I was listening to the "Mamma Mia" movie soundtrack today and I don't understand why they didn't dub Pierce Brosnan's singing voice in "Mamma Mia" like Audrey's Hepburn's was dubbed in "My Fair Lady" and Minnie Driver "Phantom of the Opera." Audrey's singing voice obviously didn't suit the part of Eliza. Here's her actual singing of "I Could of Danced All Night" and "Show Me:"
I can see why it was better that Marni Nixon dubbed her singing voice.
Minnie Driver obviously must be no Judy Kaye to sing notes like Carlotta does.
Pierce's singing voice obviously wasn't strong enough for the role of Sam. If someone dubbed Pierce's singing he would not have received so much backlash and he probably wouldn't won the Razzie Award for Worst Supporting Actor. Why did they not bub his singing voice?
"As far as I'm concerned, they shouldn't have cast any of those people in the first place. Cast someone who can sing or don't bother"
If you're saying they shouldn't have cast Audrey in "My Fair Lady" I disagree with you on that. Even though Audrey did not sing in the film her acting was wonderful and she still should have gotten an Oscar nomination. Peggy Wood did not actually sing in "The Sound of Music," but her acting was amazing and she deserved her Oscar nomination. Updated On: 1/5/11 at 10:35 PM
"As far as I'm concerned, they shouldn't have cast any of those people in the first place. Cast someone who can sing or don't bother."
Who do you mean when you say "any of those people"? Because I actually thought the majority of them were good. Pierce was definitely one of the weaker points, singing-wise.
"We like to snark around here. Sometimes we actually talk about theater...but we try not to let that get in our way." - dramamama611
I read an interview with Cher today where he said how much she wanted to do this film but her schedule wouldn't allow it. Maybe I would have liked it if she had.
I can't speak as to the creative choices- I think "Under Attack" should've been in it- surrealism and all...But perhaps it's my sense of humor but I thought it was more amusing to have a leading man sing badly for once, particularly in this sort of cheesefest
Half the cast couldn't sing so it would be insult to just dub him.
IMO the only people who could carry a tune were Streep, Siefried, and Baranski.
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"Think of how I adore you, think of how much you love me. If I were perfect for you, wouldn't you tire of me?"
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I also forgot Christopher Plummer had his singing dubbed in "The Sound of Music" because his singing was not up to par with Julie's when they sang their duet.
Updated On: 1/5/11 at 10:38 AM
I didn't mind Brosnan's voice at all. In fact, I kind of like the last added song. And it's 7,000,000,000 times better than the guy who is playing the role on Broadway right now.
As others stated the practice isn't as widely used today as it once was. Also, I think part of it is that Brosnon's voice is so recognizable that any dubbing would have been noticed.
I found his warbling to be kinda charming.
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We must have different Gods. My God said "do to others what you would have them do to you". Your God seems to have said "My Way or the Highway".
Well, it's all water under the bridge. Just think how successful the movie would have been if they had dubbed him. Too bad, a lost opportunity to have a big hit.
I'm glad someone finally asked this question. Whenever I have a conversation with anyone concerning this movie--the first question a person raises is "Why did they let Pierce sing?" :) But, as someone stated----it's water under the bridge. It was such a glaring elephant in the room, tho'---and detracted from the film (IMO). He's a good actor---but this was/is a musical.