How the animated movie quickly took over the film and music industry
By Cayden Cho and Ethan Han
Graphic by Derek Ramos-Schneider
While unexpected by many, the hit movie K-pop Demon Hunters took over last summer. In the span of only a couple of months, it dominated the Internet with fury.
K-pop Demon Hunters follows a famous K-pop group, HUNTR/X, and its three members, Rumi, Mira, and Zoey. On the surface, they seem like a normal group, but are actually guardians of the world, fighting against demons, particularly a rival group called the Saja Boys. However, this simple story dives much deeper, as the movie conveys deep messages of self-acceptance. The story is filled with action, comedy, flamboyant animation, and deeper meanings that the world can relate to. It also takes inspiration from Korean folk tales such as the word “Saja,” meaning “grim reaper” or “lion”. All of these blend together to create a movie that many are able to enjoy. Those who enjoy K-pop and movies can finally watch a creative mix between the two, and even the most skeptical audience members can have fun during the movie.
The use of color in the movie makes it captivating, with the “good guys” associated with blue and the demons as red. Because Rumi, the main character, is half-demon, she was drawn with the color purple. As creative as this was, the movie was able to shine most greatly through its use of music. K-pop Demon Hunters utilizes a unique style of incorporating its catchy music into animation, capturing the interest of many viewers. Although many animated movies have included music before, few have used it in the same distinctive way the creators of K-pop Demon Hunters were able to. K-pop Demon Hunters turned music into the main focus of the story, using it to induce intense emotion and even to develop the characters. One animator even confirmed that the fight scenes were synced to the rhythm of the songs. Even though these visually stunning scenes were met with approbation from around the world, the soundtrack was truly where it stood out.
The most popular song in the movie, “Golden”, reached the #1 spot on Billboard Hot 100. It is currently the most streamed song on the US Spotify Daily Chart, reaching about 700 million streams in total. Other songs in the movie like “Sodapop” and “Your Idol” follow closely behind, with “Sodapop” in the 3rd spot and “Your Idol” in the 5th. Despite all the attention it gained, the movie was never heavily advertised. This begs the question: How did it gain so much popularity?
Sony and Netflix used few traditional advertisements (TV commercials, posters, and ads on digital media) when promoting the movie at first. Instead, it exploded through fan-driven momentum on social media. The initial audience praised both the visually and aurally stunning aspects of the movie through platforms like TikTok and Instagram, as one student of RHS stated that they discovered it through “Netflix and social media.” As more people took notice of this, more curious viewers were drawn in.
While most of the audience gave positive feedback on the movie, some people have mixed reviews. Graham Glidden, a freshman at RHS, explains that he “liked how the audience can be really diverse, where young kids that are like five or six are watching, but also some adults can even watch and still enjoy it.” While the flashy songs and humor can resonate with younger viewers, the underlying themes and deeper messages can be relatable to an older audience.
When asked about the soundtrack, he replied, “I think the first song was way too overhyped and I was not prepared for it, but the other songs were pretty good with their choreography and stuff.” Finally, Graham had one last comment about the visual aspects of the movie. He stated that “there was too much animation, like pop-pups,” showing that the movie wasn’t perfect for some people.
So, what did YOU think about the movie?