K-Pop Demon Hunters is a new original movie, available on Netflix, that has been earning nationwide acclaim for its unique story, incredible music, and captivating animation. I finally got around to watching the film for myself just yesterday and decided to share my personal feelings about it, so let’s dive in! Oh, and be warned, this review contains spoilers.
I would like to start off with the aspects of the film and its story that I thoroughly enjoyed. First of all, the animation is excellent. It’s colorful and vibrant and the style is very reminiscent of the ‘Into the Spiderverse’ films. I loved the use of neon and fluorescent colors during the performances and especially the fight scenes.
Speaking of performances, THE MUSIC. The soundtrack to this movie is legit so frickin’ good. Every song just hits and this is coming from someone who generally does not like musicals. These songs get you hyped, they make you feel, they turn you on, the whole nine yards. “How It’s Done” and “Your Idol” were my personal favorite songs.
Now let’s talk about the main cast. Initially, I thought Mira was going to be my favorite Huntrix girlie. She’s tall and aggressive, a bit of a mean girl, but still very sincere in her mission and the connection she has with her friends. Her low register caught me pleasantly by surprise; it just suits her so well.
By the end of the film, however, Mira was not my favorite. That spot was stolen by Rumi, who is an absolute sweetheart. She carries a dire secret and insurmountable responsibility, yet remains steadfast and uncorrupted, even when she’s at her lowest. She, Mira, and Zoey put me in the mind of the Powerpuff Girls with their personalities and dynamic, and by this contrast, Rumi is definitely the ‘Blossom’ of the trio, while Mira is easily their ‘Buttercup’.
That brings us to Huntrix’s ‘Bubbles’, aka Zoey. I must be honest and say that I was the least fond of her. Not because she was a bad character, but because her personality, in my opinion, paled a little in comparison to her band-mates. Still, Zoey is sweet and ditzy and her zany dialog made me chuckle more than once.
As for the supporting cast, Bobby, Huntrix’s manager, was an out-of-left-field favorite of mine. Now, I don’t claim to be a K-Pop idol expert by any means, but I have both read and heard how cruel and tyrannical real life K-Pop managers can be. So while Bobby wasn’t very realistic (at least from my understanding), seeing a humane and compassionate depiction of an idol manager was a very welcome concept.
Onto the Saja Boys and everything I did not like about K-Pop Demon Hunters. The Saja Boys, the film’s primary antagonists, are largely forgettable in this viewer’s humble opinion. Jinu was the only one that I really liked, both for his character and appearance.
The other Sajas had next to no personality and two of them, Mystery and Romance, had utterly atrocious haircuts. They both looked like they were wearing two portions of the same mop on their heads. Baby Saja and Abs Saja were just there to be eye-candy and might have had a whopping six lines of dialog between them outside of musical numbers.
Pivoting back to Jinu, I initially suspected that he was going to be another piece of eye-candy without much depth. I couldn’t have been happier to be wrong! Jinu was a surprisingly complex character with a heart-breaking backstory. The movie did a good job of making me sympathize with him… but a bad job of resolving this poor soul’s turmoil. That’s kind of where my real gripes with this story begin.
I feel like K-Pop Demon Hunters left too much unsaid with its plot. There were so many interesting ideas and concepts, but not enough explanation. I believe that instead of being a movie, this story should have been a series. Eight to twelve thirty-minute episodes versus a one hour and forty-five minute movie could have granted K-Pop’s authors more time to fully expand upon the universe they built.
That way, viewers like me might not have come away feeling unsatisfied and with so many lingering questions. For instance, what was the story of Rumi’s human mother and demon father? What exactly becomes of the people who are taken by the demons? Are they gone forever or were they restored after Gwi-Ma was defeated? What did the other Saja demons get out of helping Jinu with his plan? Were they friends? Was Jinu just their boss? Explain, movie!
To continue, did Mira and Zoey apologize to Rumi for refusing to listen to her after they found out about her secret? They turned their weapons on her, for Heaven’s sake! Did Rumi and Celine reconcile after Gwi-Ma was vanquished? Did Celine realize she was wrong and that the things she said to Rumi were awful? Did she apologize, too?! Please explain, movie!
And regarding the fate of Jinu and the Saja boys, did they honestly have to die? Wasn’t the point to at least spare Jinu to give him a second chance? His ‘heroic’ sacrifice at the end felt so hollow to me. Does he at least get to exist as the soul within Rumi’s blade?! No?! Yes?!
What about Gwi-Ma and the other fodder demons? Are ALL the demons dead now that the Honmoon is stable, or are they just sealed away? Then why are the tiger and bird still alive and roaming free in the human world? Is Gwi-Ma gone forever?! No?! Yes?! Movie, I am begging you to explain!
So as you can see, K-Pop Demon Hunters left me with a frustrating amount of questions. I wholly stand by my theory that this story would have been shared better as a series rather than a film. As a feature film with a short runtime, it just isn’t long enough to delve into the story on a satisfactory level for me.
The vast amount of ideas, story elements, and character connections that just get brushed aside in the end was egregious, and I can’t stand when stories string you along with a good concept… but then ultimately do nothing with it. But who knows? Maybe we will get a continuation in the future, given the movie’s current success.
I give K-Pop Demon Hunters a 6.8 out of 10.
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