Movie Review - K-Pops!

K-pop takes a back seat to Anderson .Paak.

For those that don’t know, K-pop is a highly produced, visually spectacular Korean pop music genre known for synchronized group choreography. You might think based on the marketing - and, y’know, THE TITLE - that this will be full of performances. But they’re actually few and far between.

7:42●●● 95%

RunPee · now 🔔

⏩

‹

‹

GET IT ONGoogle PlayDownload on theApp Store

Instead, .Paak (yes, he puts the dot before his last name) directs, cowrites, and stars as BJ, a cocky, washed-up LA drummer who heads to Seoul for a house-band gig on an “American Idol”-style K-pop contest. There, he crosses paths with a young contestant (played by his real-life son), sparking unexpected personal growth.

.Paak’s infectious charm and rhythm carry the film—he’s a joy to watch. The movie is breezy, colorful, silly (sometimes the good kind and sometimes not), but it’s also very lightweight and formulaic.

If you want some brain-off entertainment with a magnetic lead, this is a solid choice. Just don’t go in for a K-pop deep dive—you’ll get .Paak stealing the show instead.

Grade: B-

Plot
A washed-up musician travels to Korea to write for K-pop stars, discovering that his long-lost son is set to front one of the country’s hottest new groups. He then jumps at the opportunity to capitalize on his son’s stardom for his own renaissance, but learns that fatherhood is much more fulfilling and meaningful than stardom.