Review: KPop Demon Hunters is a no-skips album in movie form

It's a great feeling when you start watching a movie and you immediately know the movie has got it. The confidence, the swagger, the style, the special sauce. To know you're in good hands, to to be sold right from the get-go, is such a good feeling, and not necessarily a common on. It is exactly how I felt watching KPop Demon Hunters (now streaming on Netflix), which is a movie that is, from second one, firing on all cylinders. 

This movie is a true feast for the senses, one that's overwhelming in its generosity, in its care, in its excitement. There are so many adjectives I want to throw at this movie, but that would only be scratching the surface. Because this is a movie that dials everything up to the max. Not in a way that's annoying or loud or anything. This is a movie that is so willing to lean into every curve along the way. When it's funny, it's gut-bustingly hilarious. It its action scenes, there is so much thrilling, fluid choreography that will take your breath away. The songs are incredible -- downloaded the soundtrack as soon as the credits rolled. The romance is 10/10 swooning material, the kind that makes you sigh and squeal and cry.

It's a movie that is so proud of everything it is, and does everything it does so well, and it feels like a gift to get to watch it, to be along for the ride, to fall in love with these characters and spend time in this world. It's cool and silly and expansive. I want a bunch of prequels, and just as many sequels. I want to watch this one over and over again to make sure I get to bask in every glorious little detail and laugh at every perfectly timed joked and funny facial expression one of the characters pulls. I want to drool over that demonic boy band even more.

God, I love this movie.

Yeah, KPop Demon Hunters was always going to be an easy sell for me. It's about a KPop girl group, Huntrix, that moonlights as demon hunters. Badass, perfect, love. The movie lays out its lore early, which reminded me of Buffy the Vampire Slayer: throughout history, there's always a musical trio whose songs help keep the demons at bay, powering a magical barrier (called the Honmoon) that protects the world. All while looking and sounding fabulous. Huntrix is the latest iteration of this tradition: leader Rumi, who's harboring a shameful secret; energetic Zoey, who is bursting with ideas (and lyrics), a master rapstress; and pink-haired dance-crazy Mira, whose tough exterior and no-nonsense approach make her an intimidating presence.

This trio is so easy to fall in love with. Their personalities are so perfectly defined, and the way they play off and with each other is hysterical, and more importantly, feels so authentic. There's a safety these women have found in each other, a sense of belonging, a judgement-free zone. There's power in that chosen family, and in the collaboration, on both the musical and ass-kicking fronts (which sometimes, excitingly, happen at the same time). They're so silly together, so weird, so authentic. I wish I could be friends with them, honestly.

We meet Huntrix as they're getting ready to perform the final show of a big world tour, a show that some demons are desperate to interrupt. What ensues is such an amazingly-conceived and -executed scene that lets you know exactly what kind of movie you're in for. I was practically levitating out of my seat. Every note is perfect.

Huntrix is on the verge of taking the Honmoon to its final, golden level, which is, of course, causing a stir in the demonic realm. There, a crafty demon with a tragic backstory (and a face card that never declines), Jinu, concocts a plan to come at Huntrix on their home turf. Thus, a demonic boy band is born, the Saja Boys, who start stealing fans away. The turf war becomes complicated when Jinu discovers Rumi's secret (I'm not saying what it is here), sparking an unlikely connection between the two. Forbidden romance, anyone?

It's appropriate that a movie about fighting demons also tackles the hard work of fighting one's own inner demons. There's a lot to unpack here: the desire to be accepted while also fearing you'll be rejected if you're authentically yourself; the heightened sense of community that comes from being a part of something like a fandom (or a band); the strange pressures of being a celebrity in an Internet-dominated world. In ways, Rumi's journey reminds me of Elsa's in Frozen: the struggle to exist in a world that might not accept you if it really got to see who you are. It's classic, sturdy thematic ground, and it's explored in beautiful, creative ways here.

Including the soundtrack. This movie is packed with songs, all of which carry thematic and character weight beyond just being really, really good songs. Time and time again, Rumi finds herself grappling with the power of her voice, a voice that is becoming increasingly unreliable, that she fears she might lose altogether. This extends to the lyrics of the songs the group sings, particularly a new one they're crafting as a sort of diss track to bring the Saja Boys down a peg. To her, it feels inauthentic to sing such a nasty song, against the grain of who she is, who Huntrix are. I love the push-pull of the group navigating the complexities of what they want to present on stage, who they are backstage, what it means to use their voices for good. And seeing where they land, how they find their way back to who they are, to each other, is tremendously moving.

As much as I've talked about how well KPop Demon Hunters operates in all these different modes (action, musical, romance, comedy), I think it's important to note that it's pretty much operating in all of them at all times. This movie is so deft in how it weaves together its different themes, ideas, humor, action, etc. into something that's so cohesive and hard-to-pin-down and always right. I can't overstate how impressive it is to see (and hear) in action. It's a no-skips album in movie form.

I need him so bad