Latest news with #Oscar-bait
Mint
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Mint
‘KPop Demon Hunters' shows how kids matter more to streaming than adults
If you're over 30, you've not watched the most popular animated movie in the world right now. Unless, of course, you are a parent. There exists a vast, brightly lit playground of content where grown-ups without children never wander, and within that candy-coloured wilderness, KPop Demon Hunters has planted its glitter-tipped flag. Six weeks after its 25 June release, the Netflix original became the most-watched animated film in the platform's history. This matters not merely because of the numbers (though those are gargantuan, with 158.8 million total views placing it fourth among all of Netflix's English-language films) but because it proves that the 'adult market" is no longer the beating heart of global entertainment. The children, the tweens, and the fervid fan-armies are in charge. The rest of us can either watch, or be left out of the conversation entirely. We may be one pop-chorus away from singing Baby Shark at cocktail parties just to fit in. What KPop Demon Hunters truly signals is that the 'mature" adult market is now a minority demographic in global media consumption. Our prestige-TV discussions, our Oscar-bait dramas, our limited-series think-pieces? They are but niche pursuits compared to the universal reach of a K-pop anthem paired with demon-slaying choreography. Directed by Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans for Sony Pictures Animation, KPop Demon Hunters is exactly what its title promises, and then some: a neon mash-up of K-drama emotionality, splash-pages, anime fight-physics, and arena-style concert lighting. The story follows Huntr/x, a girl-group whose day job is selling out stadiums, and whose night shifts involve slicing through supernatural baddies with otherworldly flair. Their power source? 'Honmoon" energy—something that is part spiritual essence, part chart-topper adrenaline. The set-pieces alternate between the spectacular (stadium pyrotechnics and demon-portal vortexes feel cut from the same storyboard) and the slyly absurd. The action moves like choreography, every punch a pirouette, every back-flip a key change. The visual aesthetic owes a significant debt to the Spider-Verse movies, and the hyper-stylised cuts of Korean music videos, but the blend is seamless. The K-pop aesthetic appears to be made for fantasy combat, and vice versa. K-pop isn't wallpaper here: it's plot, propulsion, and in-story weaponry. The soundtrack boasts songwriting royalty (TEDDY, Danny Chung, IDO) and performances from EJAE, REI AMI, and TWICE's Jeongyeon, Jihyo, and Chaeyoung. The album itself hit No.2 on the Billboard 200, with over 1.5 billion streams globally. The film's biggest hit, the single Golden, didn't just go viral; it topped the Billboard Global 200 for three weeks and became the first all-female group track to hit No.1 on the Billboard Streaming Songs chart. I'd honestly be surprised if the track doesn't get nominated for an Oscar next year. It is rare for critics to agree so enthusiastically on something pitched squarely at younger audiences. Yet KPop Demon Hunters wears a 97% critics' score on Rotten Tomatoes like a sparkly tiara, while audiences give it a hearty 92%. The reviews have been uniformly enthusiastic. If you want proof that the throne has shifted to the nursery, here it is: Netflix's all-time top 3 English-language films are Red Notice (230.9 million views), Carry-On (172.1 million), and Don't Look Up (171.4 million). Most recently, Adam Sandler sequel Happy Gilmore 2 swung on to the screen with a record-breaking 46.7 million views in its first three days, marking Netflix's biggest US opening ever for a film. Yet here's the kicker: while Sandler's sequel shot out of the gate like a golf ball on fire, KPop Demon Hunters didn't just launch; it stayed—its momentum unrelenting as children (and their parents) fire up the film for repeat viewings. By the time you read this, it should easily have overtaken Don't Look Up, a multi-starrer headlined by Leonardo DiCaprio. Will it go on to hit No.1? Don't bet against it. Once upon a time, 'children's entertainment" was a ghetto, brightly coloured, often simplistic, and easily ignored by anyone outside its target age group. Today, shows and films aimed at young audiences far surpass the numbers ratcheted up by critically acclaimed prestige dramas. From Bluey memes to the Frozen sing-along industrial complex, kids' culture now seeps upward, dictating what trends, what gets made, and what dominates charts. KPop Demon Hunters is the apotheosis of that shift: slick, savvy, and with music that lodges itself into adult ears despite themselves. It's engineered for fandom engagement as well as social media performance. Netflix doesn't just have a hit; it has a cross-platform juggernaut whose memes are multilingual. The not so secret ingredient here is repeatability. Beloved prestige shows like Better Call Saul or The Bear might inspire one or two methodical rewatches among their faithful, but they are, by nature, slow-burn feasts. Animated blockbusters, on the other hand, are espresso shots of colour and melody designed for relentless looping. Parents hit 'Play Again" because the tiny, tyrannical overlords demand it. One household, one account, can clock a dozen views in a fortnight, and each is another gleaming tick in Netflix's rankings. The numbers don't just reflect reach. They reflect obsession, and that's where the grown-up market simply can't compete. The pint-sized popstars of Huntr/x are, therefore, not only hunting for demons. They're out for dominance, and they've already won. We will have to recalibrate ourselves. We're stepping into an age where the mainstream is defined by those still in school. The kids are holding the remote now, and the beat drops when they say so. Raja Sen is a screenwriter and critic. He has co-written Chup, a film about killing critics, and is now creating an absurd comedy series. He posts @rajasen.
