There's a large stereotype that Arizona State University is a party school and that it's very easy to be admitted to the college. So is it a coincidence that Netflix's latest original movie pokes fun at characters wearing ASU and University of Arizona gear? Who knows! But the idiot Americans wearing Arizona college sweatshirts sure are a hilarious ongoing bit, especially when I have personal ties to ASU.
If Netflix subscribers haven't watched "Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga" yet, they're missing out. Since the movie dropped on June 26, a modest amount of fans have played the movie's soundtrack on repeat.
Directed by David Dobkin and co-written and produced by Will Ferrell, the comedy-musical is a refreshing movie that has the perfect amount of campy, glittery, elf-believing magic.
EUROVISION SONG CONTEST: The Story Of Fire Saga | Official Trailer | Netflixwww.youtube.com
The movie follows childhood Icelandic friends Lars (Ferrell) and Sigrit (Rachel McAdams) and their dream of winning the Eurovision song contest, which is a real annual international singing competition held by the European Broadcasting Union since 1959. After a fatal accident launches them into the final round representing Iceland, their sanity, talent and relationship is on the line. Also, a hunky Russian singer named Alexander Lemtov (Dan Stevens) tries coaxing Sigrit away from Lars because he believes Lars is holding her back – everyone in their tiny Icelandic town agrees.
About an hour into the movie, he embarrasses himself and Sigrit, so he has a conversation with his reflection in a fountain. But four ASU and U of A students ruin Lars' reflective moment by throwing a stone in the water and asking him if "Game of Thrones" was filmed near this fountain. One student even mimics wielding a sword and thrusts his hips toward Lars as if he can't understand what "Game of Thrones" is.
Instead Lars calls them "sh*t-for-brains Americans" and yells "go ahead and build your wall." He leaves them with parting words to "go to Starbucks ... They're anywhere you look. Just smell for the pumpkin spice latte." Unfortunately one of the girls thinks he's trying to help her.
And without giving away spoilers, the Americans come back and become a long-running gag throughout the movie.
This isn't the first time ASU has been the butt of jokes in pop culture, and I'm sure it's not the last. But it's a recent reminder of the stereotype that ASU is a joke. Sure, students not-so-gently tout the "number one in innovation" accolade and shout it from the rooftops when we find an innovative way to tackle a daily task like covering a broken blender with an ice cream carton lid. However, ASU is a leading American university.
And as an ASU alum and employee, I can guarantee that not everyone is like the idiot Americans on the "Eurovision" movie.
I can't really speak for U of A's sake, but I'm sure not everyone attending the university is an idiot American, too. And that's saying a lot coming from a rival Sun Devil.
Whether or not ASU and U of A represent the stupid Americans in "Eurovision," the movie is extremely fun to watch and well-worth your time to get away from stress.
I think we can all agree that when talking about the state of politics, social issues and COVID-19 responses, Lars put it best when he said "Goddamn Americans."
Contact Samantha Incorvaia on Twitter at @_SamI520.
