ABBA: The Movie [Blu-ray]

I only recently delved into ABBA’s whole discography, and after falling in love with “The Album”, I just had to have its counterpart, “The Movie”. I went in blind, not evening reading a description of the film. Both my husband and I ended up thoroughly enjoying the movie, as it turned out to be part mockumentary, part documentary, and part music video. It’s a fantastic way to get insight into their ‘77 Australia tour, and it’s a fun piece of art that helps flesh out their legacy for those of us who are too young to have witnessed it firsthand. As a previous reviewer said, you can’t truly call yourself an ABBA fan without seeing this movie. I say it’s best enjoyed after consuming a good amount of their catalog, with ‘The Album’ being an essential part of your listening. It’s happy, it’s campy, it’s such a fitting part of their legacy. So if you’re an ABBA fan, sit back, get comfy and enjoy this fantastic time capsule of Europop greatness.

Well, I saw this movie when it was released. I like it, so this is not about the movie. The digitized version of it on a Blu-ray should be better. It creates an impression of a very cheep work. Big disappointment. I expected a good sound quality, at least this movie is about SOUND. What you get is a very uneven level of it and a very bad quality of it. Shame.

A product of a more innocent time, by a band that was far more innocent than most even then. Not a trace of cynicism or anger in this film, just a relaxing, highly enveloping experience that is a breeze to watch over and over again. Make no mistake, these were seriously talented and sophisticated musicians and songwriters. It becomes shockingly more apparent as time goes on just how GOOD this music was, feel free to compare it to any music, ever. Amazing. Like a breath of fresh air, my mood actually changes for the better when I hear their music or see this movie. And I can't say that about many things. Just think of most of the hollow, vapid, short-lived "entertainers" we have today. They are eons below ABBA. These people were absolutely enjoying life and their careers at this time, which wasn't the case to the same degree by the time they broke up only 5 years later. It's amazing to think how much they accomplished between 1974 and 1982. It's no wonder they continue to sell millions of albums per year even now, in spite of never being "cool", even in their own time.This movie is especially enjoyable to me as I was just becoming aware of the world as a youngster at this time and remember gazing at Agnetha and thinking "I don't know what it is I like about girls, but I like SOMETHING!". She was the most obvious immediate attraction when the band was being filmed or photographed, but all of the members were very charismatic and talented, even their speaking voices were fantastic. Just watch Benny bouncing around on his piano (shades of Rowlf the Dog on Sesame Street LOL). It's rare to find such worry free moments in life.The plot is pure silliness, but great stuff. I especially like the intrepid reporter's dream/fantasy sequence and the elevator sequence when the girls sing the hypnotic "Eagle". You cannot be an ABBA fan and not have this movie. Get it!!

For some reason I thought I had to have a copy and now I do. It's a slightly sized-down cinema screen from old motion picture footage. It's not exactly HD similar, but of sufficient quality - not sure you could get it any better. Would have liked an HD or modern full screen version, but that may not be possible with this old movie. The disc loaded and worked well on a computer as well. Thumbs up!

I watched this DVD at a friend's house. As I entered the living room, ABBA was playing on the big screen home theater and... the kids were watching and dancing like it was a  Hanna Montana  concert :). It immediately brought back memories of those great late 70's days - was I in high school then? - and us kids watching this very concert movie in a theater and feeling happy and free. It was THAT good. And it still is.Needless to say, the first thing I did when I got home was to see if a Blu version was available. It was not or, rather not yet. November 25 is still 'the future' at the time I am writing this but the Blu version is already on order, waiting for the release date to ship out. By the way, I would not have hesitated to order the DVD if Blu was not upcoming because the DVD looks flawless too.Need I say what this is about? Okay, at the height of their glory, ABBA embarked on an Australian tour back in the late 70's. They toured all the big cities down-under and they wowed (is that a verb) everyone. And, while at it, someone made a movie of them wowing (is this REALLY a verb) everyone so that non-Australians could go to theaters and watch them performing in Australia. We get to see concert footage and some backstage takes, a couple of interviews but, at least to me, ABBA is ABBA - the characters on the stage, not the real people with their real problems, so I am happy that most of the movie is showing them performing on stage, not one minute older today than 30 years ago, happy, energetic, strong, harmonious in a loud way and making everyone around happy, then and now.I just can't wait to watch this, again, in Blu - counting down the days already. And, if anyone is thinking about getting the  Mamma Mia!  uninspired, tired, morally-dubious, untalented, ridiculous, tasteless cheap imitation - it's actually more expensive - don't bother (see my review).

