In K-pop, fans come first, or if acts of catchy South Korean music constantly say to the legions of dedicated subscribers who propelled them into international celebrity. If it was not for the fans, the group of BTS boys could not have filled the Sofi stadium four times, and Blackpink would never have been invited to the head of Coachella – and there would be no reason for Greenlight a film like “K -Pop Demon Hunters”.
The title says that everything in the high-energy supernatural action comedy and high concept of Sony Pictures Animation, the multipurpose studio responsible for “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” and “The Mitchels vs the Machines”: three Gwi-Ma Gwi-Ma superstars of ultra-talente.
Known of the world under the name of Huntrix, Mira (May Hong), the rap of rap and the Ji-Young Yoo) and the Ji-Young Yoo) and Ji-Young Yoo) and the Rumi (Arden Cho) are what you could call a triple threat: they sing, they dance, they kill demons. When they do not cut evil spirits in two with their pink phosphorescent weapons, the group exploits love fans show them to build a barrier, known as the Honmoon of Gold, which will block demons once and for all.
But Juni (Ahn Hyo-Seop), one of the most tortured acolytes in Gwi-Ma, has an inspired idea: with four comrades of ridiculously beautiful demons, he will start a rival group, The Saja Boys, and will try to attract Huntrix fans with the dark side. What neither juni nor Rumi see coming is how irresistible they will be. The Rom-Com intrigue of human demène which results can be predictable, but not the torsion that the “K-Pop demon hunters”, which strikes Netflix on the same day, “Elio” of Pixar opens in theaters, turns out to be the most entertaining of the two animated offers.
Indeed, the Codirectors Chris Appehans (“Wish Dragon”) and Maggie Kang (who worked in the history services of DreamWorks, Blue Sky and Illumination) use their attractive and shameless premise to release a much more fun approach to computer animation than all the studios that have tried. The creative team is inspired by Webtoons and Manhwa (Korean graphic novels), emphasizing the dynamic silhouettes on the movement without intermediary.
Not erasing what it means? Look at how the characters strike and maintain certain key poses while the camera slides and zoom around them. This started as an economy measurement on animated series such as “Speed Racer” and “The PowerPuff Girls” during the day now gives “K-Pop Demon Hunters” a clearly Asian flavor, embellished with pretty touches of comics.
For example, when Huntrix sees the Saja boys, girls stop in their footsteps while their students swell in swollen red hearts. Reacting to the torn appearance of the guys, Zoey’s eyes change forms several times, from the abdos of six packs to a pair of butter corn. The reaction of the young woman in love offers an unforgettable alternative to Randy Wolf in the cartoon “Red Hot Riding Hood” of Tex Avery, while twin streams of popcorn burst like tears of her red red face.
Instead of being disgusting, violence is just as visually attractive. The weapons of the trio are so sharp that they are cleaning through demons (easily identified by purple marks shredded on their zombie skin), or lead them to explode in an explosion of confetti. Later, they grouped through a fault in the Honmo, galloping on all fours like so many gollms because they suck the souls of the humans nearby (implicit more than seen, in order to preserve the PG coast of the film).
Fast and effective, the film flare through a first act of the exhibition in less than 15 minutes, which is just about the moment when we learn the secret of Rumi: she is the daughter of a mom of Pop-Singer and a demon father who is marked by the same purple imprints as the spirits she has sworn to eliminate. The only person who knows the hybrid status of Rumi is Huntrix Celine’s trust coach (Yunjin Kim), who believes that Rumi can keep his demonic genes in check. But the group’s mentor has never planned his protégé falling in love with a bad boy like Juni, who also has some secrets in his sleeve.
A secondary intrigue involving problems with Rumi’s voice does not quite work, although it slows down the narration long enough for funny character moments, like a trip full of action at the SPA and a short stay, with bubble tea and bingsu. You cannot have a CG cartoon these days without adorable animal acolyte, which is in the form of a smiling tiger demon and a black bird in a tiny Gat (hat), both designed to look directly out of Korean folklore.
The K-Pop angle puts an obvious challenge for filmmakers in that this Toon needs original songs to make him sing, as well as the catchy choreography to distinguish it from vintage programs like “Josie and the Pussy Cats” and “Jem and the Holograms”. Compiled by a range of A -List music producers, the Macaronic soundtrack (which mixes English and Korean lyrics) includes three strokes for Huntrix, interpreted by Ejae, Audrey Nuna and Rei Ami – “How It’s Fait”, “Golden” and “Takedown” (the latter covered twice compared to final credits). Better still is “Free”, an out -of -competition duo between Ejae and Andrew Choi (Rumi and Juni’s Singing Voices, respectively).
Because the film Numble and Genre-Hopping takes place in the world of K-Pop, it may not even come to the minds of fans that they watch a musical-although it is a little difficult to deny when you catch while singing.
