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Now Playing: KPop Demon Hunters

Any Huntrix stans here?

All images c/o Netflix

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I thought KPop Demon Hunters was going to be a cringefest. But two things had me looking forward to it – I like animated features and my ult girl group TWICE. I went in with caution and came out, like most of the people who have seen it, obsessed. 

As of writing, the animated feature produced by Sony Pictures Animation and streamed on Netflix, is already the number one streamed movie in over 20 countries. 

The songs featured in the movie – which are all absolute bangers – are also charting on the Spotify Global chart. 

So, yes. This little musing is rather late. But I wanted to make sure KPop Demon Hunters occupied some space in our little website. 

KPOP DEMON HUNTERS – When they aren’t selling out stadiums, Kpop superstars Rumi, Mira and Zoey use their secret identities as badass demon hunters to protect their fans from an ever-present supernatural threat. Together, they must face their biggest enemy yet – an irresistible rival boy band of demons in disguise. ©2025 Netflix

I’ve already shared on social media what I briefly thought about the movie. Here’s the sentiment: 

I thoroughly enjoyed KPop Demon Hunters. 

It has the magic of 2000s-2010s Pixar with a decidedly K-Culture coating. Animation & Art Style also feels fresh. 

All the songs are absolute bangers. Plus, of course, there’s TWICE Jeongyeon, Jihyo, and Chaeyoung singing “Take Down.”

Now I shall attempt to expound. 

KPop… Demon Hunters???

KPOP DEMON HUNTERS – (L-R) Zoey (voice by JI-YOUNG YOO), Rumi (voice by ARDEN CHO) and Mira (voice by MAY HONG) . ©2025 Netflix

The movie’s title doesn’t exactly inspire confidence that this would be any good. Why? For one, KPop and K-Culture in general has been on a fever pitch since around 2019-2020. The rise in interest in the whole K-Wave appeared like it was Netflix just trying to capitalize on it. 

But that was quickly allayed, at least for me, during the obligatory lore dump at the start of the film. Essentially, the KPop Demon Hunters have been around for generations. They protect the people from demons both through their music and through actual magical-girl combat– weapons and all. 

This whole premise has gone viral with some ONCEs (fans of TWICE) saying the reason the group’s been active for a decade now is because they’re our KPop Demon Hunters.

Anyway, after the lore dump. I was all in. It just made sense. I grew up listening to stories of music playing a role in some sort of unseen battle between good and evil. It’s a tale as old as time and has probably different versions of it in different countries and regions. 

Then, there’s the whole demon boy band thing. There has always been talk that The Devil uses music to lure people into. Tempt them to snatch their souls. That’s also a tale that’s been passed down from generations and is present in multiple cultures. 

The premise was solid. The presentation was pristine. And yes, again, I was all in. 

Animation and art style 

What I didn’t know coming in was that this was a Sony Pictures Animation production. If the Spider-Verse franchise is any indication, they sure know what they’re doing in this department. 

KPop Demon Hunters’ animation is unlike anything we’ve seen before from major, mainstream productions. The general look is very anime-inspired but in 3D or 2.5D or something of the sort. 

KPOP DEMON HUNTERS – (L-R) Rumi (voice by ARDEN CHO), Zoey (voice by JI-YOUNG YOO) and Mira (voice by MAY HONG) . ©2025 Netflix

The expressions our protagonists, the Huntrix, make are extremely expressive. And the whole film is bursting with color – definitely something that’s very KPop. 

I don’t have much to say here except that it feels very fresh and not something that’s been done before. The overall look feels new but also familiar and that certainly contributed to it being such a huge hit. 

Banger songs 

Like I mentioned earlier, my main hook for even wanting to check this out was that three members of TWICE were tapped to perform the film’s main theme “Take Down.”

The three members are (in age order which is how they prefer to be introduced) Jeongyeon, Jihyo, and Chaeyoung (my bias wrecker). 

