The Swedish Film Institute has received financial support from the Swedish Parliament since 1996 for the restoration of color film. One of the strongest advocates for this has been Ingmar Bergman. Fifteen to twenty films have thereby been restored and the latest will make ABBA fans very happy!

ABBA - The Movie by Lasse Hallström on the ABBA Australian tour of 1977 has been restored to the grand state last observed at its premiere.

The film opens in Stockholm December 7 at the Cinemateket, Film House Archive, and later at the film archives in Göteborg and Malmö in January. A special screening with half of ABBA in attendance took place December 2 at the Swedish Film House. Present were Agneta Fältskog and Benny Andersson. Fältskog remarked that she thought it was "a great initiative that the film was a high priority for film preservation, along with the films of Ingmar Bergman". Benny had a more sober profile: " I don't think about that time so much anymore", he said at the ABBA reunion. Meanwhile Lasse Hallström was hard at work in the USA. Other guests were journalists, some of which blasted the film at its premiere.


Moira Sullivan


Nordic Correspondent