Croatia is hoping to return to the Eurovision final this year, after a number of non-qualifications in recent years. Mia Dimšić won this year’s national selection with her song ‘Guilty Pleasure’, but will it be the guilty pleasure of the voters this year?
Anita
Song and Vocals
The Croatian national selection flew under the radar for me this year, with the snippets failing to make a huge impression. Although I wasn’t heavily invested in the selection, Mia Dimšić still seemed like a surprise winner. It was also surprising to see that she led in the jury and public voting, creating a significant lead between first and second place.
I unfortunately think that Guilty Pleasure is among the weaker songs of this year’s contest. By the chorus, my attention is elsewhere, with the chorus failing to hook me back in. This track gives me old-school Taylor Swift vibes, and sorry Swifties, but this just isn’t my vibe. The backing track has no impact, and the song doesn’t build over the three minutes. Mia does a decent job at performing this live, although the nature of the song is quite monotone.
Performance and Act
Croatia has a lot of work to do when it comes to staging this. I would hope that they make dramatic improvements from the national selection, where the staging was a major snoozefest. I find it hard to connect with a performer who looks bored in their own performance. The interactions were awkward between Mia and the dancer, and if they keep this format I would hope that there’s a bit more emotion conveyed.
Conclusions
I think it will take an incredibly special performance for this to qualify. Coming directly after Portugal is also not ideal for Croatia, with Portugal boasting a much stronger female-led slower track. It’s safe to say, this is not my guilty pleasure.
Rating
2/10
Dennis
Song and Vocals
There are not a lot of songs in the singer-songwriter department when compared to some other Eurovision editions and Croatia might fill that void. Mia’s vocals were a bit shaky in the Croatian final, but it still was enough for her to win a ticket to Turin. The lyrics of this song are questionable, to say the least, and I am curious whether that will be picked up and cost them points in the jury vote and maybe televote as well.
Performance and Act
I did not think the performance and act in the Croatian preselection was good enough to make Croatia stand out in May as well. It feels a bit forced and obligatory with the man dancing and twirling around Mia, who does not come over comfortable with all the walking and moving around. Croatia has a lot of work to do to get her ready for the actual performance in Turin.
Conclusions
On first listen I don’t think many people will dislike the Croatian song, or it must be because of the message of the song (thinking about cheating). The song gives a cute singer-songwriter vibe, but there is nothing cute about it. This entry has the risk of either being forgotten, or either put people off. I don’t fancy their chances this year, but I am not ruling out a qualification just yet.
Rating
6/10
Team Scores
Steef: 3/10
Erik: 6/10
Josh: 6/10
Heath: 3.5/10
Kaitlin: 6/10
Selim: 7/10
Morena: 6/10
Average Score: 5.1/10
What do you think of Guilty Pleasure? Follow our Eurovision 2022 reviews here. You can support your favourite acts in our Eurovision 2022 poll, which you can find here.