SCREEN | 'The Story of Fire Saga' Mocks 'Eurovision' on Netflix

"The elves must hate us."

Gary Sanchez / Gloria Sanchez Productions

Movie stars Will Ferrell (also a producer) and Rachel McAdams fire up their best Icelandic accents to satirize the popular annual European singing competition in the very silly but sincere Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga. Wedding Crashers director David Dobkin reteams with his leads to feature some lush pop visuals with hyper-surreal musical imagery.

Ferrell does his usual confident idiot schtick to varying degrees of humour, but it's truly McAdams continued commitment to silliness and her natural charisma that shines. She offers a comic sincerity that makes you buy into the lofty dreams of their mild-mannered singing duo, Fire Saga. Another highlight is Dan Stevens as a buffoonish Russian pop star who predictably drives apart Lars and Sigrit (Ferrell and McAdams) romantically apart during the contest.

Scripted by Ferrell and Andrew Steele, there are shades of the fake musical biopic Walk Hard in how the film makes fun of common musical story troupes including Pierce Brosnan as the stereotypically disapproving father. It's a thin premise that makes room for many dazzling singing montages and big musical sequences to take over its slight but fun narrative arc.

The Story of Fire Saga suitably mocks European dreams of pop stardom in easy but amusing ways. Who this is for may prove difficult as most non-Europeans are not aware of the famed Eurovision Song Contest's ubiquity around the globe despite the production clearly being tailored for American audiences.

Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga is available to stream on Netflix.


More | YVArcade / Indiewire / Slashfilm