Sinar Daily
08-08-2025
- Entertainment
- Sinar Daily
The real magic of Freakier Friday is picking up where we left off — and seeing how everyone's grown
It feels like 2025 is the year millennials get to relive their youth. From an ever-growing list of comeback concerts by the bands that raised us (hello KRU, Boyz II Men, Sheila On 7) to watching '90s and 2000s fashion trends take over our social media feeds, the entertainment industry is giving millennials many reasons to feel young again. Now with Freakier Friday in cinemas, it's like we're treated to another sweet bowl of nostalgia. From angsty teen to weathering the storms of motherhood, Lohan's Anna is all grown up. Photo: Disney The film sees the return of Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis, reprising their iconic roles from the 2003 remake. It's a typical body-swap plot, but the story reflects more than just teenage angst. More so, it mirrors generational healing. For the sequel, the chaos doubles when another body swap sends not just mum and daughter, but three generations into a whirlwind of mistaken identities. Tess Coleman (Curtis), now a chill grandma, and her grown-up daughter Anna (Lohan) are back at it, but this time, Anna's teen daughter Harper (played by rising star Julia Butters) and Lily Reyes (Sophia Hammons) also get pulled into the magical mess. Anna's teen daughter Harper (played by rising star Julia Butters) and Lily Reyes (Sophia Hammons) also get pulled into the magical mess. Photo: Disney Disclaimer: there are some spoilers here, but I can't write this review without acknowledging the easter eggs. If you're planning to catch it fresh, consider this your cue to keep those eyes peeled. What I can say is that the film knows exactly who it's speaking to and it rewards those of us who still remember Lohan's entire monologue from Mean Girls or when Hallie met Annie for the first time in The Parent Trap. In this film, Lohan's character is set to marry her love interest, Eric Davies, played by Manny Jacinto. Their wedding date? Oct 3rd. In film, Anna (Lohan) is set to marry Eric Davies (Manny Jacinto). Photo: Disney If you watched Mean Girls - you would know what this date means. It's the date that lives rent-free in our brains thanks to Aaron Samuels asking Cady what day it was in Mean Girls. Remember Meredith Blake from The Parent Trap? She makes a cameo here too, but this time Elaine Hendrix isn't sparring with 11-year-old Lohan on screen. Also, Anna's teenage band from the original Freaky Friday, Pink Slip, makes a return! Elaine Hendrix reunites on screen with Lindsay Lohan for Freakier Friday. Photo: Disney Characters we grew up with Let's talk about Lohan. There's something about seeing her back in this role. She's an actress who was once the very embodiment of early 2000s teen stardom, and is now playing a mother balancing work, teenage angst and her own identity crisis. Something us millennials can relate to. It's not an Oscar-bait performance, but it doesn't need to be. Lohan brings quiet depth to Anna, especially in the quieter scenes. Lohan was the it girl of our adolescence. But then came the tabloid years, the burnout, the cruel punchlines. Now, in her late 30s, she's back and in this movie, she doesn't try to pretend she never fell. She sincerely plays Anna as a mother who is fiercely loving yet slightly overwhelmed. From angsty teen to weathering the storms of motherhood, Lohan's Anna is all grown up. Photo: Disney The new generation While Freakier Friday gives us everything we want from Lohan and Curtis, it also smartly passes the baton or at least shares the screen with a promising new generation. Harper is the emotional anchor of the film's next-gen storyline. She's not a bratty teen; she's a smart, observant, slightly guarded girl who can smell parental insecurity far ahead. In some moments, she channels peak 2004 Lohan energy, equal parts uncanny and full of promise. Chad Michael Murray also reprises his role as Jake, though his screen time is lighter this time around. Photo: Disney So what's the verdict? Freakier Friday lets millennials see reflections of our chaotic, coming-of-age past while letting Gen Z stake their claim to their own awkward glory. The plot is predictable, but that's beside the point. It's really about picking up where we left off with these characters. Curtis is as iconic as ever, Lohan proves she still has that magic, and the younger cast holds their own with charm and comedic timing.
