Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga (2020) on Netflix
In Húsavík, Lars Erickssong and Sigrit Ericksdóttir play in the band Fire Saga, and Lars dreams of winning the Eurovision Song Contest. The pair are picked for Iceland's preselection.
- Netflix3.2/5
- IMDb6.5/10110,657 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes63%
Trailer
Plot summary
Lars Erickssong and Sigrit Ericksdóttir have been friends a long time and make music together as Fire Saga in the Icelandic town of Húsavík. Lars wants the band to win the Eurovision Song Contest, but at the bar where they play the crowd asks only for a suggestive song called Jaja Ding Dong. Erick, Lars' widowed father, and Helga, Sigrit's mother, both object to the pair working together; Helga tells Sigrit that Lars is holding her back and that she will never reach the Speorg note, which can only be sung by someone being their truest self. Sigrit believes in elves, an old Icelandic tradition, and asks them to help the pair reach the contest, hoping a win will make Lars return her feelings. The pair are chosen for Söngvakeppnin, the Icelandic preselection that decides the country's Eurovision entry.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga (2020)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- For the in-contest Eurovision scenes, the real stage from the 2019 contest in Tel Aviv was rebuilt on a soundstage in London, while plate shots used the actual live audience back in Tel Aviv. Will Ferrell and Rachel McAdams had been spotted at those 2019 dress rehearsals by another delegation.
- Swedish singer Molly Sandén, credited as My Marianne, sang Sigrit's vocals and Netflix mixed them with Rachel McAdams' own voice; soundtrack producer Savan Kotecha told Vanity Fair their tones blended so well that he struggled to tell them apart.
- To play Icelanders, the cast studied Icelandic and worked with a speech therapist so they could speak English in an Icelandic accent without cliché, and trained with Icelandic coaches; Rachel McAdams studied Björk's mannerisms and physical behavior.
- At the real Eurovision Song Contest 2021, Icelandic actor Hannes Óli Ágústsson again played Olaf Yohansson to deliver Iceland's jury points, asking host Chantal Janzen to play "Jaja Ding Dong" and trying to award 12 points to the song before giving them elsewhere.
- At the same 2021 contest, Norway's Tix, who gained publicity for showing affection for Azerbaijan's Samira Efendi, was seen singing "Jaja Ding Dong" as a love serenade for her.
- In the lead-up to the Eurovision Song Contest 2025, Icelandic contestants Væb covered "Jaja Ding Dong" and UK representatives Remember Monday covered "Husavik".
