If there is a European equivalent to the Super Bowl, it is the Eurovision Song Contest. That statement might not make much sense to you if you are unaware of culture outside of American borders. If nothing else, you can look at the title and surmise that it has something to do with music, whereas the National Football League’s (NFL) championship game is sports. However, if you think about the two events in terms of the attention they garner, then they are roughly equivalent. My only wish is that Catholicism would get this many people involved. We Catholics would also love it if our religion had the kind of popularity of Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga (2020) (henceforth just Eurovision Song Contest), the movie about this phenomenon. Like many things that come from the other side of the Atlantic, the movie might appear silly to many Americans, but it mostly works.
For all the international spectacle promised by Eurovision Song Contest, the story starts in the tiny Icelandic town of Húsavík, where Lars Erickssong (Will Ferrell) has dreamed of winning Eurovision since watching ABBA perform “Waterloo” as a child (Alfie Melia). Decades later, he and his childhood friend Sigrit Ericksdóttir (Rachel McAdams) perform together as Fire Saga, although their hometown audience mostly wants to hear the ridiculous “Jaja Ding Dong.” Lars’ widowed father, Erick (Pierce Brosnan), considers his son’s musical ambitions embarrassing, while Sigrit’s mother, Helga (Elín Petersdóttir), believes Lars is preventing her daughter from reaching her potential. Sigrit is secretly in love with Lars and hopes she will someday hit the mythical “Speorg note” when she becomes her truest self. She also believes in elves, leaving offerings at tiny elf houses and asking them to help Fire Saga reach Eurovision. Lars is less mystical. When Fire Saga is randomly selected for Söngvakeppnin, Iceland’s Eurovision qualifying competition, he celebrates by ringing the local church bell, which gets him arrested because the bell signals an emergency. Apparently, even Icelandic churches have limits on liturgical enthusiasm. Fire Saga’s qualifying performance is a disaster, and glamorous singer Katiana Lindsdóttir (Demi Lovato) wins. Lars and Sigrit skip the contestants’ celebratory boat party, only to watch in horror as the vessel explodes, killing everyone aboard. With every other Icelandic contender dead, Fire Saga becomes the country’s Eurovision representative by default. They travel to Edinburgh, Scotland, where Lars becomes obsessed with elaborate staging and a remixed version of their song, “Double Trouble,” while Sigrit wants their performance to remain authentic. Russian favorite Alexander Lemtov (Dan Stevens) takes an immediate interest in Sigrit and invites the pair to a lavish party attended by Eurovision contestants. Alexander draws Sigrit away while Greek singer Mita Xenakis (Melissanthi Mahut) spends time with Lars. Neither encounter becomes sexual, but jealousy deepens the tension between Fire Saga’s members. Alexander offers Sigrit the possibility of performing with him after Eurovision, while Lars mistakenly concludes that the new song she is writing is about the Russian singer. Their semifinal performance initially goes well until Sigrit’s scarf becomes tangled in a giant hamster-wheel prop, sending both performers crashing spectacularly into the audience. They nevertheless climb back onto the stage and finish “Double Trouble.” Humiliated by the initial silence, Lars leaves before learning that the audience admired their persistence and voted Fire Saga into the final. Sigrit begs him to stay, but their argument ends with her revealing that the song Lars thought was for Alexander was actually written for him. Lars returns to Húsavík and joins Erick on his fishing boat. Father and son finally speak honestly, with Lars admitting his love for Sigrit and Erick acknowledging that he should have supported him. When Lars discovers that Fire Saga has reached the final, he races back toward Edinburgh. He accepts a ride from Victor Karlosson (Mikael Persbrandt), governor of Iceland’s Central Bank, who reveals that he deliberately blew up the contestants’ boat. Victor fears that a Eurovision victory would force financially strained Iceland to host the expensive competition the following year. He attempts to kill Lars as well, but an unseen force hurls a knife into Victor’s back. Lars, suddenly much more respectful of Sigrit’s belief in elves, leaves an offering before continuing his journey. Along the way, Katiana’s ghost also appears to warn Lars that his life is in danger, a warning he dismisses because he already knows about Victor. Four American tourists eventually drive him to the arena. Meanwhile, Alexander again invites Sigrit to join him professionally, but she recognizes that his glamorous life cannot give her what she actually wants. Lars arrives during the Eurovision final and interrupts Fire Saga’s scheduled performance. Rather than chase the victory he has wanted since childhood, he asks Sigrit to sing the song she wrote for him. He accompanies her on piano as she performs “Húsavík,” an ode to their hometown and to the life they share there. Sigrit finally reaches the Speorg note, Lars joins her, and the two kiss before an ecstatic audience. Their unauthorized song disqualifies Fire Saga, but neither cares anymore. Winning Eurovision has ceased to be Lars’ highest good. Some time later, Lars and Sigrit are together, have a baby, and are once again performing at their hometown bar, now during the wedding reception of Erick and Helga. It is awkward because it is their parents getting married, but that is this movie for you. Fire Saga offers to perform its beautiful Eurovision song, but the locals demand “Jaja Ding Dong” instead. Lars finally gives the people what they want.
Beneath all the absurdity, Eurovision Song Contest therefore lands on a surprisingly sensible idea: ambition is not necessarily bad, but it becomes destructive when success matters more than the people and places one is supposed to love. Lars spends most of the movie trying to escape Húsavík and prove his worth to the world, only to discover that the life he actually wants has been beside him all along. From a Catholic perspective, one can make the argument that the film underscores the importance of taking stock of that which God has given you. There is nothing wrong with having a dream, and it would not be incorrect to label me a dreamer. As a Catholic, I always pray that my ambitions line up with that which God has in store for me. Unfortunately, sometimes those two imperatives can be far apart, and it can be difficult reconciling them. In a way, this is the crux of the issue between Lars and Sigrit. He thinks big and does not easily suffer his doubters. Her desires are simpler, mainly centering on being with him. With this, she is willing to go along with his mad schemes because it seems to get her closer to what she really wants. For him, her affections are secondary, and he all but says this to her not long after they arrive in Edinburgh for the contest. When it comes to discerning our path in life, St. Ignatius of Loyola teaches us to pay close attention to movements of spiritual consolation and desolation. Genuine consolation can draw us toward God with an increase of faith, hope, charity, and interior peace, but discernment is more complicated than simply choosing whatever feels peaceful at a given moment. Even an apparently good or peaceful movement must be examined by its direction and fruits, which is one reason we try not to make rash choices. From such a description, we can see the differences between Lars and Sigrit. She has thought through her attachment to him and is most at ease when they are together, whereas he is obsessive about something over which he has no control. The Church teaches us to trust in God’s providence and goodness, but the film demonstrates that what is truly good for us does not always mean fame and fortune.
Still, some might argue that whatever fame and fortune Lars and Sigrit earn in Eurovision Song Contest is the result of their worship of elves. That is not too Catholic of a position to take, but like everything else in the movie, it is not meant to be taken seriously. There are some crude jokes, too, but they can also be easily dismissed along with the rest of the story.
