K-Movie Review - KPop Demon Hunters
- Mann_ Ritzz
- Aug 7
- 4 min read
Dazzling visuals, charismatic choreographies, high-energy performances, visually stunning groups, the electrifying genre K-Pop has become a global musical phenomenon and captured the world. Yet in a beautiful turn of events the spotlight now moves towards fictional groups.
It’s not hard to see why KPop Demon Hunters feels like a heartfelt letter that is full of love and gratitude to not only K-Pop music but Korean culture in general.
Movie: KPop Demon Hunters
Release year: 2025
Directors: Chris Appelhans and Maggie Kang.
Producer: Michelle Wong.
Screenplay by: Danya Jimenez, Hannah McMehan, Maggie Kang, and Chris Appelhans.
Cinematography by: Gary H. Lee.
Music by: Marcelo Zarvos.
Produced by Sony Picture Animation Netflix’s ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ tells the story about a girl group called Huntr/x comprising of trio Rumi (voiced by Arden Cho) , Mira (voiced by May Hong) and Zoey (voiced by Ji-young Yoo) who are beloved K-Pop idols by day and ruthless demon hunters by the night and come from a long legacy of women demon hunters. Their aim is to protect the golden Honmoon created ages ago and change it into Golden Honmoon with the power of their music and to banish the demons from entering the human world and banish them permanently.
The movie opens where Huntr/x are combating demons who try to stop them from performing their show. This sounds like a plot that is straight out of a webtoon or manhwa. Of course the movie quickly wins over the viewers for its originality, quirky humor, engaging characters, catchy soundtracks along with thrilling action sequences and emotional narrative and at the same time shares a deep message about self-acceptance and friendship.
But what’s the action without a huge twist that comes with a conflict which creates a rift between lifelong friends ? And here it is about our protagonist Rumi being half demon- born to a demon father and demon hunter mother, unknown to her friends. It is clear throughout the movie that she has carried this burden all by herself and feels pressured to keep this secret which is only known to her foster parent Celine (voiced by Yunjin Kim) - a former ex-demon hunter and Hunt/x’s mentor.
The tension escalates when Huntr/x are challenged by Saja Boys- a boy group consisting of demons in disguise. The group’s leader is Jinu (voiced by Ahn Hyo-seop) who is also the mastermind behind the creation of the group and sever Gwi-Ma (voiced by Lee Byung-hun), the demon lord. Their aim is to steal the beloved fans who and their ability to do so contributes to the absorption of souls that build up the power of the demon king. As Huntr/x and Saja Boys battle on and off the stage somewhere between this conflict Jinu discovers Rumi’s secret and the two bond over their hidden realities.
This small romance sub-plot feels quite catchy and natural and skillfully delivers the famous enemies-to-lovers concept but eventually ends with a tragedy. One of the most genuine things to see is Jinu’s sacrifice to save Huntr/x and Rumi’s acceptance of her true identity which doesn’t look rushed at all.
The keenly observed details, mythological references, to Korean folklore, Korean folk paintings , K-Pop culture, the cuisine and even daily routine habits as well as production crew’s research trip to South Korea that was led by the co-director and the originator of KPop Demon Hunters Maggie Kang in order to document details portrays not only K-Pop but also Korean culture in the most authentic manner and has been lauded for the same.
Talking about music, all 12 songs are bangers. The soulful lyrics that are incorporated into the story, the charismatic choreographies and stunning visuals enhance the emotions in the critical moments of the plot. No wonder songs like ‘Golden’ ‘Soda Pop’ ‘ How It’s Done’ ‘Takedown” ‘Your Idol’ "What It Sounds Like' 'KPop Demon Hunters' have topped the charts on Spotify Charts and Billboard Hot 100 and 200.
As we all know that K-Pop is incomplete without its fandom and their support. The portrayal of fans describing their biases, fan signing events, light sticks representing their groups, the age groups of fans, the merchandise with the groups’ names, fans doing trends on social media, all of these have been accurately illustrated that fans worldwide can relate with this.
Maggie Kang’s narrative makes it clear that ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ is more than just a coming-of-age romance story. The movie’s real strength lies in its exploration of self acceptance, friendship and sisterhood. The idea is to accept your real self and not be ashamed of it and if your loved ones truly understand you then they will accept you and love you as you are.
The movie leaves you with an impression that maybe a series with more time to delve deeper can serve it even better as so many questions remain unanswered. But for now, a sequel wouldn’t be a bad idea- because honestly we as fans are definitely not done with Soda Pop just yet.
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