The three appeared in plenty of promotions for the film too. But the lyric video of “Take Down” felt especially nice because it showed the three posing as if they were actually the Huntrix. 

But “Take Down” is just one of many tracks that are all absolute bangers. And each one was perfect for when they were used. 

“How It’s Done” showed off how the girls fought demons.

“Soda Pop” is a super catchy introduction to the demon boyband “Saja Boys”. It also absolutely pops off in Filipino/Tagalog.

“Golden” is a heartfelt, triumphant theme.

“Your Idol” is a dark, very in theme, song about idols snatching souls.

“What It Sounds Like” is an anthemic solemn hype track.

And, my personal favorite, “Free” displays different kinds of yearning that absolutely touches your soul. 

It’s no wonder that all the original tracks are currently charting on the Spotify Global chart. They’re all well-made and sound great on their own. But they’re also elevated by the circumstances in which they were played on the film. 

Listen to the full album:

Watch KPop Demon Hunters 

If you haven’t already, you should definitely watch KPop Demon Hunters. It has all the elements of a fantastic animated feature wrapped in K-Culture coating.

I haven’t even been able to touch on the excellent voice performances by Arden Cho (Teen Wolf, Partner Track) as Rumi and Ahn Hyo Seop (Business Proposal, Dr. Romantic) as Jinu as well as the other stand performances.

There’s just so much to love about the film. It’s also extremely rewatchable in different dubs too. I’ve so far seen the English (original), Filipino, and Japanese versions. They’re all fantastic.

It doesn’t hurt that overall, it’s really just one hour and 35 minutes of a damn good time.

Oh and there’s Derpy. We all love Derpy.

 

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KPop Demon Hunters streams on Netflix.

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Street Fighter special look: Blanka vs. Ryu

Jason Momoa, Andrew Koji’s characters face off

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Paramount Pictures has released a new special look for Street Fighter featuring Jason Momoa and Andrew Koji.

The short, minute-long clip shows the actors’ respective characters, Blanka and Ryu, in battle.

It opens with a chained prisoner struck by extreme electrical charges, transforming into the green-skinned, electricity-infused Blanka.

He unleashes a fierce roar. Meanwhile, Ryu drops into a fighting stance, but tells Blanka he does not want to fight him.

Forced to defend himself, Ryu then fires a signature Hadouken fireball towards Blanka, as the teaser cuts to the Street Fighter title card.

Street Fighter debuts in cinemas starting October 14. It is directed by Kitao Sakurai and stars an ensemble cast that includes Noah Centineo as Ken Masters, Callina Liang as Chun-Li, Joe “Roman Reigns” Anoai as Akuma, and Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson as Balrog, among others.

The film is set in 1993 when estranged Street Fighters Ryu and Ken Masters are thrown into combat when Chun-Li recruits them for the next World Warrior Tournament.

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Now Playing: Spider-Man: Brand New Day

It’s a must watch for Spidey fans who want to see Peter Parker enter his sad boy era.

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The Holland-led Spider-Man trilogy is one of my favorite franchises in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Compared to other series with admittedly disjointed plots, all of Spidey’s storylines have a clear thread leading from one to the next. Since the fourth entries after trilogies are historically lackluster, I had a lot of trepidation heading into Spider-Man: Brand New Day.

Thankfully, all those worries were unfounded. Brand New Day follows the same throughline as its predecessors, once again reinforcing Spider-Man as the strongest franchise that Marvel offers fans today.

A brand new day indeed

Coming from No Way Home, Brand New Day still has Peter Parker live a new life as a literal nobody where no one remembers who he is. So begins his existence as just Spider-Man with no friends or family.

When a new and unseen threat ravages through New York City, Spidey starts to wish that he still had friends to help him out, which leads him on an inevitable collision course with Ned and MJ. Ironically, it also leads him to other characters in the city, including the Hulk and the Punisher.

