Reviews For Will Ferrell’s New Eurovision Netflix Movie Are In, See What Critics Are Saying
Over the past few years, Netflix has proven itself as a behemoth in the entertainment world, producing a ton of original movies in addition to its myriad TV content. The streaming service is showing no signs of slowing down, with one of its newest releases being Will Ferrell's upcoming comedy Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga. The new comedy follows a quirky Icelandic couple/music group as they compete in the titular singing competition, played by Ferrell and Rachel McAdams. The movie's reviews have come in, and they're ranging mixed to negative.
Will Ferrell is an iconic comedian who has starred in countless vehicles throughout the years. For Eurovision Song Contest, he worked with Wedding Crashers director David Dobkin, with Ferrell also writing and producing the new comedy. But Ferrell's work with the script has been the subject of some criticism. CinemaBlend's Eric Eisenberg gave Eurovision 2/5 stars, saying:
Well, that was pretty cut and dry. Audiences know what Will Ferrell is capable of, which is why the actor's long career in film might actually work against him with Eurovision Song Contest. The movie fails to live up to the expectations of Ferrell's work, which has the potential to hurt its chances critically. Although audiences can form their own opinion when it arrives on Netflix shortly.
The Hollywood Reporter's David Rooney took particular umbrage with Rachel McAdams' portrayal of Sigrit in Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga. She's got a long career in both comedy and drama, but apparently her role in the upcoming Netflix comedy leaves something to be desired. As he put it,
Rachel McAdams is an actress known for her versatility, so it's somewhat surprising to hear that she might be a weak point of Eurovision Song Contest. Although this perceptions might also be related to an issue in the movie's central relationship. According to Vanity Fair's Richard Lawson, there was something off about Lars and Sigrit's romance throughout Eurovision Song Contest's runtime. Part of the review reads:
Rachel McAdams and Will Ferrell are two strong performers, but their work in Eurovision Song Contest was clearly a point of contention for some critics. Pairing these two actors with Wedding Crashers' director seems like a winning combination, although the material itself seemingly stands in the way of the Netflix movie's success.
As for the streaming service's role in Eurovision Song Contest, Variety's Owen Gleiberman actually shifted some of the blame on Netflix. Because while Eurovision Song Contest: The Story Of Fire Saga reportedly doesn't live up to the expectations set by Will Ferrell, he actually believes this is partly because Netflix didn't provide much oversight on the project. The review says,
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Meanwhile, EW's Leah Greenblatt once again harkened back to the performances by Eurovision Song Contest's pair of protagonists. Because despite their best efforts, she believed that the actors' accents in particular were very distracting. What's more they're reportedly not consistent. Greenblatt wrote:
Finally, there were some critics who took issue with Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga's pacing. Quite a few of the above reviews mentioned this, blaming the movie's script in the process. Collider's Matt Goldberg spoke to this dynamic in his C- rating for the movie, saying:
Overall, it doesn't look like Eurovision Song Contest succeeded in impressing the critics. Still, it should be interesting to see how Will Ferrell's new Netflix movie performs. Audiences have been known to have their own opinion regardless of views, so we'll have to see if the movie's audience scores are kinder. Luckily, we won't have to wait long because the movie will be available for Netflix subscribers shortly.
Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga will be available on Netflix June 26th. In the meantime, check out our 2020 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.
Corey was born and raised in New Jersey. Graduated with degrees theater and literature from Ramapo College of New Jersey. After working in administrative theater for a year in New York, he started as the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. He's since been able to work himself up to reviews, phoners, and press junkets-- and is now able to appear on camera with some of his favorite actors... just not as he would have predicted as a kid. He's particularly proud of covering horror franchises like Scream and Halloween, as well as movie musicals like West Side Story. Favorite interviews include Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Jamie Lee Curtis, and more.