KPop Demon Hunters
Stream on Netflix
Runtime: 1 Hours 39 Minutes
Rated PG
Three girls continue a legacy of singing and demon hunting. Rumi, Mira, and Zoey share the stage as famous kpop singers while balancing a secret life of saving the world from demons that want to steal people’s souls. Little do they know that the toughest enemy they have ever faced will show up in a demon boy band.
Themes:
KPop, demons, legacy, music, rap, boy bands, souls, fans, fame, relaxing, lineage, becoming more than our heritage/past, Raman noodles, voices, putting up walls, friendship, romance, family, sacrifice, secrets, competition, patterns, choices, someone’s past, music awards shows, winning, evil, evil choices, friends that help us become better, deception, hiding who we are, betrayal, and helping others.
Language:
There are no traditional curse words, but they do say things like idiot, jerk, butt, and jeez.
Stuff to be aware of:
Scary - The demons in the movie are very animated and colorful, but some of them do have a creepiness about them. Some look like zombies. Their glowing eyes add to the creepiness. Many of them have long tongues, fangs, and look a bit like what you might see in old drawings and paintings from Eastern culture. They talk about eating people and devouring their souls. The demons are scarier than the monsters in Monster’s Inc, they are not cute and cuddly.
There is a creepy-looking demon cat, but his scariness is offset by the humorous things he does. Demons are seen sucking people’s souls out and then the people disappear.
Sexual - Some girls wear midriffs. Girls ogle over boys who are in tight shirts. One of the boy’s shirt buttons pops off, revealing his six-pack abs. One of the girls ogling over him during this scene has her eyes turn into things that resemble six-pack abs, such as corn on the cob with butter melting.
One scene takes place in a bathhouse. There is a little old man seen bare-chested in a bath towel. There is also a scene with the girls in a hottub, but only their bare shoulders are seen.
Violence - There is a lot of fighting, but nothing gruesome. It keeps it in the PG rating. Demons get beaten up and cut in half, but there is no blood. If a demon gets a limb cut off, it just kind of disappears in a magical light. The demons get stabbed, sliced, diced, and killed, but they always just kind of evaporate when they die in a very PG magical way.
Other - There is a demon that is dressed like a man, but one of the girls puts makeup on him. There is talk about killing people.
Overall:
Seeing It With Your Family
Outside of the demons possibly being scary to younger viewers, this is family-friendly and sticks with its PG rating. If you have a young viewer wanting to watch this, it might be wise to discuss with them that while demons are mentioned in the Bible, they are not like what is in the movie. They do not sneak up behind people and suck their souls out. It would also be a good jump-off point to discuss how important it is that we surround ourselves with good, even in what music we listen to. Music can have a profound impact on the listener.
What I Thought
I went into this with very low expectations. I rolled my eyes at the title. Okay, I will admit it. It isn’t horrible, and I enjoyed it. The story is predictable, but the characters are interesting enough, and its quirkiness makes it entertaining enough for me to see why lots of people are enjoying it. This may be a good movie to introduce your kids to anime or more intense animated movies and shows.
The music is also pretty good, and the animation isn’t bad. It has a Spider-Verse vibe, but isn’t quite as colorful and stylized at Spider-Verse. It isn’t one I will be watching over and over again, but it was good enough for a family movie night. I imagine there will be a lot of kids watching this one over and over again.