A cacophony of villains

When I first saw the trailer, I was worried about the astounding number of villains from the get-go. After all, one of the biggest problems in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 3, the most maligned entry in Spider-Man movie history, was the villains. Though far from the movie’s biggest problem, having too many bad guys without a solid plot led to its terrible reception. You can see why Brand New Day’s trailer raises some flags.

If you were thinking the same thing, Brand New Day does indeed have a cohesive plot. Everything flows neatly into one another. Each emotional beat of Peter feeling for his solitude mixes well with the action. In here, fight scenes feel like they have a purpose.

And there is a big bad here. It’s not just a collection of guys that Spidey has to go through. That big bad, who shall not be named at this time, doesn’t feel like just a placeholder for Peter’s internal struggles. They have a character of their own and their own struggles to solve. I wouldn’t say they’re at the level of Loki just yet, but they definitely have a better go at it than most of the MCU’s other villains.

Marvel’s New York City finally debuts

Despite being a prime location since 2012’s Avengers, New York City never really felt like the quintessential city for superheroes in the comics. In the movies, the city was just another city to be ravaged when a new villain comes along.

For the first time, Brand New Day makes the city feel like a lived-in world with a bunch of superheroes living in the neighborhood. And they do pop up.

Does Peter have a scientific problem that only a very specific hero can solve? It’s a good thing Bruce Banner is just around the corner. Does he need some muscle? Well, the Punisher is skulking around somewhere. Plus, there’s even a succinct reason why other superheroes can’t help out.

In this way, Brand New Day presents itself more like a comic book series than a one-off movie. It’s like following the story alone from issue to issue. It’s not the most perfect adaptation of the landmark city, but it goes a long way from just another ravaging of New York.

Peter’s sadness

Everything here hinges on Peter’s loneliness. Despite meeting a trove of characters across the cinematic universe, Peter yearns for time with his loved ones. But they’re gone.

Unlike the past three films where he always had someone to go home to, he has no one here. Tony Stark is dead. Aunt May is gone. Happy has gone to parts unknown. Ned and MJ have no memory of him. Brand New Day has a way of making you feel for his aches, whether the way he still keeps track of MJ or some physiological changes as a result of his predicament.

It also helps that the movie’s big bad has similar motivations. Both serve as perfect mirrors against each other, elevating both their stories effectively. And that’s all I’ll say about that.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day is a few steps behind from being a perfect Marvel movie, but it’s still an extremely strong part of the Spider-Man mythos. The trilogy, now quadrilogy, remains Marvel’s most consistent franchises to date. It’s an absolute must-watch.

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UNDERTALE: The Determination Symphony hits Makati in October

Determination arrives in October.

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For so small of a game, UNDERTALE quickly made it into the gaming world’s hall of fame. Despite being only a decade old, the small title has had a major influence for modern-day gamers because of its unique gameplay, its lo-fi art, and, of course, its catchy soundtrack. If you’re a fan of UNDERTALE’s soundtrack, a unique concert experience is headed your way.

On October 17, Film Concerts PH, in partnership with SOHO Live, is hosting UNDERTALE: The Determination Symphony at the Proscenium Theater in Rockwell, Makati.

The concert will be performed by the Filharmonika Orchestra and conducted by Thanapol Setabrahmana. Personally curated by creator Toby Fox and developed by Lambert Jackson with Materia Music, the concert experience showcases the game’s most recognizable tunes laid over gameplay footage playing simultaneously. Plus, for the world tour, the experience will have expanded scoring.

In the game, you play as a small child stuck in the mysterious Underground filled with interesting characters and monsters. Unlike traditional RPGs, UNDERTALE asks players to choose between building relationships and chasing after wins. It’s a unique experience that’s defined by whether you chose to make friends or fought your way to the top. It teaches players to value different ways to solve problems, all while showering them with its one-of-a-kind humor.

Pre-sales for the concert, exclusively for members of the Film Concerts PH community, start on August 4. Public sales, however, will start on August 11 via Ticketmelon.

SEE ALSO: The hunt begins: The Witcher in Concert hits Manila with surprises in tow

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