All the screenshots in this post were taken directly from the movie by me. Kpop Demon Hunters is available on Netflix.
Kpop Demon Hunters is one of the most pleasant surprises I've received so far this year, a film with a rather entertaining premise and an animation style that perfectly captures K-pop culture.
While this film is clearly not for me, you only need to look at the many positive reviews it has received since its release. It joins the list of animated films that, along with works like Spider-Verse or the recent Oscar winner Flow, demonstrate a renaissance in the entire medium.
Directed by Chris Appelhans and Maggie Kang, Kpop Demon Hunters follows a three-girl musical group called Huntr/X. They are hunters of "demons," creatures that have stalked humans for centuries in order to bring their souls to their leader, a creature called Gwi-Ma.
After several failed attempts to conquer the land, a demon named Juni proposes to Gwi-Ma that they create a boy band to win over the entire Huntr/X audience.
The thing is, one of the girls in the group, Rumi, is hiding a little secret: she's half hunter, half demon.
Beyond the interesting premise, the true virtue of Kpop Demon Hunters lies in its brilliant audiovisual section, as well as its ability to capture all the virtues and tropes of Kpop girl groups and boy bands in the two main groups.
As if that weren't enough, this is mixed with Korean cultural elements and several quite ingenious combat sequences. All of this without mentioning the quality music that fills a considerable portion of the entire film.
Kpop Demon Hunters isn't a perfect film, and if I had to point out a flaw, I'd say its humor is extremely childish (something that doesn't match the rest of its elements), but it's a fairly entertaining story, and considering it's available on Netflix, I recommend giving it a try.
It's funny, heartwarming, and captures the Asian aesthetic very well.
This score was taken directly from my Letterboxd account.
Twitter/Instagram/Letterbox: Alxxssss
