ELLY GRIMM
• Leader & Times
The artists at Sony Animation have been knocking it out of the park with their releases and a couple weeks ago, those geniuses struck the perfect chord yet again with their most recent release, “KPop Demon Hunters” on Netflix. The movie follows a fictional K-pop girl group, Huntr/x, who lead double lives as demon hunters; they face off against a rival boy band, the Saja Boys, whose members are secretly demons bent on taking over the world.
I should know by now not to doubt the talent at Sony Animation because like with its 2019 offering “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse,” I saw some of the initial marketing and thought “Eh, I might enjoy it, let’s see how it is” and ended up really enjoying it, much more than I expected.
To start off, the voiceover talent is great. Arden Cho, May Hong and Ji-young Yoo have great chemistry and rapport as the speaking voices of the film’s leading Huntr/x ladies, and there are multiple humorous moments where it genuinely feels like they’ve been friends for years, which I absolutely loved and was reminded of some of my own friendships from high school and college. Singers Ejae, Audry Nuna and Rei Ami do a great job as the leading ladies’ singing voices, and there are multiple moments where their Huntr/x harmonies are absolutely gorgeous, almost like they’ve legitimately been singing together for years. Other particular standouts for me were Lee Byung-hun as the main antagonist, demon king Gwi-Ma (who’s very scary and powerful and definitely a being I wouldn’t want to come across) and Ahn Hyo-seop as Jinu, the leader of the Saja Boys (who’s able to blend cockiness and remorse as the movie goes on and his backstory is revealed). Overall, the people in charge of casting did a very good job, and everyone put on a good performance.
The animation and other visuals are also very impressive, and there were a few moments that reminded me of the “Spider-verse” films, which I absolutely did not mind. I could absolutely see how the movie was influenced by concert lighting and music videos as well as various anime projects, and the end result was pure eye candy throughout. As odd as it might sound, I also REALLY liked the designs for the various food shown in the movie, it all looked so realistic and delicious and actually made me just slightly hungry for a snack when I was watching. I also liked the character designs for the various demons, because they’re scary without being too much so while still looking pretty fierce and unwelcoming – well, except for Jinu’s tiger, who is basically just a big cat, loud purring and all. I also really really liked all the different uses of color throughout the movie, everything just absolutely popped onscreen and looked amazing, and the use of the different colors also carries some symbology as the movie goes on. Overall, the people who worked on the visual aspects of this movie did a great job and deserve all the awards when the next season rolls around.
The music throughout the movie is also very well done, and I could tell there was definitely effort toward that aspect. The lyrics of each song definitely help tell a story as the movie goes along, and all the songs are full of heart and some deeper meaning for those who really listen. I also really liked how the songs at the beginning sounded more like stereotypical pop songs and then gradually become more honest and raw as the movie goes along, which I felt showed good character development/evolution. One of my particular favorites was “How It’s Done” by Hunter/x which is a GREAT and catchy opener and full of energy and drive. I also particularly liked “Your Idol” from the Saja Boys near the end, which is also very catchy with a slightly evil undertone (which is very fitting given the scene surrounding it), and “What It Sounds Like,” which is very uplifting and sweet and features multiple moments of absolutely gorgeous harmonies. Overall, the people in charge of the music should get a big round of applause.
While I overall enjoyed the movie, I did have a few minor gripes, one of them being a lack of backstory. I felt like there could have been some of the movie spent explaining more of the anti-demon lore and how all of that came about, because it’s only rather briefly mentioned and then the movie moves on. I also would have liked to see more of how Huntr/x officially came together and how they were chosen for their mission. I also felt like the movie moved just a little too quickly without very much chance to really absorb what happens onscreen, and I definitely felt the movie’s ending was rather abrupt. With that, maybe there are plans for a sequel movie or companion miniseries or something similar, but I definitely felt like there were some parts of the movie that didn’t quite get enough resolution. Overall, however, these gripes are rather minor.
Overall, I enjoyed “KPop Demon Hunters” and thought it was a very fun movie that also gave me a glimpse into K-pop music, and I would give it an A-minus grade. The voiceover work on the speaking and singing sides for everyone was very well done, and all of the cast members were very well picked. The animation and visuals were also very well done, and I absolutely loved the use of color throughout and all the different character designs – there was definitely care taken to make the visuals as amazing as possible. The music was also very well done, and there was also clearly attention and effort put toward making that great also, and there are some definite earworms from the movie. If you’re a fan of K-pop music and that type of overall storytelling, “KPop Demon Hunters” is definitely one to cue up on Netflix. And, despite the name, it is a suitable watch for children.
