Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga

Movie, 2020, PG-13

 

Premise - Two Icelandic childhood best friends with a lifelong dream of competing in the EuroVision song contest finally get their big break when a cruise ship with all of Iceland's best singers explodes, killing every passenger. They are now competing with the rest of Europe's most flamboyant, extra, and frankly European contestants.

Review - I have had the songs from this movie stuck in my head for days now. I actually was drawn to the movie after hearing some of the songs first, one of which I noticed is nominated for an Oscar for Best Song in a Motion Picture. The two main songs, campy, cheesy, and show-tuney as they are, are genuinely very good. And I think that sums up typical EuroVision song entries in a nutshell. 

 

I have never seen EuroVision myself, as an American, but I know the stereotypes just from lingering on the Internet witnessing people's live reactions on social media. It's... extra. The performances are extra, the songs are extra, and the whole production of the song contest is extra, from what I understand. And that is definitely what this film was trying to get across.

 

It does poke fun at a lot of European stereotypes in a way that, I wonder how a European audience received this film? Offensively? Or humorously in a self-deprecating way? Will Ferrell and Rachel McAdams' characters, with their thick, small-town Icelandic accents, are sweet and endearing but kind of also pitiful and laughable. And they are American actors making fun of rural Europeans. To be fair, the film also cracks a lot of jokes at Americans, with Will Ferrell's character in particular absolutely hating Americans. Generally, there's a lot of nationalist jokes to swallow.

It's funny and sweet though. Not as funny as other ridiculous Will Ferrell films, nor as sweet as other Rachel McAdams films, but it's an entertaining film with an all-star cast (there's also Demi Lovato??)

(85/100)

Quote - "No gay people in Russia." "Statistically speaking I think that's impossible."

What to watch for - Dan Stevens!! He put the cherry on top of this film. I had interest in watching it for a while, but it wasn't until I watched a clip of him in it that I finally made the decision to watch the whole thing. Because Dan Stevens in flamboyant costume and makeup, with a Russian accent, singing about lion love was.... unexpected but great.

 

If you liked this movie, I'd recommend Blades of Glory!

Directed by David Dobkin

Distributed by Netflix