Like the sitting American president, Eurovision is difficult to satirise. Ridiculousness is one of the song contest’s chief attractions. Batshit representatives of far eastern and northern European countries are a regular feature, making it a funny, silly, and most of all entertaining once-a-year spectacle.
It’s always a bit disappointing when the winning entry is a conventionally sappy ballad (I’m looking at you Salvador Sobral). These songs might fare well in the filler-for-mum’s-Christmas-stocking department, but it’s the eccentricities that make Eurovision such a hoot. On this basis, it’s easy to imagine a Eurovision-centric comedy film starring and co-written by Will Ferrell being a perfect fit.
From Zoolander’s Mugatu to a variety of manbaby trouble-makers, Ferrell’s no slouch when it comes to inhabiting overly-earnest, self-awareness-deficient characters. Ferrell and co-writer, Funny or Die’s Andrew Steele, come at the subject matter with a behind-the-scenes slant. What gives birth to Eurovision’s more peculiar entries? And can they really be serious? In the case of the fictional act at the centre of The Story of Fire Saga, the answer is yes: deadly serious.
Fire Saga is the duo of small-town Icelanders Lars Erickssong and Sigrit Ericksdottir, played by Ferrell and Rachel McAdams. Lars and Sigrit have known each other since before they could spell ABBA and they’re possibly even siblings (warning: a rather tiresome inbreeding gag recurs throughout the film). The band is Lars’ passion project, though Sigrit is the real talent. Lars’ entire life has revolved around conceiving a song good enough to get into Eurovision. The only problem is – you guessed it – he’s just not very good.
The film’s attempts at humour rely on a predictably slapstick rendering of Fire Saga’s fish-out-of-water naïveté and musical inferiority. Lars is portrayed as goofy, unsophisticated, and conspicuously middle-aged. It’s not exactly a recipe for success. Or rather, it wouldn’t be in any arena other than Eurovision, and here’s precisely where the film falters.
Eurovision viewers will agree that the weirder, more unlikely and divergent the performer, the better. The Story of Fire Saga isn’t oblivious to this fact, but director Dave Dobkin fails to find an imaginative way of exploiting it. For instance, Lars and Sigrit’s song, ‘Volcano Man’, is neither innately humorous nor so bad it’s hilarious.
It’s a melodically serviceable Europop song that lacks any lyrical LOLs. Take its chorus lyrics: “Volcano Man / He’s got my melting heart / Volcanic Protector Man / A timeless hero must love too.”
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Check out ‘Volcano Man’ by Fire Saga:
The same complaint applies to the rest of the film’s original songs. The clear favourite is ‘Lion of Love’ by the extravagantly cocksure Russian contestant Alexander Lemtov (played by a charismatic Dan Stevens). However, it’s hard to know whether we’re supposed to find ‘Lion of Love’ funny or if it’s an earnest attempt at resembling a genuine Eurovision entry.
An awful lot of attention is paid to another Fire Saga song, ‘Jaja Ding Dong’. It’s the only song embraced by Lars and Sigrit’s Icelandic kinsfolk. And it’s a bit naff, sure, but not capable of rousing more than a bemused smile.
Given the disappointing shortage of laughs, the film’s central narrative begins to feel incredibly sluggish. Essentially, Lars is a self-centred buffoon, oblivious to Sigrit’s affection for him. It takes a major public humiliation for him to wake up and realise the seeds of lasting happiness lie not in Eurovision but in love. Stop me if you’ve heard this one before.
Of course, the story is just a hook from which to hang the laughs, but given their scarcity, the predictable formula is exposed. Add to that some fairly tired stereotypes about Icelanders – i.e. they’re hopelessly provincial alcoholic inbreeders who worship elves and triggered the GFC – and you’ll spend more time cringing than chuckling.
Look, The Story of Fire Saga isn’t a total disaster. McAdams is a standout – her Icelandic accent is damn sight better than Ferrell’s and Sigrit is the film’s most likeable character by a distance. Jamie and Natasia Demetriou are both eminently magnetic in their roles as backstage visionaries hired to boost Fire Saga’s chances of success. Previous Eurovision winners Conchita Wurst, Netta, Jamala and Alexander Rybak all make a cameo, and so does Graham Norton.
It’s out through Netflix and there are worse ways of spending two hours. But anyone who’s still upset about the cancellation of Eurovision 2020 would be better served by finding a stream of a previous year’s event. It’ll be funnier, more moving and include way better songs.
Check out Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga official trailer:
