Publisher: CinemaSerf October 19, 2026
I don't suppose you actually have to like ABBA to enjoy this, but it sure helps. You see the eponymous lass (Toni Collette) is a bit on the left field of society and is often bullied by her dad "Bill" (Bill Hunter) who fancies himself as a local bigwig in their town of "Porpoise Spit". The final straw comes when her supposed best friends dump her and go on holiday, and so she bounces one of her dad's cheques and goes along too. They don't want anything to do with this embarrassing woman, but fortunately for her their old school friend "Rhonda" (Rachel Griffiths) is also at the resort and she has no problem calling a spade a spade. Now with a new best pal, "Muriel" finds she spends much less time locked in her room listening to "Fernando" and much more time indulging in her dream - marriage. Initially, a dream is all that is but when serendipity shines upon her she is offered a role she could never turn down. Change her name to the far more glamorous "Mariel"; marry (temporarily) an hunky South African international swimmer (Daniel Lapaine) and make a few thousand bucks all at the same time. The question is, can she pull it all off without everything coming splashing down around her? Moreover, "Rhonda" has had some fairly ghastly news of her own, and so there's some plate juggling to be done for our heroine on that front, too. This is one of those coming of age films that isn't so much about first loves and boy/girlfriends, it's more about self-realisation and coming to terms with what you actually want as opposed to what you think you want - and Collette is on super form. She presents us with a vulnerable and amiable character that proves perfect to foil the roles filled by Hunter, Griffiths and that of her decent but put-upon mother (Jeanie Drynan), too. Along the way, there's still plenty of opportunity for a duet of "Waterloo" and who else could come up the aisle to "I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do"? The comedy is brash and unsophisticated - maybe even vulgar, sure, but it's also visceral and honest and it demonstrates just how easy it is to be cruel rather than supportive to people who don't have shiny white teeth, size six swimming cozzies and shag - non-exclusively - the school lothario. It's an unashamedly feel-good film with some gently darkened undertones, and I enjoyed it now as much as I did when I watched it thirty-odd years ago.