a-ha: The Movie

I think the "Take On Me" video in 1985 was probably one of the best music videos I have ever seen - indeed, it may well have encouraged me to buy the record - and the follow-up: "The Sun Always Shines On TV" (except in the pool scenes from "Dallas" where it always blew a gale, instead). There was also a photo of Morton Harket getting out of a swimming pool that was one of the horniest images I think I'd ever seen by then - so nostalgia fully charged, I dragged a friend who had barely heard of A-ha along to a screening of this; and boy - is it a let down! Aside from the cinema sound for the musical numbers, which still holds up very well and evoked the aforementioned memories, I can't say that I liked this band very much. Their love/hate relationship heads for the rocks fairly early on, and thereafter they just came across as dull, boring, people who lucked out with an immensely creative team behind them, a modicum of good looks and a well produced image and sound. It does provide for quite an interesting fly-on-the wall documentary on just how hectic the lives of the band and their team were as all had to work and adapt as global success quite literally descended on them overnight; but sadly A-ha became So-what all too quickly. If you have a decent sound system at home, then a television screening will prove all that this needs for even the most ardent fans.