K-Pop Demon Hunters, available on Netflix, was released June 20, 2025, and was directed by Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans. While many people may consider this another generic kids’ movie, some teenagers—including myself—think that it’s an outstanding film with a great soundtrack and story.
The movie follows an idol group of three girls called HUNTR/X. Not only are these girls K-pop idols, but behind the music and success, they have a gnarly secret. This group is formed by Rumi, voiced by Arden Cho, Mira, voiced by May Hong, and Zoey, voiced by Ji-young Yoo. While being a successful girl group, they secretly hunt demons, ensuring they don’t disrupt the human world around them. Their main goal is to seal the demons away forever with the help of their fans’ support. This all changes when a rival group, made up of demons, known as “The Saja Boys,” is recruited to steal HUNTR/X’s fans.
One of the key factors that makes this movie great is its characters. Rumi, the leader of the group, is the focus of the movie as she tries to deal with her insecurities and her dark secret. I think Rumi is a very interesting character because we learn so much about her past and upbringing. Next is Mira, who’s a very blunt person, which I love. She is my personal favorite of the three girls because she looks the best visually to me. She’s basically how I would act if I were there, so I relate to her. The last girl in the group is Zoey, the comedic relief, who has a bubbly personality. She’s my least favorite of the trio because I didn’t really connect to her much, but I like her and Mira’s friendship. Each of the girls has their own time to shine during the film, even though it is somewhat Rumi-centric.
Unlike HUNTR/X, which gives the girls their own moments in the film, the Saja Boys are led by one main character (Jinu) with four secondary members: Abby, Romance, Baby, and Mystery. They each give off a different boy band stereotype to appeal to their different types of fans. I think the addition of the Saja Boys was a great conflict to the film. Not only do they challenge the girl’s popularity with fans, but they also challenge HUNTR/X’s friendship as the plot deepens. They also brought so much comedic fun to the scenes they were in. Their only two songs in the movie were so catchy, and when I hear their song “Soda Pop,” it makes me want a soda real bad.
For me, the most important part of the movie is the soundtrack. If you’re going to make a movie based on K-pop, then you have to make the songs listenable at least. With that being said, they did just that. Every song is a banger and is great to listen to. My favorite songs are “Takedown” and “Your Idol.” They are the best songs of the film for me because I enjoy how upbeat “Takedown” is, and for “Your Idol,” the vocals are captivating. My controversial take is that I think the songs “Golden” and “What It Sounds Like” are overrated. When you actually sit down and listen, it’s good, but not comparable to other songs on the soundtrack. I get that they both have significant meanings to the characters in the film, specifically Rumi, but I think it’s the scenes that make people like the songs more.
Although the film is amazing, there was much more that wasn’t unpacked because it was limited to an hour and a half runtime. Near the end of the movie, there is a conflict, and HUNTR/X is disbanded. I feel like they could’ve added a bit more to the story to show how everyone felt during that difficult moment. It would have also given Mira and Zoey more scenes to see their point of view, since they don’t get as many moments as Rumi does. The rushed storyline leaves fans wanting more, which increases conversation for a second movie.
I think the stellar soundtrack, characters, and storyline are ultimately why the movie has risen in popularity and captivated so many people. I’d recommend this movie to anyone looking for a new watch. Although the name is a little awkward, the film will have you in tears by the end of it. It’s a beautiful movie that everyone needs to see at least once in their life.
