This is a nice movie but however, there is some iffy stuff I had to watch out for. I watched this with my 12 year old and I looked up a few times. 12 is a bit iffy to watch at. 13 should be good. If you are 14+ it is fine. There is some sexy stuff in this movie. The whole point of the movie is "Sophie" doesn't know who her father is because her mom slept with 3 different men. There are several uses of "knocked up" and "You got any?".. In one scene a man's butt is showing in front of a lady (FULLY). In a nother scene a woman slides down a mans waist and ties a towel around his 'area'--You can see he 'felt' it--this scene is naughty and it carries on for a few seconds, also in this scene you see a bag full of "toys" (breif). There are several suggestive dance moves. Some lyrics in the songs are mild, but there are refrances such as- "Do your thing", "not to old for sex", "I had a few little love affairs" "Your a teaser you turn them on", "We can go walking" "It was the time of our flower power"---Any way there are some kissed to. One on a beach that last for a VERY short time. 2 passionate kisses between Donna and Sam (one while being only half dressed. And there are 2 meadium kisses between Sophie and Ski. There is a short romantic kiss between Rosie and Bill. Some flirting is on a beach, a few love songs, hand holding, carrying, hugging, sex talk, and some bare chests and such. This movie has little violence, a woman falls from a balcony into a man's arms, a fish with teeth is shown and there is a minor earthquake with LITTLE distruction. As for swears, sl*t, crap and ass- is as bad as it gets. There are some drinks, and a man smoking is shown once. Some people have a party at the bar and are tierd the next morning.
I know it's increasingly becoming reality, but the movie portrays a highly dysfunctional family as light and largely problem free. It's as if the daughter could follow in her mother's sexual footsteps and expect a carefree life...
That said, ABBA's tunes are as catchy as ever.
Most of the sexual references are subtle and go right over my daughter's head, although I do distract her if I know something questionable is coming up. The fun music is what my daughter really enjoyed. I don't think for one moment that she's going to emulate what she sees on the screen. I've raised her better than that.
Some friends said that this movie would be a great family movie. NO NO No... I can't believe the vulgarity of this movie. I love Abba but I mean common, making most of their songs Sexy and vulgar dance to them. When the song Gimme gimme gimme came on the brides friends started taking her so called fathers' and poll dancing with them and it was just inappripriate. DON'T WATCH this movie if you want to ruin Abba's songs!!!
Great for 4-year-old girls who love to sing and dance
okay I will get boo'd for this probably, but I took my daughter to see it when she was 4. The hairdryer-as-a-sex toy scene went right over her head, as did the "who is her father" part. So what I had was a little girl who stood up and danced in front of her seat the entire time to the music. Her energy was infectious and everyone around us had a good time (that might sound like she was disruptive, but she wasn't). So I want to say if you have a 4 year old who loves to sing and dance - you might have a window of opportunity here that might be lost in a couple years when you might get quizzed on the aforementioned adult themes.
This movie is beautifully filmed, and it seems as if the whole cast is absolutely having a ball. While yes, there is a mystery as to the young bride's real father, the message of inclusion and the importance of honoring love is timeless and wonderful for kids to learn and their parents to remember.
A lot of questionable sexual references. The storyline itself is a little hard to explain to a child. I previewed it for my 12 year old and gave it a thumbs down. It isn't even that good of a movie.
This movie would have been absolutely fantastic without the permeating thread of sexuality that runs all the way through it. In fact, it's difficult to extract any strong message from the movie except: "Have fun and sex, don't let people tell you what to do". What a loss of an opportunity to insert very positive messages!
The performance of Meryl Streep is absolutely mind-boggling, she portrays her character more than perfectly.
I have to say I didn't love this movie. My best friend recommended it because her 3 year old LOVES this movie. I'm glad I had sense enough to watch it soon myself because I don't feel I'm ready to explain to my 5 year old what a sl*t is (Meryl calls herself that). She also says something about not letting some ejaculate control the decisions she makes with her daughter. I have serious reservations about showing this movie to my 5 year old now that I've seen it.
Enjoyed it myself but wouldn't recommend it to kids under 18.
I actually really liked the movie. I found myself humming the tunes for at least a week afterward. It made me want to go to Greece and spend a few weeks being lazy in the sun. I'm not a huge fan of musicals but sometimes enjoy them. This was a very entertaining one.
BUT........As a parent, I feel the role model is terrible. One summer the lead actress has a fling with three guys and gets pregnant. I don't like it when single mothers that make poor choices are glamorized. I applaud their effort is raising kids but think that most of the time they made a choice. It isn't like they slipped on a wet rock and got knocked up. And this movie sort of does put the fact that she was a single parent up on a pedestal.
So basically, I don't want my son or daughter watching it but I would gladly see it again myself and I'm sure I will.
This is a fun, energetic, sing along film you'll enjoy over and over again. The big issue is how to expain to your kids why she doesn't know who the father of her child is.