I grew up in Australia and was 16 at the time of ABBA's 1977 concert tour Downunder. I lived in Melbourne and went to all three performances (1 on the Saturday night and 2 on Sunday) and I remember seeing the film cameramen on stage during the show and wishing they would get the heck out of the way, especially when they blocked my view of Agnetha (which was unfortunately already bad enough due to the fact that I was so far back in the crowd that I had to use binoculars!). Watching this movie again after so many years sent my mind spinning back to my 16th year and flooded me with wonderful memories and an extremely intense feeling of nostalgia and longing to be back there again at that time; and it's great to know that when they perform Fernando in the movie, I'm somewhere out in that crowd at Melbourne's "Sidney Myer Music Bowl" (which is named after a guy called Sidney Myer, not the city of Sidney). Being a big ABBA fan and an even bigger Agnetha fan, it's great to see the appreciation of ABBA: The Movie and of my girl Anna, who at 57 years of age now is still the most beautiful woman who ever lived. On the Monday after the concerts, I learned that ABBA would spend one more day in Melbourne so I (naturally) skipped school and went to the city to try and get Agnetha's autograph. ABBA had the whole 5th floor of The Old Melbourne Hotel, and during my efforts to infiltrate that fortress, I met an old lady who was staying on the 4th floor who asked me what was going on. When I explained my love for Agnetha to her, she took sympathy on me and told me to go down to the lobby and wait for my chance. She said if any hotel staff bothered me I could tell them I was her grandson and staying with her (God Bless her!!). When I stepped off the elevator into the lobby, the staff must've automatically assumed I was a guest because no one bothered me. After about 30 minutes, the crowds outside began screaming wildly as ABBA returned from a day trip they'd taken and entered the lobby. And there she was, the blonde angel named Agnetha - right in front of me! It took all my strength and nerve just to stand up and approach her, but when I did, she smiled and took the proffered pen and paper and signed her name with a flourish! I've still got it in my files at home in Melbourne, but unlike my love for her, it's kind of faded these days. ABBA: The Movie was originally intended to be a documentary (despite Benny's apprehensions about it due to an earlier, similar type of documentary he'd been involved in during his Hep Star days (a film that apparently was disastrous, at least in his eyes)), but as momentum built during pre-production for both the film and the Australian concert tour, Lasse Halstrom decided it would be better to add the subplot of the D.J. trying to get an interview with them. It's a thin plot to say the least, but it does add humor to the movie and is a great window into Australia of 1977. They don't even have money like that anymore down there - nowadays it's made of some sort of futuristic, flexible plastic material that just WILL NOT stay in your pockets (as I learned on my last visit from Los Angeles). Anyway, ABBA: The Movie is a wonderful film for anyone who is a fan of the group or of that style of 70s music in general.