A mixture of documentary and rather slim storyline, this feature film covers Abba's tour of Australia in 1977; it features some 19 songs performed mainly on-stage during the tour with some backstage footage and media session clips; the storyline is of a fictional music journalist trying to obtain an interview with the group with little success.The film clearly was shot more as a publicity item rather than a proper documentary – it does rather depict Abba as a teen-fan group rather than the widely popular phenomenon they were to become, so it has a lot of inane kids interviews and input from patronising adults; one will buy this for the concert footage and perhaps for the nostalgia element if one is old enough to remember the period.It's an enjoyable enough family movie and no doubt is something Abba fans will want in their collection.The feature disc in the set has available subtitles in English (though no song lyrics); the second disc has a 40-minute interview with the film director, Benny and Björn reminiscing about the film and tour – the other items are just picture galleries and other ephemera. The interview is in Swedish with English subtitles.

This movie has been out on digital home video for a while. As someone whom has recently upgraded to HD I was interested to know if it's worth the upgrade from dvd which of course involves buying the movie again. The short answer is yes. If that's made your mind up then add it to your cart & enjoy. If you want some further info, read on.Abba The Movie was shot using high quality Panavision cameras in widescreen. It's essentially the 70's equivalent of HD vision.This movie, like most features shot using this process is a visual feast. Couple that with the newly mixed and mastered audio, which really adds depth and a bit of grunt to the original stereo sound and what more could you ask of a music Blu-ray?There is one major flaw with this presentation of Abba:The Movie on Blu-ray. The bonus material is only available via picture in picture playback. This clumsy attempt at an interactive viewing experience is a big mistake and costs this otherwise brilliant BR a five star rating. I suggest you hold on to the 2 disc dvd version, if you have it to view the excellent interview with Benny, Björn and director Lasse Hallström as a stand alone presentation. The three artists are in fine form especially Lasse who's career has continued after this movie to become one of the worlds most visionary film makers. A must have for any Abba fan.And finally, to quote those soaked to the skin fans in Sydney..."We Want Abba! We Want Abba! We Want Abba!..."

If you love Abba or you know someone who does then you need to buy this DVD. I saw this movie on TV many years ago and always said I would buy it once I got a DVD player. Well the moment I got one I ordered this and haven't looked back since. It is such a feel good movie and it plays all their great songs as they travel on their various tours all over the world. Tom Oliver who played Lou in Neighbours plays 3 characters in the film which seems weird but it works really well. Its a great story where a journalist is set a task to get an interview with Abba on their tour. You see him travelling all over the place and eventually he gets his interview with them. Its quite comical in places but such a good watch.

This film shows how manic and crazy the auzy's were for Abba. Features live performances and includes many tracks from the LP released alongside the original film in 1978 - Abba-The Album. Having been involved in Broadcasting myself for some 40 years, I know what it can take to get that interview. The film tells a story of a very determined presenter who just couldn't catch them until the last moment he gets lucky. Please remember this film was made in the early days of Video, but non the lest the strength and power of Abba is the feel good factor we have come to love them for.

I saw this in the cinema in 1977. Sadly, unlike ABBAs music, the film is very dated. The 'special effects' accompanying 'I'm a Marionette' I found almost embarrassing. Picture quality was good in places but the sound on the Blueray version (LPCM 5.1) lacked punch which was my biggest disappointment.