Well, the way I see it: they're using ABBA's music as an excuse to make these musicals and movies and to me that feels like explaining a joke to someone who doesn't get it (the joke).
I'm not saying that ABBA's music is the joke, I'm merely considering the effects of the movies and the explanation (of whatever joke).
Apart from the total cliché (why not Boney M's music, for change?) I don't really need a movie showing me how much fun ABBA's music can be - and for that matter, how dark and melancholic (but do they ever get
that part?)
At the same time I'm not sure if ABBA's music is sooo universal that all you have to do is shuffle those songs together to get a great story out of it.
But I also don't consider ABBA's songs lightweight enough to support these half-baked coverversions, even if they are performed by former James Bonds.
ABBA (the original) works as nostalgia and it worked for Muriel's Wedding. It's not an nostalgic movie, but the music still is.
Another thing these musicals and movie-musicals don't get is that ABBA music wasn't camp. It was not-really-hip but very popular music and I can imagine how confusing it must have been to be a young ABBA fan in the 1970s (nice concept for a movie).
Erasure thought it was camp, hence the parody videos - and at least the timing was perfect. 1992, yes absolutely.
The reply-gimmick by Bjorn Again (Erasure-ish EP) was much funnier, btw.
If there has to be an ABBA movie then:
-base the story on
one song.
or
-a story about a group of people (maybe some ordinary villagers) in the process of
making an ABBA musical. And then that fun and seemingly not so difficult project turns into big drama. Their failure would highlight the
magic of ABBA's music: it
can't be musicalled.
or
-a fanclub movie, about a meet & greet that's never going to happen, something in the style of
Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean.
But this?
Good grief!