This was a film that wasn’t initially on my radar, but after seeing the rave reviews it’s been getting, I figured it wouldn’t hurt to give it a shot. Honestly, I should’ve watched this sooner. This film is a product of Sony Animation, the same animation company that made gems such as Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse & The Mitchells vs The Machines, and follows a K-pop girl group who protect the world from demons when they’re not entertaining their millions of fans. Very similar to other films from Sony Animation, this film has a very unique animation style. Coupled with its vibrant colors and mix of 2D & 3D animation, the frame rate of the animation is lowered (similar to Spider-Verse) to give the film more of a stylized feel, which I very much appreciated. The story was quite engaging and complex as well. The action set pieces were incredible and the characters were charming and well-written, protagonists and antagonists alike. (Our three main protagonists, Rumi, Mira and Zoey, and the antagonist, Jinu, were easily the most engaging characters in the cast.) The themes of acceptance and identity were surprisingly prevalent, and I think even those who aren’t huge fans of the K-pop genre can find something to enjoy in the infectiously fun and well choreographed soundtrack. Overall, I ended up enjoying this film a lot more than I thought I would, and with a sequel officially coming in 2029, I’m very much looking forward to seeing these characters again. Score: 9/10
Noah Robinson 