On a whim the other night my wife asked if I wanted to watch the new Will Ferrell movie on Netflix, “Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga”.

I was taken aback for a few reasons. I didn’t know he had a new movie for one. I didn’t know both Rachel McAdams and Dan Stevens were in it. I didn’t know that Pierce Brosnan played Ferrell’s father. And I had zero idea it was about a singing contest called Eurovision, which is a singing contest that invites bands and singers from all over the world, and it’s a real thing. I guess, according to some research, Ferrell became obsessed with this singing contest when his wife showed it to them on a trip. I think she’s of Swedish decent, and she thought he’d enjoy it. Well, it turned into an obsession, and he made a whole movie about it. And he sings and dances and acts and produces the whole damn thing.

While “Eurovision Song Contest” is a bit overlong, it is funny and sweet. Ferrell is hilarious as usual. He plays the lead character Lars. Lars is a dreamer ever since he saw ABBA on Eurovision as a young kid after his mother passed away. He got up and danced at the wake afterward at his home, and while all the adults laughed at him, he swore he’d win Eurovision one day. While at said wake, Sigrit, Rachel McAdams, got up and danced and sang with him. She was mute up to that point in her life. From that point we see them as grownups working in a new song for their band Fire Saga. It’s as European as it gets too. The song, the attached video, the costumes, it all screams European, and I loved it. It was silly, but fun. And while Ferrell is his usual funny self, McAdams matches him, and dare I say, surpasses him. She is so funny in this movie. She’s so quiet, yet naive. She loves Lars, but he loves Eurovision more. She sticks by his side no matter what, even if it’s to her detriment. McAdams really goes for it, and she absolutely crushes it. She is the star of this movie by far. I adored her performance. Dan Stevens plays Russian singer Alexander Lemtov. His performance is so over the top, but it’s supposed to be. He’s so full of himself and his music. He’s also hiding who he truly is. He may be the “bad guy”, but he’s really not. He just wants what’s best for his career and Sigrit’s. She has real talent that he sees, and Lars doesn’t. Also, the fight scene between Alexander and Lars near the end is one of the funniest things I’ve seen in awhile. Brosnan is great as the gruff dad. He doesn’t like the career path his son has chosen, and he lets him know it. Even when he eases up on him, he’s still kind of a jerk, as he’s supposed to be.

While the performances are great, I like that Ferrell is into this world, he invites real contestants to perform full on song and dance performances a few times in the movie. He really lets the singers shine, really gives them their moment, and it’s so cool and so much fun. Like I says before, the only thing I’d change is the length. It’s a hair over two hours, and that’s a little too long for a comedy like this. Other than that it’s a great, funny movie. Ferrell is good, but McAdams shines. I’d recommend it simply for her performance. But, it’s pretty great for everything else it does. Check it out if you haven’t, and if you enjoy Ferrell’s sense of humor. It’s uniquely him. I like that, and I think you will too.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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