorable moments from the original movie.
Money Money Money
One of the first musical numbers in Mamma Mia has the ever hardworking Donna (Meryl Streep) and her best friends Tanya (Christine Baranski) and Rosie (Julie Waters) imagining what life must be like in a rich man’s world. They’re dressed in dramatic outfits billowing in the wind of the giant yacht they’re on, and at one point they are wearing matching sailor hats while singing about their money woes. Iconic and relatable.
Meeting Sophie’s Potential Dads
When all three of Sophie’s (Amanda Seyfried) potential dads show up to her wedding a day early, Sophie rushes to hide them from her mom by sneaking them up into an old goat house. Of course, this works for approximately 10 minutes before Donna discovers them. But most importantly, we get a glimpse of young versions of a punk rock Harry (Colin Firth), hippie Sam (Pierce Brosnan) and hippie Bill (Stellan Skarsgård). Plus when Donna spots them, she breaks into the movie’s title song, “Mamma Mia.”
Dynamo Best Friends
When Donna is upset at finding three of her former suitors in her goat house, she fears it will ruin her daughter’s wedding day and locks herself in a bathroom. However her always loyal, dynamo best friends rush to her aid by singing to her through the bathroom door. It’s sweet and then hilarious as the camera pans away and you see Tanya is standing on Rosie’s back.
Dancing Queens
As possibly the most well-known ABBA song, “Dancing Queen” needed a part in the movie that was equally iconic. To accomplish that, literally, every lady in the movie got into formation for a giant dance sequence that spanned the entire island. Having the time of their lives seems like an understatement.
The Bachelorette Party
Describing the bachelorette party scene in this movie, it sounds like a Stefon sketch from Saturday Night Live because it has everything — a Donna and the Dynamos reunion, all of Sophie’s potential dads realizing they’re her potential dad, guys swinging in from rooftops with masks on, giant dance circles, and of course the version of “Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)” that sample’s Madonna’s “Hung Up.” It’s arguably the best scene in the movie, and best bachelorette party scene in any movie.
The Wedding
After all the drama of which of Sophie’s dad will walk her down the aisle, it’s one of the sweetest moments in the movie when Donna walks her instead. But of course, the sweetness devolves into chaos at the altar when Donna reveals she actually doesn’t know which of the men is Sophie’s Dad. This leads to each potential dad saying they’re totally cool with being a third of her dad, and Sophie realizing she doesn’t actually want to get married at all. However all the guests didn’t walk up a steep hill to a church on the edge of a cliff to not see a wedding, so Donna and Sam get married after he reveals he came back for her years ago, but she wasn’t there.
Aphrodite’s Fountain
We’re told early in the movie that the location of Donna’s inn was rumored to be the location of Aphrodite’s fountain, and that drinking water from the fountain would bring you true love and happiness. It only seems appropriate that at the end of the movie when everyone’s found true love, the crack in the inn’s courtyard erupts, and Aphrodite’s fountain is flowing once again.
Related Story: If you love Mamma Mia, get ready because the sequel is coming
You can see Mama Mia: Here We Go Again! in theaters now.