Welcome to the movies. Elvis had done it, The Beatles had done it and now the nineteen-seventies super group ABBA have done it. Welcome to ABBA: The Movie. This semi-documentary movie footage of the pop sensation that stormed the world with its simple melodies, gentle harmonies and infectious lyrics is taken while on tour of the Southern Hemisphere during 1977.It's a basic concept and the formula is unsurprisingly straightforward; ABBA are on tour of Australia and the group are being filmed as they progress to each new city, to each new concert hall and to each new horde of screaming and admiring fans that this access-all-areas pass via this fly-on-the-wall perspective shows us. We have the group interviews, we see them perform their multimillion best sellers such as "Dancing Queen", "The Name Of The Game", "Tiger", "Ring Ring", "Eagle", "Mamma Mia", and many others that include "Money, Money, Money" and "I'm a Marionette". They allow us to see their prepping-up toward the nights shows' and we are more than privileged to have this insight into this bandwagon on the road to fame and fortune amongst the real hustle and bustle of the press and TV crews that beg their attention.ABBA: The Movie is a gloried extension of the pop video that has them on stage rather than in a studio setting. In-between this hectic life style is the misadventures of a local D.J. Ashley Wallace, played by actor Robert Hughes who having no idea of what lies ahead and whose soul mission is to get that all so important interview. This is a man on a mission, this is a man without a clue and an even smaller chance, will his luck, wit and desperation withhold the barriers of the Rock 'n Roll giant that stand between him and his goal.While on the hunt for his four-piece dialogue, we see him up and down and across the country talking and interviewing the real fans that have come to see this band proper. On reflection, this is now a tiny snippet of the ABBA mania that took over the world in the same vain as Elvis in the 1950's and The Beatles during the 1960's and Madonna of the last twenty years, has there ever been another to have reached international mega stardom since? Directed by the Swedish Lasse Hallström, who directed some of ABBA's pop videos while at their peak, he has Johnny Depp and a very young Leonardo DiCaprio in his repertoire in his movie What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993), Chocolat (2000) and along with The Shipping News (2001) and An Unfinished Life (2005).ABBA: The Movie is a gentle reminder of this phenomenon of way back then, and that over the years even today has its admiration and respect of the easy beat and more than charming lyrics. This four-piece band had tapped into the imaginations of lovers of music and its players alike. The movie Muriel's Wedding (1994) and the stage play Mamma Mia can be seen as fitting tributes to this influential group, its cultural significance is beyond comprehension. The writing talents of Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus are truly on a similar par as Lennon and McCartney, drug free of course, a writing duo who for a short while conquered the world and who set the standard, as did too Lennon and McCartney, for the pop world for decades to come.ABBA: The Movie is a fan's movie without a doubt, but to an outsiders viewpoint it is an insight into a different avenue of the Rock 'n Roll machine that is so fickle and delicate. ABBA have stood their ground and in the halls of fame and stardom their music have become an integral part of modern pop culture and society, and that is why talent like this has to be tapped, exploited, far reaching and timeless: Welcome to the movies? Welcome to ABBA.

We follow the Australian leg of Abba's first major world tour in March 1977, and what an experience it is! Stunning visuals matched with terrifically polished performances from the SuperSwedes showcased Abba's immense popularity at that time! The story in which a local DJ tries every trick in the book to secure an interview with the group is lacklustre, but at least ABBA: The Movie is not a straight 95min collage of concert footage, which may have made the whole film seem longer than it is. Even Lasse Hallstrom (now a successful Hollywood director) knew this plot was quite inept! Lovely to hear some of the group's classic songs such as Dancing Queen, Fernando and S.O.S. (as well as the bouncy Get On The Carousel, which has only ever been available in ABBA: The Movie), while the sheer excitement and hysteria of the Australian fans showcased the group's outstanding popularity, which was probably at its highest in 1976/77.Abba were divine as a live band, despite some critics' negative views, and were actually more successful Down Under than the Beatles, reflected by the fact that they are the best-selling artist of all time in Australia! You can see why when viewing this film! The concert footage included in ABBA: The Movie is exceedingly electric and superbly conducted, making you want to get up and dance, and simply makes this film a sure-fire hit for Abba fans worldwide. In fact, it's only this movie and ABBA In Concert, recorded two years later, that we can see Abba in live performance. And it sure doesn't disappoint!

ABBA: The Movie was a big success around the world but barely made a ripple in the U.S. It was 12 years before I saw it. It is about a deejay named Ashley who follows ABBA around on their Australian tour in hopes of getting an interview. They lead him to Sydney, Perth, Adelaide and Melbourne. Along the way, he tapes comments from fans. Mixed in with the plot are scenes from the concerts. Frida struts boldly in hot pants, prowling the stage like a female Elvis. Agnetha teases the crowd with her bottom during "Money Money Money." The group provides a cross section of what had been done up to that time: "Waterloo," "The Name of the Game" and "Ring Ring." The ladies make a real entrance for "Dancing Queen," ABBA's only number 1 record in the U.S. ABBA is a feminist group. The women are the stars. The men maintain a low profile. Benny Andersson later told of how The Movie started out as just their desire to have a personal record of their time in Australia and grew until it became a feature length film. The Movie was directed by Lasse Hallstrom, the same guy who directed ABBA's videos. They finish with their signature tune, "Thank You for the Music." I am an ABBA fan and wrote a book about the Fab Four from Sweden.